Natural Sciences

Types of Degrees Natural Sciences Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many natural sciences graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	67
Doctor’s Degree	15
Graduate Certificate	7

What Natural Sciences Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to natural sciences were asked what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. They weighted these areas on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.

Knowledge Areas for Natural Sciences Majors

Natural Sciences majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

Skills for Natural Sciences Majors

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

Abilities for Natural Sciences Majors

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

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

What Can You Do With a Natural Sciences Major?

People with a natural sciences degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Life Scientists	9.0%	$78,190
Natural Sciences Managers	9.9%	$123,860
Remote Sensing Scientists and Technologists	6.8%	$107,230
Water Resource Specialists	9.9%	$123,860

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Natural Sciences?

The major attracts more women than men. About 57% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of natural sciences majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	0
Black or African American	4
Hispanic or Latino	7
White	44
International Students	4
Other Races/Ethnicities	8

Geographic Diversity

Natural Sciences appeals to people across the globe. About 6.0% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Natural Sciences

Some careers associated with natural sciences 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 natural sciences careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
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)	1.2%
Bachelor’s Degree	40.1%
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.	6.1%
Master’s Degree	32.1%
Doctoral Degree	16.8%
Post-Doctoral Training	4.6%

Online Natural Sciences Programs

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)	12	4
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	37	5
Bachelor’s Degree	4	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	17	1
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	3	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Natural Sciences

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

Major	Number of Grads
Other Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies	29,596
Biological & Physical Science	28,469
Interdisciplinary Studies	9,341
Data Analytics	7,294
International Studies	6,458
Nutrition Science	5,514
Behavioral Science	4,777
Data Science	4,416
Sustainability Science	4,382
Cognitive Science	2,959
Human Computer Interaction	2,324
Computational Science	2,167
Human Biology	2,016
Mathematics & Computer Science	1,489
Systems Theory	1,080
Peace Studies & Conflict Resolution	1,074
Gerontology	951
Museum Studies	892
Geography and Environmental Studies	809
Science, Technology & Society	805
Dispute Resolution	652
Multicultural & Diversity Studies	584
Marine Science	436
Historic Preservation	423
Cultural Studies & Analysis	375
Classical & Ancient Studies	290
Biopsychology	208
Philosophy, Politics, and Economics	153
Mathematical Economics	139
Climate Science	110
Medieval Studies	105
Environmental Geosciences	102
Economics and Computer Science	89
Maritime Studies	68
History and Political Science	68
Holocaust Studies	67
Accounting & Computer Science	55
Digital Humanities and Textual Studies	54
Anthrozoology	47
Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature	40
Earth Systems Science	25
Economics and Foreign Language/Literature	12
Thanatology	8
Linguistics and Computer Science	4
Geoarcheaology	1
History and Language/Literature	1
Linguistics and Anthropology	1
Geobiology	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 Agsftw under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.