Information Technology
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Types of Degrees Information Technology Majors Are Getting
The following table lists how many information technology graduations there were in 2019-2020 for each degree level.
Education Level | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Master’s Degree | 10,693 |
Graduate Certificate | 1,277 |
Doctor’s Degree | 102 |
What Information Technology Majors Need to Know
O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to IT and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.
Knowledge Areas for IT Majors
IT majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- 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.
- 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.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Skills for IT Majors
IT 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.
- 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.
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Abilities for IT Majors
As a IT major, you will find yourself needing the following abilities:

- Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- 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.
- Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
What Can You Do With a Information Technology Major?
People with a IT degree often go into the following careers:
Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Information Technology?
Racial-Ethnic Diversity
At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of IT majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Asian | 654 |
Black or African American | 1,011 |
Hispanic or Latino | 545 |
White | 2,343 |
International Students | 5,517 |
Other Races/Ethnicities | 623 |
Geographic Diversity
IT appeals to people across the globe. About 51.6% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:
- India
- Saudi Arabia
- China
- Nepal
- Nigeria
How Much Do Information Technology Majors Make?
Master’s Degree Starting Salary
The median early-career salary of information technology students with a master’s degree is $89,300 a year according to 2017-2018 data from the U.S. Department of Education. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $78,700 (25th percentile) and $90,300 (75th percentile).

Note that some of these people may have jobs that are not directly related to a IT degree.
Salaries According to BLS
IT majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $75,580 to $111,130 (25th to 75th percentile). This range includes all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.
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 Information Technology
Some degrees associated with IT may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. 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 IT careers below.

Education Level | Percentage of Workers |
---|---|
Less than a High School Diploma | 0.2% |
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) | 4.2% |
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) | 8.3% |
Some College Courses | 6.2% |
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 12.0% |
Bachelor’s Degree | 53.2% |
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. | 5.1% |
Master’s Degree | 9.8% |
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. | 1.0% |
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. | 0.5% |
Doctoral Degree | 0.2% |
Online Information Technology Programs
In the 2019-2020 academic year, 1,124 schools offered some type of information technology 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) | 0 | 0 |
Certificate (1-2 years) | 426 | 43 |
Certificate (2-4 Years) | 54 | 8 |
Associate’s Degree | 736 | 135 |
Bachelor’s Degree | 135 | 57 |
Post-Baccalaureate | 0 | 0 |
Master’s Degree | 244 | 110 |
Post-Master’s | 10 | 0 |
Doctor’s Degree (Research) | 12 | 4 |
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) | 0 | 0 |
Doctor’s Degree (Other) | 0 | 0 |
Is a Degree in Information Technology Worth It?
The median salary for a IT grad is $92,030 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.
This is 131% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,042,600 after 20 years!

Top Ranking Lists for Information Technology
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Majors Related to Information Technology
You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to IT.
Major | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Computer Information Systems | 81,384 |
Computer Science | 53,722 |
Information Science | 18,368 |
Computer Systems Networking | 14,814 |
Computer Software & Applications | 13,180 |
Computer Programming | 10,756 |
Data Processing | 2,320 |
Computer Systems Analysis | 2,269 |
Other Computer & Information Sciences | 1,326 |
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 Craig Dennis under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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