Most common destination first. Every card carries the national median annual wage, projected employment change and openings over 2024–2034, and the typical education people already in the job hold.
What Can You Do With a Communications and Journalism Degree?
Below are 15 occupations that communications and journalism graduates commonly move into, most common first. Public Relations Specialist leads at $74,750 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025); across the whole list the middle occupation pays $75,420 and 0 of 15 typically need a graduate degree. A major is a body of study, not a job assignment, so treat every entry as a common destination rather than a promise.
What the degree actually involves: Reporting, media law and ethics, editing, and production work with hard deadlines.
Far more communications graduates end up in public relations, marketing and content than in newsrooms, which is worth knowing before you choose. The portfolio you build outside class decides which half of this list you reach more than your transcript does.
- Common destinations
- 15
- Median pay range
- $47,340–$146,910
- Projected to grow
- 12 of 15
- Need a graduate degree
- 0 of 15
5 with a full profile page
BLS OEWS, May 2025
BLS EP, 2024–2034
BLS EP typical entry, 2024–2034
How this list was built
- The destinations are the occupations communications and journalism graduates commonly move into. They are ordered by how common the destination is, not by what it pays, so the ordinary outcomes sit at the top where they belong rather than being buried under the flattering ones.
- Every destination is matched to a real occupation in the 923-occupation NueCareer career bank. A destination that does not resolve to a bank occupation is dropped rather than shown without data.
- All pay, growth, openings and education figures come from that bank: BLS OEWS May 2025 for wages, BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 for projected change, annual openings and the typical education needed for entry, and O*NET 30.3 Database for what the work involves. Nothing is estimated and no figure here is generated by an AI model.
- Destinations whose BLS typical entry education is a master’s or a doctoral or professional degree are marked Graduate study on the list. That flag is read from the federal data, not asserted by us.
- What this list is not: a ranking of which destination you should pick, a statement of how many graduates reach each one, or a promise that the degree entitles you to any of them. Read the full methodology.
15 careers a communications and journalism degree commonly leads to
1. Public Relations Specialist
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Median pay
- $74,750
- Growth
- +4.8%
- Openings/yr
- 27,600
- Education
- Bachelor's
Promote or create an intended public image for individuals, groups, or organizations.
Public Relations Specialist salary & outlook →2. Market Research Analyst and Marketing Specialist
Business and Financial Operations
- Median pay
- $78,760
- Growth
- +6.7%
- Openings/yr
- 87,200
- Education
- Bachelor's
Research conditions in local, regional, national, or online markets.
Market Research Analyst and Marketing Specialist salary & outlook →3. Writer and Author
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Median pay
- $76,910
- Growth
- +3.6%
- Openings/yr
- 13,400
- Education
- Bachelor's
Originate and prepare written material, such as scripts, stories, advertisements, and other material.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
4. Editor
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Median pay
- $77,920
- Growth
- +0.6%
- Openings/yr
- 9,800
- Education
- Bachelor's
Plan, coordinate, revise, or edit written material.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
5. News Analyst, Reporter, and Journalist
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Median pay
- $62,200
- Growth
- -3.9%
- Openings/yr
- 4,100
- Education
- Bachelor's
Narrate or write news stories, reviews, or commentary for print, broadcast, or other communications media such as newspapers, magazines, radio, or television.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
6. Technical Writer
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Median pay
- $90,390
- Growth
- +0.9%
- Openings/yr
- 4,500
- Education
- Bachelor's
Write technical materials, such as equipment manuals, appendices, or operating and maintenance instructions.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
7. Search Marketing Strategist
Business and Financial Operations
- Median pay
- $78,760
- Growth
- +6.7%
- Openings/yr
- 87,200
- Education
- Bachelor's
Employ search marketing tactics to increase visibility and engagement with content, products, or services in Internet-enabled devices or interfaces.
Search Marketing Strategist salary & outlook →8. Advertising Sales Agent
Sales and Related
- Median pay
- $64,820
- Growth
- -6.4%
- Openings/yr
- 9,300
- Education
- High school
Sell or solicit advertising space, time, or media in publications, signage, TV, radio, or Internet establishments or public spaces.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
9. Meeting, Convention, and Event Planner
Business and Financial Operations
- Median pay
- $61,160
- Growth
- +4.8%
- Openings/yr
- 15,500
- Education
- Bachelor's
Coordinate activities of staff, convention personnel, or clients to make arrangements for group meetings, events, or conventions.
