NextChapter

Job families where the most jobs need a four-year degree

Product leads: 99% of its jobs are in occupations that typically need a four-year degree, against 87% across all job families.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

Key facts

  • #1 Product, Job family: 99%
  • #2 Fundraising & development, Job family: 99%
  • #3 Executive Leadership, Job family: 99%
  • 20 job families ranked across all job families
  • Data as of November 2026

For comparison: 87% across all job families.

  1. 1Product Job family99%
  2. 2Fundraising & development Job family99%
  3. 3Executive Leadership Job family99%
  4. 4Marketing Job family99%
  5. 5Data & Analytics Job family99%
  6. 6Engineering Job family98%
  7. 7Investment Job family97%
  8. 8Strategy Job family96%
  9. 9Human Resources Job family95%
  10. 10Programs Job family94%

What stands out

  • The top ten is tightly packed: Product leads on 99%, and #10 Programs is at 94%.
  • Executive Leadership reaches #3 on a sample of 1,034 jobs matched to an occupation, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
  • Engineering is the largest market in the top ten, with 67,558 jobs matched to an occupation behind its figure.
  • Job families with fewer than 1,000 jobs matched to an occupation are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.

Why this ranking matters

What it shows

Some job families and industries hire almost entirely for four-year-degree occupations, and others have many roles open to people without one. The share shows which is which.

How to use it

If you do not have a four-year degree, the lower end shows where more of the openings are within reach. If you do, the upper end shows where your degree is most often the way in.

The top 25

  1. 1

    Product Job family

    99%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    5,677
    Jobs that do not
    41
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    5,718

    Based on 5,718 openings.

    Product jobs and employers

  2. 2

    Fundraising & development Job family

    99%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    1,063
    Jobs that do not
    11
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    1,074

    Based on 1,074 openings.

    Fundraising & development jobs and employers

  3. 3

    Executive Leadership Job family

    99%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    1,022
    Jobs that do not
    12
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    1,034

    Based on 1,034 openings.

    Executive Leadership jobs and employers

  4. 4

    Marketing Job family

    99%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    9,716
    Jobs that do not
    116
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    9,832

    Based on 9,832 openings.

    Marketing jobs and employers

  5. 5

    Data & Analytics Job family

    99%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    14,948
    Jobs that do not
    222
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    15,170

    Based on 15,170 openings.

    Data & Analytics jobs and employers

  6. 6

    Engineering Job family

    98%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    66,120
    Jobs that do not
    1,438
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    67,558

    Based on 67,558 openings.

    Engineering jobs and employers

  7. 7

    Investment Job family

    97%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    2,500
    Jobs that do not
    74
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    2,574

    Based on 2,574 openings.

    Investment jobs and employers

  8. 8

    Strategy Job family

    96%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    1,137
    Jobs that do not
    49
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    1,186

    Based on 1,186 openings.

    Strategy jobs and employers

  9. 9

    Human Resources Job family

    95%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    10,128
    Jobs that do not
    479
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    10,607

    Based on 10,607 openings.

    Human Resources jobs and employers

  10. 10

    Programs Job family

    94%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    2,296
    Jobs that do not
    143
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    2,439

    Based on 2,439 openings.

    Programs jobs and employers

  11. 11

    Design Job family

    93%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    3,940
    Jobs that do not
    293
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    4,233

    Based on 4,233 openings.

    Design jobs and employers

  12. 12

    Finance Job family

    91%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    22,265
    Jobs that do not
    2,098
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    24,363

    Based on 24,363 openings.

    Finance jobs and employers

  13. 13

    Clinical Job family

    91%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    5,792
    Jobs that do not
    578
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    6,370

    Based on 6,370 openings.

    Clinical jobs and employers

  14. 14

    Security Job family

    90%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    4,406
    Jobs that do not
    499
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    4,905

    Based on 4,905 openings.

    Security jobs and employers

  15. 15

    Research Job family

    84%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    2,475
    Jobs that do not
    469
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    2,944

    Based on 2,944 openings.

