Geography Teachers, Postsecondary

Median salary

$97,590

Average salary

$102,350

Employment

3,330

Projected growth

3.3% growth

Annual openings

300

Typical entry education

Doctoral or professional degree

What Geography Teachers, Postsecondary Do

Teach courses in geography. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

See full salary breakdown & percentiles →

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience: None
On-the-job training: None
Self-employed: Not available

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

How Much Preparation Does This Take?

Job Zone 5 of 5

Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed

Experience: Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience.
Education: Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
Job training: Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.

Source: O*NET Job Zones.

Key Knowledge Areas

Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.

English Languageimportance 4.8/5
Geographyimportance 4.8/5
Education and Trainingimportance 4.3/5
History and Archeologyimportance 3.4/5
Mathematicsimportance 3.3/5
Computers and Electronicsimportance 3.1/5
Sociology and Anthropologyimportance 3.0/5
Communications and Mediaimportance 2.7/5

Work Environment

What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.

E-Mail5.0/5
Freedom to Make Decisions4.9/5
Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.8/5
Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals4.7/5
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.6/5
Public Speaking4.4/5

Related Careers

This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

Where This Career Is Most Concentrated

Metro areas where geography teachers, postsecondary make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).

1College Station-Bryan, TX20.40× national avg
2Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA5.06× national avg
3Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV1.85× national avg
4Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC1.70× national avg
5Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI1.43× national avg

Related Education Programs

Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.