Interdisciplinary Studies

Types of Degrees Interdisciplinary Studies Majors Are Getting

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

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	308
Doctor’s Degree	47
Graduate Certificate	47

What Interdisciplinary Studies Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to interdisciplinary studies 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 Interdisciplinary Studies Majors

Interdisciplinary Studies majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

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

interdisciplinary studies majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• 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.
• 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.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Interdisciplinary Studies?

The major attracts more women than men. About 64% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of interdisciplinary studies majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	23
Black or African American	35
Hispanic or Latino	35
White	160
International Students	28
Other Races/Ethnicities	27

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Interdisciplinary Studies, too. About 9.1% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• China
• Canada
• South Korea
• Mexico
• India

Master’s Degree Starting Salary

Data from the U.S. Department of Education shows that interdisciplinary studies students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a master’s degree made a median starting salary of $46,387 per year. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $46,387 (25th percentile) and $46,387 (75th percentile).

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

Online Interdisciplinary Studies Programs

In 2020-2021, 352 schools offered a interdisciplinary studies 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)	6	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	2	0
Associate’s Degree	63	22
Bachelor’s Degree	13	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	39	4
Post-Master’s	3	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	10	1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Interdisciplinary Studies

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to interdisciplinary studies.

Major	Number of Grads
Other Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies	2,491
Sustainability Science	1,547
Nutrition Science	1,496
Behavioral Science	1,358
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
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 UTDallas under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.