2022–23 · Federal education data
Top 10 majors at HBCUs
The majors with the most bachelor's degrees awarded at HBCUs in 2022–23. This measures graduates, not the majors all enrolled students chose.
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Key takeaways
- The ten majors produced 15,149 of 32,345 HBCU bachelor's degrees, about 47%.
- Business, biology and psychology alone account for about one in four degrees.
- Women earned most degrees in all ten majors, from 55% in business to 91% in nursing.
- Some majors are concentrated at a few schools (criminal justice, liberal arts), while others are offered almost everywhere (biology, business).
The majors, in detail
- 1.
Business administration & management
2,880 degrees · 8.9% of all HBCU bachelor's · 55% women · 75 HBCUs · CIP 52.0201
The single most-awarded major at HBCUs, and the most widely offered: 75 HBCUs reported at least one graduate. It is also the most gender-balanced field in the top ten, and Morehouse, an all-men's college, ranks second. Business students can draw on corporate-sponsored awards as well as general HBCU scholarships.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: Bowie State University (147), Morehouse College (128), and Fayetteville State University (126).
- 2.
Biology / biological sciences
2,685 degrees · 8.3% of all HBCU bachelor's · 82% women · 77 HBCUs · CIP 26.0101
A powerhouse discipline at HBCUs and the usual launch point for students headed to medical, dental and pharmacy school. Howard and Xavier, both well known for pre-health preparation, award the most biology degrees. Four in five biology graduates are women.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: Howard University (186), Xavier University of Louisiana (145), and Alcorn State University (108).
- 3.
Psychology
2,432 degrees · 7.5% of all HBCU bachelor's · 86% women · 69 HBCUs · CIP 42.0101
Psychology is the third-largest major and leads into counseling, social services, human resources and graduate study in clinical fields. Most graduates are women. Few scholarships target psychology by name, so broad merit and need-based awards matter more here.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: North Carolina A&T State University (162), Fayetteville State University (155), and Howard University (132).
- 4.
Criminal justice / safety studies
1,902 degrees · 5.9% of all HBCU bachelor's · 69% women · 35 HBCUs · CIP 43.0104
The most concentrated major on the list: only 35 HBCUs reported graduates, and Central State alone awarded about 15% of them. It prepares students for law enforcement, corrections, legal careers and public policy work.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: Central State University (288), North Carolina Central University (114), and Grambling State University (109).
- 5.
Registered nursing
1,370 degrees · 4.2% of all HBCU bachelor's · 91% women · 31 HBCUs · CIP 51.3801
Bachelor of Science in Nursing graduates qualify to sit for the RN licensing exam. Nine in ten graduates are women. Nursing has some of the deepest dedicated scholarship funding of any field, including hospital and health-system awards.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: Winston-Salem State University (158), Fayetteville State University (146), and Prairie View A&M University (119).
- 6.
Social work
1,079 degrees · 3.3% of all HBCU bachelor's · 89% women · 52 HBCUs · CIP 44.0701
Social work is spread across many schools; no single HBCU dominates. A bachelor's degree is the entry point to the profession and to a Master of Social Work, where graduate funding becomes important.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: Jackson State University (62), Norfolk State University (56), and Morgan State University (53).
- 7.
Political science & government
802 degrees · 2.5% of all HBCU bachelor's · 71% women · 54 HBCUs · CIP 45.1001
Howard awards nearly one in five HBCU political science degrees, far ahead of any other school. The major is a common route to law school, government and public service.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: Howard University (148), Florida A&M University (57), and Spelman College (53).
- 8.
Liberal arts & sciences
740 degrees · 2.3% of all HBCU bachelor's · 61% women · 22 HBCUs · CIP 24.0101
Liberal arts and sciences is an interdisciplinary degree reported by just 22 HBCUs, with NC A&T accounting for about a third of the total. Students in this track usually qualify for broad scholarships rather than field-specific ones.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: North Carolina A&T State University (237), Morgan State University (98), and Fayetteville State University (74).
- 9.
Mass communication / media studies
655 degrees · 2.0% of all HBCU bachelor's · 58% women · 30 HBCUs · CIP 09.0102
Mass communication covers journalism, broadcasting, digital media and public relations. Journalism associations and media companies run their own scholarship and internship programs for students in this field.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: North Carolina A&T State University (97), Delaware State University (55), and North Carolina Central University (52).
- 10.
Sociology
604 degrees · 1.9% of all HBCU bachelor's · 74% women · 55 HBCUs · CIP 45.1101
Sociology rounds out the top ten and, like social work, is offered widely without a single dominant school. It feeds careers in research, public health, policy and community organizations.
Top HBCUs by degrees awarded: Norfolk State University (56), Fayetteville State University (53), and Bowie State University (35).
How we calculated this
We joined the 2023 federal IPEDS institution directory to its 2023 Completions file. We selected institutions flagged as HBCUs, bachelor's awards (AWLEVEL 5), and first majors (MAJORNUM 1), then grouped the reported totals by six-digit CIP code. We excluded CIP 99 subtotal rows to avoid counting awards twice. The 102 flagged institutions awarded 32,345 bachelor's degrees in the file; 87 reported at least one bachelor's completion. Awards cover July 1, 2022–June 30, 2023. The ranking includes all graduates at HBCUs, not only Black graduates; second majors, associate's degrees and graduate degrees are excluded.
This is our calculation from federal records, not an NCES-published top-ten list. Completions do not tell us how many current students declared each major, and the order can change in other years. Download the official institution directory and completions file to reproduce it. See the IPEDS data guide.