Management Science

Types of Degrees Management Science Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many management sciences & quantitative methods graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	41,157
Graduate Certificate	2,325
Doctor’s Degree	332

What Management Science Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, management science 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 Management Science Majors

Management Science majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• 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.
• 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.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Skills for Management Science Majors

A major in management science prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• 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.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

Abilities for Management Science Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a management science student include the following:

• 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.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Can You Do With a Management Science Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with management science:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Actuaries	22.5%	$102,880
Business Professors	18.0%	$83,960
General and Operations Managers	9.1%	$100,930
Mathematical Science Professors	9.4%	$73,230
Operations Research Analysts	27.5%	$83,390
Statisticians	33.9%	$87,780
Survey Researchers	2.1%	$57,700

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Management Science?

This is one of the most frequently chosen graduate majors. It is the 4th most popular in the country with 29,299 students graduating with a master’s in management science in 2021. This major attracts more men than women. About 57% of the graduates in this field are male.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of management science majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	4,558
Black or African American	1,667
Hispanic or Latino	2,353
White	12,449
International Students	17,930
Other Races/Ethnicities	2,200

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Management Science, too. About 43.6% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Management Science

Some careers associated with management science require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

Find out what the typical degree level is for management science careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	3.7%
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)	1.6%
Some College Courses	4.6%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	3.2%
Bachelor’s Degree	32.1%
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.	8.7%
Master’s Degree	24.9%
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.	2.6%
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.	1.7%
Doctoral Degree	15.9%
Post-Doctoral Training	1.8%

Online Management Science Programs

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)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	15	2
Certificate (2-4 Years)	2	1
Associate’s Degree	15	3
Bachelor’s Degree	169	63
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	490	94
Post-Master’s	22	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	54	3
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	2	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Management Science

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to management science.

Major	Number of Grads
Business Administration & Management	395,227
Accounting	84,760
Finance & Financial Management	58,013
General Business/Commerce	57,204
Marketing	52,820
Human Resource Management	25,350
Business Support & Assistant Services	16,604
Hospitality Management	14,076
Entrepreneurial Studies	12,707
Management Information Systems	11,695
Real Estate	7,783
International Business	7,505
General Sales & Marketing	5,965
Other Business, Management & Marketing	4,903
Business/Managerial Economics	4,885
Specialized Sales, Merchandising & Marketing	4,322
Construction Management	4,158
Insurance	2,334
Taxation	1,257
Business/Corporate Communications	837
Telecommunications Management	58

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
• Image Credit: By в±® under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.