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Field of degree: Social science

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Table 1. Social science degree, 2022
Data	Social science	All fields
Employment	5,030,460	62,187,580
Median wage	70,000	66,000
Percent employed part time	14	14
Percent employed in occupations requiring at least a bachelor's degree	61	62
Percent with an advanced degree	45	38
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Chart 1. Types of social science, 2022
Social science majors	Major share
Political Science And Government	31%
Economics	28
Sociology	19
Anthropology And Archeology	7
International Relations	4
Other	11
Note: The sum of percents by major may not total 100 due to rounding. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Chart 2. Employment distribution of workers with a social science degree, by occupational group, 2022
Occupational group	Occupational group share
Management occupations	20%
Business and financial operations occupations	14
Legal occupations	10
Educational instruction and library occupations	9
Sales and related occupations	8
Other	39
Note: The sum of percents by major may not total 100 due to rounding. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Table 2. Top-employing occupations for workers with a social science degree
Occupational Outlook Handbook profile	Percent growth, projected 2023–33	Typical entry-level education	Percent degree holders in this field, this occupation, 2022	Percent of this occupation with an advanced degree, 2022
Health specialties teachers, postsecondary	19%	Doctoral or professional degree	3%	72%
Financial managers	17	Bachelor's degree	2	22
Management analysts	11	Bachelor's degree	2	35
Accountants and auditors	6	Bachelor's degree	2	30
Managers, all other	6	Bachelor's degree	5	21
Chief executives	5	Bachelor's degree	3	31
Lawyers	5	Doctoral or professional degree	8	92
Education administrators, kindergarten through secondary	-1	Master's degree	1	56
Elementary school teachers, except special education	-1	Bachelor's degree	3	49
First-line supervisors of retail sales workers	-6	High school diploma or equivalent	1	5
Note: Occupational profiles may comprise multiple SOC occupations, which may have differing education categories. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program (projected growth, entry-level education) and U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (degree holders, advanced degrees).

Suggested citation:

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Field of degree: Social science,
at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/field-of-degree/social-science/social-science-field-of-degree.htm (visited April 18, 2025).

Last Modified Date: Thursday, August 29, 2024