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Bachelor Degree Options for Different Careers
by Contributing Writer
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Overview
The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) reported a 19 percent increase among undergraduate enrollments from 2000 to 2007 in private and public institutions. Undergraduate enrollment in degree-granting postsecondary institution increased from 7.4 million in 1970 to 15.6 million in 2007. The NCES predicts a 12 percent increase in undergraduate enrollment by 2018. The center also noted female enrollment (20 percent) outpaced male enrollment (16 percent) between 2000 and 2007.
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Time Frame to Complete a Bachelor's Program
On average, it took approximately 4.6 years for most first-time bachelor's degree recipients to complete program requirements according to 1999-2000 data reported by the NCES. The time to complete the first bachelor's program increased when students changed university or college sites. Students attending a single institution typically finished their program requirements in 4.3 years (NCES, 2003). The study also noted it took six months longer for undergraduate recipients to complete a program in public institutions compared to private not-for-profit institutions (NCES, 2009).
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Conferment by Degree Types
Postsecondary institutions conferred nearly 1.5 million bachelor's degrees in 2006-2007, with 22 percent conferred in the field of business followed by social science and history, 11 percent; education, 7 percent; and health science, 7 percent (NCES, 2009). During the same time span, computer and information science conferred little more than 51,000 degrees.
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Job Prospects by Degree
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects rapid occupational growth in at least 20 areas, and computer and information science are among the occupational groups projected to grow the fastest. Other areas projected to experience considerable growth include personal and home aide, home health aide, computer software engineers (applications), personal financial adviser, substance abuse and behavioral disorder and financial analysts. The BLS listed the occupations projected to grow the fastest between 2006 and 2016 on its website. You can research what you can do with a particular degree by visiting specific institution websites like the Middle Tennessee State University Career Developmental Center.
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Theories of Mobility
Studies in social science continue to document the impact of education on economic outcomes for most individuals. Most studies show as your educational level increases so does your earning potential--regardless of race, class or gender (NCES, 2007). The benefits of higher education, in part, are attributed to the acquisition of transferable skills and the development of social networks utilized in navigating the labor market in search of greater economic wealth.
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Financial Benefits of a Bachelor's Degree
The NCES reported significantly different earning outcomes between individuals with a bachelor's degree and no degree. An individual with a bachelor's degree earned 55 percent more than an individual holding only a high school degree or its equivalent. In 2007, the former group's median income reached as high as $45,000 compared to $29,000 for the latter group. Meanwhile, the median income for an individual without a high school degree hovered around $23,000 (NCES, 2009).
