Education & Library
Economics Teachers, Postsecondary
Also called: Adjunct Professor, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Economics Instructor
US median pay
$123,920
per year, 2025
Job growth 2025–35
+2.4%
about average or slower
Openings a year (US)
1,000
14,600 employed
Typical entry education
Doctoral or professional degree
Preparation 5/5 · Extensive preparation
What this job is
Teach courses in economics. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.
What they do day to day
- Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as econometrics, price theory, and macroeconomics.
- Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts.
- Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in professional journals, books, or electronic media.
- Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences.
- Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, and papers.
- Plan, evaluate, and revise curricula, course content, course materials, and methods of instruction.
- Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others.
- Maintain student attendance records, grades, and other required records.
- Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.
- Supervise undergraduate or graduate teaching, internship, and research work.
Skills and knowledge that matter most
Skills
- Instructing4.0/5
- Judgment and Decision Making3.4/5
- Complex Problem Solving3.2/5
- Systems Evaluation3.1/5
- Systems Analysis3.0/5
- Social Perceptiveness3.0/5
- Time Management2.9/5
- Coordination2.9/5
Knowledge
- Mathematics4.5/5
- Education and Training4.3/5
- Economics and Accounting4.2/5
- English Language4.1/5
- Computers and Electronics2.9/5
- Administration and Management2.9/5
Importance rated by people working in the job (1 = not important, 5 = extremely important).
Education and preparation
Preparation level 5 of 5 — Extensive preparation. Usually a graduate degree (master's, PhD, MD, JD) and extensive experience.
Typical entry education (BLS): Doctoral or professional degree.
Highest education of people in this job:
- Doctoral degree81%
Who this job suits
Mostly Social
Helping, teaching and caring for people
Investigative
Ideas, research and solving problems
Conventional
Organising data, details and procedures
Based on the Holland (RIASEC) interest profile for this occupation.