Question 1

Which major in this family leads to the best earnings?

Accepted Answer

Econometrics and Quantitative Economics and Economics, General tend to produce the strongest early-career earnings within this family because quantitative skills command a premium in finance, consulting, and tech. The overall family median sits at $54,018, but economics graduates who move into roles like financial analyst or data analyst routinely clear that figure. Political Science and Government — the most common major at 36,654 completions — leads frequently to management and policy roles where salaries vary widely by sector. Teaching is a reliable direct pipeline: secondary school teachers earn a median of $62,340 to $64,580, and that path is accessible from most social science majors.

Question 2

What is the difference between Political Science, Sociology, and Economics?

Accepted Answer

Political Science focuses on government institutions, power, and public policy — graduates often move into law, public administration, or advocacy. Sociology examines how groups, organizations, and social systems function, and it is the more common path into social work, human resources, and nonprofit management. Economics is more quantitative than either: it models markets, incentives, and resource allocation, and a strong Economics degree is treated more like a technical credential by finance and consulting employers. All three are offered at most colleges — Political Science at 1,259, Sociology at 1,156, Economics at 804 — but the coursework and employer signals are quite different.

Question 3

Is a Social Sciences, General degree worth pursuing, or should I pick a specific major?

Accepted Answer

Social Sciences, General — offered at 463 colleges with 14,846 completions — is useful if you genuinely cannot commit to a specific discipline, but it comes with a real cost in employer signal clarity. A Political Science or Sociology degree names what you studied; a general degree leaves that question open. The family-wide data does not show a wage penalty for the general degree specifically, but hiring managers in specialized fields like market research, policy analysis, or data roles will typically prefer a named major. If you are undecided, a general degree while taking targeted coursework in economics or statistics is a reasonable bridge strategy.

Question 4

What are the smaller niche majors in this family, and do they lead to clear careers?

Accepted Answer

Geographic Information Science and Cartography (125 colleges, 796 completions) and Urban Studies/Affairs (97 colleges, 806 completions) are the most career-directed niche programs in this family. GIS graduates slot directly into spatial data analyst and GIS specialist roles across government, utilities, and logistics — a tightly defined job market. Urban Studies prepares graduates for city planning and community development roles, though many urban planners eventually complete a master's in urban planning. Criminology (224 colleges, 8,556 completions) sits between niche and mainstream — larger than GIS but smaller than Sociology — and leads into criminal justice, social work, and policy research.

Question 5

Does this concentration require graduate school to reach good career outcomes?

Accepted Answer

Not universally, but for the highest-paying professional paths — law, academic research, clinical social work, urban planning — graduate or professional school is common. The median wage across all 34 majors in this family is $54,018 at the bachelor's level, which is competitive for a liberal arts concentration. Management roles, which show up as the top career across most majors in this data, typically require experience more than an advanced degree. Teaching roles at both the elementary ($62,340 median) and secondary ($64,580 median) level are fully accessible with a bachelor's and a teaching credential. Roles in data analysis and policy research increasingly want technical skills — statistics, SQL, GIS — that can be built into an undergraduate program without requiring graduate work.

Social Sciences

Sorted by popularity

Political Science and Government, General

Sociology, General

Economics, General

Econometrics and Quantitative Economics

Social Sciences, General

Criminology

Anthropology, General

International Relations and Affairs

Geography

Social Sciences, Other

Geographic Information Science and Cartography

Political Science and Government, Other

Urban Studies/Affairs

Sociology and Anthropology

Applied Economics

Political Economy

Archeology

Development Economics and International Development

Research Methodology and Quantitative Methods

Medical Anthropology

National Security Policy Studies

International Economics

American Government and Politics (United States)

International Relations and National Security Studies, Other

Applied/Public Sociology

Economics, Other

Anthropology, Other

Geography, Other

Rural Sociology

Cultural Anthropology

Physical and Biological Anthropology

Forensic Anthropology

Social Sciences, Other

Geography and Anthropology

Sociology, Other

Demography and Population Studies

Common questions