Do professors make 6 figures?

Asked by: Elena O'Conner DVM  |  Last update: January 22, 2026
Score: 4.2/5 (42 votes)

it is possible to make around 100k as a professor depending on your field. And the type of institution at which you work. I'm at a fairly representative SLAC in the US (70th percentile for compensation among peers) and nobody here makes >$100K until they've got ~35 years of seniority and promotion to full.

Can you make 200k as a professor?

``Many'' is difficult to quantify. The average professor in the US makes roughly $75K, according to the BLS, and the highest paid 10% make more than $165K. At my (large, public) university, the majority of full professors make over $100K, and some make over $200K.

Do professors make 100k a year?

In general, the average pay is between roughly $64,000 and $123,000 per year. Education professors are at the low end of the salary range, typically earning less than $65,000 a year. The highest-paid are those who teach law; their expertise can net an annual salary of over $120,000.

How much do Harvard professors make?

Average Harvard University Professor yearly pay in Massachusetts is approximately $116,227, which is 16% above the national average. Salary information comes from 23 data points collected directly from employees, users, and past and present job advertisements on Indeed in the past 36 months.

How rich are college professors?

Alaska: $71,412‬ per year. Arizona: $53,825 per year. Arkansas: $48,816 per year. California: $73,483 per year.

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35 related questions found

Is it prestigious to be a professor?

A professor is an accomplished and recognized academic. In most Commonwealth nations, as well as northern Europe, the title professor is the highest academic rank at a university. In the United States and Canada, the title of professor applies to most post-doctoral academics, so a larger percentage are thus designated.

How much do Ivy League professors make?

Average salary for full-time instructional staff at Ivy League schools 2022-23. In the academic year of 2022-2023, full-time instructional staff at Harvard University had an average salary of 202,873 U.S. dollars. Princeton University offered the highest average salary in that year, at 203,047 U.S. dollars.

Is there a billionaire professor?

The richest academician, also known as 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐫 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐞, is his story and how this Stanford Professor became a billionaire. Professor David Cheriton is a Canadian computer scientist, mathematician, and professor at Stanford University, renowned for his work in distributed systems and computer networking.

What profession makes 200k?

Most jobs that pay over $200k a year include doctors and lawyers, two fields that require education beyond a bachelor's degree, additional licensing, and specialized training.

Are professors upper class?

Most people in the upper-middle class strata are highly educated white collar professionals such as but not limited to physicians, dentists, lawyers, military officers, economists, business analysts, urban planners, university professors, architects, supervisors and proprietors of sales jobs, psychologists, scientists, ...

Do you need a PhD to be a professor?

Many two-year schools only require instructors to have their master's degree for teaching introductory courses, while some four-year institutions accept these types of instructors on a part-time basis. However, most four-year institutions require a research or professional doctorate in the field you intend to teach.

Who is the richest professor in the world?

"Professor Billionaire" David Cheriton, who is professor emeritus at Stanford University, made his fortune thanks to an early investment in Google.

What job in college pays the most?

Top 20 College majors with the highest salaries
  • Chemical Engineering. Engineering degrees are a common theme on this list. ...
  • Computer Engineering. ...
  • Aerospace Engineering. ...
  • Electrical Engineering. ...
  • Computer Science. ...
  • Mechanical Engineering. ...
  • Civil Engineering. ...
  • Industrial Engineering.

Do professors prefer Dr or professor?

And although some professors might also be doctors, “Professor” is a higher rank and thus tends to be preferred. authority figure was as “Mr.” or “Mrs.” This is generally not true in academia.

How hard is it to get a professor job?

Overall, it's extremely difficult to become a professor. Nowadays, there are many more qualified applicants than there are full-time, college-level teaching positions, making tenure-track jobs in particular highly competitive.

How many hours a day do professors work?

A full-time instructor can expect to teach 40-50 hours at a minimum, Monday through Friday, with workloads that can range in ten-hour time blocks from 7 a.m. through 9 p.m., depending on the institution. Some schools also offer Saturday options for certain in-demand or rare courses.

Can professors make 200k a year?

Professors in top-paying fields like law and business or at prestigious universities can earn $200,000 or more annually.

Do professors get summers off?

Myth 3: Professors Get Summers Off

College students often only interact with professors during the fall and spring semesters. But the reality is that professors rarely take long breaks from academia. For many tenure-track professors, teaching represents less than half their workload.

How much debt do professors have?

Nearly half of higher education faculty with unpaid loans reported current balances of $65,000 or more, with between a quarter and a third of the other educator groups carrying this much debt (Figure 6).

Can a PhD become a billionaire?

Almost daily, some entrepreneurial PhDs launch new ventures that eventually hit the jackpot. Indeed, Forbes has reported that “at least” 35 U.S. billionaires obtained a PhD before plunging into business.

What is the highest paid doctor?

Neurosurgery

A neurosurgeon is the highest-paid doctor on our list. Neurosurgery encompasses surgery of the brain, spinal cord/column, and peripheral nerves. Aspiring neurosurgeons must complete at least a seven-year residency.

Do PhDs get paid more than Masters?

Salary expectations

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics , people with a master's degree earn an average weekly salary of $1,497. Those with a Ph. D. earn an average weekly salary of $1,883.