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Global Studies: Program Overview, Universities, Careers & Salaries

Program Overview

Global Studies is an interdisciplinary field dedicated to understanding the complex, interconnected challenges shaping our world today. It equips students with analytical tools to examine political, economic, cultural, and environmental dynamics across nations and regions, fostering a deeper comprehension of global systems and human interactions.

  • International Relations: Explores the political interactions between states, including diplomacy, conflict resolution, and global governance structures.
  • Cultural Anthropology: Investigates human cultures, traditions, and social practices across diverse geographic and historical contexts.
  • Global Economics: Analyzes the flow of goods, capital, and labor across borders, with attention to trade policies, development disparities, and economic integration.
  • Human Rights and Social Justice: Focuses on the protection of individual and collective rights, examining global inequalities and advocacy frameworks.
  • Environmental Policy and Sustainability: Addresses transnational environmental challenges such as climate change, resource management, and ecological resilience.
  • Development Studies: Studies the processes and policies related to economic growth, poverty reduction, and institutional development in low- and middle-income countries.
  • Migration and Diaspora Studies: Examines patterns of human movement, refugee experiences, and the cultural and political impacts of diasporic communities.

Global Studies Graduate Trends (2010-2024)

5,740
Total Graduates (2023-2024)
324
Universities & Colleges
2
Career Pathways
Career & Salary Outlook Schools Offering This Program Related Programs

Global Studies Career Pathways & Salary Outlook

The following table presents salary data for occupations typically aligned with Global Studies degrees, including Political Scientists and Social Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary, All Other. These career paths represent common employment outcomes but are not guaranteed for all graduates. Salary ranges vary by location, employer, experience level, and specific role requirements. Nationally, these occupations employ approximately 23,490 professionals.

National Average Salaries

Occupation Median Salary Salary Range Total Employment Hourly Rate
Political Scientists 19-3094 $139,380 $74,750 - $191,880 5,950 $67.01
Social Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary, All Other 25-1069 $75,040 $45,280 - $176,350 17,540 N/A

Salary Comparison

Global Studies Salary Map by State

Geographic location significantly impacts earning potential for these careers. Average salaries range from $46,790 in Kansas to $163,950 in Virginia—a 250% difference. The highest-paying states include Virginia, Hawaii, and District of Columbia. Nationwide, these occupations employ over 23,490 professionals across all states. Explore the interactive map below to compare regional compensation and identify optimal markets for your career goals.

Average Salary Range:

Top Universities for Global Studies by Graduate Enrollment

Below are the top 100 institutions offering Global Studies programs for the 2023-2024 academic year (the most recent data reported as of 2025), ranked by the number of graduates. The highest graduate enrollment in Global Studies is found at University of California (UCSD), San Diego (413 graduates), American Public University System (APUS) (228 graduates), The University of Texas, Austin (202 graduates), University of California (UCSB), Santa Barbara (144 graduates), and Arizona State University Campus Immersion (ASU) (129 graduates). Combined, these colleges produced 4,848 graduates across all degree levels. Program availability varies by award level, including Associate, Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral degrees at participating universities and schools.

