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Publication director education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a publication director. Publication directors usually study communication, journalism, or english. 75% of publication directors hold a bachelor's degree, and 14% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 2,001 real publication director resumes to see exactly what publication director education sections show.
The most common colleges for publication directors are the Syracuse University and the Syracuse University.
There are also many online publication director courses to help get the education required to be a publication director.
What education do you need to become a publication director?
What degree do you need to be a publication director?
- Bachelor's, 75%
- Master's, 14%
- Associate, 6%
- Doctorate, 3%
- Other Degrees, 2%
What should I major in to become a publication director?
- Communication, 15%
- Journalism, 13%
- English, 11%
- Political Science, 11%
- Other Majors, 50%
Most common colleges for publication directors
| Publication director common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| Syracuse University | 7.69% |
| New York University | 7.29% |
| Michigan State University | 6.88% |
| University of Florida | 6.48% |
| American University | 6.48% |
Best majors for publication directors
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Communication | 15.5% |
| 2 | Journalism | 13.1% |
| 3 | English | 11.2% |
| 4 | Political Science | 10.7% |
| 5 | Business | 7.9% |
Best colleges for publication directors
The best colleges for publication directors are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and Vanderbilt University.
A publication director with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for publication directors. 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 publication directors.
1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,832
Enrollment
4,550
2. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,354
Enrollment
7,083
3. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$50,420
Enrollment
7,582
4. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
5. Cornell University
Ithaca, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$55,188
Enrollment
15,105
6. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Private
In-state tuition
$15,262
Enrollment
30,079
7. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
8. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$59,430
Enrollment
8,216
9. Brown University
Providence, RI • Private
In-state tuition
$55,466
Enrollment
6,752
10. University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$14,184
Enrollment
30,845
20 best online courses for publication directors
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6. Leadership for Public Health Crises
Leadership for Public Health Crises will enable current and prospective managers, directors, unit heads, and elected officials to effectively lead their organizational response to profound health-related emergencies and to build leadership capacity across multiple sectors, agencies, organizations, and divisions. This series of courses prepares graduate students (in, e.g., public administration, public health, social work, business, homeland security, education, and related fields) and...
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20. Public Speaking for Engineers: Never Get Lost in Tech Detail
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Top 10 most affordable universities for publication directors
The most affordable schools for publication directors are SUNY Farmingdale, baruch college of the city university of new york, and brooklyn college of the city university of new york.
If the best universities for publication directors 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 publication directors.
1. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,306
Cost of attendance
16,091
2. Baruch College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,262
Cost of attendance
14,046
3. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York
Brooklyn, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,240
Cost of attendance
13,991
4. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
5. Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,182
Cost of attendance
13,998
6. Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN • Private
In-state tuition
$9,992
Cost of attendance
22,430
7. Minot State University
Minot, ND • Private
In-state tuition
$7,064
Cost of attendance
15,576
8. Clayton State University
Morrow, GA • Private
In-state tuition
$5,419
Cost of attendance
17,697
9. Florida International University
Miami, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,556
Cost of attendance
19,434
10. Queens College of the City University of New York
Queens, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,338
Cost of attendance
14,281
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for publication directors
The hardest universities for publication directors to get into are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and Vanderbilt University.
Some great schools for publication directors 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 publication directors 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
4%
SAT average
1,497
2. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
3. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Admissions rate
10%
SAT average
1,514
4. University of Tulsa
Tulsa, OK • Private
Admissions rate
41%
SAT average
1,321
5. Hamilton College
Clinton, NY • Private
Admissions rate
21%
SAT average
1,446
6. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
7. Loyola Marymount University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
47%
SAT average
1,321
8. Southern Methodist University
Dallas, TX • Private
Admissions rate
51%
SAT average
1,395
9. Clemson University
Clemson, SC • Private
Admissions rate
47%
SAT average
1,337
10. Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA • Private
Admissions rate
28%
SAT average
1,429
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for publication directors
The easiest schools for publication directors to get into are Notre Dame de Namur University, nyack college, and gwynedd mercy university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a publication director 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 publication directors.
1. Notre Dame de Namur University
Belmont, CA • Private
Admissions rate
82%
SAT average
983
2. Nyack College
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
999
3. Gwynedd Mercy University
Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private
Admissions rate
92%
SAT average
1,031
4. Curry College
Milton, MA • Private
Admissions rate
93%
SAT average
1,026
5. Wayland Baptist University
Plainview, TX • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
1,003
6. Saint Joseph's College of Maine
Standish, ME • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,069
7. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
8. Felician University
Lodi, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
81%
SAT average
999
9. Barry University
Miami, FL • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,006
10. La Roche College
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions rate
99%
SAT average
1,008
Average publication director salary by education level
| Publication director education level | Publication director salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $108,113 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $91,471 |
Publication director education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025