CPCollege Professor
CP
Career

College Professor

By the numbers
Typical pay
$109,270 / yr
Education to start
Doctoral or professional degree
Future demand
+8.1% by 2034
People in this job
40K
Figures shown for ·closest of 3 O*NET occupations
The work
Watch · day in the life
A day, hour by hour
08:00
Lecture prep

Review notes, sharpen examples, load slides — class is in 90 minutes.

09:30
Teach

Stand in front of 40 students and make the material click.

11:00
Office hours

Three students show up — one struggling, one fishing for a grade bump.

12:00
Research block

Two focused hours: run analysis, wrestle with results, push the paper forward.

14:00
Committee meeting

Sit through curriculum review — vote, argue, repeat.

15:30
Grad student check-in

Read a student's draft chapter; give hard, honest feedback.

16:30
Grant writing

Draft the aims section — deadline is Friday, funding is not guaranteed.

20:00
Grade or write

Stack of papers or the journal submission — one has to wait until tomorrow.

Things you do
  • Stand in front of a class and teach your subject with clarity.
  • Run original research experiments, studies, or analyses in your field.
  • Write and submit papers to academic journals for peer review.
  • Meet one-on-one with students to guide their research or struggles.
  • Apply for grants to fund your lab, projects, and research team.
Decisions you’ll make
  • Do I spend tonight grading papers, or pushing my research forward?
  • Is this student really struggling, or just asking for an easy grade?
  • Should I bend the deadline for this student, or hold the line?
  • Is this paper ready to submit, or does it need another round of work?
  • Do I chase this grant, or focus on the research I already love?
Education Pathways · how you get there
100 in 100 went the college route · 0 in 100 found another way in None, typically
Education mapped from O*NET:
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