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How much do college professors get paid?

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What is the average annual salary for a college professor?
Do different types of professors get paid differently?
Do professors in certain fields get paid more?
Can you support a family with the salary of a college professor?

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Murat’s Answer

This is a very general question as salaries vary across disciplines. Business school professor salaries are quite different from law school professors. Also, public versus private university salaries differ.


But here are two sources that might help:


You can get an idea about how much state employees get paid including state universities. For instance here are the salaries at University of California, Berkeley:

https://www.sacbee.com/site-services/databases/state-pay/article2642161.html?appSession=6CW5XB1ND5VF2YB6D617UB9MY9M71QNMLY16029R33041P12EL97L1LF901TX095RHWZII2DP91139ZZ9BQ64SMG52GA2A07H0K7774V9J95Q0G809LKS9RO5GAN8E4O


Also, Bureau of labor Statistics (BLS) has some general information:

https://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/postsecondary-teachers.htm


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Vickey’s Answer

No idea. I don't think they are bringing in the big bucks unless they are also doing research and/or publishing. Try the internet.

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José’s Answer

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics , the median annual wage for postsecondary teachers was $78,470 in May 2018. In relation to the second aspect to consider of the main question, of course different types of professors get paid differently, it depends on several factors such as, size and location of the educational institution, whether the institution is private or public, the subject taught. This last aspect, leads us to establish that teachers from different teaching areas earn different salaries. For example, a University Professor teaching in the health sciences field (such as nursing, medicine, or veterinary medicine) earns an average of $99,360 per year. In contrast, a University Professor teaching education earns an average of $62,520 annually. And finally, in relation to the fourth aspect to consider of the main question, can you support a family with the salary of a college professor? The teaching profession is a praiseworthy profession, overall employment of postsecondary teachers is projected to grow 15 percent from 2016 to 2026, much faster than the average for all occupations. I leave the following link about 13 Stories of Life on a Teacher's Salary: https://time.com/longform/teacher-pay-salary-stories/ additionally I leave the link of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for Postsecondary Teachers: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/postsecondary-teachers.htm

José recommends the following next steps:

If you like the teaching profession, read on the topic, research on internet and select a teaching area that you like most.
Then investigate the universities that offer the career and everything related to their study.
Good luck and success in the decision you make !!!
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Danielle’s Answer

Hi Alex! A good place to gather this information is O*Net, it is info from the Department of Labor. O*Net is an excellent resource to point all students to for just about any career-based question. In my experience, college career centers make heavy use of this website. If you search "professor" on their site you're going to find lists of all sorts of post-secondary positions. If you click one and scroll to the bottom of that page you'll see the national average income and also can find the state average as well. How much a faculty member makes depends on their field, their institution, and their tenure. At universities I've worked at I have seen a range between 60k and 370k annually. Generally, teaching-only faculty make less than research faculty. Another tool students can use is if they want to work at a specific university is a "salary search". Public institutions who receive state/federal funding are required to make their salaries public information. What is nice is that you can see what they made yearly over time. For faculty they'll often report how much of what they make is university money/research grants. As you can see, yes, absolutely faculty can support families on their income. However, between graduate school and a post-doc, it's going to take YEARS before they make it. STEM fields make significantly more than social sciences, even during graduate school. The average graduate student stipends I have seen range between 14k and 30k per year. The other thing to consider is that academia is extremely competitive, around 20% of those who apply to PhD programs get in, and even less get faculty positions straight out of their PhD. Academia is a hustle, but once you've "made it" you can live very comfortably.

Danielle recommends the following next steps:

A "salary search" for UMich and Florida State http://www.umsalary.info/ https://prod.flbog.net:4445/pls/apex/f?p=140:1::::::
O*Net "professor" search results: https://www.onetonline.org/find/quick?s=professor
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Susan’s Answer

I concur with the other answer. Certain fields get paid more, and it also depends on the kind of institution and where you are in the country. One could most likely expect to begin in the low to middle 40K. It's difficult to get an academic job; however, once you secure one and then get tenure, it's one of the few jobs that has job security (though that is changing somewhat). As a teacher/scholar at a small liberal arts college, I can say also that it is a wonderfully pleasant career: very fulfilling and exciting, because I love to learn! Best wishes!

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Britt’s Answer

It really depends on the degree you have, the position you apply for, and the area you're in. I know that some Adjunct Professors are part time and on contract that get paid per course hour taught. The umber of courses allowed to be taught in a semester is usually limited.Sometimes you can get hired on a three-year contract which would be a salary position, but not as high a salary as a tenured professor would get. The exact salary numbers vary between states, schools, etc., but it can be negotiable from what I understand.


Britt

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