Family and Community Services

Types of Degrees Family and Community Services Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many family & community services graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	117
Doctor’s Degree	16
Graduate Certificate	11

What Family and Community Services Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, family and community services 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 Family and Community Services Majors

Family and Community Services majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• 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.
• Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

Skills for Family and Community Services Majors

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to family and community services:

• 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.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.

Abilities for Family and Community Services Majors

A major in family and community services will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• 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.

What Can You Do With a Family and Community Services Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with family and community services:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Farm and Home Management Advisors	7.7%	$49,840

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Family and Community Services?

The major attracts more women than men. About 84% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of family and community services majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	3
Black or African American	25
Hispanic or Latino	10
White	70
International Students	2
Other Races/Ethnicities	7

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Family and Community Services, too. About 1.7% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Family and Community Services

Some degrees associated with family and community services may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

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

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Bachelor’s Degree	24.1%
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.	3.5%
Master’s Degree	58.6%
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.	6.9%
Doctoral Degree	6.9%

Online Family and Community Services 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)	9	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	1	0
Associate’s Degree	22	2
Bachelor’s Degree	6	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	16	7
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	5	1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Family and Community Services

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to family and community services.

Major	Number of Grads
Child Care Provider/Assistant	21,140
General Human Development & Family Studies	8,321
Child Development	4,356
Child Care & Support Services Management	3,670
Other Human Development, Family Studies, & Related Services	540
Family Systems	432
Early Childhood and Family Studies	332
Adult Development & Aging	265
Developmental Services Worker	67
Parent Education Services	11

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 Jsonin under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.