General Family & Consumer Sciences

Types of Degrees General Family & Consumer Sciences Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many general family and consumer sciences graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	328
Doctor’s Degree	37
Graduate Certificate	3

What General Family & Consumer Sciences Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to consumer science 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 Consumer Science Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in consumer science should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• 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.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Skills for Consumer Science Majors

When studying consumer science, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

• 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.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
• Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.

Abilities for Consumer Science Majors

As a consumer science major, you will find yourself needing the following abilities:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a General Family & Consumer Sciences Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with consumer science:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Farm and Home Management Advisors	7.7%	$49,840
Home Economics Professors	8.6%	$71,380
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education	7.5%	$60,320

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in General Family & Consumer Sciences?

This major is dominated by women with about 82% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	11
Black or African American	61
Hispanic or Latino	19
White	203
International Students	13
Other Races/Ethnicities	21

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Consumer Science, too. About 4.0% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• China
• South Korea
• Saudi Arabia
• Japan
• Iran

How Much Do General Family & Consumer Sciences Majors Make?

Master’s Degree Starting Salary

Data from the U.S. Department of Education shows that general family and consumer sciences students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a master’s degree made a median starting salary of $42,593 per year. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $39,634 (25th percentile) and $44,844 (75th percentile).

We don’t know for sure if all of these people took jobs related to consumer science so take that into consideration.

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $52,700 to $77,170 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to consumer science. 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 General Family & Consumer Sciences

Some degrees associated with consumer science may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. 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 consumer science careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
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)	0.7%
Some College Courses	0.4%
Bachelor’s Degree	27.1%
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.	9.2%
Master’s Degree	38.1%
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.	3.4%
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.	0.1%
Doctoral Degree	21.0%
Post-Doctoral Training	0.3%

Online General Family & Consumer Sciences Programs

In 2020-2021, 122 schools offered a consumer science program of some type. 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)	1	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	17	1
Bachelor’s Degree	4	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	35	7
Post-Master’s	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	9	1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in General Family & Consumer Sciences Worth It?

The median salary for a consumer science grad is $64,340 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 61% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $488,800 after 20 years!

Majors Related to General Family & Consumer Sciences

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

Major	Number of Grads
Human Development & Family Studies	1,589
Food, Nutrition & Related Services	1,214
Family & Consumer Economics	251
Textile & Apparel Studies	150
Human Sciences Business Services	58
Housing	54
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences (Other)	8

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 National Cancer Institute under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.