College education is essential if you want to be successful in the future. Choosing a college major can be a difficult task but when considering one, you can look on your existing passion or you might want to explore new interest and learn new things. However, with all the soul searching it can also be nice to have a firm and factual basis to start with, just like a list of the most popular college majors.
1. Commerce / Business Administration
This degree prepares professionals to work in a wide variety of high level management positions such as office managers, business development managers, executives, department supervisors and even business owners.
A Business Administration job typically pays $41,000 to $117,000 per year. The entry level is quite low at around $30,000 annually. Career income level depends on the job position, past work experience, particular degree and other factors. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, A projection of 10% increase of job growth for business administration careers from 2008 to 2018. However, the business world has a continuous look for skills in finance, management and leadership combined with a growing economy, business administration careers have a bright future.
2. Psychology
If you want to learn how people react to certain aspects of their environment in a certain way, then studying psychology might be for you. This degree focuses on the human mind as learning, intelligence, emotion, perception, motivation, personality, mental disorders and ways are shaped by our environment or inherited from our parents. Psychologist educates, communicates and resolves many problems surrounding human behavior.
There are three areas of psychology. These are clinical, counseling and school psychology. The median salary of clinical psychologist is $63,000 per year while counseling psychologist is $47,530 annually and $59,440 for school psychologists. Having said this, employment of psychologists is expected to increase by 22% from year 2010-2020. Job prospects should be best for those who will have a doctoral degree in an applied specialty in psychology.
3. Nursing
Individuals who are compassionate in attending patient needs is well-suited in this career. This course will train students to educate patients, explain the prescriptions and procedures, manage the medical records and other duties for the patient’s care.
The median annual salary for a registered nurse is $66,000. The best paid 10 percent of RNs earn $97,000 annually and the lowest paid 10% of RNs earn $45,000 per year. The highest salary is for personal care nurses or those who are working in a private sector. Salary also varies on the location which makes Northern California as the highest paid state for nurses. However, thanks to the aging population that makes nursing the top health care jobs and a projection of 26% growth for employment in the next 7 years.
4. Biology / Biological Science
This degree studies the living organisms and their relationship to the environment. Biological Scientists gained knowledge to develop new drugs, treatments, medical diagnostic test and even increasing crop yields and development of a new biofuel.
Biological Scientists can earn a wide range of salaries, depending on their areas of specialization. As of May 2012, the median annual salary for a biologist and zoologist is $57,700 and $77,000 for biotechnology research scientists. Because of the high salary and high employment rate of 33% in the next 5 years, Biological science makes it one of the most popular college major.
5. Education
If you have the patience, enthusiasm, creativity, compassion and dedication, Education major is the right fit for you. In this degree, aspiring teachers will learn the necessary skills to become an effective and inspirational teacher with the ability to inspire young children and teenagers.
In this course, general education is taught and most states require students to choose a specific grade to teach. That is why salary for this profession differs from each specialization. Like the Kindergarten and elementary teachers has a median salary of $51,300 per year while high school teacher’s salary is $53,000 annually. The growth of employment is expected to rise by 17% from 2010-2020 because of decline student-teacher ratio and increase of enrollment every year.
6. English language and literature
This course offers a wide range of introduction to the English language and literature. Students will have the opportunity to investigate how the English language is used in a variety of global context and to study literature from diverse cultural settings and different historical periods.
Salaries for this profession depend on location and industries. See table below:
Top paying industries in this occupation
| Industry | Annual median salary |
| Colleges and Universities | $68,670 |
| Junior Colleges | $67,000 |
| Educational support services | $58,000 |
| Business schools | $55,000 |
| Technical and trade schools | $50,350 |
Top paying States for this occupation
| State | Annual median salary |
| California | $93,100 |
| New York | $87,000 |
| Alaska | $80,300 |
| Rhode Island | $78,840 |
| New Hampshire | $78,000 |
Because of wide opportunities for this occupation in educational services, a projected growth of 19% or over 500,000 job openings from 2010 to 2020.
7. Economics
Economics is the study of production and distribution of goods, services and resources. It teaches how individuals, businesses, government and the society should spend their time and money, as well as, how to effectively allocate their resources. This degree involves critical thinking and math. However, the annual median salary of economist is $90,000 with an employment projected growth of 6% in the next 5 years, lower than the average of other occupation.
8. Communication Studies
Communication majors are trained to be great speakers and storytellers with quick wits and fiery personalities. In this course, you will learn about verbal and non-verbal messages and audience reaction. This will prepare individuals to be a wealth of careers in advertising, human resources, government, public relations, media, publishing and education.
Salaries for this profession depend on specializations. See table below
| Communication Specialization | Annual Median Salary |
Journalism
|
$50,600
$40,590 |
Public Relations
|
$87,990
$74,720 |
| Advertising | $47,000 |
According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, estimated growth of employment of public relations specialist is 23% between the years 2010 to 2020.
9. Political Science
Political Science is the study of history, development, and operation of the political system. It often deals with current events, statistics, analysis, public policy, foreign affairs, philosophy and comparative government. This degree lets you develop excellent critical thinking and communication skills. However, possible career paths for this degree are lawyer, politicians and journalist.
Salary for political scientist is fairly high enough compared to other social science jobs which is $107,000 per year, and an employment increase of 8% in the next 7 years.
10. Computer and Information Sciences
Because of modern technology, CIS is also one of the most popular college majors worldwide. You will not just learn about software and hardware, but students will also learn the application of such knowledge. You will be exposed to areas such as robotics, artificial intelligence, programming language, gaming technology and numerical analysis.
The Median salary of a Computer and Information scientist is $100,600 per year. Because of the rise of new companies and development of a new technology, the employment for this occupation is expected to increase for about 20% in the next 5 years.
The list of the most popular college majors given are just your guide to a lucrative career, but your passion and interest are the most important components to excel in your chosen field.
When you are at the college then you may think about the major which you should go for. There have no pressure for you really. Like if you want to check or read or even practice with the human mind then psychology will be good for you. This is how you choose your major on what you like. You may find some major list in here.