Counterterrorism Operations

 

Types of Degrees Counterterrorism Operations Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many terrorism & counterterrorism operations graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Basic Certificate	65
Associate Degree	52
Bachelor’s Degree	7

What Counterterrorism Operations Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to terrorism and counterterrorism operations and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Terrorism and Counterterrorism Operations Majors

Terrorism and Counterterrorism Operations majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Skills for Terrorism and Counterterrorism Operations Majors

When studying terrorism and counterterrorism operations, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Abilities for Terrorism and Counterterrorism Operations Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a terrorism and counterterrorism operations student include the following:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a Counterterrorism Operations Major?

People with a terrorism and counterterrorism operations degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives	6.6%	$89,030

Who Is Getting an Associate’s Degree in Counterterrorism Operations?

This major tends to be male dominated. About 85% of recent graduates are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of terrorism and counterterrorism operations majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	2
Black or African American	1
Hispanic or Latino	12
White	28
International Students	0
Other Races/Ethnicities	9

How Much Do Counterterrorism Operations Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Terrorism and Counterterrorism Operations majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $76,990 to $93,100 (25th to 75th percentile). This range includes all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Counterterrorism Operations

Some degrees associated with terrorism and counterterrorism operations may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to terrorism and counterterrorism operations have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	14.4%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	5.7%
Some College Courses	8.3%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	12.3%
Bachelor’s Degree	40.4%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	1.3%
Master’s Degree	12.9%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	1.9%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	0.7%
Doctoral Degree	2.9%

Online Counterterrorism Operations Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	0	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	1	1
Bachelor’s Degree	6	3
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	5	4
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	1	1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Counterterrorism Operations Worth It?

The median salary for a terrorism and counterterrorism operations grad is $82,570 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 107% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $853,400 after 20 years!

Trades Related to Counterterrorism Operations

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to terrorism and counterterrorism operations.

Major	Number of Grads
Homeland Security	3,064
Crisis/Emergency/Disaster Management	2,655
Critical Infrastructure Protection	628
Other Homeland Security	267

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.