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2026 Native American Studies Degree Guide

Studying Native American Studies explores American Indian/native American Studies. A Program That Focuses On The History, Sociology, Politics, Culture, And Economics Of One Or More Of The American Indian, Aleut, Inuit, Hawaiian And Other Native Peoples Of The Americas From Earliest Times Until The Present, With Particular Emphasis On U.s. And Canadian Populations And Their Problems But Including Reference To Caribbean And Latin American Native Peoples. Read on to learn the important information every native american studies student should know — including career paths, salary data, the skills you will develop, and the best colleges offering native american studies programs.

Native American Studies Degrees in the United States

Across the country, native american studies draws strong interest, with 560 degrees awarded annually.

Our 2026 Best Native American Studies Schools ranking analyzes these 86 schools to determine the best overall colleges for native american studies students. Continue reading to check out one of our many unbiased rankings of native american studies programs later in this article.

Best Native American Studies Schools by Degree

Requirements for Getting a Degree in Native American Studies

Studies in Native American Studies build a specific mix of skills, knowledge, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in the occupations native american studies graduates commonly enter.

Skills You Will Develop

The skill set emphasized by a native american studies program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a native american studies major emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

Native American Studies Degree Types

There are several native american studies degree levels. The table below shows the typical length of the most common levels, and how many graduates earn each one.

Degree	Typical Program Length	Graduates Annually
Certificate	Varies	1
Associate Degree	2 years	139
Bachelor’s Degree	4 years	254
Master’s Degree	1-3 years	153
Doctorate	At least 4 years	13

People currently working in careers related to native american studies tend to have obtained the following education levels.

Level of Education	Percentage of Workers
Doctoral degree	60.5%
Master’s degree	31.0%
Post-doctoral training	4.0%
Post-master’s certificate	3.2%
First professional degree	1.1%
High school diploma or equivalent	0.2%

View the chart below to get an idea of what level of education most of those in native american studies careers hold.

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Native American Studies Careers

Studying native american studies opens doors to many career paths. Here are some of the most common occupations related to native american studies.

In-Demand Native American Studies Careers

The following options are some of the most in-demand careers related to native american studies.

Occupation	Projected Jobs	Expected Growth
Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary	718,152	6.5%

How Much Money Do Native American Studies Grads Make?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of native american studies graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Wages typically rise as graduates gain experience.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$32,619
4 years	$46,128
5 years	$53,144

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Highest Paid Native American Studies Careers

Salaries for native american studies graduates vary widely by occupation. The following table shows the top highest-paying careers native american studies grads often go into.

Occupation	Median Annual Salary
Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary	$47,517

Getting Your Native American Studies Degree

With 86 different native american studies programs to choose from, finding the best fit can be a challenge. We have analyzed these schools to produce unbiased native american studies school rankings to help you.

Native American Studies Related Majors

Those considering native american studies, you may also want to explore other closely related fields of study within the same broad area.

Additional Related Majors

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Women’s Studies	2,746
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies, Other	2,431
African-American/Black Studies	922
Hispanic-American, Puerto Rican, and Mexican-American/Chicano Studies	698
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies	517
Disability Studies	492
Deaf Studies	398
Asian-American Studies	172
Gay/Lesbian Studies	76
Folklore Studies	64

References

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.