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Specialization and Education Are Key in Sales

From biotech to carbon credits to the robots that have replaced factory workers, 2008 will see the continued proliferation of complex products, creating a need for salespeople with high-level skills and special subject-matter expertise.

“The demand for educated, trained sales professionals is very high,” says Hoffmeister. About half of DePaul graduates with a major in business and a minor in sales have secured a job by commencement day; 90 percent are employed within three months, Hoffmeister says.

Some employers, large companies in particular, prefer applicants with a college degree for sales positions that require meeting with clients. Here are some popular undergraduate majors for different, specialized sales careers:

Advertising Sales Agents

College majors: marketing, leadership, communication, business, and advertising.

Insurance Sales Agents

College majors: finance, mathematics, accounting, economics, business law, marketing, and business administration, psychology.

Sales Representatives, Wholesales and Manufacturing

College majors: finance, accounting, economics, marketing, and business administration

Sales Engineers

College majors: Engineering, Chemistry, Biology, Physics

Financial Services Sales Agents

College majors: finance, accounting, economics, marketing, and business administration

Real Estate Sales Agents

College majors: real estate, finance, business administration, statistics, economics, law, and English

If you are considering a niche sales profession, additional coursework that is relevant to the industry as well as public speaking and sales courses will help your ability to get the career you want.

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