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Museum Studies Major

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Museum Studies

490 Master's Degrees Annually
#151 in Popularity (Master's)
$56,400 Median Salary

Types of Degrees Museum Studies Majors Are Getting

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

Education Level Number of Grads
Master’s Degree 490
Graduate Certificate 206

What Museum Studies Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to museum 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 Museum Studies Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

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  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
  • 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.
  • Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
  • 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.

Skills for Museum Studies Majors

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

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

Abilities for Museum Studies Majors

A major in museum studies will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

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  • Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • 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.
  • Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
  • Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a Museum Studies Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with museum studies:

Job Title Job Growth Rate Median Salary
Archivists 14.7% $52,240
Curators 13.7% $53,780
Museum Technicians and Conservators 12.7% $43,020

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

490 Master's Degrees Annually
82% Percent Women
27% Percent Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
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 museum studies majors is as follows:

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Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 18
Black or African American 25
Hispanic or Latino 62
White 316
International Students 25
Other Races/Ethnicities 44

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in Museum Studies. About 5.1% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

  • China
  • South Korea
  • Canada
  • Taiwan
  • Argentina

How Much Do Museum Studies Majors Make?

Master’s Degree Starting Salary

According to 2019-2020 data from the U.S. Department of Education, students who graduated with a master’s degree in museum studies have a median salary of $36,392 during the early years of their career. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $31,714 (25th percentile) and $39,621 (75th percentile).

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

Salaries According to BLS

Museum Studies majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $46,870 to $58,490 (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.

Median Salary for a Museum Studies Major  ( 46870 to 58490 )
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250K
Median Salary for a High School Graduate  ( 30000 to 57900 )
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250K
Median Salary for a Bachelor's Degree Holder  ( 45600 to 99000 )
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250K
Median Salary for an Advanced Degree Holder  ( 55600 to 125400 )
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250K

Some degrees associated with museum 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 museum studies careers below.

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Education Level Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) 0.4%
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) 5.7%
Some College Courses 1.3%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) 2.6%
Bachelor’s Degree 13.5%
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. 4.2%
Master’s Degree 56.2%
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. 2.7%
Doctoral Degree 13.2%
Post-Doctoral Training 0.8%

Online Museum Studies Programs

In the 2020-2021 academic year, 91 schools offered some type of museum 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) 3 0
Certificate (2-4 Years) 0 0
Associate’s Degree 3 0
Bachelor’s Degree 35 2
Post-Baccalaureate 0 0
Master’s Degree 40 2
Post-Master’s 4 0
Doctor’s Degree (Research) 0 0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) 0 0
Doctor’s Degree (Other) 0 0

Is a Degree in Museum Studies Worth It?

The median salary for a museum studies grad is $56,400 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 41% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $330,000 after 20 years!

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

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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