Purchasing administrator education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a purchasing administrator. Purchasing administrators usually study business, accounting, or management. 57% of purchasing administrators hold a bachelor's degree, and 24% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 1,678 real purchasing administrator resumes to see exactly what purchasing administrator education sections show.

The most common colleges for purchasing administrators are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.

There are also many online purchasing administrator courses to help get the education required to be a purchasing administrator.

There are certain purchasing administrator certifications that you should consider. These purchasing administrator certifications include Certified Purchasing Manager (CPM) and Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP).

What education do you need to become a purchasing administrator?

What degree do you need to be a purchasing administrator?

The most common degree for purchasing administrators is bachelor's degree, with 57% of purchasing administrators earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 24% and associate degree degree at 9%.

Bachelor's, 57%

Associate, 24%

High School Diploma, 9%

Master's, 5%

Other Degrees, 5%

What should I major in to become a purchasing administrator?

You should major in business to become a purchasing administrator. 42% of purchasing administrators major in business. Other common majors for a purchasing administrator include accounting and management.

Business, 42%

Accounting, 12%

Management, 4%

Psychology, 4%

Other Majors, 38%

Most common colleges for purchasing administrators

Purchasing administrators often get their degrees at University of Phoenix, Western Washington University, and San Jose State University. Here are the most common colleges for purchasing administrators in the US based on their resumes.

Purchasing administrator common college	Percentages
University of Phoenix	20.17%
Western Washington University	7.56%
San Jose State University	5.04%
University of California - Davis	5.04%
University of Houston	5.04%

Show more common purchasing administrator colleges

Best majors for purchasing administrators

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Business	42.3%
2	Accounting	12.1%
3	Management	4.2%
4	Psychology	4.2%
5	Marketing	3.9%

Show more common purchasing administrator majors

Best colleges for purchasing administrators

The best colleges for purchasing administrators are University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, and Northwestern University.

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

1. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

2. Bentley University

Waltham, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$49,880

Enrollment

4,177

3. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Enrollment

9,394

4. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

5. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

6. SUNY College at Plattsburgh

Plattsburgh, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,369

Enrollment

5,229

7. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

8. Baylor University

Waco, TX • Private

In-state tuition

$45,542

Enrollment

14,159

9. SUNY College of Technology at Alfred

Alfred, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,570

Enrollment

3,721

10. Syracuse University

Syracuse, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,853

Enrollment

14,759

20 best online courses for purchasing administrators

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1. Financial Accounting - Inventory Costs

4.3

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Mastering Inventory Costs & Flows: An In-Depth Guide to Accounting for Inventory in Business Operations...

2. Complete Tally ERP 9-GST Course with Live Project of Clients

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Learn Tally ERP 9 with live Accounts of a Business Covering its Accounting, Payroll, GST, Banking, Inventory System...

3. SAP MM Materials Management (beginner to expert level)

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(331)

Master SAP Materials Management module with practical implementation steps. Prepare and crack SAP MM Certification exam...

4. SAP MM Purchasing Simplified for Beginners

4.6

(2,045)

Easy Introduction into Purchasing Processing in SAP ERP...

5. Payroll Accounting: Laws, Calculations, and Journal Entries

4.4

(1,649)

Master the complex world of payroll with practical examples, legislation insights, and comprehensive problems...

6. Fundamentals of Logistics, Supply Chain & Customer Service

4.5

(3,822)

Learn Logistics, Supply Chain and Customer Service. 3 Courses in 1...

7. RA: Data Science and Supply chain analytics.(A-Z with R)

4.5

(322)

Learn R,Supply-chain Data Science, Inventory Optimization,Big Data forecasting, Machine learning and Revenue Management...

8. Xero Bookkeeping & Accounting, w/ Set-up & Reporting

4.3

(263)

From Set-up to Bookkeeping, Accounting, Reporting, & Financial Statements in Xero with a Certified Xero Advisor...

9. SAP MM Purchasing (Procurement) Process

4.5

(406)

Business Process Explanation along with SAP Configuration and Testing of Purchasing Processes...

10. SAP Vendor Invoice Management(VIM) by OpenText

4.5

(575)

SAP Finance Vendor Invoice Management, Open text VIM, Account payable automation - Basic to Advanced Level Course...

11. SAP Materials Management (MM) Super User Training

4.6

(614)

Complete Beginner and Intermediate Purchasing & Inventory Management Training - Perform all the task in SAP in no time...

12. Payroll Accounting With Visually Effective Excel Dashboards

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Payroll Data Analysis with Excel Pivot Tables,hr payroll, payroll management, payroll certification, Payroll, Excel...

13. Microsoft Office 365 Administration

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Microsoft Office 365 Administration...

14. Financial Accounting & Excel-Comprehensive Accounting Course

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Comprehensive accounting course to learn the accounting cycle in a practical way and pick up critical Excel fundamentals...

15. Accounts Payable in SAP

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Learn Accounts Payable sub-module of SAP FICO in this step-by-step training course. Become a successful SAP Consultant...

16. Ultimate TALLY ERP 9 with GST - TALLY with Accounting [2022]

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(781)

Practical hands-on training on the core concepts like accounting, inventory, Payroll with practical hands-on...

17. Tally.ERP9+TallyPrime+GST+IncomeTax+TDS+MS Excel (ComboPack)

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(2,793)

A Compulsion Course for Accounting, Financial, MIS, Data Analysis, Tax Professional, Auditors & Bsns Management Sectors...

18. SAP MM (Materials Management) Consultant Level Course

(306)

Learn SAP Material Management module from scratch. Purchasing, Schema Determination, Material Master, Goods Receipt, etc...

19. Tally Prime: Step by Step Guide to Accounting using Tally

4.4

(1,456)

Beginner friendly, Basic to Advanced Tally ERP. Maintain Accounts of Any Business with Confidence...

20. Supply Chain Management A-Z: Operations & Logistics Basics

4.5

Brooklyn, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,240

Cost of attendance

13,991

7. Purdue University

West Lafayette, IN • Private

In-state tuition

$9,992

Cost of attendance

22,430

8. SUNY Polytechnic Institute

Utica, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,238

Cost of attendance

21,567

9. USF Sarasota-Manatee

Sarasota, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,587

Cost of attendance

13,043

10. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for purchasing administrators

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

Some great schools for purchasing administrators 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 purchasing administrators 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. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,492

2. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,497

3. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,508

4. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

5. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,506

6. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

7. Bentley University

Waltham, MA • Private

Admissions rate

43%

SAT average

1,338

8. Fordham University

Bronx, NY • Private

Admissions rate

46%

SAT average

1,354

9. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

10. Villanova University

Villanova, PA • Private

Admissions rate

29%

Aberdeen, SD • Private

Admissions rate

97%

SAT average

1,050

Average purchasing administrator salary by education level

According to our data, purchasing administrators with a Master's degree earn the highest average salary, at $49,342 annually. Purchasing administrators with a Bachelor's degree earn an average annual salary of $44,301.

Purchasing administrator education level	Purchasing administrator salary
Master's Degree	$49,342
High School Diploma or Less	$37,834
Bachelor's Degree	$44,301
Some College/ Associate Degree	$36,840

Purchasing administrator education FAQs

What is the best college for Purchasing Administrators?

Have more questions? See all answers to common business and financial questions.

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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

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