Hospice and Palliative Care Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Hospice and Palliative Care maps to BLS occupations averaging about $44,634, with roughly 62,390 workers nationwide in those roles. Median in-state published tuition is about $5,545; common paths include Personal Care Aides and Personal Care and Service Workers, All Other.
Key Statistics
Hospice and Palliative Care: what the data shows
Common questions about hospice and palliative care degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a hospice and palliative care degree?
A Hospice and Palliative Care program is classified under NCES CIP 51.1512 in the Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions field family (51.15).
A program of study that prepares individuals to work with patients in hospice and palliative care and focuses on the physical, psychological, spiritual, and social needs of patients and families affected by advanced illness. Includes instruction in aging, thanatology, pharmacology, complementary and integrative therapies, pathophysiology, and ethics
Types of hospice and palliative care degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 51.15 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Clinical Pastoral Counseling/Patient Counseling (CIP 51.1506)
- Clinical/Medical Social Work (CIP 51.1503)
- Community Health Services/Liaison/Counseling (CIP 51.1504)
- Genetic Counseling/Counselor (CIP 51.1509)
- Infant/Toddler Mental Health Services (CIP 51.1510)
- Marriage and Family Therapy/Counseling (CIP 51.1505)
- Medical Family Therapy/Therapist (CIP 51.1511)
- Mental Health Counseling/Counselor (CIP 51.1508)
- Psychiatric/Mental Health Services Technician (CIP 51.1502)
- Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy (CIP 51.1507)
- Substance Abuse/Addiction Counseling (CIP 51.1501)
- Trauma Counseling (CIP 51.1513)
What degree do you need?
For Personal Care Aides (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%).
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a hospice and palliative care degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Hospice and Palliative Care 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Personal Care Aides | — | — |
| Personal Care and Service Workers, All Other | 62,390 | $37,900 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a hospice and palliative care degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions bachelor's program family: median debt $24,199, median earnings $52,119 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.61.
About 5.3% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians.
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $5,545 and median net price is $13,381.
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 Hospice and Palliative Care and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$5,545 Median In-State Public
$35,056 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Hospice and Palliative Care majors are, on average, $5,545 for in-state public colleges, and $35,056 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Hospice and Palliative Care programs.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
100,000 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Hospice and Palliative Care from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Hospice and Palliative Care.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 163,164 |
| 2 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 163,164 |
| 3 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 163,164 |
| 4 | University of Phoenix-Arizona | AZ | 85,991 |
| 5 | Grand Canyon University | AZ | 73,371 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Hospice and Palliative Care programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tohono O'odham Community College | AZ | $932 |
| 2 | Antelope Valley Community College District | CA | $1,124 |
| 3 | Woodland Community College | CA | $1,124 |
| 4 | Woodland Community College | CA | $1,124 |
| 5 | Yuba College | CA | $1,128 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Hospice and Palliative Care programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Mexico State University-Grants | NM | $68 |
| 2 | Fort Peck Community College | MT | $400 |
| 3 | College of San Mateo | CA | $536 |
| 4 | College of San Mateo | CA | $536 |
| 5 | Piedmont Community College | NC | $1,095 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Hospice and Palliative Care programs.
Graduation Rates
Graduation rate data is not available for this degree program.
Graduation/completion rates for Hospice and Palliative Care programs across institutions.
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 51.15 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Clinical Pastoral Counseling/Patient Counseling CIP 51.1506
- Clinical/Medical Social Work CIP 51.1503
- Community Health Services/Liaison/Counseling CIP 51.1504
- Genetic Counseling/Counselor CIP 51.1509
- Infant/Toddler Mental Health Services CIP 51.1510
- Marriage and Family Therapy/Counseling CIP 51.1505
- Medical Family Therapy/Therapist CIP 51.1511
- Mental Health Counseling/Counselor CIP 51.1508
- Psychiatric/Mental Health Services Technician CIP 51.1502
- Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy CIP 51.1507
- Substance Abuse/Addiction Counseling CIP 51.1501
- Trauma Counseling CIP 51.1513
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 $44,634. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Hospice and Palliative Care graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Personal Care Aides | — | — |
| Personal Care and Service Workers, All Other | $44,634 | 62,390 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions CIP family (18 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every Hospice and Palliative Care graduate.
- $24,199 median federal loan debt among completers
- $52,119 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.61 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 5.3% of graduates not working and not enrolled one year out (program cohort)
Source: College Scorecard program-level outcomes aggregated by 4-digit CIP family.
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
$44,634 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Hospice and Palliative Care majors is $44,634.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Hospice and Palliative Care majors.
Occupations by Share
62,390 2023 Workforce
The number of Hospice and Palliative Care graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Hospice and Palliative Care by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Hospice and Palliative Care in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Hospice and Palliative Care.
Age distribution for Hospice and Palliative Care degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
3 Total Degrees Awarded
3 Female (100.00%)
Gender distribution of Hospice and Palliative Care degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
1 White (33.33%)
1 Asian (33.33%)
1 Two or More Races (33.33%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Hospice and Palliative Care degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Hospice and Palliative Care are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Hospice and Palliative Care.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Hospice and Palliative Care field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Hospice and Palliative Care majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Hospice and Palliative Care 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 Hospice and Palliative Care majors.
About
A program of study that prepares individuals to work with patients in hospice and palliative care and focuses on the physical, psychological, spiritual, and social needs of patients and families affected by advanced illness. Includes instruction in aging, thanatology, pharmacology, complementary and integrative therapies, pathophysiology, and ethics
In 2023, 100,000 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Hospice and Palliative Care.
CIP Code
51.1512 - Hospice and Palliative Care
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $24,199 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $52,119, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.61. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual Hospice and Palliative Care graduate.
Women earned 100.0% of 3 Hospice and Palliative Care completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $44,634. The largest mapped role by headcount is Personal Care Aides (N/A U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $5,545 in-state at public colleges and $35,056 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.