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disease registry data management

A program that prepares individuals to find, interpret, and record demographic and medical information on individuals for healthcare agencies and disease registries. Includes instruction in anatomy, data management, disease registry organization and operations, epidemiology, ethics, fundamentals of disease coding and staging, medical terminology, pathophysiology, pharmacology, physiology, quality management, and statistics. Examples: [Cancer Data Management]

Types of Degrees disease registry data management Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing disease registry data management can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	5
Associate’s Degree	6
Master’s Degree	11

What disease registry data management Majors Need to Know

Coursework for disease registry data management develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that disease registry data management graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing disease registry data management emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Administration and Management — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 5.5 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.5 / 7.
• Personnel and Human Resources — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 5.5 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set developed in a disease registry data management program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Complex Problem Solving — Importance 4 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Social Perceptiveness — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to disease registry data management careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Problem Sensitivity — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Inductive Reasoning — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, disease registry data management graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.6 / 7
Working with Computers	4.6 / 7
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards	4.5 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.5 / 7
Getting Information	4.5 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.4 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.4 / 7
Analyzing Data or Information	4.4 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.3 / 7
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others	4.3 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by disease registry data management professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Minitab	Analytical or scientific software	—
Healthcare common procedure coding system HCPCS	Medical software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
IBM SPSS Statistics	Analytical or scientific software	—
Qlik Tech QlikView	Business intelligence and data analysis software	—
SAP Crystal Reports	Data base reporting software	—
PCC Pediatric Partner	Medical software	—
R	Object or component oriented development software	—
IBM Cognos Impromptu	Business intelligence and data analysis software	—
PCC EHR	Medical software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for disease registry data management graduates include:

• Medical Records Director
• Health Information Specialist
• Medical Records Clerk
• Health Information Technician
• Health Information Management Specialist
• Health Data Analyst
• Severity of Illness Coordinator
• Clinical Analyst
• Health Information Technology Specialist
• Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist (CDIS)
• Digital Health Technologist
• ROI Specialist (Release of Information Specialist)
• MDS Coordinator (Minimum Data Set Coordinator)
• Health Information Management Technician (Health Information Management Tech)
• Medical Records Analyst

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to disease registry data management graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	46.4%
Master’s degree	21.4%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	10.7%
Postsecondary certificate	7.1%
First professional degree	3.6%
Some college courses	3.6%
Post-doctoral training	3.6%
High school diploma or equivalent	3.6%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in disease registry data management?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 95.5% of disease registry data management degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	21	95.5%
Men	1	4.5%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of disease registry data management graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	15	68.2%
Hispanic or Latino	1	4.5%
Black or African American	3	13.6%
Two or More Races	1	4.5%
Race Unknown	2	9.1%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do disease registry data management Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of disease registry data management 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	$36,041
4 years	$36,054
5 years	$40,847

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $40,847 — roughly 13% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online disease registry data management Programs

Online study is tracked by IPEDS for disease registry data management. 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
Associate’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 disease registry data management Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, disease registry data management graduates earn a median of $36,054 four years after completion — about 5% 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
Health and Medical Administrative Services	90,166
Health/Health Care Administration/Management	28,347
Medical Insurance Specialist/Medical Biller	11,963
Health Information/Medical Records Technology/Technician	11,828
Medical Insurance Coding Specialist/Coder	10,171
Medical Administrative/Executive Assistant and Medical Secretary	7,771
Hospital and Health Care Facilities Administration/Management	3,494
Health and Medical Administrative Services, Other	3,168
Medical Informatics	3,054
Medical Office Management/Administration	2,900
Health Information/Medical Records Administration/Administrator	2,781
Health Services Administration	2,629

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.