Highest-Paying Jobs in Higher Education

Introduction

It is also important to understand that working in higher education institutions can be very rewarding. You get to influence the young generation, carry out research which can involve coming up with new ideas and most importantly you get to be part of improving the society you belong to. However, as one would expect from a profession that is focused on satisfying one’s need for achievement and recognition, the remuneration package for investment professionals is generally very favorable compared to other industries.

 In this article, the author will also take a closer look at 15 best paid professions in the field of higher education.

For every profession, you will explore various aspects such as the tasks that are usually performed, the education level that is needed, average wages, and employment outlook. No matter whether you are planning your first steps in your career or considering a career change from a different field to employ in higher education, there are some tempting vacancies in the list!

College President

College and university presidents are the highest-ranked leaders within the higher education career structure. They are the chief executive officers of their respective institutions and are held accountable for all aspects of management processes and functioning.

Typical Duties:

• Ensuring that institution has a vision, direction and leadership
• Final approvals on all significant administrative matters that are academic, faculty, student related, policies, financing, expansion etc.
• Responsible for the coordination of the fundraising and all donor relationship activities
• Be responsible for public relations within the institution and outside the institution.
• Organize and coordinate itself with industry, government agencies, civic organizations etc.

Required Education:

• Advanced postgraduate degrees (Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Education Doctorate (Ed.D.), Juris Doctor (J.D.).

Average Salary: $303,000

Job Growth Outlook (2019-2029): 7 % (for all the top executives)

Provost

At the university level, the provost or chief academic officer is a very crucial figure since he/she is the head of the University charged with the responsibility of overseeing all academic matters. They manage educational policies and procedures, faculty, academic affairs, research activities, and so on.

Typical Duties:

• Lead the faculty in governance of academic programs, and in development of curriculum
• Identifying, selecting, rating, and training of qualified faculty
• Supervise academic budgeting and be responsible for management of resources allocated to academic departments.
• Encourage the scholarly activities and grant acquisition activities of the faculty
• Meet all requirements set by law for educational institutions, as well as accreditations.

Required Education:

Doctoral degree

Average Salary: $174,000

Job Growth Outlook: 

Deans

It suggests that academic deans are similar to CEOs but at a smaller scale or acting as a smaller unit within a university, particularly in a certain school or division. Some of the most sought-after positions include deans that specialize in medicine, law, business, engineering, arts & sciences, etc. These professionals are responsible for executing various administrative duties that involve offering strategic direction, managing facilities and resources, budgeting and human resource management, and others.

Typical Duties:

• Formulate the educational and research vision of the school in the area assigned to him or her
• The strategic human resource management process also entails the recruitment, development, and management of the members of the faculty.
• It should also be used in the promotion and tenure process to ensure that the best candidates are selected for these key academic positions.
• The first and prominent area where institutions actively engage in development and fundraising is the direct fundraising and external partnership efforts.
• It is the responsibility of the institution to ensure compliance with all relevant policies and accreditation requirements.

Required Education:

Doctoral degree and experience (usually in a specialty or field of interest)

Average Salary: $144,000

Chief Business Officer

As the higher education institutions have expanded, so has the role of CBOW, they have become increasingly larger and complex institutions. These senior administrators supervise all the aspects of the institution that are not academic, including finances, computer and information technology, physical plants and property, personnel, services, and more.

Typical Duties:

• Oversee the development of the university-wide strategies and leading functions and services of the business operations.
• Supervise setting and management of institutional financial plans
• Oversee matters pertaining property management, facilities, construction projects and any other related aspects.
• Oversee HR & labor relation management
• Some of the areas include and not limited to the following: Facilitating process improvements, cost control, management of contracts with suppliers etc.

Required Education:

Master of Business Administration or Master of Science in Business or Finance or related major.

Average Salary: $144,000

Job Growth Outlook (2019-2029): 10 percent for administrative services managers

Chief Information Officer (CIO)

Due to the elaborate integration of technological tools in all functional areas of higher learning institutions, CIOs are strategic executive officers. They are responsible for managing all aspects of IT within the institution including strategic planning, physical framework, software and service provision.

