Field of degree: Foreign language
Table 1. Foreign language degree, 2021
Data |
Foreign language |
All fields |
Employment
|
821,510 |
59,687,450 |
Median wage
|
59,000 |
63,000 |
Percent employed part time
|
19 |
14 |
Percent employed in occupations requiring at least a bachelor's degree
|
63 |
62 |
Percent with an advanced degree
|
51 |
38 |
Chart 1. Types of foreign language, 2021
Foreign language majors |
Major share |
French German Latin And Other Common Foreign Language Studies
|
68% |
Linguistics And Comparative Language And Literature
|
17 |
Other Foreign Languages
|
15 |
Chart 2. Employment distribution of workers with a foreign language degree, by occupational group, 2021
Occupational group |
Occupational group share |
Educational instruction and library occupations
|
21% |
Management occupations
|
17 |
Business and financial operations occupations
|
9 |
Office and administrative support occupations
|
9 |
Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations
|
7 |
Other
|
37 |
Table 2. Top-employing occupations for workers with a foreign language degree
Occupational Outlook Handbook profile |
Percent growth, projected 2022–32 |
Typical entry-level education |
Percent degree holders in this field, this occupation, 2021 |
Percent of this occupation with an advanced degree, 2021 |
Software developers
|
26% |
Bachelor's degree |
2% |
32% |
Lawyers
|
8 |
Doctoral or professional degree |
5 |
91 |
Accountants and auditors
|
4 |
Bachelor's degree |
1 |
29 |
Postsecondary teachers, all other
|
4 |
Doctoral or professional degree |
6 |
72 |
Managers, all other
|
3 |
Bachelor's degree |
4 |
21 |
Physicians, all other
|
3 |
Doctoral or professional degree |
2 |
100 |
Education administrators, kindergarten through secondary
|
1 |
Master's degree |
2 |
57 |
Elementary school teachers, except special education
|
1 |
Bachelor's degree |
5 |
49 |
Secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education
|
1 |
Bachelor's degree |
5 |
55 |
Chief executives
|
-8 |
Bachelor's degree |
2 |
32 |
Last Modified Date:
Wednesday, September 6, 2023