Key Takeaways
- Full-time faculty on nine- and ten-month contracts earned an average of $105,657 in 2024–25, a 3.6% year-over-year increase. Despite these gains, faculty purchasing power remains 5.9% below its pre-pandemic high.
- In 2024-2025, faculty covered by collective bargaining earned more than their peers in states without bargaining across all four types of institutions: two-year, liberal arts, comprehensive, and research universities.
- Faculty at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) earned, on average, 75% of what faculty at other institutions earned in 2024-25, $79,192 compared to $106,215.
$105,657
Average salary, full time faculty
3.6%
Increase from the previous year
Higher Education Faculty Salary Analysis
The Union Advantage
In 2024-2025, faculty covered by collective bargaining earned more than their peers in states without bargaining across all four types of institutions: two-year, liberal arts, comprehensive, and research universities. Faculty at two-year institutions with CBAs earned an average of $97,000, while faculty at institutions without CBAs earned $76,000, a $19,000 difference. Faculty at public comprehensive institutions with CBAs had the next largest salary advantage—a $13,000 difference compared to faculty at institutions without CBAs in bargaining states—while faculty at research universities with CBAs had a $7,000 advantage.
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The HBCU Pay Penalty
On average, HBCU faculty earned 75% ($79,192) of what faculty at other institutions earned ($106,215) in 2024–2025. The disparity is most pronounced in research universities, where HBCU faculty earned about $31,000 less than their non-HBCU counterparts.
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Newsflash: Unionized Faculty Get Paid More Than Non-Union Faculty
The evidence is in: Faculty who belong to unions get paid more than faculty who do not.
Faculty Salary Data
| State | AVG. Salary at Public 4-Year | 4-Year Rank | Change 2023-24 to 2024-25 (%) | Avg. Salary at Public 2-Year | 2-Year Rank | Change 2023-24 to 2024-25 (%) | Avg. Salary at Private | Private Rank | Change 2023-24 to 2024-25 (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $107,874 | 3.7 | $84,065 | 3.5 | $115,633 | 3.7 | |||
| Alabama | $95,008 | 34 | 2.9 | $67,852 | 32 | 2.2 | $71,292 | 38 | 4.9 |
| Alaska | $91,287 | 39 | 2.2 | -- | -- | -- | $66,448 | 42 | 0.3 |
| Arizona | $107,231 | 18 | 2.2 | $86,147 | 14 | 4.4 | $89,484 | 26 | 14.6 |
| Arkansas | $77,848 | 51 | 2.4 | $51,316 | 48 | 2.5 | $66,344 | 43 | 3.2 |
| California | $143,417 | 1 | 7.5 | $124,488 | 1 | 3.1 | $139,686 | 4 | 3 |
| Colorado | $100,943 | 27 | 1.9 | $72,645 | 22 | 3.3 | $108,775 | 16 | 2.9 |
| Connecticut | $123,739 | 5 | 3.8 | $97,455 | 2 | 4.2 | $145,380 | 3 | 5 |
| Delaware | $127,037 | 3 | 4.1 | $91,228 | 9 | 11.4 | $117,396 | 11 | 38.6 |
| District of Columbia | $84,981 | 47 | 1.6 | -- | -- | $133,762 | 6 | 3.9 | |
| Florida | $111,209 | 12 | 3.8 | $68,864 | 29 | 3.7 | $100,563 | 21 | 5.6 |
| Georgia | $97,435 | 32 | 2.4 | $60,660 | 41 | 0.4 | $97,760 | 24 | 3.7 |
| Hawaii | $123,929 | 4 | 3.8 | $91,025 | 10 | 3.7 | $82,494 | 32 | 1.9 |