College Name Award Levels Graduates Admissions Location Control Website
University of California (UCSD)
Bachelor's
 413 N/A La Jolla, California Public ucsd.edu
American Public University System (APUS)
Bachelor's
Postbac Cert.
Master's
Doctorate (R)
Other Award
 228 N/A Charles Town, West Virginia Private apus.edu
The University of Texas
Bachelor's
 202 SAT: 1230-1490
ACT: 27-33 		Austin, Texas Public utexas.edu
University of California (UCSB)
Bachelor's
Master's
Doctorate (R)
 144 N/A Santa Barbara, California Public ucsb.edu
Arizona State University Campus Immersion (ASU)
Bachelor's
Master's
Other Award
 129 N/A Tempe, Arizona Public asu.edu
University of Pennsylvania (Penn)
Bachelor's
Master's
Other Award
 128 SAT: 1500-1570
ACT: 34-35 		Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Private upenn.edu
Northeastern University Professional Programs
Master's
 127 N/A Boston, Massachusetts Private northeastern.edu
University of Oklahoma (OU)
Bachelor's
Master's
Other Award
 122 SAT: 1140-1330
ACT: 23-29 		Norman, Oklahoma Public ou.edu
University of Michigan (U‑M)
Bachelor's
 121 SAT: 1350-1530
ACT: 31-34 		Ann Arbor, Michigan Public umich.edu
University of California (UCI)
Bachelor's
Master's
 118 N/A Irvine, California Public uci.edu
Texas A & M University
Bachelor's
 109 SAT: 1140-1380
ACT: 25-31 		College Station, Texas Public tamu.edu
University of Colorado Boulder (CU)
Bachelor's
 107 SAT: 1230-1420
ACT: 28-33 		Boulder, Colorado Public colorado.edu
Florida International University (FIU)
Bachelor's
Master's
Doctorate (R)
 107 SAT: 1060-1250
ACT: 20-26 		Miami, Florida Public fiu.edu
University of Notre Dame (ND)
Bachelor's
Master's
 105 SAT: 1440-1540
ACT: 33-35 		Notre Dame, Indiana Private nd.edu
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Bachelor's
 105 SAT: 1360-1510
ACT: 28-32 		Madison, Wisconsin Public wisc.edu
University of Florida (UF)
Bachelor's
 88 SAT: 1300-1480
ACT: 28-33 		Gainesville, Florida Public ufl.edu
University of Utah (U of U)
Bachelor's
Master's
 87 SAT: 1180-1398
ACT: 22-29 		Salt Lake City, Utah Public utah.edu
Arizona State University
Bachelor's
Master's
 79 N/A Scottsdale, Arizona Public asu.edu
University of California (UCB)
Bachelor's
Master's
 73 N/A Berkeley, California Public berkeley.edu
Boston College (BC)
Bachelor's
 73 SAT: 1430-1540
ACT: 33-34 		Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts Private bc.edu
University of Oregon (UO)
Bachelor's
Master's
 72 SAT: 1130-1360
ACT: 22-30 		Eugene, Oregon Public uoregon.edu
Pennsylvania State University
Postbac Cert.
Master's
Other Award
 66 SAT: 1220-1400
ACT: 27-32 		University Park, Pennsylvania Public psu.edu
University of North Texas (UNT)
Bachelor's
Master's
 66 SAT: 980-1230
ACT: 19-27 		Denton, Texas Public unt.edu
Michigan State University (MSU)
Bachelor's
Postbac Cert.
 62 SAT: 1150-1350
ACT: 26-31 		East Lansing, Michigan Public msu.edu
Purdue University Global
Postbac Cert.
 62 N/A West Lafayette, Indiana Public purdueglobal.edu
University of California (UCLA)
Bachelor's
 56 N/A Los Angeles, California Public ucla.edu
Washington University in St Louis (WashU)
Bachelor's
 56 SAT: 1500-1570
ACT: 33-35 		Saint Louis, Missouri Private wustl.edu
North Carolina State University (NC State)
Bachelor's
 45 SAT: 1300-1460
ACT: 28-32 		Raleigh, North Carolina Public ncsu.edu
Loyola University Chicago (LUC)
Bachelor's
 44 SAT: 1160-1340
ACT: 27-31 		Chicago, Illinois Private luc.edu
University of Arizona
Bachelor's
Postbac Cert.
Master's
 43 SAT: 1160-1420
ACT: 21-30 		Tucson, Arizona Public arizona.edu
University of Central Florida (UCF)
Bachelor's
 43 SAT: 1190-1350
ACT: 25-29 		Orlando, Florida Public ucf.edu
Macalester College
Bachelor's
 43 SAT: 1350-1510
ACT: 30-33 		Saint Paul, Minnesota Private macalester.edu
University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW)
Bachelor's
 42 SAT: 1220-1360
ACT: 24-28 		Wilmington, North Carolina Public uncw.edu
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College (LSU)
Bachelor's
 41 SAT: 1150-1330
ACT: 24-29 		Baton Rouge, Louisiana Public lsu.edu
Brandeis University
Bachelor's
 40 SAT: 1390-1530
ACT: 31-34 		Waltham, Massachusetts Private brandeis.edu
University of Kansas (KU)
Bachelor's
Master's
 39 SAT: 1050-1290
ACT: 21-27 		Lawrence, Kansas Public ku.edu
Colorado State University (CSU)
Bachelor's
 38 N/A Fort Collins, Colorado Public colostate.edu
Brigham Young University (BYU–I)
Bachelor's
 37 SAT: 980-1200
ACT: 20-26 		Rexburg, Idaho Private byui.edu
Temple University
Bachelor's
 37 N/A Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Public temple.edu
University of Georgia (UGA)
Certificate (1-2 yrs)
 36 SAT: 1160-1390
ACT: 25-32 		Athens, Georgia Public uga.edu
DePaul University
Other Award
 36 SAT: 1130-1340
ACT: 26-31 		Chicago, Illinois Private depaul.edu
Georgetown University (GU)
Bachelor's
 35 SAT: 1390-1550
ACT: 32-34 		Washington, District of Columbia Private georgetown.edu
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC)
Bachelor's
 35 SAT: 1270-1510
ACT: 29-34 		Champaign, Illinois Public illinois.edu
Texas State University (TXST)
Bachelor's
Master's
 35 SAT: 980-1190
ACT: 19-26 		San Marcos, Texas Public txst.edu
Spelman College
Bachelor's
 31 SAT: 1060-1270
ACT: 21-27 		Atlanta, Georgia Private spelman.edu
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Bachelor's
 31 SAT: 1110-1320
ACT: 21-27 		Charlotte, North Carolina Public charlotte.edu
University of Wyoming (UW)
Bachelor's
Master's
 31 N/A Laramie, Wyoming Public uwyo.edu
George Mason University
Master's
 30 SAT: 1140-1340
ACT: 25-30 		Fairfax, Virginia Public www2.gmu.edu
University of New Mexico (UNM)
Bachelor's
 29 SAT: 900-1160
