Desk manager education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a desk manager. Desk managers usually study business, psychology, or finance. 65% of desk managers hold a bachelor's degree, and 14% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 2,792 real desk manager resumes to see exactly what desk manager education sections show.

The most common colleges for desk managers are the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

There are also many online desk manager courses to help get the education required to be a desk manager.

There are certain desk manager certifications that you should consider. These desk manager certifications include Sales Management and Certified Sales Professional (CSP).

What education do you need to become a desk manager?

What degree do you need to be a desk manager?

The most common degree for desk managers is bachelor's degree, with 65% of desk managers earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 14% and associate degree degree at 10%.

Bachelor's, 65%

Associate, 14%

High School Diploma, 10%

Master's, 6%

Other Degrees, 5%

What should I major in to become a desk manager?

You should major in business to become a desk manager. 24% of desk managers major in business. Other common majors for a desk manager include psychology and finance.

Business, 24%

Psychology, 8%

Finance, 8%

Accounting, 6%

Other Majors, 54%

Most common colleges for desk managers

Desk managers often get their degrees at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Illinois State University, and Arizona State University. Here are the most common colleges for desk managers in the US based on their resumes.

Desk manager common college	Percentages
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville	17.49%
Illinois State University	7.62%
Arizona State University	7.17%
Kean University	6.73%
West Virginia University	5.38%

Show more common desk manager colleges

Best majors for desk managers

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Business	24.1%
2	Psychology	8.1%
3	Finance	7.8%
4	Accounting	6.2%
5	Communication	6.2%

Show more common desk manager majors

Best colleges for desk managers

The best colleges for desk managers are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and University of Pennsylvania.

A desk manager with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for desk managers. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become desk managers.

1. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Enrollment

9,142

2. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

3. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

4. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

5. Cornell University

Ithaca, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$55,188

Enrollment

15,105

6. University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$14,184

Enrollment

30,845

7. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

8. Western Carolina University

Cullowhee, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$3,926

Enrollment

9,835

9. SUNY College of Agriculture & Technology at Morrisville

Morrisville, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,670

Enrollment

2,758

10. Pennsylvania State University

University Park, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$18,454

Enrollment

40,108

20 best online courses for desk managers

Advertising disclosure

1. Sales Training: Sales Team Management

In this course, you will learn how to define your target market, create a scalable sales process, and build training, coaching, hiring, and onboarding programs to help your sales team grow better. Whether you're already managing a sales team, or aspire to manage one at some point in your career, this course will explain what's involved when it comes to setting up a sales process, coaching your team, hiring new team members, and getting those team members up to speed as fast as possible...

2. Sales Operations/Management

Sales jobs span nearly every industry, from agribusiness and pharmaceuticals, to telecommunications and property management. And essential to sales is the management of the sales force. This course provides the knowledge and know how required for careers in sales management. Students are exposed to all facets of sales management, including organizing, selecting, training, motivating, supervising and compensating the sales force, territory management and administration and sales and expense...

3. IT service operations and Service Desk management

4.4

(2,841)

Improve Service Desk and IT support processes and service functions. Better preparation for the professional exam...

4. Help Desk Analyst

4.2

(346)

Boost your career with this course, pass the e-Learning course, and achieve your Help Desk Analyst certificate...

5. Service Desk Analyst Crash course for beginners.

4.2

(439)

Get Hands-On Experience for following JOB roles - Service Desk Analyst IT Help Desk Professional L1 IT Support GSD...

6. IT Help Desk for Beginners

4.4

(395)

The essentials to become an IT Help Desk Technician...

7. ComputerCavalry: IT Help Desk Training for IT Professionals!

4.5

(349)

Help Desk Training for IT Professionals is a 10 lecture course that provides valuable work experience to beginners in IT...

8. Learning IT Help Desk Basics

4.3

(583)

Get the skills you need to pursue an entry-level position as an IT help desk technician...

9. The Complete B2B Sales Masterclass: 6 Courses in 1

(413)

1. Generate Leads, 2. Pitch, 3. Close & Handle Any Objection: Get Certified in Cutting Edge, Non-Pushy B2B Sales System...