| Idaho | $86,385 | 45 | 2.6 | $65,639 | 35 | 1 | $68,350 | 41 | 1.6 |
| Illinois | $110,096 | 13 | 3.8 | $93,028 | 5 | 3.7 | $122,919 | 10 | 4.1 |
| Indiana | $104,758 | 20 | 3 | $59,336 | 44 | 4.2 | $100,993 | 20 | 2.2 |
| Iowa | $109,620 | 14 | 1.4 | $69,066 | 28 | 3 | $73,110 | 37 | -1.3 |
| Kansas | $91,414 | 38 | 1.9 | $64,478 | 37 | 4.3 | $61,019 | 46 | 2.4 |
| Kentucky | $86,161 | 46 | 3.4 | $56,967 | 46 | 2.1 | $69,315 | 39 | 3.5 |
| Louisiana | $80,816 | 49 | 1.6 | $56,125 | 47 | 0.3 | $99,671 | 23 | 2.8 |
| Maine | $93,892 | 35 | 1.1 | $66,879 | 33 | 1.4 | $102,328 | 18 | 2.5 |
| Maryland | $120,334 | 6 | 4.4 | $87,456 | 13 | 3 | $127,395 | 9 | 4.1 |
| Massachusetts | $117,394 | 7 | 7.6 | $78,158 | 17 | 10 | $146,618 | 2 | 4.5 |
| Michigan | $115,767 | 10 | 3.1 | $91,877 | 8 | 0.9 | $78,077 | 36 | 2.8 |
| Minnesota | $108,503 | 17 | 4 | $84,443 | 15 | 10.2 | $87,751 | 29 | 1.8 |
| Mississippi | $80,596 | 50 | 3.3 | $57,244 | 45 | 0.9 | $65,891 | 44 | -1.1 |
| Missouri | $92,155 | 37 | 3 | $69,082 | 27 | 2.4 | $105,867 | 17 | 3.1 |
| Montana | $87,949 | 43 | 5.6 | $60,421 | 42 | 4.1 | $61,766 | 45 | 4.7 |
| Nebraska | $98,369 | 29 | 2.6 | $70,391 | 25 | 3.1 | $79,892 | 35 | 2.3 |
| Nevada | $117,188 | 8 | 11 | $94,382 | 3 | 10.4 | -- | -- | |
| New Hampshire | $103,853 | 22 | 2.9 | $74,240 | 21 | 0.9 | $138,416 | 5 | 3.5 |
| New Jersey | $135,787 | 2 | 4.9 | $87,503 | 12 | 4 | $149,505 | 1 | 5.5 |
| New Mexico | $92,192 | 36 | 1.2 | $67,906 | 31 | 0.4 | $88,651 | 27 | 5.5 |
| New York | $106,112 | 19 | 2.1 | $92,614 | 7 | 1.3 | $129,049 | 8 | 3.3 |
| North Carolina | $101,771 | 26 | 3.4 | $60,704 | 40 | 3.5 | $110,363 | 14 | 3.3 |
| North Dakota | $88,999 | 40 | 2.5 | $66,128 | 34 | 3.1 | $60,073 | 47 | -2 |
| Ohio | $103,567 | 23 | 2.6 | $76,380 | 18 | 2.7 | $84,589 | 31 | 1.2 |
| Oklahoma | $87,987 | 42 | -0.4 | $63,244 | 38 | 1.5 | $81,480 | 34 | 6.4 |
| Oregon | $104,175 | 21 | 3.4 | $94,013 | 4 | 8.4 | $90,557 | 25 | 1.7 |
| Pennsylvania | $108,951 | 15 | 4.3 | $74,506 | 19 | 1.8 | $114,341 | 12 | 3.1 |
| Rhode Island | $108,626 | 16 | 3.2 | $74,435 | 20 | 9.9 | $131,674 | 7 | 2.7 |
| South Carolina | $97,905 | 30 | 3.2 | $61,533 | 39 | 6.9 | $68,442 | 40 | 1.6 |
| South Dakota | $87,149 | 44 | 3.2 | $69,539 | 26 | 5.1 | $58,297 | 48 | -9 |
| Tennessee | $95,128 | 33 | 3.3 | $64,827 | 36 | 2.1 | $101,038 | 19 | 3.9 |
| Texas | $103,484 | 24 | 2.3 | $72,107 | 23 | 3.6 | $111,618 | 13 | 3.5 |
| Utah | $98,950 | 28 | 1.7 | $71,451 | 24 | 0.9 | $108,940 | 15 | 2.3 |
| Vermont | $88,167 | 41 | -0.3 | -- | -- | -- | $100,011 | 22 | 1.9 |
| Virginia | $116,939 | 9 | 4.4 | $80,045 | 16 | 5.1 | $87,857 | 28 | 3.8 |
| Washington | $114,558 | 11 | 4.1 | $92,753 | 6 | 7.3 | $85,362 | 30 | -5.3 |
| West Virginia | $82,245 | 48 | 1.7 | $59,628 | 43 | 6.7 | $55,484 | 49 | 1.7 |
| Wisconsin | $103,013 | 25 | 3.9 | $90,625 | 11 | 1.8 | $82,144 | 33 | 2.9 |
| Wyoming | $97,663 | 31 | 0.1 | $67,980 | 30 | 4.7 | -- | -- | -- |
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Higher Education Faculty Pay
NEA’s Higher Education Faculty Salary Analysis examines full-time faculty and graduate assistant salaries on the national, state, and institutional levels.
Download the Report (pdf)
