Behavioral Science

Types of Degrees Behavioral Science Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many behavioral science graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	1,148
Doctor’s Degree	138
Graduate Certificate	72

What Behavioral Science Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to behavioral 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 Behavioral Science Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in behavioral 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.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• 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.
• 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.

Skills for Behavioral Science Majors

behavioral science majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• 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.
• 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.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

Abilities for Behavioral Science Majors

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

• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• 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.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a Behavioral Science Major?

People with a behavioral science degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Community and Social Service Specialists	13.2%	$42,620
Life Scientists	9.0%	$78,190
Neuropsychologists and Clinical Neuropsychologists	10.3%	$100,770
Transportation Planners	6.7%	$81,340

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

This major is dominated by women with about 84% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	77
Black or African American	173
Hispanic or Latino	161
White	563
International Students	99
Other Races/Ethnicities	75

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Behavioral Science, too. About 8.6% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• Canada
• India
• Malaysia
• China
• South Korea

How Much Do Behavioral Science Majors Make?

Master’s Degree Starting Salary

The median starting salary of students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a master’s degree in behavioral science was $41,307 per year. These stats come from the U.S. Department of Education. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $41,307 (25th percentile) and $41,307 (75th percentile).

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

Salaries According to BLS

Behavioral Science majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $46,050 to $89,150 (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 Behavioral Science

Some careers associated with behavioral 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 behavioral science careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Bachelor’s Degree	36.2%
Master’s Degree	12.1%
Doctoral Degree	4.0%
Post-Doctoral Training	48.2%

Online Behavioral Science Programs

In 2020-2021, 128 schools offered a behavioral 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)	2	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	29	8
Bachelor’s Degree	13	3
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	28	3
Post-Master’s	4	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	19	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Behavioral Science Worth It?

The median salary for a behavioral science grad is $85,750 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 115% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $917,000 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Behavioral Science

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

Major	Number of Grads
Other Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies	2,491
Sustainability Science	1,547
Nutrition Science	1,496
Computational Science	1,063
International Studies	918
Human Computer Interaction	822
Data Analytics	793
Museum Studies	696
Gerontology	655
Biological & Physical Science	639
Peace Studies & Conflict Resolution	522
Systems Theory	461
Dispute Resolution	416
Interdisciplinary Studies	402
Data Science	373
Mathematics & Computer Science	290
Historic Preservation	266
Science, Technology & Society	198
Multicultural & Diversity Studies	176
Cultural Studies & Analysis	161
Cognitive Science	123
Marine Science	104
Natural Sciences	76
Holocaust Studies	54
Medieval Studies	46
Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature	28
Human Biology	18
Classical & Ancient Studies	17
Earth Systems Science	13
Maritime Studies	9
Accounting & Computer Science	8
Linguistics and Computer Science	6
Environmental Geosciences	6
Linguistics and Anthropology	2
Thanatology	0
Biopsychology	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
• Image Credit: By Polimerek under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.