Business Administration Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Business Administration maps to BLS occupations averaging about $63,546, with roughly 130,740 workers nationwide in those roles. About 386,261 bachelor's completions in IPEDS 2023; median program completion runs near 58%.
Key Statistics
Business Administration: what the data shows
Common questions about business administration degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a business administration degree?
A Business Administration program is classified under NCES CIP 52.5202 in the 52.0052 field family (52.52).
IPEDS counted 386,261 completions for this CIP in the survey year in our extract.
Types of business administration degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 52.52 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Construction Management (CIP 52.5220)
- Information Systems (CIP 52.5212)
How long does it take to get a business administration degree?
Award levels reported to IPEDS for CIP 52.5202 in our file:
- 104,171 Associate (15.0% of IPEDS total)—about two years of full-time study
- 386,261 Bachelor's (55.5% of IPEDS total)—typically four years
- 203,408 Master's (29.2% of IPEDS total)—one to two years beyond a bachelor's
- 1,918 Doctorate (0.3% of IPEDS total)—varies by program
Time to completion depends on enrollment intensity and transfer credits; figures above describe credential type, not calendar time for every student.
What do you learn in business administration?
O*NET skill ratings for occupations mapped to this major emphasize Speaking, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Service Orientation, Social Perceptiveness, Coordination, and related competencies. See the Skills section for the full list in our extract.
What degree do you need?
For New Accounts Clerks (top mapped occupation), O*NET incumbent surveys in our career profile report these education credentials most often: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%). Bachelor's awards account for a majority of IPEDS completions for CIP 52.5202, but occupation data show multiple pathways.
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a business administration degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Business Administration to the BLS roles below. Employment is U.S. OEWS; median wage is national May 2024 where published in our extract.
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| New Accounts Clerks | 38,030 | $46,610 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers | 219,010 | $84,130 |
| Gambling Cage Workers | 13,490 | $36,990 |
| Gambling and Sports Book Writers and Runners | 7,600 | $30,460 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers | 1,113,160 | $47,320 |
| Travel Guides | — | — |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a business administration degree worth it?
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $5,260 and median net price is $14,321.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Business Administration and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$5,260 Median In-State Public
$30,680 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Business Administration majors are, on average, $5,260 for in-state public colleges, and $30,680 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Business Administration programs.
Institutions awarding the most Business Administration degrees
| # | Institution | State | Completions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 15,591 |
| 2 | University of Phoenix-Arizona | AZ | 14,221 |
| 3 | Western Governors University | UT | 12,463 |
| 4 | Miami Dade College | FL | 9,715 |
| 5 | Purdue University Global | IN | 6,368 |
| 6 | Valencia College | FL | 5,554 |
| 7 | American College of Financial Services | PA | 5,372 |
| 8 | American Public University System | WV | 5,266 |
| 9 | Ivy Tech Community College | IN | 5,012 |
| 10 | Colorado Technical University-Colorado Springs | CO | 4,800 |
IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), all award levels for this CIP in our extract.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
386,261 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Business Administration from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Business Administration.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 156,755 |
| 2 | Western Governors University | UT | 135,822 |
| 3 | University of Phoenix-Arizona | AZ | 76,996 |
| 4 | Grand Canyon University | AZ | 68,619 |
| 5 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,398 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Business Administration programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Haskell Indian Nations University | KS | $600 |
| 2 | Tohono O'odham Community College | AZ | $932 |
| 3 | Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute | NM | $1,095 |
| 4 | Barstow Community College | CA | $1,104 |
| 5 | Taft College | CA | $1,108 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Business Administration programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Canada College | CA | $10 |
| 2 | College of the Sequoias | CA | $29 |
| 3 | Coastal Pines Technical College | GA | $124 |
| 4 | Oconee Fall Line Technical College | GA | $294 |
| 5 | Cleveland Community College | NC | $414 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Business Administration programs.
