North Carolina·Community and Social Service Occupations·SOC 21-1099

Best Community programs in North Carolina, ranked by enrollment

All community and social service specialists not listed.

34 schools in North Carolina run programs that feed this job, graduating 908 people a year. The job pays a median of $54,820 in North Carolina across about 3,460 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledNunMonkNoviceSisterActivistOrganizerPostulantSacristan
Graduates / yr
908
in North Carolina
Median pay · North Carolina
$54,820
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
3,460
people employed
Schools
34
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
53%
across those schools
Median net price
$23,331
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in North Carolina that lead to this job

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

5 programs in North Carolina that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in North Carolina (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 North Carolina page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1471
51.9%
3$36,206$29,240
2382
42.1%
25$35,168$29,279
338
4.2%
2$32,226$26,000
413
1.4%
3$32,226$26,000
54
0.4%
2$39,102$27,000

Top 25 schools in North Carolina

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 3 of the 34 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 North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
445Behavioral Sciences91%15%
2Beaufort County Community College
Washington, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
42Human Services, General48%
3Wilkes Community College
Wilkesboro, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
37Human Services, General55%
4Lees - McRae College
Banner Elk, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
36Human Services, General$34,81142%$23,34977%
5Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Wake Forest, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
33Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries, Other58%$6,60875%
6Davidson - Davie Community College
Thomasville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
30Human Services, General46%
7Stanly Community College
Albemarle, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
28Human Services, General48%
8Pitt Community College
Winterville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
24Human Services, General35%
9Blue Ridge Community College
Flat Rock, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
23Human Services, General50%
10Campbell University
Buies Creek, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
22Behavioral Sciences61%$23,33187%
11Carteret Community College
Morehead City, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
19Human Services, General49%
12Lenoir - Rhyne University
Hickory, NC Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
19Human Services, General$32,73248%$23,92085%
13Wingate University
Wingate, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
19Human Services, General$32,84346%$21,58591%
14Elon University
Elon, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
15Human Services, General84%$33,68866%
15South Piedmont Community College
Polkton, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
14Human Services, General38%
16University of Mount Olive
Mount Olive, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
14Human Services, General52%$16,47376%
17Gaston College
Dallas, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
12Human Services, General63%
18Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute
Hudson, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
10Human Services, General45%
19Central Carolina Community College
Sanford, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
8Human Services, General43%
20Wayne Community College
Goldsboro, NC Public · 1 feeder programs
7Human Services, General49%
21Belmont Abbey College
Belmont, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
6Human Services, General47%$22,63975%
22Gardner - Webb University
Boiling Springs, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
6Pastoral Studies/Counseling55%$22,86377%
23Queens University of Charlotte
Charlotte, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
6Human Services, General61%$24,87262%
24Charlotte Christian College and Theological Seminary
Charlotte, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
4Pastoral Studies/Counseling
25Duke University
Durham, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
4Behavioral Sciences97%$16,2606%

All 34 schools in North Carolina

Every school in North Carolina 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 North Carolina that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
University of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel HillPublic4451
Beaufort County Community CollegeWashingtonPublic421
Wilkes Community CollegeWilkesboroPublic371
Lees - McRae CollegeBanner ElkPrivate not-for-profit361
Southeastern Baptist Theological SeminaryWake ForestPrivate not-for-profit331
Davidson - Davie Community CollegeThomasvillePublic301
Stanly Community CollegeAlbemarlePublic281
Pitt Community CollegeWintervillePublic241
Blue Ridge Community CollegeFlat RockPublic231
Campbell UniversityBuies CreekPrivate not-for-profit221
Carteret Community CollegeMorehead CityPublic191
Lenoir - Rhyne UniversityHickoryPrivate not-for-profit192
Wingate UniversityWingatePrivate not-for-profit191
Elon UniversityElonPrivate not-for-profit151
South Piedmont Community CollegePolktonPublic141

What community and social service specialists, all other earn in North Carolina

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

Median annual in North Carolina
$54,820
Mean annual
$56,170
Jobs in state
3,460
What the range looks like
10th pct$38,850Median$54,82090th pct$75,160
Versus the national median
-3.4%

U.S. median $56,730. North Carolina pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
1.01×

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

Metro areas in North Carolina

Durham-Chapel Hill, NC
$58,410median
280 jobs
Raleigh-Cary, NC
$60,410median
850 jobs
Asheville, NC
$57,020median
170 jobs
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC
$54,820median
660 jobs
Greenville, NC
$53,400median
40 jobs
Jacksonville, NC
$52,730median
30 jobs
Goldsboro, NC
$49,990median
40 jobs
Wilmington, NC
$54,620median
100 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+4.6%
About as fast as average
Openings per year
13,100
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
5,500
119,200 → 124,700
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 Community and Social Service Specialists, All Other page.

How to become a Community

Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

The same job in other states

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

Related careers in North Carolina

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 9 majors mapped to Community and Social Service Specialists, All Other9 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 19.0710Developmental Services Worker
  • 19.0711Early Childhood and Family Studies
  • 19.0712Parent Education Services
  • 30.1701Behavioral Sciences
  • 30.2502Contemplative Studies/Inquiry
  • 39.0701Pastoral Studies/Counseling
  • 39.0799Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries, Other
  • 44.0000Human Services, General
  • 44.0201Community Organization and Advocacy

Common questions

Answers for people weighing community and social service specialists, all other programs in North Carolina.

What degree do you need to become a Community?+

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Behavioral Sciences, which awarded 471 degrees in North Carolina in 2024-25, 51.9% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Community?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 5 programs to this occupation. The largest are Behavioral Sciences, Human Services, Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries, Community Organization and Advocacy. Together they graduate about 908 people a year in North Carolina.

How much do community and social service specialists, all other earn in North Carolina?+

The median is $54,820 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 3.4% below the U.S. median of $56,730. 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 community and social service specialists, all other growing?+

BLS projects a +4.6% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 13,100 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in North Carolina?+

34 institutions in North Carolina reported graduates from at least one of the 5 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.

Do you need training or experience beyond a degree?+

BLS lists 'None' for related work experience and 'None' for on-the-job training typically needed to reach competency.

Community and Social Service Specialists, All Other in other statesArizonaIndianaCaliforniaNew YorkTexasFloridaMinnesotaNew Hampshire

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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