Occupation salary profile

Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary

SOC 25-1065 BLS OEWS May 2025 H-1B LCAs, last 12 months

Teach courses in political science, international affairs, and international relations. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

National median · BLS
$98,070
▲ +3.58% YoY
H-1B sponsor median
$87,389
▲ +11.77% YoY · 201 LCAs
Average salary · BLS
$108,100
Mean annual wage
U.S. employment
16,970
Jobs (BLS)
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Enter your pay and a location to see where you stand against BLS and H-1B pay, your estimated take-home pay, and your purchasing power.

Pay range for Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary

Annual base pay at each percentile. BLS covers all U.S. workers in this occupation; H-1B covers 201 certified Labor Condition Applications filed by sponsoring employers in the last 12 months.

Percentile All U.S. workers (BLS) H-1B sponsored
10th — entry pay$56,450$61,698
25th$73,260$70,128
Median (50th)$98,070$87,389
75th$129,130$103,000
90th — top pay$174,660$125,000
H-1B sponsors pay a median of $87,389 for Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary — 10.9% below the BLS national median of $98,070.

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Based on hrs/week × weeks/year = 2,080 hrs
Projections 2025–2035

Job outlook for Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary

BLS projects employment of political science teachers, postsecondary to grow 2.5% from 2025 to 2035, slower than the 3.5% average for all occupations. About 1,500 openings are projected each year, on average, from new jobs and from replacing workers who retire or move to other occupations.

Jobs 2025 → 2035
21,500 → 22,000
+500 jobs
Projected change
+2.5%
All occupations: +3.5%
Openings per year
1,500
Average, 2025–2035
Typical entry education
Doctoral or professional degree
No related experience required
Self-employed
0.2% of workers (2025)
Preparation needed (O*NET Job Zone 5)
Extensive Preparation Needed. 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).
Fastest-growing jobs → Best-paying jobs that need a doctoral or professional degree →

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–2035 · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook →

H-1B sponsored pay

Pay by H-1B wage level

Employers assign every H-1B filing a Department of Labor prevailing-wage level, from Level I (entry) to Level IV (fully competent). Pay rises steeply with level.

H-1B median $87,389
Change vs prior year +11.77%
After inflation (CPI-U) +8.38%
Wage level LCAs Share P25 Median P75
Level I 137 68.2% $65,500 $85,000 $100,588
Level II 31 15.4% $86,908 $95,000 $109,150
H-1B job titles

Salaries by job title in Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary

The 2 most-filed job titles inside SOC 25-1065, from 201 H-1B filings. Seniority words and level numbers are grouped (“Senior Data Engineer II” counts as Data Engineer). Tap a title for its full range, wage levels and the exact titles employers used.

Job title LCAs Share P25 Median P75 YoY
Assistant Professor 105 52.24% $79,273 $94,000 $112,000 +4.96%
Assistant Professor of Political Science 15 7.46% $60,592 $65,321 $76,002 +1.27%

Titles are cleaned from the employer's own LCA text (codes and typos removed, nothing invented). Rows need 10+ filings in this SOC.

Skills & tools

Skills needed for Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary

How important each skill and knowledge area is for this job, rated by O*NET on a 1–5 scale from surveys of workers and occupational analysts.

Top skills
  • Speaking4.6
  • Reading Comprehension4.1
  • Active Learning4.0
  • Active Listening4.0
  • Instructing4.0
  • Writing4.0
  • Critical Thinking3.9
  • Learning Strategies3.9
  • Complex Problem Solving3.8
  • Judgment and Decision Making3.3
Top knowledge areas
  • English Language4.6
  • Law and Government4.5
  • Education and Training4.3
  • History and Archeology3.6
  • Sociology and Anthropology3.3
  • Geography3.0
  • Philosophy and Theology3.0
  • Customer and Personal Service2.9
Software and technology used
Learning management system LMSCGoogle DocsMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft Office softwareMicrosoft OutlookMicrosoft PowerPointMicrosoft WordRBlackboard LearnCollaborative editing softwareContextMinerCourse management system softwareDesire2Learn LMS softwareDOC CopEmail softwareEmpirisoft MediaLabFormula translation/translator FORTRAN

Highlighted = in demand: frequently listed in employer job postings for this occupation (O*NET).

Source: O*NET 31.0 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.

About the job

What political science teachers, postsecondary do

  • Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as classical political thought, international relations, and democracy and citizenship.
  • 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.
  • Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.
  • Plan, evaluate, and revise curricula, course content, course materials, and methods of instruction.
  • Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in professional journals, books, or electronic media.
  • Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others.
  • Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts.
Also called
Associate ProfessorPolitical Science InstructorPolitical Science ProfessorProfessorAdjunct ProfessorAssistant ProfessorFaculty MemberGovernment ProfessorInstructorPublic Administration Professor
More job titles for this occupation (18)
Adjunct InstructorAdjunct Political Science InstructorAdjunct Political Science ProfessorCollege Faculty MemberCollege ProfessorGeopolitics TeacherGovernment InstructorGovernment TeacherInternational Relations ProfessorInternational Relations TeacherLecturerPolitical Science Adjunct InstructorPolitical Science Adjunct ProfessorPolitical Science Faculty MemberPolitical Theory ProfessorPublic Administration TeacherPublic Policy ProfessorUniversity Faculty Member

Source: O*NET 31.0 (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0). These are general job titles, not H-1B filings; for titles employers actually filed, see “Job titles” above.