Graduation Rates
57.77% Median Graduation Rate (150% of normal time)
59.28% Average Graduation Rate
155 Institutions Reporting
47.83% - 70.66% Interquartile Range
Graduation/completion rates for Business Administration programs across institutions.
Where students complete this major (IPEDS)
Bachelor's-level completions (IPEDS Completions, award level 5) summed by institution state. State is taken from IPEDS Directory (HD2023) for each reporting institution.
Geographic concentration
The largest number of reported bachelor's completions for Business Administration is in CA (35,374 completions). That state represents about 9.2% of U.S. bachelor's completions reported for this CIP in the IPEDS file we use.
Among states, the highest concentration relative to all bachelor's degrees awarded in-state is FM (40.00% of that state's bachelor's completions).
Top states by count of bachelor's completions for this CIP (IPEDS).
| State | Bachelor's completions (this CIP) | % of U.S. total (this CIP) | % of state's all bachelor's |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA | 35,374 | 9.2% | 7.87% |
| TX | 27,385 | 7.1% | 9.35% |
| FL | 23,688 | 6.1% | 10.34% |
| NY | 20,380 | 5.3% | 7.39% |
| AZ | 17,435 | 4.5% | 12.56% |
| PA | 15,763 | 4.1% | 9.23% |
| OH | 13,969 | 3.6% | 10.09% |
| GA | 11,748 | 3.0% | 10.26% |
| NC | 10,963 | 2.8% | 8.87% |
| MI | 10,776 | 2.8% | 9.40% |
| MA | 10,678 | 2.8% | 8.38% |
| IN | 10,658 | 2.8% | 10.31% |
| UT | 10,496 | 2.7% | 9.72% |
| VA | 10,440 | 2.7% | 8.50% |
| IL | 10,378 | 2.7% | 7.49% |
| NH | 9,295 | 2.4% | 14.69% |
| NJ | 8,227 | 2.1% | 9.53% |
| AL | 7,944 | 2.1% | 11.73% |
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 52.52 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Construction Management CIP 52.5220
- Information Systems CIP 52.5212
Degree Levels (IPEDS)
Completions reported to IPEDS for CIP 52.5202 in the survey year used in our extract (695,758 total across levels below).
- 104,171 Associate (15.0% of IPEDS total)
- 386,261 Bachelor's (55.5% of IPEDS total)
- 203,408 Master's (29.2% of IPEDS total)
- 1,918 Doctorate (0.3% of IPEDS total)
Source: IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), summed by award level for this CIP.
Careers & Jobs
Occupations linked to this major in our degree→career mapping, with wages and employment from processed BLS career profiles in this repo.
Across these BLS occupations, employment-weighted mean pay is about $63,546. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Business Administration graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| New Accounts Clerks | $57,370 | 38,030 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers | $96,985 | 219,010 |
| Gambling Cage Workers | $43,068 | 13,490 |
| Gambling and Sports Book Writers and Runners | $41,322 | 7,600 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers | $57,578 | 1,113,160 |
| Travel Guides | — | — |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$63,153 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Business Administration majors is $63,153.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Business Administration majors.
Occupations by Share
130,740 2023 Workforce
The number of Business Administration graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Business Administration by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Business Administration in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Business Administration.
Age distribution for Business Administration degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
386,261 Total Degrees Awarded
209,303 Male (54.19%)
176,958 Female (45.81%)
Gender distribution of Business Administration degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
209,211 White (54.16%)
61,943 Hispanic or Latino (16.04%)
33,941 Black or African American (8.79%)
29,985 Asian (7.76%)
14,044 Two or More Races (3.64%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Business Administration degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Business Administration are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Business Administration.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Business Administration field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Business Administration majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Business Administration majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Business Administration majors.
About
Business Administration
In 2023, 386,261 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Business Administration.
CIP Code
52.5202 - Business Administration
What the data shows
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $63,546. The largest mapped role by headcount is New Accounts Clerks (38,030 U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $5,260 in-state at public colleges and $30,680 at private institutions for programs in this field.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.