Maryland·Business and Financial Operations Occupations·SOC 13-1161

Best Market Research Analyst programs in Maryland, ranked by enrollment

Research conditions in local, regional, national, or online markets. Gather information to determine potential sales of a product or service, or plan a marketing or advertising campaign.

16 schools in Maryland run programs that feed this job, graduating 595 people a year. The job pays a median of $76,370 in Maryland across about 13,570 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledMarket AnalystDigital Media PlannerPaid Search StrategistMarket Research AnalystMarket Research ConsultantMarket Research SpecialistOnline Marketing ConsultantSEO Strategist (Search Engine Optimization Strategist)
Graduates / yr
595
in Maryland
Median pay · Maryland
$76,370
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
13,570
people employed
Schools
16
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
44%
across those schools
Median net price
$18,988
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Maryland that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

4 programs in Maryland that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Maryland (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Maryland page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1
CIP 52.1401In Maryland
530
89.1%
12$44,670$24,250
2
CIP 30.7102In Maryland
54
9.1%
2
3
CIP 52.1404In Maryland
10
1.7%
2$44,670$24,250
4
CIP 52.1499In Maryland
1
0.2%
1$44,670$24,250

Top 16 schools in Maryland

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 4 of the 16 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1University of Maryland Global Campus
Adelphi, MD Public · 2 feeder programs
198Marketing/Marketing Management, General$50,09433%
2University of Maryland - College Park
College Park, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
178Marketing/Marketing Management, General$61,57889%45%
3Loyola University Maryland
Baltimore, MD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
66Marketing/Marketing Management, General79%$26,58575%
4Salisbury University
Salisbury, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
64Marketing/Marketing Management, General$51,15768%87%
5Morgan State University
Baltimore, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
28Marketing/Marketing Management, General$42,76341%82%
6McDaniel College
Westminster, MD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
15Marketing/Marketing Management, General63%$18,98878%
7Prince George's Community College
Largo, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
11Marketing/Marketing Management, General18%
8Montgomery College
Rockville, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
8Business Analytics32%
9Allegany College of Maryland
Cumberland, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
6Digital Marketing40%
10Cecil College
North East, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
6Marketing/Marketing Management, General37%
11Anne Arundel Community College
Arnold, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
4Digital Marketing31%
12University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Princess Anne, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
4Marketing/Marketing Management, General35%96%
13Coppin State University
Baltimore, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
2Marketing/Marketing Management, General26%46%
14Hagerstown Community College
Hagerstown, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
2Marketing/Marketing Management, General39%
15Harford Community College
Bel Air, MD Public · 1 feeder programs
2Marketing/Marketing Management, General39%
16Strayer University - Maryland
Baltimore, MD Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
1Marketing, Other38%$18,092

All 16 schools in Maryland

Every school in Maryland with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in Maryland that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
University of Maryland Global CampusAdelphiPublic1982
University of Maryland - College ParkCollege ParkPublic1781
Loyola University MarylandBaltimorePrivate not-for-profit661
Salisbury UniversitySalisburyPublic641
Morgan State UniversityBaltimorePublic281
McDaniel CollegeWestminsterPrivate not-for-profit151
Prince George's Community CollegeLargoPublic111
Montgomery CollegeRockvillePublic81
Allegany College of MarylandCumberlandPublic61
Cecil CollegeNorth EastPublic61
Anne Arundel Community CollegeArnoldPublic41
University of Maryland Eastern ShorePrincess AnnePublic41
Coppin State UniversityBaltimorePublic21
Hagerstown Community CollegeHagerstownPublic21
Harford Community CollegeBel AirPublic21

What market research analysts and marketing specialists earn in Maryland

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Maryland
$76,370
Mean annual
$85,610
Jobs in state
13,570
What the range looks like
10th pct$41,600Median$76,37090th pct$145,600
Versus the national median
-3.0%

U.S. median $78,760. Maryland pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
0.85×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in Maryland

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD
$74,620median
5,920 jobs
Lexington Park, MD
$73,320median
200 jobs
Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV
$64,470median
370 jobs
Salisbury, MD
$61,990median
160 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+6.7%
Faster than average
Openings per year
87,200
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
63,000
941,700 → 1,004,700
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists page.

How to become a Market Research Analyst

Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Top skills

Reading ComprehensionCritical ThinkingActive ListeningWritingSpeakingActive Learning

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Maryland

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 16 majors mapped to Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists16 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 19.0203Consumer Merchandising/Retailing Management
  • 19.0905Apparel and Textile Marketing Management
  • 30.7102Business Analytics
  • 45.0602Applied Economics
  • 52.1401Marketing/Marketing Management, General
  • 52.1402Marketing Research
  • 52.1403International Marketing
  • 52.1404Digital Marketing
  • 52.1499Marketing, Other
  • 52.1904Apparel and Accessories Marketing Operations
  • 52.1905Tourism and Travel Services Marketing Operations
  • 52.1906Tourism Promotion Operations
  • 52.1907Vehicle and Vehicle Parts and Accessories Marketing Operations
  • 52.1908Business and Personal/Financial Services Marketing Operations
  • 52.1909Special Products Marketing Operations
  • 52.1910Hospitality and Recreation Marketing Operations

Common questions

Answers for people weighing market research analysts and marketing specialists programs in Maryland.

What degree do you need to become a Market Research Analyst?+

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Marketing/Marketing Management, General, which awarded 530 degrees in Maryland in 2024-25, 89.1% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Market Research Analyst?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 4 programs to this occupation. The largest are Marketing, Data Analytics. Together they graduate about 595 people a year in Maryland.

How much do market research analysts and marketing specialists earn in Maryland?+

The median is $76,370 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 3.0% below the U.S. median of $78,760. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for market research analysts and marketing specialists growing?+

BLS projects a +6.7% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, faster than average, with roughly 87,200 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Maryland?+

16 institutions in Maryland reported graduates from at least one of the 4 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do market research analysts and marketing specialists work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Market Analyst, Digital Media Planner, Paid Search Strategist, Market Research Analyst, Market Research Consultant, Market Research Specialist among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 13-1161.

Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in other statesTexasFloridaOhioUtahNew YorkPennsylvaniaMassachusettsIllinois

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

  • BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

    May 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.

  • IPEDS Completions

    2024-25 (provisional)

    Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.

  • College Scorecard, Field of Study

    2020-21 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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