Typical Duties:

• Provide and execute IT strategic plans to capture the university vision and mission
• Oversee data analytical projects in order to make correct decisions.
• Initiate programs that improve the overall security level of the system against hostile forces
• Supervise Library IT services and University computer facilities.
• Direct control of IT budgetary resources, acquisition, procurement and agreement, and supplier relations

Required Education:

Minimum of 5 years of experience in IT, preferably in computer science; Master’s degree holder.

Average Salary: $144,000

Job Growth Outlook: 11 % (computer and information systems managers).

Medical School Department Chairs

Department heads oversee an academic division of a university affiliated to a medical school for instance surgery, medicine, psychiatry and so on This places them in a strategic position of providing educational leadership, research, faculty and staff administration, clinical programs, finances and development.

Typical Duties:

• Ensure that the department is on track academically and in the pursuit of its research goals.
• Hire, socialize, assess and oversee personnel of faculty
• Lead the process of accreditation, and the management of regulatory issues.
• The desired responsibilities include management of the budgets and resources within the department.
• Manage and coordinate all Fund Drive campaigns and potential partnerships

Required Education:

Medical degree (MD); specialized training

Average Salary: $412,000

Job Growth Outlook:

Tenured Professors

Tenure is the pinnacle of academic career; this position gives one the freedom to teach, practice research in an institution of their choice by virtue of employment. Tenured faculty members who worked for many years to establish their authority, expertise, and contributions can benefit from strong job protection while having the freedom to choose their courses and research projects.

Typical Duties:

• Provide courses for graduate and undergraduate levels
• Guide and recommend students
• Ensure continued scholarly activity by writing, publishing, and seeking funding.
• Submit research papers for presentation at local, regional, national and international conferences and symposiums
• To contribute to the service of the university through sitting on committees, offering advice and support to student associations etc.

Required Education:

Doctoral degree which is a Ph.D. or Ed.D.

Average Salary: It is expected that the cost per annal will range between $102,000 and $170,000+.

Job Growth Outlook (2019-2029):

• Postsecondary Teachers: 7%
• Medical School Professors: 13%

Athletic Directors

From overseeing large budgets, campuses, successful head coaches, and high-profile arts with loyal fan bases, athletic directors are responsible for multi-dimensional operations that have legal and compliance, as well as revenue generating aspects.

Typical Duties:

• Promote athletic programs and create a vision for the athletic department along with organizing and planning for a better future.
• Decide when to hire a coach; determine the salary and size of the contract
• Earn money through advertising, sponsorship, merchandising, and through ticket sales among others.
• Supervise all matters related to the overall brand representation, marketing, and experiences for fans.
• Policies – league policies, Title IX, NCAA regulations and any other policies that might relate to the activities of the star athletes.

Required Education:

A Bachelor’s degree is required, with a Master’s degree being preferred.

Average Salary: $116,000

Job Growth Outlook (2019-2029): 

Deans of Admissions

Serving as theCollege Admissions Officers for the incoming undergraduate classes, admissions deans formulate plans for recruiting, assessing, and selecting and communicating with prospective students. With the competition for more and diverse applicants increasing, the holders of these positions spearhead recruitment to achieve enrollment targets as well as diversity.

Typical Duties:

• Implement high-level student recruitment plans
• Evaluations of its applicants are conducted by the lead admissions staff
• Final authority on Letters to accept/reject
• Pre-implementation of the communications plan for prospective and admitted students
• Evaluate trends, data, and that selection criteria and enrollment tactics should be made with the specifics of the situation in mind

Required Education:

Minimum of a Bachelor’s degree, Master’s degree is ideal.

Average Salary: $119,000

Job Growth Outlook (2019-2029): Twelve point seven percent (for all education administrators).

Chief Development Officer

Reporting directly to the institutional head, the CDOs are responsible for assembling talented teams to manage large-scale fundraising operations that involve identifying, cultivating, requesting, and nurturing donors. They utilize the available modern analytics for enhancing the contributor programs as well as the campaigns.

