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Aruna Krishnamurthy

Higher Education Faculty Pay

A Post-Pandemic Look at Faculty Salaries
NEA’s Higher Education Faculty Salary Analysis looks at faculty and graduate assistant salaries at the national, state, and institutional level.

Key Takeaways

  1. When faculty belong to a union, they get paid more. In 2022, union faculty earned $5,000 more, on average, than non-union faculty—in the same states.
  2. The faculty of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) earned $24,000 less, on average, than their colleagues at other institutions, or 75 cents to the dollar in 2021-22.
  3. Women earned 85 cents to every dollar earned by men in public higher education institutions in 2021-22

$17,000

The average difference in pay between union faculty and faculty in non-union states.

2.1%

Average salary increase for full-time faculty on 9/10-month contracts from the year prior.

Higher Education Faculty Salary Analysis

In this report, we consider trends in faculty salary by rank, gender, and collective bargaining status in 2021-22.

In 2021-22, state budgets were a mixed bag, with some restoring funding to pre-pandemic levels or higher, and others cutting funding. ASA Research. (October 25, 2022). The Higher Ed Funding Rollercoaster: State funding of higher education during financial crises. National Education Association. Go to reference

This analysis reflects the status of faculty of record in November 2021. The fact that real, or nominal, salaries continued to increase during states’ ongoing financial flux is promising for the financial future of faculty once the economy stabilizes.

Key Findings

Faculty who collectively bargain earn more. Specifically, community college faculty with union contracts get paid, on average, $19,000 more than their non-union colleagues. At comprehensive institutions, the union advantage is $14,000; at research universities, it’s $6,000.
While salaries increased an overall 2.1% for full-time (9/10-month) faculty in 2022, inflation stripped them of purchasing power. On average, faculty experienced a $4,837 loss.
Pay parity almost exists in community colleges, where women earned 97% to 98% of men’s wages in 2022, but notably, community colleges have the lowest-paid faculty among public institutions.
In 2021-22, the faculty of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) earned $24,000 less, on average, than their colleagues at other institutions, or 75 cents to the dollar.
In some states, HBCU faculty are paid about half as much as those teaching in non-HBCU land-grant universities. For example, HBCU faculty in Missouri and Ohio earn 51 cents to the dollar of non-HBCU colleagues.

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Higher Education Faculty Pay

