Do college professors get paid a lot?

Question

i'm majoring in economics and minoring in business, i read that the average salary for eco majors is 70k, im betting that since i do really well in it (i actually have a 100 avg right now) and i go to a good school (ut austin) and i also have business, that i might be able to push 80k. anyway, i was looking at teaching, either at ut in austin, university of houston, rice, or houston community college, of course i'd be teaching eco, and i was wondering if it'd be worth the extra 2 years of school, in terms of how much extra a prof would get paid? anyone know anything about this?

Answer 1

yes to much

Answer 2

You might earn 70K in the econ world, but not teaching it, not with a B.A.  Is the extra two years worth it, with education, more is better.

Answer 3

I've never heard of anyone with a bachelors degree in economics making $70K to start - that might be an average of all people with bachelors degrees in econ, regardless of how long they have been in the workforce, or it might be Ph.D.s.  I would guess $40-45K to be a more accurate estimate of starting salary.  If you wanted to go into academia, you would need a minimum of four extra years of school for a Ph.D. beyond the bachelors, and often it is more than that.  You would probably start at something like $60K, but it depends on where you would be on faculty.

Answer 4

It really does depend on a lot of things.

In our college, the foreign language profs make the least and the business profs make the most.

As a newly-appointed cs prof (70K), I make more than my brother who is not only tenured, but is CHAIR of the English department.  It's sick.  A newly appointed business professor would make more than both of us (they start at about 90 - 100K).

Business is pretty solid right now, but you need to look at the area of the country, the type of school, etc...

Answer 5

Well, it depends on the field of study, training/education, teaching experience, publications, conference presentations, grant acquisitions--but then again, it also depends on the ranking of your university, as well as the location of your university.  

As with other jobs, your pay varies according to region.  

Sounds to me like you really have much to learn about what it means to be an educator. Higher education is not a field to pursue if your first motivation centers on your paycheck.  Professors are notoriously overworked and underpaid, especially if you are addicted to living in one town/area/region.  

Further, unless you are willing to invest much time and energy into publishing books and peer-reviewed journals, along with grading papers, developing course, and submitting  to grueling committee work, you will not make it in a tenure-track position.  Most Business/Econ professors are already highly successful in their chosen fields by the time they return to the classroom, and are able to pull in high salaries because they have a proven track record, along with various certifications and licenses.  

For instance, having an MBA along with being a CPA would probably help you attain your goals, but going further to your doctorate and a CPA would really help you in academia.  Given the fact that economics deals with social studies as well, you would do well to consider augmenting your research possibilities by taking some sociology courses.  

Stop obsessing over salaries.  It's useless asking for salary figures right now, anyway--by the time you finish your studies, the figures will have changed.  By the way, community colleges don't pay as much as 4-year research institutions.  

Go see a career counselor and talk about these issues.  I think you need to think carefully about your goals, and I want you to consider teaching as an honor, one that can be rewarding in ways that goes beyond your paycheck.

Good luck!

See some salary stats below and some cool websites to get you off on the right track towards success:

http://chronicle.com/stats/aaup/index.ph...

http://www.economyprofessor.com/

http://gregmankiw.blogspot.com/

http://www.hbs.edu/doctoral/programs/bus...

http://economics.uchicago.edu/faculty.sh...

Answer 6

I  think it depends on the college and the state.  Commuity or Junior colleges generally pay less,  universities would pay better don't know if they get 80k or not.  If you are going to go for a Master's (I assume) or even a doctorate degree that would also make you a better candidate in the private sector too increasing your earnings potential...  You could always work toward a higher degree, or take an adjunct teaching position at a school while working in the private sector too,  then you might  only be teaching one course or two a few times a week or online depending on the format