Business degrees have long been a popular choice for students, and it’s a trend that still holds true today, even if the margin by which they hold the top spot is decreasing.
Thirty years ago during the 1990-91 school year, 22.8% of students who received bachelor’s degrees were business majors. That percentage dropped to 19.4% in 2018-19 — the latest period for which data is available.
However, the number of business majors within this period grew by 56.8%, according to the latest study from Student Loan Hero. Our researchers looked at nearly 30 bachelor’s degrees over a 30-year period to look for trends along the way. Here’s what they discovered.
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STEM plays a role in popularity of degrees
The top three majors suggest no particular discipline is disproportionately popular for students. However, rounding out the top five are engineering and biological and biomedical sciences, specialities that are STEM-focused.
Part of this trend could be an increased focus on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education among young students (and young women in particular).
And in an era of record-breaking initial public offerings (IPOs) and unicorn startups, rosy business prospects in the technology sector could be enough to keep the popularity of business degrees high while also driving interest in technology and science-based degrees.
Here are the most popular undergraduate degrees in the United States:
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29. Legal professions and studies
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 0.2%
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28. Communications technologies
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 0.2%
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27. Transportation and materials moving
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 0.3%
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26. Area, ethnic, cultural, gender and group studies
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 0.4%
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25. Architecture and related services
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 0.4%
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24. Theology and religious vocations
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 0.5%
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23. Philosophy and religious studies
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 0.5%
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22. Foreign languages, literatures and linguistics
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 0.8%
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21. Engineering technologies
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 1.0%
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20. Family and consumer sciences/human sciences
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 1.2%
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19. Mathematics and statistics
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 1.3%
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18. Physical sciences and science technologies
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 1.5%
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17. Public administration and social services
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 1.7%
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16. English language and literature/letters
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 2.0%
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15. Agriculture and natural resources
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 2.0%
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14. Liberal arts and sciences, general studies and humanities
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 2.2%
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13. Multi/interdisciplinary studies
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 2.6%
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12. Parks, recreation, leisure and fitness studies
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 2.7%
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11. Homeland security, law enforcement and firefighting
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 2.8%
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10. Education
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 4.2%
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9. Computer and information sciences
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 4.4%
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8. Visual and performing arts
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 4.5%
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7. Communication, journalism and related programs
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 4.6%
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6. Psychology
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 5.8%
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5. Biological and biomedical sciences
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 6.0%
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4. Engineering
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 6.3%
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3. Social sciences and history
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 8.0%
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2. Health professions and related programs
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 12.5%
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1. Business
Share of bachelor’s degree graduates: 19.4%
You can read more about the findings in the original report.
This article originally appeared on StudentLoanHero.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
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