Purchasing buyer education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a purchasing buyer. Purchasing buyers usually study business, accounting, or supply chain management. 55% of purchasing buyers hold a bachelor's degree, and 20% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 2,329 real purchasing buyer resumes to see exactly what purchasing buyer education sections show.

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

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

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

What education do you need to become a purchasing buyer?

What degree do you need to be a purchasing buyer?

The most common degree for purchasing buyers is bachelor's degree, with 55% of purchasing buyers earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 20% and associate degree degree at 11%.

Bachelor's, 55%

Associate, 20%

High School Diploma, 11%

Master's, 8%

Other Degrees, 6%

What should I major in to become a purchasing buyer?

You should major in business to become a purchasing buyer. 46% of purchasing buyers major in business. Other common majors for a purchasing buyer include accounting and supply chain management.

Business, 46%

Accounting, 7%

Supply Chain Management, 5%

Management, 5%

Other Majors, 37%

Most common colleges for purchasing buyers

Purchasing buyers often get their degrees at University of Phoenix, Michigan State University, and Wayne State University. Here are the most common colleges for purchasing buyers in the US based on their resumes.

Purchasing buyer common college	Percentages
University of Phoenix	20.61%
Michigan State University	12.12%
Wayne State University	6.06%
Arizona State University	4.85%
Pennsylvania State University	4.85%

Show more common purchasing buyer colleges

Best majors for purchasing buyers

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Business	46.0%
2	Accounting	7.5%
3	Supply Chain Management	5.3%
4	Management	5.2%
5	Marketing	4.3%

Show more common purchasing buyer majors

Best colleges for purchasing buyers

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

A purchasing buyer 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 buyers. 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 buyers.

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 buyers

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(3,822)

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

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

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Supply Chain Management Basics: An MBA style course to boost your career as a business operations & logistics manager...

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Easy Introduction into Purchasing Processing in SAP ERP...

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

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

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

8. Procurement & Supply Planning tools and techniques.

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Learn how to Make purchasing strategies ,MRP, forecast, inventory policies and techniques to minimize supply costs...

9. SAP Materials Management (MM) Super User Training

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

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

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

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How to secure long term Procurement savings without breaking relations with your suppliers (with the updates 2022)...

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18. SAP: Supply Chain Logistics in R/3

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Everything you need to know about SAP Supply Chain Logistics and Transportation in one easy place...

19. SAP MM Organization Structure and Master Data Course

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SAP MM Master Data topics like Material Master, Vendor Master, Service Master, Inforecord and Source List...

20. RA: Data Science and Supply Chain analytics. A-Z with Python

4.4

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 buyers

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

Some great schools for purchasing buyers 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 buyers 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 buyer salary by education level

According to our data, purchasing buyers with a Master's degree earn the highest average salary, at $57,990 annually. Purchasing buyers with a Bachelor's degree earn an average annual salary of $52,240.

Purchasing buyer education level	Purchasing buyer salary
Master's Degree	$57,990
High School Diploma or Less	$44,833
Bachelor's Degree	$52,240
Some College/ Associate Degree	$43,692

Purchasing buyer education FAQs

What is the best college for Purchasing Buyers?

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

Search for purchasing buyer 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

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