Typical Duties:

• Develop a long-term strategic plan and implement the strategic plan for fundraising.
• Oversee the recruitment and selection of employees heading the annual fund campaign ,major gifts, or grants.
• Involve university leadership in stewardship of the donor relations
• This involves using data analytics to identify where and how to direct the fundraising efforts.
• Oversee fundraising activities including event planning, capital campaigns, and stewardship events.

Required Education:

Bachelor’s degree

Average Salary: $144,000

Job Growth Outlook (2019-2029): Getting 7% (for fundraising managers)

Financial Aid Directors

Scholarships and other types of student financial aid are crucial in ensuring that millions of students can afford to attend college and universities each year. Financial aid directors coordinate counseling, determination of the need for financial assistance, dissemination of federal and University funding, as well as managing of grants, loans and scholarships.

Typical Duties:

• Supervise the staff actively involved in the assessment of applicants for financial aid.
• Assist students to qualify for financial aid opportunities
• Create satisfactory financial aid award compositions of grants, loans and others.
• Practically, it means to stay abreast regarding the federal, state and institutional policies and regulations.
• Use technological tools and big data to find out how the process can be optimized.

Required Education:

Bachelor’s degree

Average Salary: $111,000

Job Growth Outlook (2019-2029): 7 % (of all education administrators).

Associate Athletic Directors

These are responsible for specific areas of the collegiate athletics program including internal operations and communications, development, facilities, student services, or compliance. As they are specialists in their fields, they align with other organizational goals and objectives for the entire department.

Typical Duties:

• Supervise a sub-unit from the athletics department while being an active member.
• Coordinate functions like marketing, academic support, sports injuries etc and organize them effectively.
• Revise the operating budgets and control finances
• Screen, hire and assess individuals of the staff
• For the area of purview, make certain the organization or company complies with the appropriate regulations and policies.

Required Education:

At least five years of experience in the sports industry; master’s degree in sports administration, business, or related field.

Average Salary: $89,000

Job Growth Outlook: *

Director of Career Services

Directors of career services are responsible for lead the fast-paced multidisciplinary teams that provide expertise in career guidance, internship development, job search assistance, interview training and resume services.

Typical Duties:

• With regard to career advising, it is encouraged that more resources, workshops, and training programs be created.
• Proactively attend and organize career fairs, networking events, and recruiters’ engagement programs.
• Use of technology to help students land job and internships
• Coordinate the use of social media in establishing communication outreach and utilize such tools as Handshake.
• Certainly, manage the employer targeted communications and establish partnership opportunities

Required Education:

Minimum of a Bachelor’s degree is required; Masters is preferred.

Average Salary: $65,000

Job Growth Outlook (2019-2029): They also highlighted that 7% of viewers remained engaged with the broadcast even when the streamers started playing other games after the completion of the game. (for all education administrators)

Registered Nurses 

Nurses offer administrative services to student health clinics, academic medical centers and schools of nursing in areas of exam and treatment, health promotion and disease prevention, and other related services.

Typical Duties:

• Offer preventive health examinations, screening procedures and direct patient intervention
• Give out vaccinations and medicine prescribed by a doctor
• Provide counsel to clients in relation to prevention, dietary and healthy behaviours.
• This requirement addresses the importance of maintaining precise and descriptive patient encounter notes.
• It is also important that there are measures that will help improve the quality assurance and meet the regulatory standards.

Required Education:

Minimum of an Associate’s degree or Bachelor of Science in nursing; passing the registered nurse licensure examination in the required state.

Average Salary (University Setting): more than seven million shillings or seventy thousand US dollars

Job Growth Outlook (2019-2029): 7%

Conclusion

The listed jobs are among the highest paying and most desirable positions in the field of higher education administration, academics and healthcare and sports.

In certain cases, specific senior level leadership positions may involve an immense experience and qualifications but overall, there are tremendous opportunities at various levels. Whether providing crucial assistance in campus operations such as financial help or career guidance, engaging in academic research, or assisting the success of athletes, higher education professionals can positively impact the community and build a sustainable career.