10. Help Desk Professional: A guide to your IT career

4.5

(1,741)

Master the Help desk position by working smarter and boost your career opportunities...

11. Learning IT Help Desk for Beginners

4.6

(919)

Must know skills for Helpdesk and Service Desk Professionals!!...

12. IT Support and Service Desk jobs -Crash Course for Beginners

4.6

(787)

Let me help you land your first job in IT. Learn about different roles, procedures, tools, and applications - Part 1...

13. Sales Machine: The Sales Training B2B Master Course

4.6

(4,040)

Learn Sales Strategies & Sales Techniques to Sell ANYTHING for Entrepreneurs, Startup, B2B Sales, & Business Development...

14. Sales Skills: 9 Sales Training Courses In 1

4.4

(994)

Develop Extraordinary Sales Skills With The Ultimate Sales Training (Taught By 5 Top Sales Experts)...

15. Sales Training: Practical Sales Techniques

4.6

(23,968)

Sales Hacking: Essential sales skills, sales strategies and sales techniques to sell just about anything!...

16. Hotel Front Desk

4.4

(342)

Hotel Front Office Management and Operations...

17. IT Help Desk Professional

4.5

(7,538)

Get Hands-On Experience on Helpdesk Skills, Learn, Master & Troubleshoot All What It Takes To Get You a Job...

18. Sales Skills Mastery 1: Sales Training For Beginners

4.4

(817)

Selling Techniques and Sales Strategy that Every Salesperson Ought to Know - Sales Training For the Modern World...

19. Cloud Computing Sales

4.5

(657)

The Hottest Tech Market: Close more and better deals by understanding clients' business objectives + technology roadmap...

20. Sales Training: Become A Sales Superstar

4.7

(262)

Develop Advanced Sales Skills To Sell Anything Like A Champ (Taught By A World-class Salesman)...

Top 10 most affordable universities for desk managers

The most affordable schools for desk managers are Baruch College of the City University of New York, california state university - bakersfield, and university of florida.

If the best universities for desk managers are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for desk managers.

1. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

2. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

3. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

4. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

5. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez

Mayaguez, PR • Private

In-state tuition

$4,094

Cost of attendance

14,302

6. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

7. Dickinson State University

Dickinson, ND • Private

In-state tuition

$6,768

Cost of attendance

15,506

8. Clayton State University

Morrow, GA • Private

In-state tuition

$5,419

Cost of attendance

17,697

9. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

10. SUNY Polytechnic Institute

Utica, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,238

Cost of attendance

21,567

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for desk managers

The hardest universities for desk managers to get into are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and University of Pennsylvania.

Some great schools for desk managers are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for desk managers based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,497

2. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,508

3. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,492

4. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

5. Cornell University

Ithaca, NY • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,471

6. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

7. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

8. University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,448

9. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

10. George Washington University, The

Washington, DC • Private

Admissions rate

42%

SAT average

1,380

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for desk managers

The easiest schools for desk managers to get into are D'Youville College, gwynedd mercy university, and mount saint mary's university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a desk manager without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for desk managers.

1. D'Youville College

Buffalo, NY • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,072

2. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

3. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

4. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

5. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

6. Life University

Marietta, GA • Private

Admissions rate

94%

SAT average

979

7. Oregon Institute of Technology

Klamath Falls, OR • Private

Admissions rate

96%

SAT average

1,139

8. Presentation College

Aberdeen, SD • Private

Admissions rate

97%

SAT average

1,050

9. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

10. Fresno Pacific University

Fresno, CA • Private

Admissions rate

85%

SAT average

1,053

Average desk manager salary by education level

According to our data, desk managers with a Doctorate degree earn the highest average salary, at $122,959 annually. Desk managers with a Master's degree earn an average annual salary of $111,544.

Desk manager education level	Desk manager salary
Master's Degree	$111,544
High School Diploma or Less	$74,261
Bachelor's Degree	$93,660
Doctorate Degree	$122,959
Some College/ Associate Degree	$78,007

Desk manager education FAQs

What is the best college for Desk Managers?

Have more questions? See all answers to common office and administrative questions.

Search for desk manager jobs

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse office and administrative jobs