ACT: 19-26 		Albuquerque, New Mexico Public unm.edu
College of Charleston (CofC)
Bachelor's
 29 SAT: 1130-1300
ACT: 24-29 		Charleston, South Carolina Public cofc.edu
University of Vermont (UVM)
Bachelor's
 29 SAT: 1250-1420
ACT: 29-32 		Burlington, Vermont Public uvm.edu
University of Kentucky (UK)
Bachelor's
Other Award
 28 SAT: 1080-1290
ACT: 21-28 		Lexington, Kentucky Public uky.edu
The University of the South
Bachelor's
 28 SAT: 1236-1398
ACT: 27-32 		Sewanee, Tennessee Private sewanee.edu
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM)
Bachelor's
Other Award
 28 ACT: 18-24 Milwaukee, Wisconsin Public uwm.edu
University of Nebraska (UNL)
Bachelor's
 25 SAT: 1090-1330
ACT: 22-28 		Lincoln, Nebraska Public unl.edu
University of Southern California (USC)
Bachelor's
Master's
 24 SAT: 1440-1550
ACT: 32-35 		Los Angeles, California Private usc.edu
Colby College
Bachelor's
 24 SAT: 1440-1550
ACT: 32-34 		Waterville, Maine Private colby.edu
University of North Florida (UNF)
Bachelor's
 23 SAT: 990-1210
ACT: 20-26 		Jacksonville, Florida Public unf.edu
California State University (CSULB)
Bachelor's
 22 N/A Long Beach, California Public csulb.edu
Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO)
Bachelor's
 22 SAT: 850-1030
ACT: 16-21 		Cape Girardeau, Missouri Public semo.edu
Oklahoma State University (OSU)
Bachelor's
Master's
 22 SAT: 1030-1240
ACT: 20-27 		Stillwater, Oklahoma Public okstate.edu
University of California (UCR)
Bachelor's
 21 N/A Riverside, California Public ucr.edu
California State University Maritime Academy
Bachelor's
 20 N/A Vallejo, California Public csum.edu
University of Denver (DU)
Bachelor's
Postbac Cert.
Master's
 20 SAT: 1240-1410
ACT: 29-32 		Denver, Colorado Private du.edu
The New School
Bachelor's
 20 N/A New York, New York Private newschool.edu
Portland State University (PSU)
Bachelor's
 20 N/A Portland, Oregon Public pdx.edu
The University of Texas
Bachelor's
 20 SAT: 990-1230
ACT: 18-26 		Arlington, Texas Public uta.edu
College of the Holy Cross
Bachelor's
 19 SAT: 1250-1420
ACT: 28-32 		Worcester, Massachusetts Private holycross.edu
Drexel University
Bachelor's
 19 SAT: 1230-1430
ACT: 27-33 		Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Private drexel.edu
Centre College
Bachelor's
 18 SAT: 1230-1423
ACT: 26-32 		Danville, Kentucky Private centre.edu
University of Nebraska (UNO)
Bachelor's
 18 ACT: 18-26 Omaha, Nebraska Public unomaha.edu
Gettysburg College
Bachelor's
 18 SAT: 1240-1460
ACT: 27-32 		Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Private gettysburg.edu
University of Maryland (UMBC)
Bachelor's
 17 SAT: 1220-1410
ACT: 23-30 		Baltimore, Maryland Public umbc.edu
Rowan University
Bachelor's
Other Award
 17 SAT: 1100-1310
ACT: 26-30 		Glassboro, New Jersey Public rowan.edu
Elon University
Bachelor's
 17 SAT: 1143-1305
ACT: 23-28 		Elon, North Carolina Private elon.edu
University of Richmond (UR)
Bachelor's
 17 SAT: 1410-1530
ACT: 32-34 		University of Richmond, Virginia Private richmond.edu
University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus
Bachelor's
 16 SAT: 980-1220
ACT: 21-27 		Denver, Colorado Public ucdenver.edu
Stony Brook University (SBU)
Bachelor's
 16 SAT: 1320-1490
ACT: 28-33 		Stony Brook, New York Public stonybrook.edu
Bryn Mawr College
Bachelor's
 16 SAT: 1300-1470
ACT: 30-33 		Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania Private brynmawr.edu
Seattle University (Seattle U)
Bachelor's
 16 SAT: 1130-1350
ACT: 23-30 		Seattle, Washington Private seattleu.edu
Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU)
Bachelor's
 15 SAT: 1140-1410
ACT: 22-30 		San Diego, California Private pointloma.edu
St Lawrence University
Bachelor's
 15 SAT: 1255-1410
ACT: 29-32 		Canton, New York Private stlawu.edu
University of Dayton (UD)
Bachelor's
 15 SAT: 1195-1370
ACT: 26-31 		Dayton, Ohio Private udayton.edu
Liberty University
Bachelor's
 15 N/A Lynchburg, Virginia Private liberty.edu
Washington State University (WSU)
Other Award
 15 N/A Pullman, Washington Public wsu.edu
University of Washington (UW Bothell)
Bachelor's
 15 SAT: 1170-1470
ACT: 32-34 		Bothell, Washington Public uwb.edu
University of South Alabama (USA)
Bachelor's
Other Award
 14 SAT: 1015-1200
ACT: 19-26 		Mobile, Alabama Public southalabama.edu
University of San Francisco (USF)
Master's
 14 SAT: 1210-1390
ACT: 26-31 		San Francisco, California Private usfca.edu
Indiana University (IUB)
Master's
 14 SAT: 1170-1400
ACT: 27-32 		Bloomington, Indiana Public indiana.edu
Western Michigan University (WMU)
Bachelor's
 14 SAT: 990-1220
ACT: 20-27 		Kalamazoo, Michigan Public wmich.edu
Case Western Reserve University (CWRU)
Bachelor's
 14 SAT: 1430-1540
ACT: 32-35 		Cleveland, Ohio Private case.edu
The University of Tennessee
Bachelor's
 14 SAT: 1190-1340
ACT: 25-31 		Knoxville, Tennessee Public utk.edu
Southern Methodist University (SMU)
Bachelor's
 14 SAT: 1320-1480
ACT: 30-34 		Dallas, Texas Private smu.edu
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP)
Bachelor's
 13 ACT: 20-25 Stevens Point, Wisconsin Public uwsp.edu
John Brown University (JBU)
Bachelor's
 12 SAT: 1130-1345
ACT: 21-30 		Siloam Springs, Arkansas Private jbu.edu
San Jose State University (SJSU)
Bachelor's
 12 N/A San Jose, California Public sjsu.edu
University of Northern Colorado (UNCO)
Bachelor's
 12 SAT: 970-1180
ACT: 17-26 		Greeley, Colorado Public unco.edu
Trinity College
Bachelor's
 12 SAT: 1310-1460
ACT: 30-33 		Hartford, Connecticut Private trincoll.edu
Boise State University (BBU)
Bachelor's
 12 N/A Boise, Idaho Public boisestate.edu
Clark University
Bachelor's
 12 SAT: 1240-1400
ACT: 30-33 		Worcester, Massachusetts Private clarku.edu

