Quality management specialist education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a quality management specialist. Quality management specialists usually study nursing, business, or health care administration. 60% of quality management specialists hold a bachelor's degree, and 16% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 1,376 real quality management specialist resumes to see exactly what quality management specialist education sections show.

The most common colleges for quality management specialists are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.

There are also many online quality management specialist courses to help get the education required to be a quality management specialist.

There are certain quality management specialist certifications that you should consider. These quality management specialist certifications include Certified Professional - Food Safety (CP-FS) and Six Sigma Green Belt.

What education do you need to become a quality management specialist?

What degree do you need to be a quality management specialist?

The most common degree for quality management specialists is bachelor's degree, with 60% of quality management specialists earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 16% and master's degree degree at 16%.

Bachelor's, 60%

Master's, 16%

Associate, 16%

High School Diploma, 2%

Other Degrees, 6%

What should I major in to become a quality management specialist?

You should major in nursing to become a quality management specialist. 24% of quality management specialists major in nursing. Other common majors for a quality management specialist include business and health care administration.

Nursing, 24%

Business, 19%

Health Care Administration, 7%

Psychology, 6%

Other Majors, 44%

Most common colleges for quality management specialists

Quality management specialists often get their degrees at University of Phoenix, Johnson & Wales University, and Arizona State University. Here are the most common colleges for quality management specialists in the US based on their resumes.

Quality management specialist common college	Percentages
University of Phoenix	18.60%
Johnson & Wales University	6.20%
Arizona State University	5.43%
Southern Illinois University Carbondale	5.43%
Pennsylvania State University	5.43%

Show more common quality management specialist colleges

Best majors for quality management specialists

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Nursing	23.8%
2	Business	19.0%
3	Health Care Administration	6.9%
4	Psychology	6.4%
5	Biology	5.4%

Show more common quality management specialist majors

Best colleges for quality management specialists

The best colleges for quality management specialists are University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, and Northwestern University.

A quality management specialist with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for quality management specialists. 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 quality management specialists.

1. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

2. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

3. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Enrollment

9,142

4. SUNY at Binghamton

Vestal, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$9,808

Enrollment

13,990

5. Villanova University

Villanova, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$53,308

Enrollment

6,819

6. San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,488

Enrollment

30,018

7. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Enrollment

9,394

8. SUNY Stony Brook

Stony Brook, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$9,625

Enrollment

17,407

9. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

10. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

20 best online courses for quality management specialists

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3. ISO 9001:2015-Quality Management System Implementation & Audit

4.2

(707)

Learn how to Implement and Audit a Quality Management System as per ISO 9001: 2015...

4. ISO 9001:2015 Quality management system auditor

4.5

(7,832)

Upgrade your career by learning how to implement and audit a quality management system according to ISO 9001...

5. Data Quality Fundamentals

4.2

(557)

Understand key concepts, principles and terminology related to Data Quality...

6. Data Warehouse ETL Testing & Data Quality Management A-Z

4.4

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ETL Testing and Data Quality Management for beginners with practical exercises and certificate of completion...

7. Data Quality Masterclass - The Complete Course

4.5

(1,220)

Learn Data Quality Management from A to Z. This complete guide covers all Data Quality Principles, Techniques and more...

8. Data Science for Healthcare Claims Data

4.4

(489)

Learn and practice how to transform raw healthcare claims data into valuable knowledge and actionable insights!...

9. ISO9001 Quality Management System

4.4

(318)

Learn why your business should be using Quality Management TODAY and create your own QMS (Quality Management System)...

10. ISO 22000:2018. Food Safety Management System

4.4

(976)

Understand the requirements for a food safety management system applicable for any organization in the food chain...

11. ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Systems Lead Auditor Course

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How to Implement & Audit an ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Systems Lead Auditor/ Auditor course...

12. Introduction to Compliance Risk Management CRM

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Compliance risk management CRM for Compliance, Risk Management, Internal Audit and IS Security Professionals...

13. Medical Devices Quality Management System - ISO 13485:2016

4.2

(631)

Awareness and Application for the requirements of ISO 13485:2016 for Medical Device Development and QMS...

14. Kaizen Practitioner Masterclass for Quality Management.

4.5

(2,289)

Structured Approach to identify and Eliminate waste in Business for Continuous Improvement & Quality Management...

15. 4x1 Data Management/Governance/Security/Ethics Masterclass

4.4

(533)

You'll learn about data literacy, Data Quality operations, Data Governance policies and Data Security/Privacy controls...

16. ISO 9001, Quality Management and Strategic Thinking Training

4.5

(286)

Combine ISO, Quality & Strategic Thinking with Real Business and boost your Processes...

17. Certified Quality Process Analyst Training

4.3

(311)

Certified Quality Process Analyst (CQPA) Exam Preparation Course - Confidently Pass the Exam on the First Attempt...

18. Quality Management Systems:Management and Control of Quality

4.5

(985)

Learn to Build, Implement, and Sustain a Performance Excellence Culture into Your Organisation...

19. Quality Management for Business Excellence

4.5

(3,592)

Lead Quality Management in the Organization • Transform the Organization to Become the Best-in-Class...

20. 7 Quality Tools for Quality Management and Improvements.

4.4

(434)

A complete Crash Course on the 7 Basic Tools for Quality Management and its Implementation using MS Excel...

Top 10 most affordable universities for quality management specialists

The most affordable schools for quality management specialists are SUNY Farmingdale, california state university - bakersfield, and california state university - dominguez hills.

If the best universities for quality management specialists 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 quality management specialists.

1. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

2. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

3. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

4. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

5. Florida International University

Miami, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,556

Cost of attendance

19,434

6. Minot State University

Minot, ND • Private

In-state tuition

$7,064

Cost of attendance

15,576

7. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez

Mayaguez, PR • Private

In-state tuition

$4,094

Cost of attendance

14,302

8. SUNY Polytechnic Institute

Utica, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,238

Cost of attendance

21,567

9. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

10. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for quality management specialists

The hardest universities for quality management specialists to get into are University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, and Northwestern University.

Some great schools for quality management specialists 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 quality management specialists 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. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

5. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

6. Villanova University

Villanova, PA • Private

Admissions rate

29%

SAT average

1,407

7. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

8. George Washington University, The

Washington, DC • Private

Admissions rate

42%

SAT average

1,380

9. SUNY at Binghamton

Vestal, NY • Private

Admissions rate

40%

SAT average

1,376

10. University of Rochester

Rochester, NY • Private

Admissions rate

29%

SAT average

1,422

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for quality management specialists

The easiest schools for quality management specialists to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, d'youville college, and holy names university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a quality management specialist 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 quality management specialists.

1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

2. D'Youville College

Buffalo, NY • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,072

3. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

4. Nyack College

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

999

5. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

6. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

7. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

8. Wayland Baptist University

Plainview, TX • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

1,003

9. Curry College

Milton, MA • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,026

10. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

Average quality management specialist salary by education level

Quality management specialists with a Master's degree earn more than those without, at $91,288 annually. With a Bachelor's degree, quality management specialists earn a median annual income of $78,745 compared to $68,019 for quality management specialists with an Associate degree.

Quality management specialist education level	Quality management specialist salary
Master's Degree	$91,288
High School Diploma or Less	$62,938
Bachelor's Degree	$78,745
Some College/ Associate Degree	$68,019

Quality management specialist education FAQs

What is the best college for Quality Management Specialists?

Have more questions? See all answers to common executive management 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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