College professors make over $100K a year?

[proud2BlibKansan]

Or is Charlie Gibson just delusional?

[msongs]

1. many do nt

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. Where?

I need a new friggin job. Screw public education. I am going to teach at the college level!!

[JDPriestly]

24. Depends on the field and the school

If you teach business, maybe. If you teach political science or literature or music or art, no way at most schools. Even at the UCs, you don't make that kind of money. Maybe the professors at Harvard and Yale do.

[ingac70]

2. Some do...

I've read the average is around 70k, though.

[proud2BlibKansan]

Yes that is what I have heard as well

[spooky3]

10. depends on research university, location, rank and field of specialty

[nebenaube]

3. He's delusional...

Try about 65,000/yr with raises 15% behind inflation...

[spooky3]

5. full professors at the top half (?) of universities average that

in some fields (engineering, business, law) assistant professors may earn that, at the top universities.

[PinkTiger]

Right, but to say that college professors make over 100K is ludicrous.

Only a very few.
Most of us make much less. I was hired at $29,000 7.5 years ago. Six years later i finally got a promotion and a 33 percent raise, but it will be a few years yet before I break $50,000-- and that will include another promotion. Of course, I'm in the humanities. Lower pay.

[spooky3]

13. professors at St. Anselm most likely to do not; that was his mistake

[proud2BlibKansan]

17. When I was in grad school

One of my professors said he could make twice as much if he went to teach in a public school.

[spooky3]

20. that could be true if you were in a field such as English or the arts

where good university jobs have been very rare for a long time and faculty are often exploited

[woodsprite]

22. I know of a place some are getting that, and all will get 2% yearly cost-of-living increase

a year plus merit. The professional and salaried staff just were told under the new administration that they will no longer get any cost of living base raise - merit only from here on out (previously it was piggy-backed with faculty). Admin also is moving Prof/Sal Staff from yearly to quarterly reviews and quarterly rankings that will be attached to personnel files. Retirement qualifications are changing - I'm sure they have plans for benes to change, but haven't spilled the beans on that one yet. Overnight it seems we went from a people-oriented place where everbody wanted to work, to a 'milk that bottom line' place where people can't leave fast enough.

I know the faculty give the schools their reputations, but without support staff who answer their questions and make things happen for them, programmers who run payroll, financials, student systems, etc., seems like their production would suffer. Heck, last year I had to drag 'puters out from under faculty desks, unbox them, plug them in and even log on for a few fac members because they refused to do it and the Pres. was trying to get thru to them in email and expected an answer.

Sorry to rant, but I have almost 25 years and was looking forward to retirement in another 5. Probably won't happen now since I believe they're just beginning the 'thinning of the herd' so they can get some of their own people who cost less in here. My mom was in a similar situation and they fired her dept of 6 and outsourced them 2 yrs before she was due to retire.

BTW, I've heard the new head honcho has spoken for several Young Republican functions and he's from a business school. Is it any wonder?

[rockymountaindem]

6. Some of them do

If you've got an endowed chairman position or something, then 100k would be pretty easy to nail down. I had one prof in my undergrad who was an endowed chairman and a program director in addition to being a teaching prof. and receiving royalties from multiple books. That guy isn't hurting for money, that's for sure. Of course, most profs aren't doing as well as him, but it is possible.

[frankenforpres]

7. i started 4/5th of that. n/t

[Sarah Ibarruri]

8. On what planet do college professors make 100K/year?? nt

[ncliberal]

9. Business school professors do. nt.

[alcibiades_mystery]

11. Full professors do

And some associate professors, but usually in the sciences.

Assistant professors in the humanities sometimes make less than local cops.

[Dudley_DUright]

21. Not this full professor in the sciences, not even close

[alcibiades_mystery]

23. Shoulda fought for those merit raises

:silly:

Just kiddin'...

Obviously, not all full professors.

But I'd say many full professors in the sciences and even the humanities at big research schools make six figures. It's not a completely outlandish claim.

[Dudley_DUright]

30. that is true, but I am not at a big research university

and Saint Anselm College certainly is not. Charlie should have known better.

[depakid]

12. This is why the Dems need to keep these hacks off of their debates

Why not let an academic moderate these things?

Someone both intelligent and objective?

[terisan]

14. Full tenured professors. nt

[College Liberal]

15. He is smoking something

The crowd let him know he was off his rock. lol.

[salvorhardin]

16. Some do

Most don't.

A study by the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources found the average salary for all faculty members, including instructors, to be $66,407, placing half of all faculty members in the top 15.3% of income earners above the age of 25. Median salaries were $54,000 for assistant professors, $64,000 for associate professors and $86,000 for full-professors 2005
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professor
http://www.cupahr.org/surveys/files/salary05/NFSS05_exec_summary.pdf

College professors make pretty good money. The problem though lies in the fact that more and more colleges and universities are not hiring full professors and are relying on grad students and adjunct faculty. Grad students make almost nothing and adjunct faculty don't make much more often being paid on a "per credit" basis with rates as low as $1,200 or so per credit hour. So it's quite conceivable for adjunct faculty to make no more than the average American and often much less. This is especially true when it comes to community colleges. Here's what the Bureau of Labor Statistics has to say:

Median annual earnings of all postsecondary teachers in 2006 were $56,120. The middle 50 percent earned between $39,610 and $80,390. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $27,590, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $113,450.

