Types of Degrees Majors Are Getting

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

Education Level	Number of Grads
Basic Certificate	1,318
Associate Degree	1,235
Undergraduate Certificate	607
Bachelor’s Degree	78

What Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, computer support specialist 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 Computer Support Specialist Majors

Computer Support Specialist majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• 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.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
• 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 Computer Support Specialist Majors

When studying computer support specialist, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

• 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.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

Abilities for Computer Support Specialist Majors

As a computer support specialist major, you will find yourself needing the following abilities:

• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Can You Do With a Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with computer support specialist:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Computer Network Support Specialists	8.2%	$62,770
Computer User Support Specialists	11.3%	$50,980

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in ?

This major attracts more men than women. About 87% of the graduates in this field are male.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of computer support specialist majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	6
Black or African American	7
Hispanic or Latino	7
White	57
International Students	0
Other Races/Ethnicities	1

How Much Do Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $55,050 to $68,050 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to computer support specialist. This range includes all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to

Some degrees associated with computer support specialist may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

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

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	0.2%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	14.2%
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)	11.2%
Some College Courses	16.8%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	17.8%
Bachelor’s Degree	39.9%
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.	0.8%
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.	0.7%

Online 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)	100	18
Certificate (2-4 Years)	15	0
Associate’s Degree	138	37
Bachelor’s Degree	0	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	0	0
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Worth It?

The median salary for a computer support specialist grad is $55,050 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 38% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $303,000 after 20 years!

Majors Related to

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to computer support specialist.

Major	Number of Grads
Computer & IS Security	25,918
Network & System Administration/Administrator	4,784
Information Technology Management	3,306
Information Technology Project Management	2,307
System, Networking, & LAN/WAN Management/Manager	2,214
Web/Multimedia Management & Webmaster	1,133

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 Craig Dennis under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.