Medieval Studies

Types of Degrees Medieval Studies Majors Are Getting

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

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	20
Graduate Certificate	19
Doctor’s Degree	7

What Medieval Studies Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to medieval 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 Medieval Studies Majors

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

• History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• 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.
• 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.
• Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

Skills for Medieval Studies Majors

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

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• 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.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Abilities for Medieval Studies Majors

Medieval Studies majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

• 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.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

What Can You Do With a Medieval Studies Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with medieval studies:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Historians	6.1%	$61,140

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

This major is dominated by women with about 55% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	2
Black or African American	0
Hispanic or Latino	0
White	11
International Students	4
Other Races/Ethnicities	3

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in Medieval Studies. About 20.0% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• United Kingdom
• Canada
• Poland
• Iceland
• Germany

How Much Do Medieval Studies Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

The median salary for someone in a career related to medieval studies is $66,380. This median refers to 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 Medieval Studies

Some degrees associated with medieval studies 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 medieval studies careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	9.0%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	9.4%
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)	15.2%
Some College Courses	18.0%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	0.5%
Bachelor’s Degree	20.4%
Master’s Degree	23.9%
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.	3.7%

Online Medieval Studies Programs

In the 2020-2021 academic year, 62 schools offered some type of medieval studies 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)	0	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	0	0
Bachelor’s Degree	12	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	10	0
Post-Master’s	4	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	5	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Medieval Studies Worth It?

The median salary for a medieval studies grad is $66,380 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 66% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $529,600 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Medieval Studies

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to medieval 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
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
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 Edmund Leighton under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.