    Research jobs and employers

  16. 16

    Customer Success Job family

    81%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    2,258
    Jobs that do not
    523
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    2,781

    Based on 2,781 openings.

    Customer Success jobs and employers

  17. 17

    Operations Job family

    80%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    26,210
    Jobs that do not
    6,544
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    32,754

    Based on 32,754 openings.

    Operations jobs and employers

  18. 18

    Legal Job family

    78%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    6,378
    Jobs that do not
    1,834
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    8,212

    Based on 8,212 openings.

    Legal jobs and employers

  19. 19

    Sales Job family

    63%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    20,228
    Jobs that do not
    11,768
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    31,996

    Based on 31,996 openings.

    Sales jobs and employers

  20. 20

    Administration Job family

    11%

    Jobs that need a four-year degree
    358
    Jobs that do not
    2,876
    Jobs matched to an occupation
    3,234

    Based on 3,234 openings.

    Administration jobs and employers

Full ranking

All 20 job families that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankJob familyScoreSample
1Product Job family99%5,718
2Fundraising & development Job family99%1,074
3Executive Leadership Job family99%1,034
4Marketing Job family99%9,832
5Data & Analytics Job family99%15,170
6Engineering Job family98%67,558
7Investment Job family97%2,574
8Strategy Job family96%1,186
9Human Resources Job family95%10,607
10Programs Job family94%2,439
11Design Job family93%4,233
12Finance Job family91%24,363
13Clinical Job family91%6,370
14Security Job family90%4,905
15Research Job family84%2,944
16Customer Success Job family81%2,781
17Operations Job family80%32,754
18Legal Job family78%8,212
19Sales Job family63%31,996
20Administration Job family11%3,234

How this ranking works

A job family's score is the share of its open professional roles, among those we could match to an occupation, whose occupation typically needs a bachelor's, master's or doctoral degree (Bureau of Labor Statistics).

A posting does not state a degree. Each is matched to its standard occupation, and the education shown is what the Bureau of Labor Statistics lists as typical for entering that occupation. Some employers ask for more or less, and about one posting in a hundred has an occupation we could not match, which is left out. The job family is the one assigned from the posting title and text. Only job families with at least 1,000 matched jobs are ranked. Our board is professional roles, so every share is high compared with the whole economy.

Sample bar: job families with fewer than 1,000 openings are not ranked.

Sources: NextChapter job data: open professional roles, matched to standard occupation (SOC) codes; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025-35: typical entry-level education and projected employment change by occupation. Data as of November 2026.

Our job data covers professional roles on the career sites of employers we track, so figures describe that market, not every job. Spot an error? Tell us.

Questions

Which job family ranks first: job families where the most jobs need a four-year degree?
Product leads: 99% of its jobs are in occupations that typically need a four-year degree, against 87% across all job families.
How many job families are ranked?
20 job families have at least 1,000 jobs matched to an occupation, so the list has 20 entries.
How is the ranking calculated?
A job family's score is the share of its open professional roles, among those we could match to an occupation, whose occupation typically needs a bachelor's, master's or doctoral degree (Bureau of Labor Statistics). A posting does not state a degree. Each is matched to its standard occupation, and the education shown is what the Bureau of Labor Statistics lists as typical for entering that occupation. Some employers ask for more or less, and about one posting in a hundred has an occupation we could not match, which is left out. The job family is the one assigned from the posting title and text. Only job families with at least 1,000 matched jobs are ranked. Our board is professional roles, so every share is high compared with the whole economy.
How often is it updated?
Every month. This is the November 2026 edition. Older editions stay on this site at their own dated addresses.

More rankings

Cite this ranking

NextChapter, “Job families where the most jobs need a four-year degree,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/job-families-where-the-most-jobs-need-a-four-year-degree

Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/job-families-where-the-most-jobs-need-a-four-year-degree">Job families where the most jobs need a four-year degree (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>

Download the data: CSV · JSON. Free to use with a link back.

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