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Media analyst education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a media analyst. Media analysts usually study communication, business, or marketing. 76% of media analysts hold a bachelor's degree, and 13% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 1,890 real media analyst resumes to see exactly what media analyst education sections show.

The most common colleges for media analysts are the New York University and the New York University.

There are also many online media analyst courses to help get the education required to be a media analyst.

There are certain media analyst certifications that you should consider. These media analyst certifications include Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate and Certified Medical Interpreter - Spanish (CMI).

What education do you need to become a media analyst?

What degree do you need to be a media analyst?

The most common degree for media analysts is bachelor's degree, with 76% of media analysts earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 13% and master's degree degree at 6%.
  • Bachelor's, 76%
  • Master's, 13%
  • Associate, 6%
  • Diploma, 2%
  • Other Degrees, 3%

What should I major in to become a media analyst?

You should major in communication to become a media analyst. 17% of media analysts major in communication. Other common majors for a media analyst include business and marketing.

Most common colleges for media analysts

Media analysts often get their degrees at New York University, American University, and University of California - Davis. Here are the most common colleges for media analysts in the US based on their resumes.
Media analyst common collegePercentages
New York University12.38%
American University7.14%
University of California - Davis6.67%
University of California, Santa Barbara6.67%
Michigan State University5.24%

Best majors for media analysts

RankMajorPercentages
1Communication16.9%
2Business15.0%
3Marketing14.3%
4Journalism6.6%
5English6.0%

Best colleges for media analysts

The best colleges for media analysts are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Stanford University.

A media analyst with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for media analysts. 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 media analysts.

1. University of Georgia

Athens, GA • Private

In-state tuition

$11,830

Enrollment

29,474

2. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

3. University of Wisconsin - Madison

Madison, WI • Private

In-state tuition

$10,555

Enrollment

30,360

4. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

5. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

6. University of Maryland - College Park

College Park, MD • Private

In-state tuition

$10,595

Enrollment

30,184

7. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

8. Ball State University

Muncie, IN • Private

In-state tuition

$9,896

Enrollment

15,529

9. Purdue University

West Lafayette, IN • Private

In-state tuition

$9,992

Enrollment

33,495

10. Howard University

Washington, DC • Private

In-state tuition

$26,756

Enrollment

6,166

20 best online courses for media analysts

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1. Data Analysis Immersive (Full-time)

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Learn to problem solve, and effectively communicate, like an analyst. This course teaches you to use industry-standard tools to make ethical, data-driven decisions. Experience hands-on training to master SQL, Excel, Tableau, PowerBI, and Python – tools listed in virtually every data analytics job posting across industries...

2. Data Analytics (Part Time)

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Harness Excel, SQL, and Tableau to drive powerful analysis and insights. Build confidence and credibility to apply this versatile skill set to countless jobs. This course is offered in person and live online, in a remote classroom setting...

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Use Python, SQL and Statistics to advance your programming skills and refine your ability to work with messy, complex datasets...

4. Marketing Analytics

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Gain an in-depth understanding of Google Analytics and marketing analytics. Analyze data and build models with Excel, Data Studio, and create informative data visualizations with Tableau...

5. Social Media Marketing - Content Marketing Masterclass

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4.5
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Online Digital Marketing / Social Media Strategy For Beginners - Posts / Blogs / Podcasts / Video / Google Local SEO...

6. Digital Marketing Agency Start a Social Media Business

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4.7
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Build a Digital Marketing Agency Business with Social Media (SMMA), Chat GPT, Facebook Ads, Instagram, Word Press, SEO...

7. Digital Marketing (Part Time)

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Build confidence and capability to apply modern marketing strategies on the job. Drive growth with multichannel campaigns powered by data and customer insight. This course is offered in person and live online, in a remote classroom setting...

8. Intro to Data Analytics

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Discover if data is a career fit for you Regardless of your industry or role, fluency in the language of data analytics will allow you to contribute to data driven decision making. In this free, two-hour livestream, you’ll learn to understand, analyze, and interpret data so you too can join the data conversation. We’ll cover how to ask the right questions of your data and basic analytic functionality. Then you’ll apply your new found data analytic skills to a real-world dataset, allowing you...

9. Data Structures and Algorithms

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Get hands-on practice with over 80 data structures and algorithm exercises and guidance from a dedicated mentor to help prepare you for interviews and on-the-job scenarios...

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You will start by building data visualizations and dashboards, considering your audiences to be as effective as possible. Then, you’ll move into drafting presentations using storytelling techniques, visualizations, and animations to provide data-driven recommendations...

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2023 growth hacking with top web marketing and Internet marketing strategies: Social media marketing strategies + SEO...

13. Digital Marketing

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Gain real-world experience running live campaigns as you learn from top experts in the field. Launch your career with a 360-degree understanding of digital marketing...

14. Intro to Data Analysis

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Start your data science journey right with this hands-on introduction to the discipline of data analysis. In this course you'll learn the 5 key stages of the data analysis process and apply them to real data sets using Python libraries NumPy, pandas, and Matplotlib...

15. Social Media Monitoring

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4.2
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Our new course on Social Media Monitoring in a post Google Reader World is coming soon...

16. The Ultimate SEO, Social Media, & Digital Marketing Course

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4.4
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Copywriting, Chat GPT, SEO, Google Ads, You Tube Ads, Bing Ads, Meta Ads, Linked In Ads, Word Press, Woo Commerce, GA4 + more...

17. Data Visualization

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Discover how data visualization can communicate insights far more effectively than text or tables. In this course, you’ll learn how to build data visualizations programmatically using Python, and how you can use visualization to both discover and convey trends in your data...

18. Experimental Design & Recommendations

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Learn two of the most in-demand skills in the entire field of data science! By the end of this course, you’ll know how to generate personalized recommendations based on user data, as well as run statistically valid tests that produce clean, interpretable results...

19. [2023] Customer Service 2.0: Learn Digital Customer Service

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Used by Chase®, Intel®, & more! Learn soft skills, social media customer service, diagnosing user problems, & more...

20. Social Media Marketing Advertising with Dekker, MBA 2023

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Udemy Social Media Marketing (Unofficial) for Linked In, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tik Tok, Reddit, Quora, You Tube Etc...

Top 10 most affordable universities for media analysts

The most affordable schools for media analysts are Baruch College of the City University of New York, suny farmingdale, and university of florida.

If the best universities for media analysts 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 media analysts.

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. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

3. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

4. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

5. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

6. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

7. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

8. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

9. Florida International University

Miami, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,556

Cost of attendance

19,434

10. California State University - Fresno

Fresno, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,587

Cost of attendance

16,915

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for media analysts

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

Some great schools for media analysts 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 media analysts 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. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

2. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

3. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

4%

SAT average

1,497

4. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

5. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

6. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

7. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

8. Villanova University

Villanova, PA • Private

Admissions rate

29%

SAT average

1,407

9. Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA • Private

Admissions rate

28%

SAT average

1,429

10. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for media analysts

The easiest schools for media analysts to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, university of the incarnate word, and holy names university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a media analyst 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 media analysts.

1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

2. University of the Incarnate Word

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,044

3. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

4. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

5. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

6. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

7. LIM College

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

83%

SAT average

1,061

8. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

9. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

10. Iona College

New Rochelle, NY • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,089

Average media analyst salary by education level

According to our data, media analysts with a Doctorate degree earn the highest average salary, at $73,108 annually. Media analysts with a Master's degree earn an average annual salary of $72,547.
Media analyst education levelMedia analyst salary
Master's Degree$72,547
Bachelor's Degree$65,082
Doctorate Degree$73,108

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
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.

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