Best states for an academic dean

Q: What is the best state for academic deans?

The best state to be an academic dean is Arizona based on academic dean salaries and job opportunities.

Q: What is the highest paying state for academic deans?

The highest paying state for academic deans is Arkansas based on Zippia’s salary database.

Q: What is the worst state for academic deans?

The worst state for academic deans is Arkansas, due to a combination of low salaries and few job opportunities.

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Academic dean opportunities vary in different parts of the country. In order to help you determine the best states for academic deans, we ranked all fifty states from best to worst for academic deans.Our research found that Arizona is the best state for academic deans, while New York and Connecticut are ranked highest in terms of median salary. Arizona has a median salary of $111,251 and New York has the highest median salary among all 50 states for academic deans.

In order to get you the best states for academic deans, we looked at our data on jobs and wages -- specifically the average annual wage and the number of available jobs per capita.Arizona is the best state, and Long Beach is the city with the highest pay for academic deans.

10 best states for academic deans in 2026

1. Arizona
Total academic dean jobs: 34
Average annual salary: $111,251
Lowest 10 percent earn: $65,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $189,000
Location Quotient:
1.3
Academic dean jobs in Arizona
2. New York
Total academic dean jobs: 95
Average annual salary: $112,201
Lowest 10 percent earn: $69,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $180,000
Location Quotient:
1.65
Academic dean jobs in New York
3. Connecticut
Total academic dean jobs: 17
Average annual salary: $111,424
Lowest 10 percent earn: $69,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $178,000
Location Quotient:
1.15
Academic dean jobs in Connecticut
4. District of Columbia
Total academic dean jobs: 11
Average annual salary: $112,379
Lowest 10 percent earn: $69,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $181,000
Location Quotient:
1.46
Academic dean jobs in District of Columbia
5. California
Total academic dean jobs: 133
Average annual salary: $110,417
Lowest 10 percent earn: $65,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $185,000
Location Quotient:
1.02
Academic dean jobs in California
6. Indiana
Total academic dean jobs: 24
Average annual salary: $101,972
Lowest 10 percent earn: $61,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $170,000
Location Quotient:
0.82
Academic dean jobs in Indiana
7. Oregon
Total academic dean jobs: 18
Average annual salary: $96,878
Lowest 10 percent earn: $58,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $160,000
Location Quotient:
0.97
Academic dean jobs in Oregon
8. North Carolina
Total academic dean jobs: 33
Average annual salary: $97,978
Lowest 10 percent earn: $57,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $167,000
Location Quotient:
0.77
Academic dean jobs in North Carolina
9. Wisconsin
Total academic dean jobs: 43
Average annual salary: $89,595
Lowest 10 percent earn: $54,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $147,000
Location Quotient:
1.74
Academic dean jobs in Wisconsin
10. Massachusetts
Total academic dean jobs: 93
Average annual salary: $92,411
Lowest 10 percent earn: $57,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $149,000
Location Quotient:
2.26
Academic dean jobs in Massachusetts

Academic dean jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be an academic dean

You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.