Meeting, Convention, and Event Planner salary & outlook →10. Film and Video Editor
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Median pay
- $75,420
- Growth
- +4.0%
- Openings/yr
- 3,600
- Education
- Bachelor's
Edit moving images on film, video, or other media.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
11. Camera Operator, Television, Video, and Film
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Median pay
- $74,990
- Growth
- +1.2%
- Openings/yr
- 2,900
- Education
- Bachelor's
Operate television, video, or film camera to record images or scenes for television, video, or film productions.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
12. Broadcast Announcer and Radio Disc Jockey
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Median pay
- $47,340
- Growth
- -5.5%
- Openings/yr
- 2,300
- Education
- Bachelor's
Speak or read from scripted materials, such as news reports or commercial messages, on radio, television, or other communications media.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
13. Producer and Director
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Median pay
- $90,360
- Growth
- +4.9%
- Openings/yr
- 12,800
- Education
- Bachelor's
Produce or direct stage, television, radio, video, or film productions for entertainment, information, or instruction.
Producer and Director salary & outlook →14. Fundraiser
Business and Financial Operations
- Median pay
- $72,550
- Growth
- +4.3%
- Openings/yr
- 10,200
- Education
- Bachelor's
Organize activities to raise funds or otherwise solicit and gather monetary donations or other gifts for an organization.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
15. Public Relations Manager
Management
- Median pay
- $146,910
- Growth
- +5.0%
- Openings/yr
- 6,600
- Education
- Bachelor's
Plan, direct, or coordinate activities designed to create or maintain a favorable public image or raise issue awareness for their organization or client.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
Does a communications and journalism degree decide your career?
For most people, no. Federal survey data has consistently found that only a minority of US graduates work in a job closely related to their degree field, and that share falls further with each year after graduation. The exceptions are the fields where a licence sits at the end of the degree, and they are exceptions precisely because the route is fixed.
The practical reading of the list above is this: every destination on it lists a bachelor's degree or less as the typical entry requirement (BLS Employment Projections, 2024–2034), so the decisions that matter after the degree are about experience rather than more study.
Not sure this is the right major in the first place? Take the free college major quiz — fifteen questions that score what you like doing against what each major actually asks of you, and show the same real occupations underneath every match.
Communications and Journalism degrees: FAQ
Do you need a master's degree after a communications and journalism degree?
Not for the destinations on this page. BLS Employment Projections (2024–2034) list a bachelor's degree or less as the typical entry requirement for all 15 of them. Individual employers can still ask for more.
What is the highest-paying career a communications and journalism degree leads to?
Of the 15 destinations on this page, Public Relations Manager has the highest national median wage at $146,910 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), against $50,980 for all US occupations. Typical entry education for it is bachelor's. A median is the midpoint of everyone in the job today, so a first salary normally sits well below it.
Which of these careers hires the most people each year?
Market Research Analyst and Marketing Specialist, with about 87,200 projected openings a year (BLS Employment Projections, 2024–2034). Across all 15 destinations on this page the combined figure is roughly 297,000 openings a year. Openings include replacing people who leave, not just new jobs, which is why a slow-growing occupation can still hire heavily.
Is a communications and journalism degree worth it?
That depends on the price you pay for it, which this page cannot know. What it can tell you is where the destinations sit: the middle occupation on this list pays $75,420 a year against $50,980 for all US occupations, the range runs $47,340–$146,910, and 12 of the 15 are projected to grow over 2024–2034 (BLS OEWS May 2025, BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034).
How was this list of careers put together?
The destinations were curated as the occupations communications and journalism graduates commonly move into, ordered by how common rather than by pay, then matched against the 923-occupation NueCareer career bank. Every figure shown comes from that bank: wages from BLS OEWS May 2025, projected change and annual openings and typical entry education from BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, and occupation descriptions from O*NET 30.3 Database. Nothing is estimated, and no figure on this page is generated by an AI model.
What can you do with other degrees?
- Computer Science
- Nursing
- Mechanical Engineering
- Civil Engineering
- Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Business Administration
- Finance and Accounting
- Marketing
- Psychology
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Education
- Graphic Design
- Political Science and Pre-Law
- Environmental Science
- Kinesiology and Exercise Science
- Social Work
- Mathematics and Statistics
- Hospitality and Event Management
- Criminal Justice
- Sociology
- Public Health
- Philosophy
- Health Science
- History
- Anthropology
- English
- Nutrition and Dietetics
- Art History
- Information Technology
- Human Resources
- Economics