Post job

Senior product specialist education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a senior product specialist. Senior product specialists usually study business, marketing, or finance. 70% of senior product specialists hold a bachelor's degree, and 13% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 1,821 real senior product specialist resumes to see exactly what senior product specialist education sections show.

The most common colleges for senior product specialists are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.

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

There are certain senior product specialist certifications that you should consider. These senior product specialist certifications include Certified Sales Professional (CSP) and IT Information Library Foundations Certification (ITIL).

What education do you need to become a senior product specialist?

What degree do you need to be a senior product specialist?

The most common degree for senior product specialists is bachelor's degree, with 70% of senior product specialists earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 13% and associate degree degree at 11%.
  • Bachelor's, 70%
  • Associate, 13%
  • Master's, 11%
  • High School Diploma, 3%
  • Other Degrees, 3%

What should I major in to become a senior product specialist?

You should major in business to become a senior product specialist. 29% of senior product specialists major in business. Other common majors for a senior product specialist include marketing and finance.

Most common colleges for senior product specialists

Senior product specialists often get their degrees at University of Phoenix, Michigan State University, and Ohio State University. Here are the most common colleges for senior product specialists in the US based on their resumes.
Senior product specialist common collegePercentages
University of Phoenix9.47%
Michigan State University6.51%
Ohio State University6.51%
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey6.51%
California State University - San Bernardino5.92%

Best majors for senior product specialists

RankMajorPercentages
1Business29.5%
2Marketing9.2%
3Finance5.5%
4Electrical Engineering5.5%
5Computer Science5.4%

Best colleges for senior product specialists

The best colleges for senior product specialists are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Stanford University.

A senior product 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 senior product 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 senior product specialists.

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. University of Maryland - College Park

College Park, MD • Private

In-state tuition

$10,595

Enrollment

30,184

5. Ball State University

Muncie, IN • Private

In-state tuition

$9,896

Enrollment

15,529

6. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

7. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

8. University of Nebraska - Lincoln

Lincoln, NE • Private

In-state tuition

$9,242

Enrollment

20,592

9. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

10. Purdue University

West Lafayette, IN • Private

In-state tuition

$9,992

Enrollment

33,495

20 best online courses for senior product specialists

Advertising disclosure

1. Data Analysis Immersive (Full-time)

general_assembly

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)

general_assembly

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...

3. Data Analyst

udacity

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

4. Marketing Analytics

udacity

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. Product Management Marketing: Dekker's Product Marketing MBA

udemy
4.6
(2,007)

Be a Product Marketing Manager - Product Management : Product Manager MBA : Product to Market : Product Owner Launch GTM...

6. Product Management Crash Course; IT Product Management

udemy
4.4
(593)

Product Management Essentials & Product Management Fundamentals to kick-start your career in Product Management...

7. Digital Marketing (Part Time)

general_assembly

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

general_assembly

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

udacity

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...

10. Data Visualization

udacity

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...

11. Great Product Manager: Product Management by a Big Tech's PM

udemy
4.5
(2,976)

Become a Great Product Manager! Land your dream job with Big Tech's Senior Product Manager...

12. Product Management Fundamentals

udemy
4.4
(4,918)

Case-based practical course on product management to build strong foundations in product concepts, process & frameworks...

13. Digital Marketing

udacity

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

udacity

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. Comprehensive Product management for Product managers

udemy
4.5
(366)

Become a great product manager with comprehensive product management Real world case study with JIRA & Confluence...

16. Product Marketing for Technology Companies

udemy
4.5
(463)

Master your product marketing skills through practical examples and exercises...

17. Data Visualization

udacity

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

udacity

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. Product and Service Management

udemy
4.7
(957)

Know the Work that is Involved in Getting a Product Onto the Shelf and a Service Ready for Effective Delivery...

20. Product Management+Agile Requirements using Product Backlog

udemy
4
(769)

Learn to manage requirements as professional scrum product owner using user stories ( Business Analysis ,Scrum Master)...

Top 10 most affordable universities for senior product specialists

The most affordable schools for senior product specialists are SUNY Farmingdale, fashion institute of technology, and baruch college of the city university of new york.

If the best universities for senior product 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 senior product specialists.

1. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

2. Fashion Institute of Technology

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$5,740

Cost of attendance

17,864

3. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

4. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

5. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

6. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

7. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

8. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

9. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

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 senior product specialists

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

Some great schools for senior product 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 senior product 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. 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. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

5. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

6. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

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. Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA • Private

Admissions rate

17%

SAT average

1,507

10. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,506

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for senior product specialists

The easiest schools for senior product specialists to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, lim college, and university of the incarnate word.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a senior product 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 senior product specialists.

1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

2. LIM College

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

83%

SAT average

1,061

3. University of the Incarnate Word

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,044

4. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

5. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

6. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

7. Ursuline College

Pepper Pike, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

1,102

8. Iona College

New Rochelle, NY • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,089

9. San Francisco State University

San Francisco, CA • Private

Admissions rate

72%

SAT average

1,054

10. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

Average senior product specialist salary by education level

According to our data, senior product specialists with a Doctorate degree earn the highest average salary, at $128,904 annually. Senior product specialists with a Master's degree earn an average annual salary of $127,895.
Senior product specialist education levelSenior product specialist salary
Master's Degree$127,895
Bachelor's Degree$114,483
Doctorate Degree$128,904

Senior product specialist education FAQs

Search for senior product specialist jobs

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.

Browse business and financial jobs