Museum Studies

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

In an O*NET survey, museum studies majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Museum Studies Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in museum studies 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.
• 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

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

• 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

As you progress with your museum studies degree, there are several abilities you should pick up that will help you in whatever related career you choose. These abilities include:

• 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?

People with a museum studies degree often go into the following careers:

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?

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:

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

Museum Studies appeals to people across the globe. 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).

It’s important to note that just because the people reporting these salaries have a degree in museum studies, it does not mean that they are working in a job related to their degree.

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $46,870 to $58,490 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to museum studies. 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 Museum Studies

Some degrees associated with museum studies may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to museum studies have obtained the following education levels.

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!

Majors Related to Museum Studies

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.

• 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

More about our data sources and methodologies.