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to the most common questions about Global Studies programs

How much can I earn with a Global Studies degree?

Salaries for Global Studies graduates vary by role and location. Political Scientists earn a median of $139,380 annually, while Social Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary, All Other earn around $75,040. Geographic location significantly impacts earnings—professionals in Virginia average $163,950 compared to $46,790 in Kansas. Approximately 23,490 professionals work in related occupations nationwide.

Salary data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS program, May 2024. Earnings vary by experience, employer, and market conditions.

Which universities have the largest Global Studies programs?

Currently 324 accredited institutions offer Global Studies degrees across the U.S. Programs with the highest enrollment include University of California (UCSD), San Diego (413 graduates), American Public University System (APUS) (228 graduates), and The University of Texas, Austin (202 graduates).

Program size doesn't necessarily indicate quality—consider factors like faculty expertise, production opportunities, location, and available degree levels when choosing a school.

Data based on IPEDS program completions for 2023-2024 academic year. Numbers reflect programs where students graduated.

Is enrollment in Global Studies growing or declining?

Graduate numbers have increased over the past decade, rising from 5,605 in 2010 to a peak of 7,875 in 2020, before declining slightly to 5,740 in 2023-24. This represents a 2% increase overall from 2010.

The field remains specialized with steady interest, though opportunities are most concentrated in major metropolitan areas with active arts scenes like New York, California, and Illinois.

Graduate enrollment data from IPEDS, 2010-2024 academic years. Trends reflect reported completions at participating institutions.

What career paths are available with a Global Studies degree?

This degree prepares you for roles such as Political Scientists, Social Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary, All Other, . Related occupations employ approximately 23,490 professionals nationwide.

Skills in project management, creative leadership, and collaboration also transfer to event planning, arts administration, marketing, and corporate training roles. Many professionals work freelance or on a project basis across theatre, film, and live events.

Career pathways mapped using CIP-SOC crosswalk from the National Center for Education Statistics. Employment data from BLS OEWS May 2024.

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