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Allied Health Services

Types of Degrees Allied Health Services Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Allied Health Services have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	41,711
Associate’s Degree	15,499
Bachelor’s Degree	1,053
Master’s Degree	17,310

What Allied Health Services Majors Need to Know

Studies in Allied Health Services emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Allied Health Services graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in Allied Health Services emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Medicine and Dentistry — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.4 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Administrative — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set built by a Allied Health Services program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Active Listening — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.
• Social Perceptiveness — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 3.4 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to Allied Health Services careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Near Vision — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Problem Sensitivity — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Allied Health Services graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.3 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.1 / 7
Assisting and Caring for Others	4.1 / 7
Working with Computers	4.1 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.0 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.0 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.0 / 7
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Allied Health Services professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Word processing software	Word processing software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
MEDITECH software	Medical software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Database software	Data base user interface and query software	—
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
Medical condition coding software	Medical software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Allied Health Services graduates include:

• Medical Technologist
• Optometric Assistant
• Polysomnographic Technologist
• Drug Coordinator
• Surgical Technician
• Medical Technician
• Sleep Technician
• Vascular Technician
• Patient Care Technician
• Pediatric Associate
• Hospital Technician
• Closed Circuit Screen Watcher
• Child Health Associate
• Health Type Technician
• Patient Account Representative

What Can You Do With a Allied Health Services Degree?

Graduates with a degree in Allied Health Services commonly enter the following occupations:

Occupation	Job Growth	Median Salary	25th–75th Pctile
Patient Representatives	4.8%	$47,419	$38,091–$56,747
Health Technologists and Technicians, All Other	12.2%	$153,940	$132,704–$175,175
Ophthalmic Medical Technologists	9.4%	$153,819	$121,211–$186,427
Medical Assistants	-2.1%	$32,137	$26,862–$37,413
Neurodiagnostic Technologists	14.1%	$81,316	$67,093–$95,538
Speech-Language Pathology Assistants	14.8%	$48,496	$38,165–$58,828
Histology Technicians	-0.2%	$80,721	$64,080–$97,363
Endoscopy Technicians	7.8%	$40,643	$33,481–$47,805
Pharmacy Technicians	1.6%	$72,773	$60,275–$85,272
Surgical Technologists	-3.0%	$73,045	$59,945–$86,145
Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians	12.4%	$155,908	$123,571–$188,246
Healthcare Support Workers, All Other	3.8%	$53,362	$45,950–$60,774

^{Job-growth = projected employment change for the parent occupation. Source: ONET / BLS Employment Projections.*}

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Allied Health Services graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	21.4%
Postsecondary certificate	20.6%
High school diploma or equivalent	19.0%
Bachelor’s degree	12.9%
Some college courses	8.8%
Master’s degree	8.6%
Doctoral degree	3.3%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	2.7%
Post-doctoral training	2.3%
First professional degree	0.3%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Allied Health Services?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 86% of Allied Health Services degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	69,420	86.0%
Men	11,273	14.0%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Allied Health Services graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	23,777	29.5%
Asian	3,116	3.9%
Hispanic or Latino	28,057	34.8%
Black or African American	14,262	17.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native	758	0.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	315	0.4%
Two or More Races	2,522	3.1%
Race Unknown	7,491	9.3%
International Students	395	0.5%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Allied Health Services Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Allied Health Services graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Earnings tend to climb steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$27,434
4 years	$29,082
5 years	$32,352

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $32,352 — roughly 18% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Allied Health Services Programs

Online study is reported by IPEDS for Allied Health Services. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	42	65
Bachelor’s	8	3
Master’s	2	1

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Allied Health Services Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Allied Health Services graduates earn a median of $29,082 four years after completion — about 23% below the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000). On earnings alone, this program does not show an income premium over the baseline; non-financial outcomes (career interests, certification requirements, advancement potential) are typically the stronger argument for fields in this range.

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Health Care Professions	994,689
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing	311,372
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants	99,987
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions	90,379
Health and Medical Administrative Services	90,166
Public Health	41,086
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General	38,201
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions	33,946
Medicine	29,737
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions	29,603
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions	24,761
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services	23,250

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• 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.