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Direct Entry Midwifery

A program that prepares individuals to provide pre-natal, natural birth, and immediate postpartum care to pregnant women in jurisdictions licensing direct (non-nursing) training for midwives. Includes instruction in basic obstetrics, women’s health, fetal development, childbirth education, maternal nutrition and health, labor support, natural childbirth, postpartum support, prebirth counseling and risk screening, management of obstetric emergencies, patient referral, applicable regulations, and professional standards and ethics. Examples: [Direct Entry Midwifery], [Licensed Midwife (LM)], [Certified Professional Midwife (CPM)]

Types of Degrees Direct Entry Midwifery Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Direct Entry Midwifery can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	11
Associate’s Degree	18
Bachelor’s Degree	40
Master’s Degree	5

What Direct Entry Midwifery Majors Need to Know

Programs in Direct Entry Midwifery develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Direct Entry Midwifery graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Direct Entry Midwifery emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Medicine and Dentistry — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Biology — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills built by a Direct Entry Midwifery program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Active Listening — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Social Perceptiveness — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Direct Entry Midwifery careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Problem Sensitivity — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Inductive Reasoning — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Direct Entry Midwifery graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Documenting/Recording Information	4.7 / 7
Assisting and Caring for Others	4.7 / 7
Getting Information	4.6 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.5 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.2 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.1 / 7
Performing for or Working Directly with the Public	4.1 / 7
Analyzing Data or Information	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Direct Entry Midwifery professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
HTS Vision CVS2	Eye tracking software	—
Computer perceptual processing software	Computer based training software	—
MAX Systems Max-Gold Medical Clinic Software	Medical software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Computer Aided Vision Therapy CAVT	Medical software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Eye Tracking Exercises Enterprises Track with Letters	Eye tracking software	—
SeeRite Flash and Match	Computer based training software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Therapeutic orthoptic software	Medical software	—
HTS Vision HTS2 Computerized Binocular Home Eye Exercise System	Eye tracking software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Direct Entry Midwifery graduates include:

• Naturopath
• Naturopathic Doctor
• Resident Intern
• Naturopathic Physician
• Hypnotherapist
• Flight Surgeon
• Corrective and Manual Arts Therapist
• Osteopath
• Medicine Man
• County Health Officer
• Cardiologist
• Clinical Fellow
• Magnetic Doctor
• Heliotherapist
• Drugless Physician

What Can You Do With a Direct Entry Midwifery Degree?

Graduates with a degree in Direct Entry Midwifery commonly enter the following occupations:

Occupation	Job Growth	Median Salary	25th–75th Pctile
Healthcare Diagnosing or Treating Practitioners, All Other	1.0%	$138,809	$116,859–$160,758
Orthoptists	4.8%	$135,811	$108,351–$163,270
Naturopathic Physicians	6.6%	$138,086	$113,456–$162,716

^{Job-growth = projected employment change for the parent occupation. Source: ONET / BLS Employment Projections.*}

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Direct Entry Midwifery graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	45.2%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	41.6%
Bachelor’s degree	3.8%
First professional degree	3.8%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	1.9%
Master’s degree	1.9%
Post-doctoral training	1.9%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Direct Entry Midwifery?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 100% of Direct Entry Midwifery degrees.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Direct Entry Midwifery graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	48	64.9%
Hispanic or Latino	7	9.5%
Black or African American	12	16.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native	1	1.4%
Two or More Races	3	4.1%
Race Unknown	3	4.1%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Direct Entry Midwifery Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of Direct Entry Midwifery graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. These numbers tend to grow steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$48,470
4 years	$29,990
5 years	$38,727

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $38,727 — roughly -20% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Direct Entry Midwifery Programs

Online study is tracked by IPEDS for Direct Entry Midwifery. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Bachelor’s	1	0
Master’s	1	0

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Direct Entry Midwifery Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Direct Entry Midwifery graduates earn a median of $29,990 four years after completion — about 21% below the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000). On earnings alone, this program does not show an income premium over the baseline; non-financial outcomes (career interests, certification requirements, advancement potential) are typically the stronger argument for fields in this range.

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine	1,485
Holistic/Integrative Health	481
Naturopathic Medicine/Naturopathy	235
Ayurvedic Medicine/Ayurveda	141
Alternative and Complementary Medical Support Services	126
Herbalism/Herbalist	113
Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems, Other	107
Alternative and Complementary Medical Support Services, Other	52
Aromatherapy	8
Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems	—
Energy and Biologically Based Therapies, Other	—
Homeopathic Medicine/Homeopathy	—

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.