Occupation · SOC 25-1063
Economics Teachers, Postsecondary
Teach courses in economics. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.
Median wage
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Projected growth
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Annual openings
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per year
Employed (US)
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Job Zone 5
Typical preparation
Extensive preparation
Stackable credential programs
626 mapped
Core skills
SpeakingReading ComprehensionActive ListeningWritingInstructingCritical ThinkingLearning StrategiesActive Learning
Knowledge areas
MathematicsEducation and TrainingEconomics and AccountingEnglish Language
Technology & tools
Analytical or scientific softwareComputer based training softwareCalendar and scheduling softwareWord processing softwareInformation retrieval or search software
Representative tasks
Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as econometrics, pPrepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts.Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in professional journals, b
Competency framework
Skill expectations by proficiency level.
emerging
Undergraduate lecture content on foundational topics such as supply and demand or basic macroeconomics — prepare and deliver under faculty mentor guidance in a college classroom setting.Course syllabi and homework assignments aligned to departmental learning objectives — draft and submit for supervisor review prior to semester start.Current economics literature and peer-reviewed journals — read and summarize to stay informed of developments in a specific subfield under the direction of a senior faculty member.Student assignments and short-answer examinations — evaluate and assign grades using established rubrics provided by the supervising instructor.Student attendance records and grade entries — maintain accurately in the institution's learning management system following departmental recordkeeping protocols.Examination questions for introductory economics courses — compile under the guidance of a course coordinator, ensuring alignment with stated learning outcomes.Analytical or scientific software such as Stata or R — apply to basic econometric exercises when preparing data demonstrations for supervised lab or recitation sections.Word processing and course management software — use to format and distribute handouts, lecture slides, and assignment sheets to enrolled students.Professional economics conferences and departmental colloquia — attend and observe to begin building awareness of active research debates in the discipline.Preliminary research data and literature reviews — collect and organize under faculty supervision in support of an ongoing departmental research project.
developing
Lectures on intermediate-level topics such as price theory, game theory, or introductory econometrics — prepare and deliver independently to undergraduate cohorts with routine departmental oversight.Course materials including syllabi, problem sets, and case studies — revise each semester based on student performance data and instructor feedback in a four-year college environment.Empirical research manuscripts — draft and submit to peer-reviewed journals, incorporating constructive reviewer feedback through the revision process.Student class work, papers, and examinations — evaluate with consistent rubrics and return timely, substantive written feedback that promotes deeper economic reasoning.Course-specific examinations — compile, administer, and grade with growing independence, delegating routine scoring tasks to teaching assistants when appropriate.Developments in the economics literature — monitor regularly by reading working papers, attending regional conferences, and engaging in collegial discussion to update course content.Database and information retrieval software — use to access economic datasets such as FRED or WRDS for integrating real-world data examples into lectures and assignments.Instructional strategies — select and adapt for mixed-ability undergraduate classrooms, applying principles of active learning to improve student engagement with quantitative material.Student grade records and required compliance documentation — maintain with full accuracy in university administrative systems throughout the academic term.Foundational curriculum elements — evaluate against program learning outcomes and propose incremental revisions to the curriculum committee for consideration.
proficient
Graduate and advanced undergraduate seminars in specialized areas such as labor economics, macroeconomic theory, or applied econometrics — design and lead autonomously, integrating current research frontiers into course content.Complex non-routine student performance challenges — assess and address through differentiated instructional approaches and individualized feedback within a research-intensive university context.Original peer-reviewed research — conduct, write, and publish in top-tier economics journals or academic presses, advancing knowledge in a recognized subfield.Full course curricula — plan, evaluate, and substantially revise across multiple offerings, aligning content with evolving disciplinary standards and institutional accreditation requirements.Comprehensive examination programs at the graduate level — design, administer, and evaluate, including qualifying examinations that assess mastery of doctoral-level economic theory and methods.Analytical and financial modeling software — apply proficiently to generate and interpret sophisticated econometric analyses used as pedagogical illustrations and in independent research.Emerging developments across several areas of economics — synthesize through active participation in national and international professional conferences, incorporating insights into both teaching and scholarship.Doctoral dissertations and master's theses — supervise and evaluate as primary or secondary advisor, guiding graduate students through original research design, data collection, and writing.Interdisciplinary research collaborations — lead or contribute substantively, applying economic methods to complex social, policy, or business problems in partnership with colleagues across departments.Instructional technology tools including web-based courseware and statistical computing environments — integrate strategically into course design to deepen students' applied quantitative competencies.
advanced
Departmental or school-level curriculum frameworks in economics — set strategic direction for revision and innovation, ensuring coherence across undergraduate and graduate programs at an institutional scale.Junior faculty and doctoral students — mentor systematically in research methodology, pedagogy, grant writing, and professional development to strengthen the department's scholarly pipeline.Large-scale original research agendas — conceptualize and lead, securing external funding and coordinating multi-investigator teams whose findings shape national or international policy discourse.Faculty hiring, promotion, and tenure processes — contribute to and lead as committee chair or department chair, defining standards of excellence that elevate the department's academic reputation.Institutional academic governance — represent the economics faculty on university-wide committees, influencing policies on curriculum, accreditation, resource allocation, and shared governance.High-impact publications in flagship journals and major academic presses — produce and disseminate consistently, establishing a recognized body of scholarship that defines the state of the subfield.Professional associations, editorial boards, and national conference programs — lead or hold executive roles, shaping the discipline's scholarly agenda and knowledge dissemination standards.Innovative pedagogical models for economics education — develop and evaluate at scale, publishing findings and presenting best practices to influence teaching standards across peer institutions.Strategic external partnerships with government agencies, central banks, and research institutes — cultivate and steward, translating departmental expertise into applied policy impact and sponsored research opportunities.Departmental culture of intellectual curiosity, integrity, and achievement — foster by modeling exemplary scholarly and teaching conduct and establishing norms that attract and retain top-tier faculty and graduate students.
Also known as
35 alternate job titles map to this occupation.
Agricultural Economics ProfessorAgricultural Economics TeacherIndustrial Economics TeacherMicroeconomics ProfessorInstructorEconomics ProfessorLabor Economics TeacherCollege Faculty MemberAssociate ProfessorLecturerFaculty MemberFaculty Member, College or UniversityIndustrial Economics ProfessorEconometrics ProfessorTransportation Economics TeacherEconomics Adjunct InstructorTeacherEconomics Assistant ProfessorEconomic Adjunct InstructorCollege ProfessorAdjunct Economics ProfessorFinance ProfessorLabor Economics ProfessorEconomic InstructorEconomics Adjunct ProfessorAdjunct ProfessorEconomics LecturerAssistant ProfessorMacroeconomics ProfessorEconomics InstructorAdjunct Economics InstructorUniversity Faculty MemberEconomics Faculty MemberAccounting LecturerProfessor