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2023 Instructional Media Design Degree Guide

A major in Instructional Media Design will provide you with the knowledge needed to revolutionize the educational system. You will discover new ways to teach and learn how to use current and future technology in teaching and assessments. This major also prepares you to develop instructional material for online and other nontraditional methods of education. You will successfully learn how to integrate technology into educational curriculum while still coordinating with educational standards and current content.

To become certified in this field, you may be required to take courses such as advertising, computer applications, drawing, art, design, and education. This major may vary by university.

A Recent Jump in Instructional Media Design Degrees

#98 Most Popular Major
8.7k Degrees Awarded
11.3% Increase in Graduates

In 2020-2021, instructional media design was the 98th most popular major nationwide with 8,695 degrees awarded. This is a difference of 985 over the prior year, a growth of 11.3%.

Our 2023 Best Instructional Media Design Schools ranking analyzes 210 of these schools to determine the best overall colleges for instructional media design students. Continue reading to check out one of our many unbiased rankings of instructional media programs later in this article.

2023 Best Colleges for Instructional Media Design
2023 Overall Best Instructional Media Design Colleges >

Best Instructional Media Design Schools by Degree

Associate Degrees in Instructional Media Design
Bachelor's Degrees in Instructional Media Design
Master's Degrees in Instructional Media Design
Doctorate Degrees in Instructional Media Design

 

Instructional Media Design Degree Requirements

As a person working in education you should have a passion for empowering the youth of tomorrow. Your passion, excitement and dedication to education will lead to success in your work. Creativity is also an important trait to posses as someone who will be working on educational technology, computer applications, multimedia instruction, and web-based instruction. To design and produce educational software and materials you should also be an innovative thinker. Students will need knowledge and understanding in reaching all different types of learners.

As an instructional designer you will be in charge of balancing the work of designing programs while still connecting to state standards. You will have to be organized and efficient in making sure that these instructional methods and programs are used effectively in schools.

Instructional Media Degree Program Entry Requirements

A high school diploma or equivalent is typically required for most instructional media degree programs and many students will need a minimum GPA and SAT/ACT score depending on the school. Specific instructional media careers may require a certain level of degree attainment or additional certifications beyond that.

Instructional Media Design Degree Types

Instructional Media degree levels vary. Instructional Media Design programs offered by schools range from a to a , which is the highest instructional media degree you can get. How long it takes to complete some common instructional media degree levels is shown below.

Degree Credit Requirements Typical Program Length
Associate Degree 60-70 credits 2 years
Bachelor’s Degree 120 credits 4 years
Master’s Degree 50-70 credits 1-3 years
Doctorate Program required coursework including thesis or dissertation At least 4 years

A master's degree is the most common level of education achieved by those in careers related to instructional media, with approximately 44.7% of workers getting one. People currently working in careers related to instructional media tend obtained the following education levels.

Level of Education Percentage of Workers
Master’s Degree 47.9%
Bachelor’s Degree 28.2%
Post-Secondary Certificate 4.9%
Doctoral Degree 4.9%
Some College Courses 4.8%

About 55.7% of workers in careers related to instructional media obtain at least master's degrees. View the chart below to get an idea of what degree level most of those in instructional media design careers have.

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This of course varies depending on which instructional media career you choose.

Instructional Media Careers

Average Number of Jobs
$54.2k Average Starting Salary
10% Growth Job Outlook 2016-26

Depending on the focus you choose to take with a degree in instructional media design you have many possible career paths. You may become an instructional media designer, interactive media designer, digital media designer, multimedia design professional, or an instructional design specialist. This is a growing field that is essential to educational institutions as a support staff.

Another way into this field is to earn you undergraduate degree in digital media and web design to get the understanding of graphics, communications, computers, and media. You may choose to focus on instructional media design and continue on to obtain a master's degree in where you will also learn different teaching techniques to make your work more effective.

Solid Growth Projected for Instructional Media Careers

Want a job when you graduate with your instructional media degree? Instructional Media Design careers are expected to grow 10.4% between 2016 and 2026.

The following options are some of the most in-demand careers related to instructional media design.

Occupation Name Projected Jobs Expected Growth
Instructional Coordinators 180,400 10.5%
Multimedia Collections Specialists 12,300 8.8%

Instructional Media Degree Salary Potential

Recently graduated instructional media design students earned an average of $54,158 in 2019-2020. Earnings can range from as low as $21,386 to as high as $85,109. As you might expect, salaries for instructional media graduates vary depending on the level of education that was acquired.

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Highest Paid Instructional Media Careers

Salaries for instructional media design graduates can vary widely by the occupation you choose as well. The following table shows the top highest paying careers instructional media grads often go into.

Occupation Name Median Average Salary
Instructional Coordinators $67,490
Multimedia Collections Specialists $52,270

Getting Your Instructional Media Design Degree

With over 549 different instructional media degree programs to choose from, finding the best fit for you can be a challenge. Fortunately you have come to the right place. We have analyzed all of these schools to come up with hundreds of unbiased instructional media school rankings to help you with this.

Instructional Media Design is one of 14 different types of Education programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
Special Education 36,792
General Education 29,810

View All Instructional Media Related Majors >

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