A STATE-BY-STATE OUTLOOK FOR HIGHER EDUCATION:
BY AVERAGE STARTING SALARIES FOR ASSISTANT PROFESSORS

Note: this information is based in part on annual editions of the "Almanac" published by the Chronicle of Higher Education supplemented by information gleaned from a variety of sources, such as AAUP's "Academe" and  including personal contacts. These data should not be used for any OFFICIAL purposes, and are intended as a guide for freshly-minted professors only.
Each state is listed alphabetically followed by the number of public 4-year institutions in parentheses. A brief comment is made on the climate in that state, and then average salaries are presented, with the first numbers representing public 4-year institutions, the second set of numbers representing private 4-year institutions, and the third set of numbers representing 2-year institutions.
Alabama: (18) Somewhat unstable political climate regarding higher education, racial issues pervade historically white and historically black institutions, some schools having accreditation difficulty. 47,000 42,500 42,000

Alaska (3): Oil boom state with fairly regular salary increases, adequate pay, only 3 four-year schools, many 2-yr rural schools, admissions criteria always specify insider knowledge of indigenous affairs. 51,500 40,300 60,000

Arizona:(4) Tight budget state with periodic enrollment booms where faculty rights are a big issue. 51,000 43,000 53,400

Arkansas:(10) Tight budget state and also an OBE (Outcome Based Ed) system with governmental interference in college affairs, lots of small religious colleges. 44,900 40,500 40,500

California:(31) Tons of political rhetoric and interference (such as ban on enrolling ex-offenders), but still high pay, two-tier system with UCs on top and CSUs on bottom, strong 2-yr system. 65,000 57,000 59,300

Colorado:(13) Strong economy, some political rhetoric, a gay rights state, most schools research and technology-oriented, and moving to an exemplary (charter) college system. 50,000 54,000 38,600

Connecticut:(7) under a 10-year improvement plan, spending money slowly to bring salaries and quality up to near the top, school violence issues. 59,000 60,000 54,000

Delaware:(2) Enrollment is booming and funding problems are being fixed, money is being spent on education fairly regularly despite revenue cutbacks 53,000 56,000 47,800

District of Columbia:(2) A budget deficit system with constant trimming/consolidating and creation of new departments or revenue generators, salaries hardly enough to live on in D.C., so many faculty have other jobs, ventures, or consulting gigs 54,000 66,000 n/a

Florida:(9) A tuition-tweaking and proficiency testing state where enrollment booms come and go, but spending is fairly consistent, and lots of community colleges (28 of em), all doing well. 53,000 47,900 44,500

Georgia:(19) A civil service state constantly spending on upgrades and improvements, lots of HBCUs, merit pay a big issue and occasional flaps over academic freedom. 54,000 45,200 41,000

Hawaii:(3) Tends to recruit Native Hawaiians and get by with part-timers, under a five year plan with faculty labor unions 49,000 40,000 43,000

Idaho:(4) Fast growing state, predominantly white, which has cutback on certain programs of study  46,000 43,000 47,000

Illinois:(12) Lots of political rhetoric and meddling (such as no college educational programs for inmates), in need of duplication review, lots of private schools, and grad students are unionized. 52,000 49,000 53,000

Indiana:(14) High tuition state where each school charges large fees to recoup state funding losses, capital outlays and salaries expected to rise eventually. 49,000 46,000 37,000

Iowa:(3) Up & down financial situation, lots of private schools, some program cutbacks (foreign languages), and frequent experimentation with alternative educational projects  51,000 44,000 38,900

Kansas:(9) A constant spending state, mostly on improvements and capital outlays, but some schools like Washburn have local funding, others supported by bond funding.  46,000 35,000 38,000

Kentucky:(8) A modest economy state with strong commitment to affirmative action, all 14 community colleges controlled by Univ. of Kentucky, lots of committees and task forces. 47,000 41,000 41,000

Louisiana:(14) A staid and traditional system, which is somewhat anti-technological, desegregation and anti-duplication orders about, heavily state-supported HBCUs, recently built a community college system, some schools in accreditation difficulty 44,500 43,000 36,500

Maine:(8) A fairly creative, innovative system with lots of technical colleges, no community colleges, and some cuts at public schools, faculty tend to enjoy good support. 46,000 55,000 37,500 (est.)

