General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations
Business & Management
Median earnings by degree level
| Degree | Median earnings | Typical range | Schools | Clear the bar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $75,332 | $46,054 to $85,420 | 10 | 80% |
| Associate's Degree | $39,486 | $37,898 to $50,296 | 11 | 91% |
| Bachelor's Degree | $72,817 | $65,103 to $81,348 | 30 | 93% |
"Clear the bar" is the share of programs whose graduates out-earn a typical high-school graduate (the federal earnings-premium test). Typical range is the 25th to 75th percentile of program medians.
Job outlook
Projected employment growth +1% (2025 to 2035), about 450,100 openings a year across the occupations this field commonly leads to.
| Occupation | Median pay | Growth | Openings/yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel | $69,990 | +2.7% | 115,700 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers | $48,520 | -3.7% | 113,500 |
| Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products | $72,080 | -0.9% | 99,800 |
| Parts Salespersons | $38,630 | +3% | 30,000 |
| Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Products | $104,920 | +1.2% | 23,600 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers | $87,520 | +0.5% | 21,700 |
Occupation pay and outlook: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS wages, Employment Projections). A field maps to several occupations, and the same occupations serve many majors, so these are the jobs this major commonly leads to, not positions reserved for its graduates; the openings should not be added up across majors.
Where this is studied
The 8 colleges where the most students complete a general sales, merchandising and related marketing operations program, of 244 that report one. Ordered by number of completions only: this is where people study it, not a judgement about where to.
- New York University
- CUNY Bernard M Baruch College
- Texas A&M University-College Station
- University of Wisconsin-Madison
- West Chester University of Pennsylvania
- Weber State University
- Umpqua Community College
- University of South Carolina-Columbia
Earnings source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (release 2026-06-10), median earnings of graduates measured up to four years after completing. Figures describe past graduates and are never a promise. Method: methodology. Report an error.