Business Administration & Management

Types of Degrees Business Administration & Management Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many business administration and management graduations there were in 2018-2019 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	128,188
Graduate Certificate	4,965
Doctor’s Degree	2,604

What Business Administration & Management Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, business administration majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Business Administration Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Skills for Business Administration Majors

business administration majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Abilities for Business Administration Majors

As you progress with your business administration degree, there are several abilities you should pick up that will help you in whatever related career you choose. These abilities include:

• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Can You Do With a Business Administration & Management Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with business administration:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Administrative Services Managers	10.1%	$96,180
Agents and Business Managers of Artists, Performers, and Athletes	4.7%	$66,040
Brownfield Redevelopment Specialists and Site Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Business Professors	18.0%	$83,960
Clinical Research Coordinators	9.9%	$123,860
Compliance Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Computer and Information Systems Managers	12.0%	$142,530
Construction Managers	11.1%	$93,370
Cost Estimators	10.5%	$64,040
First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers	3.8%	$39,630
General and Operations Managers	9.1%	$100,930
Investment Fund Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Logisticians	6.9%	$74,600
Logistics Analysts	6.9%	$74,600
Logistics Engineers	6.9%	$74,600
Logistics Managers	6.8%	$94,730
Loss Prevention Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Management Analysts	14.3%	$83,610
Natural Sciences Managers	9.9%	$123,860
Purchasing Managers	5.4%	$118,940
Regulatory Affairs Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Sales Managers	7.5%	$124,220
Security Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Social and Community Service Managers	18.0%	$65,320
Storage and Distribution Managers	6.8%	$94,730
Supply Chain Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Transportation Managers	6.8%	$94,730
Water Resource Specialists	9.9%	$123,860
Wind Energy Operations Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Wind Energy Project Managers	8.0%	$107,480

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Business Administration & Management?

This is one of the most frequently chosen graduate majors. It is the 1st most popular in the country with 128,077 students graduating with a master’s in business administration in 2019. Roughly 47% of the graduates are women, and 53% are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of business administration majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	8,462
Black or African American	17,683
Hispanic or Latino	11,512
White	61,510
International Students	15,196
Other Races/Ethnicities	13,825

Geographic Diversity

Business Administration appeals to people across the globe. About 11.9% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• China
• India
• Saudi Arabia
• South Korea
• Vietnam

How Much Do Business Administration & Management Majors Make?

Master’s Degree Starting Salary

Data from the U.S. Department of Education shows that business administration and management students who graduated in 2015-2017 with a master’s degree made a median starting salary of $61,300 per year. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $53,500 (25th percentile) and $73,900 (75th percentile).

It’s important to note that just because the people reporting these salaries have a degree in business administration, it does not mean that they are working in a job related to their degree.

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $71,670 to $123,880 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to business administration. This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Business Administration & Management

Some careers associated with business administration require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

Find out what the typical degree level is for business administration careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	0.6%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	12.0%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	5.8%
Some College Courses	9.2%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	8.9%
Bachelor’s Degree	44.6%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	3.7%
Master’s Degree	10.9%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	1.1%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	0.2%
Doctoral Degree	3.1%
Post-Doctoral Training	0.4%

Online Business Administration & Management Programs

In the 2018-2019 academic year, 2,725 schools offered some type of business administration and management program. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	1,168	371
Certificate (1-2 years)	661	207
Certificate (2-4 Years)	17	2
Associate’s Degree	1,821	654
Bachelor’s Degree	521	236
Post-Baccalaureate	1,168	371
Master’s Degree	1,755	950
Post-Master’s	96	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	213	56
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	11	2
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	3	1

Is a Degree in Business Administration & Management Worth It?

The median salary for a business administration grad is $103,110 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 158% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,264,200 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Business Administration & Management

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to business administration.

Major	Number of Grads
Accounting	21,904
Management Sciences & Quantitative Methods	14,136
Human Resource Management	10,770
General Business/Commerce	10,236
Finance & Financial Management	6,277
Marketing	3,308
Management Information Systems	3,158
International Business	2,417
Entrepreneurial Studies	1,778
Taxation	1,611
Other Business, Management & Marketing	1,240
Real Estate	1,186
Hospitality Management	1,072
General Sales & Marketing	637
Construction Management	507
Business/Managerial Economics	267
Specialized Sales, Merchandising & Marketing	221
Insurance	173
Business/Corporate Communications	80
Telecommunications Management	38
Business Support & Assistant Services	0

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.