Earnings for college faculty vary according to rank and type of institution, geographic area, and field. According to a 2006-07 survey by the American Association of University Professors, salaries for full-time faculty averaged $73,207. By rank, the average was $98,974 for professors, $69,911 for associate professors, $58,662 for assistant professors, $42,609 for instructors, and $48,289 for lecturers. Faculty in 4-year institutions earn higher salaries, on average, than do those in 2-year schools. In 2006-07, faculty salaries averaged $84,249 in private independent institutions, $71,362 in public institutions, and $66,118 in religiously affiliated private colleges and universities. In fields with high-paying nonacademic alternatives—medicine, law, engineering, and business, among others—earnings exceed these averages. In others fields, such as the humanities and education, earnings are lower. Earnings for postsecondary career and technical education teachers vary widely by subject, academic credentials, experience, and region of the country.

Many faculty members have significant earnings in addition to their base salary from consulting, teaching additional courses, research, writing for publication, or other employment. In addition, many college and university faculty enjoy unique benefits, including access to campus facilities, tuition waivers for dependents, housing and travel allowances, and paid leave for sabbaticals. Part-time faculty and instructors usually have fewer benefits than full-time faculty.
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos066.htm#earnings

So yes. If the particular college professor in question happens to be in the top 10%, they will earn a very good salary.

[spooky3]

19. that last BLS paragraph is misleading

Most faculty do not earn significant amounts outside their base salary. Research journals do not pay faculty for publishing their work; that's covered by university salary. The benefits for faculty are below the average for employees with similar levels of education, job difficulty, etc. For example, there may be no paid sick leave or vacation, and some universities simply add on teaching days to make up for holidays. Most faculty are not paid in the summer. Very few faculty get housing and travel allowances. Travel to present papers is highly limited.

[salvorhardin]

31. I agree

My experience in the matter is related to friends who are in academia so it's anecdotal but in those instances they must really fight to receive reimbursement for travel expenses to present papers and attend professional conferences.

[alcibiades_mystery]

26. "Full professor" is a rank

When you say "colleges and universities are not hiring full professors and are relying on grad students and adjunct faculty" that doesn't really make sense. Most professors are hired at the rank of assistant.

What you MEAN to say is that "colleges and universities are not hiring TENURE TRACK professors and are relying on grad students and adjunct faculty." While there certainly has been increasing reliance on adjunct faculty, I'd say this isn't really an accurate statement either. Colleges and universities still hire tenure track faculty, and I'd guess the number of jobs has even increased and will continue to do so over the next ten years or so since there is an sizable increase in student population coming. In any case, you need tenure track faculty to have a graduate program at all. :-)

[salvorhardin]

32. You're absolutely correct in the first, but I disagree in the second

I do not see an increase in tenure track positions. I actually see a decrease. However, as I said above, my knowledge is anecdotal.

[spooky3]

33. business schools have higher proportions of adjunct faculty than in the past

I can't provide a link, but it's true. That's how they're dealing with budget crunches.

[alcibiades_mystery]

36. I suspect you're probably right

Much of it is field specific.

The Chronicle of Higher Education has detailed numbers on this sort of thing all the time.

[oberliner]

18. Associate Professor of English in NH: 48K-75K range

For the 25th to 75th percentile.

http://swz.salary.com/salarywizard/layoutscripts/swzl_salaryresults.asp?hdKeyword=professor&rdbSearchByOption=0&hdSortBy=0&hdJobCode=ED03000124&hdOmniNarrowDesc=Education&hdZipCode=03102&hdStateMetro=266&op=salswz_psr&txtKeyword=professor&hdJobCategory=ED01&hdGeoLocation=Manchester,%20NH%2003102&hdOmniTotalJobsFound=129&hdSearchByOption=0&hdLocationOption=0&hdViewAllRecords=0&hdJobTitle=Assoc.%20Professor%20-%20English%20-%20Higher%20Ed.&hdAjaxDisplaySection1=1&hdAjaxDisplaySection2=0&hdCurrentPage=1&hdNarrowDesc=Education&hdJSBoolDisplayAdvertisement=true&hdAjaxKeyword=professor&hdAjaxKeywordWithOR=#professor#

[alcibiades_mystery]

27. 48 for ASSOCIATE?

That's bad negotiation. That's the low end for assistant professors in my field.

[oberliner]

28. I don't think that's bad negotiation

I think there is a much greater supply of wannabe English profs than demand for them.

What is your field?

[alcibiades_mystery]

29. I'll PM you

[GalleryGod]

25. Most of my colleagues do! I don't.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

34. Depends on several factors (former academic speaking)

1. The size and wealth of the school

2. The professor's rank: If you're a new Ph.D., you start as an Assistant Professor. Then, after gaining tenure, you can be promoted to Associate and then Full. Within each rank, there are "steps" for years of service, as well as cost of living increases.

3. The professor's field: In fields such as business or computer science, where people with advanced degrees can make more money working for corporations, salaries are higher. Sometimes football coaches are paid more than ANY faculty member. Administrators may also be paid more than professors, especially if they're self-important. Professors in the humanities, where there may be 100 applicants for every position are paid the least. They tend to be grateful to have a tenure-track job at all.

4. The geographical location of the school: Obviously, schools in areas with a high cost of living have to pay more to attract anyone.

All of this is complicated by the recent tendency of college bean counters to "save money" (although usually the savings go towards hiring more administrators, not towards lowering tuition) by replacing retiring or resigning tenured professors with two part-timers or one person who is limited to a 3-year contract, non-renewable. The part-timers don't get benefits at most schools (i.e. they're cheaper than full-timers), and the 3-year hires don't get tenure (i.e. they never move up the salary scale).

One reason I got out of academia was that the majority of the available jobs in my field were of the part-time or short-term variety, and I didn't feel like joining the "academic Gypsies" that I was beginning to encounter, people who had to patch together a living from widely scattered jobs or who had to move across the country every two or three years to yet another low-paying job.

[JCMach1]

35. Dream on Charlie...