Maryland:(13) Revenue-sharing state with private colleges, most everything dominated by University of Maryland System, occasional flap over academic freedom, but generally faculty get good support  53,000 50,000 49,000

Massachusetts:(14) A modest economy state where more students attend private rather than public, task force approach to problems often used, but faculty generally get good leadership support  56,000 60,000 42,500

Michigan:(15) Robust economy, spending mostly on Michigan State Univ. and 2-year system development, hefty tuition increases, fees, and occasional controversies over technology  55,000 51,000 59,000

Minnesota:(11) Tenure-abolished state, one consolidated superBoard for 62 schools, OBE system, lots of private schools, hefty tuition increases  51,000 49,000 45,000

Mississippi:(9) Tight budget state with a fairly uncertain economy, but with gambling revenue available; little public support for education, mostly segregated MWI & HBCUs, under desegregation order since 1975, and fairly constant conflict between administrators and faculty  46,000 40,000 41,000

Missouri:(13) Stable to good economy from gambling windfall and growing support, rural emphasis in programs, faculty cutbacks at private schools, a few flaps over academic freedom occur  50,000 41,000 43,000

Montana:(6) Small towns with big universities, separate community colleges, American Indian campuses, stiff rules and regulations abound on campuses   43,000 35,000 34,200

Nebraska:(7) Good economy, regular faculty raises, in-fighting for resources between young (newly-created) against old schools. 47,000 40,000 35,000

Nevada:(2) Strong economy and good community college system, more outlays for buildings and equipment than salaries, credit card companies banned from campuses  59,000 41,000 47,000

New Hampshire:(5) A system with some financial problems, mergers/consolidations occur, and quality of life and faculty unionization are issues  50,000 58,000 37,000

New Jersey:(14) System that often strives for more than it can achieve, always seems to be restructuring, salaries are fairly high, a few problems at administrative levels, big money in athletics, and faculty often sue their employers  66,000 55,000 58,000

New Mexico(6): Stable economy with some of the lowest tuition in nation, student apathy abounds, uses a grade point eligibility system, and military banned from campuses. 44,000 42,000 36,000

New York:(42) Over 250 schools, large urban universities, cuts in student aid, cutbacks in faculty, replacing P/Ts with Full Timers, students and faculty unionized. 60,000 56,000 56,000

North Carolina:(17) A system that seems in constant budget crisis, but salaries adequate, lots of HBCUs and privates, community college in every county, school violence issues, and students and faculty often sue their schools. 52,000 41,000 34,000

North Dakota:(6) A low faculty salary state that is top heavy in tenured faculty, unsuccessful in recruiting from outside, operates on a tight budget and is extremely money-conscious  38,000 37,000 34,000

Ohio:(24) Big spending state where there are lots of construction projects and capital outlays, salaries pretty good, and many private schools. 53,000 48,000 47,000

Oklahoma:(14) A modest economy state with good salaries, schools are somewhat technical oriented, top heavy in tenured faculty, low grade point average concerns  44,200 39,000 38,000

Oregon:(8) Moving toward privatization model, hands-off approach from administration, community college spending, faculty allowed to develop commercialization concerns  46,000 50,000 46,300

Pennsylvania (45): System seems in constant budget crisis, contains a patchwork of 45 public schools, 102 private schools, fairly high salaries in some places, enrollments and tuition high, faculty labor disputes and top heavy in administrators  58,000 52,000 51,000

Rhode Island (2): Only 2 public schools, 10 private ones, uncertain economy and uncertain budgets in face of political rhetoric.  52,000 60,000 46,000

South Carolina:(12) Big spending state with good faculty salaries, lots of HBCUs, fierce rivalries within state system, system seems to be benefiting from a state lottery  46,000 41,000 36,000

South Dakota:(8) Modest economy state, program cutbacks  43,000 37,000 34,000

Tennessee:(10) Fairly stable economy, but a few budget crises occur, civil rights and intellectual abilities of entering freshman tend to be issues. 49,000 40,000 37,000

Texas (40): 40 public schools and 66 2-yr schools, multiple, overlapping systems of governance, quick to hire & fire outsiders but always hiring, enrollment booms are regular, slow to give raises, liability and safety issues on campuses  48,000 47,000 43,000

Utah:(5) Regular high enrollment in this mostly white and LDS-dominated state, expected to build community college system. 43,000 44,000 38,000 (est.)

Vermont:(4) An innovative system with high tuition that occasionally has budget cutbacks, but always manages to come through. 39,000 40,900 33,900

Virginia (15): 15 schools, all very traditional but with interest in restructuring, 4-yr and 2-yr (24) schools linked, private schools are the most innovative, budget problems are handled by a policy of faculty attrition. 56,000 49,500 44,000

Washington:(8) High enrollment state that only spends modestly on faculty salaries, private schools (23) do well, also community colleges (28), faculty salary increases come fairly regularly.  48,000 50,000 42,000

West Virginia:(13) Poor economy state where the low salaries are matched by a low cost of living, recently computerized, building a community college system. 43,000 38,000 39,000 (est.)

Wisconsin:(13) Regular hiring freezes, and Univ. of Wisconsin dominates with over 26 campuses, lots of private schools(29). 52,000 43,500 53,000

Wyoming: Small population state where students take statewide cross-listed courses between the 1 state school and 7 two-year schools, no private schools. 50,000 n/a 34,000

AVERAGES: 53,000 (public) 46,000 (private) 36,000 (2-year)
AVERAGES in Criminal Justice: 50,000 (public) 55,000 (private)
AVERAGES for Administrators: College President (150,000); Academic Dean (114,000)

Sources:
The Chronicle of Higher Education, Almanac 2003-4
The College of University Professional Association for Human Resources 2004

Last updated: July 12, 2006
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