Average salaries and change in salaries for faculty on 9/10-month contracts, by state and sector, 2021-22
State Public 4-year Public 4-year Rank Public 4-year Percent Change Public 2-year Public 2-year Rank Public 2-year Percent Change Private Private Rank Private Percent Change
Alabama $86,762 34 2.7% $62,997 27 2.7% $65,650 39 1.4%
Alaska $84,063 38 -0.1% 0.0% $60,098 44 -1.2%
Arizona $99,098 15 5.0% $76,990 11 2.7% $74,152 34 0.6%
Arkansas $74,163 49 -2.5% $51,204 48 1.5% $61,846 43 2.2%
California $121,071 1 1.1% $105,759 1 3.6% $122,200 4 1.6%
Colorado $92,181 26 3.6% $62,819 28 0.3% $95,660 14 0.2%
Connecticut $109,530 5 -0.9% $85,602 4 -1.7% $125,745 3 3.7%
Delaware $116,394 3 0.8% $74,977 13 3.1% $79,190 27 3.0%
District of Columbia $87,026 32 -1.2% 0.0% $119,460 6 3.0%
Florida $100,126 13 1.7% $62,576 30 2.7% $89,836 21 2.5%
Georgia $84,655 36 0.8% $53,647 41 0.7% $87,885 23 1.0%
Hawaii $110,204 4 2.6% $80,791 8 1.1% $77,016 31 1.1%
Idaho $78,392 45 3.1% $58,203 35 3.3% $66,561 38 3.9%
Illinois $97,392 17 1.8% $83,029 6 0.6% $108,030 10 1.1%
Indiana $93,107 25 1.1% $53,133 42 1.8% $89,881 20 2.6%
Iowa $101,207 11 2.4% $64,642 25 1.9% $70,153 37 3.5%
Kansas $83,153 39 1.0% $59,201 34 2.3% $56,635 46 1.4%
Kentucky $77,923 46 1.3% $51,451 47 0.3% $62,849 41 -0.1%
Louisiana $73,995 50 3.0% $50,278 49 3.9% $92,788 16 0.8%
Maine $84,209 37 0.5% $59,606 32 -2.5% $92,618 17 3.0%
Maryland $99,713 14 2.8% $79,011 10 2.4% $109,971 9 4.3%
Massachusetts $102,048 8 0.3% $68,324 21 -0.9% $129,866 1 2.7%
Michigan $104,706 6 1.7% $85,773 3 0.3% $73,297 36 1.1%
Minnesota $96,553 19 0.6% $73,985 15 -0.8% $81,605 26 1.5%
Mississippi $73,096 51 2.5% $52,335 46 -0.2% $61,960 42 0.1%
Missouri $80,980 40 3.4% $62,692 29 3.1% $94,941 15 4.4%
Montana $79,719 43 1.5% $54,160 39 6.1% $55,592 48 -1.1%
Nebraska $89,770 27 2.9% $64,133 26 -0.1% $73,394 35 4.0%
Nevada $94,143 23 -0.9% $74,759 14 -0.1% $48,686 50 -24.9%
New Hampshire $95,237 20 -0.9% $71,017 18 -0.3% $117,018 7 1.2%
New Jersey $121,056 2 2.3% $80,528 9 1.4% $128,785 2 4.1%
New Mexico $80,444 41 1.9% $56,200 38 0.5% $77,470 30 -3.7%
New York $100,189 12 4.3% $86,601 2 3.5% $115,817 8 2.1%
North Carolina $87,011 33 -0.6% $52,811 43 1.6% $97,151 13 2.0%
North Dakota $80,213 42 1.0% $59,273 33 3.0% $56,298 47 -3.1%
Ohio $96,972 18 2.3% $70,510 19 1.6% $78,510 29 1.6%
Oklahoma $79,342 44 1.3% $54,103 40 1.2% $75,198 32 1.3%
Oregon $93,307 24 0.8% $81,428 7 2.5% $82,250 25 4.2%
Pennsylvania $101,519 9 1.9% $73,046 16 2.9% $101,919 11 1.1%
Rhode Island $98,997 16 4.7% $67,666 22 2.8% $120,968 5 0.0%
South Carolina $87,379 31 3.4% $52,370 45 4.3% $63,300 40 1.8%
South Dakota $75,541 48 2.7% $60,103 31 1.9% $57,321 45 -0.5%
Tennessee $85,032 35 2.9% $57,312 37 3.1% $91,798 18 -1.0%
Texas $94,781 21 2.5% $64,719 24 3.7% $99,838 12 2.0%
Utah $94,364 22 4.3% $72,844 17 2.6% $91,018 19 1.9%
Vermont $88,273 30 -1.1% $64,738 23 -1.5% $89,278 22 1.8%
Virginia $101,425 10 5.3% $69,697 20 4.4% $78,923 28 0.2%
Washington $103,101 7 2.6% $75,636 12 4.3% $83,724 24 0.9%
West Virginia $76,407 47 1.1% $52,721 44 -0.3% $53,612 49 0.4%
Wisconsin $89,651 29 2.1% $84,623 5 1.8% $75,021 33 0.7%
Wyoming $89,741 28 -0.3% $58,120 36 -3.6% 0.0%
United States $96,414 2.1% $74,173 2.4% $103,033 2.1%
Salary data based on 100% of public 2-year and 4-year, and private institutions in the NEA universe; change in salary based on 100% of public 2-year and 4-year institutions, 98% of private institutions.

 

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Aruna Krishnamurthy

Higher Education Faculty Pay

NEA’s Higher Education Faculty Salary Analysis looks at faculty and graduate assistant salaries at the national, state, and institutional level.
Download the Report (pdf)
National Education Association

Great public schools for every student

The National Education Association (NEA), the nation's largest professional employee organization, is committed to advancing the cause of public education. NEA's 3 million members work at every level of education—from pre-school to university graduate programs. NEA has affiliate organizations in every state and in more than 14,000 communities across the United States.