Detailed list of the best states for an academic dean

Rank	State	Average salary	Lowest 10% earn	Population	Job count
1	Arizona	$111,251	$65,000	7,016,270	34
2	New York	$112,201	$69,000	19,849,399	95
3	Connecticut	$111,424	$69,000	3,588,184	17
4	District of Columbia	$112,379	$69,000	693,972	11
5	California	$110,417	$65,000	39,536,653	133
6	Indiana	$101,972	$61,000	6,666,818	24
7	Oregon	$96,878	$58,000	4,142,776	18
8	North Carolina	$97,978	$57,000	10,273,419	33
9	Wisconsin	$89,595	$54,000	5,795,483	43
10	Massachusetts	$92,411	$57,000	6,859,819	93
11	Idaho	$91,134	$53,000	1,716,943	10
12	Michigan	$91,906	$55,000	9,962,311	38
13	Nevada	$109,080	$64,000	2,998,039	0
14	Ohio	$97,567	$58,000	11,658,609	23
15	Montana	$89,981	$55,000	1,050,493	7
16	Pennsylvania	$90,286	$55,000	12,805,537	54
17	West Virginia	$96,527	$57,000	1,815,857	4
18	New Jersey	$94,619	$58,000	9,005,644	30
19	South Dakota	$87,228	$52,000	869,666	6
20	Wyoming	$82,870	$48,000	579,315	5
21	Kentucky	$88,831	$51,000	4,454,189	11
22	Colorado	$86,288	$49,000	5,607,154	49
23	Rhode Island	$86,723	$53,000	1,059,639	6
24	Minnesota	$87,408	$53,000	5,576,606	32
25	Maine	$85,287	$52,000	1,335,907	7
26	Delaware	$89,390	$54,000	961,939	4
27	Louisiana	$87,381	$47,000	4,684,333	10
28	Maryland	$91,683	$55,000	6,052,177	23
29	Washington	$87,604	$53,000	7,405,743	25
30	Virginia	$83,218	$49,000	8,470,020	65
31	Texas	$80,397	$43,000	28,304,596	81
32	Iowa	$77,906	$46,000	3,145,711	14
33	Georgia	$79,985	$43,000	10,429,379	37
34	Utah	$74,558	$42,000	3,101,833	23
35	Missouri	$80,523	$46,000	6,113,532	18
36	Alaska	$68,173	$46,000	739,795	13
37	New Mexico	$77,521	$42,000	2,088,070	8
38	South Carolina	$80,067	$44,000	5,024,369	10
39	Illinois	$76,206	$45,000	12,802,023	61
40	New Hampshire	$82,507	$51,000	1,342,795	3
41	Alabama	$77,706	$42,000	4,874,747	9
42	Tennessee	$75,524	$42,000	6,715,984	18
43	Vermont	$81,493	$49,000	623,657	0
44	North Dakota	$76,558	$48,000	755,393	1
45	Nebraska	$73,593	$43,000	1,920,076	6
46	Florida	$73,961	$39,000	20,984,400	43
47	Mississippi	$67,483	$36,000	2,984,100	6
48	Hawaii	$67,598	$48,000	1,427,538	1
49	Kansas	$67,007	$38,000	2,913,123	5
50	Oklahoma	$64,228	$35,000	3,930,864	8
51	Arkansas	$64,071	$35,000	3,004,279	4

Highest paying states for academic deans

Rank	State	Avg. Academic Dean Salary
1	Arizona	$111,251
2	New York	$112,201
3	Connecticut	$111,424
4	District of Columbia	$112,379
5	California	$110,417
6	Indiana	$101,972
7	Oregon	$96,878
8	North Carolina	$97,978
9	Wisconsin	$89,595
10	Massachusetts	$92,411
11	Idaho	$91,134
12	Michigan	$91,906
13	Nevada	$109,080
14	Ohio	$97,567
15	Montana	$89,981
16	Pennsylvania	$90,286
17	West Virginia	$96,527
18	New Jersey	$94,619
19	South Dakota	$87,228
20	Wyoming	$82,870
21	Kentucky	$88,831
22	Colorado	$86,288
23	Rhode Island	$86,723
24	Minnesota	$87,408
25	Maine	$85,287
26	Delaware	$89,390
27	Louisiana	$87,381
28	Maryland	$91,683
29	Washington	$87,604
30	Virginia	$83,218
31	Texas	$80,397
32	Iowa	$77,906
33	Georgia	$79,985
34	Utah	$74,558
35	Missouri	$80,523
36	Alaska	$68,173
37	New Mexico	$77,521
38	South Carolina	$80,067
39	Illinois	$76,206
40	New Hampshire	$82,507
41	Alabama	$77,706
42	Tennessee	$75,524
43	Vermont	$81,493
44	North Dakota	$76,558
45	Nebraska	$73,593
46	Florida	$73,961
47	Mississippi	$67,483
48	Hawaii	$67,598
49	Kansas	$67,007
50	Oklahoma	$64,228
51	Arkansas	$64,071

Best states for an academic dean

10 best states for academic deans in 2026

1. Arizona

2. New York

3. Connecticut

4. District of Columbia

5. California

6. Indiana

7. Oregon

8. North Carolina

9. Wisconsin

10. Massachusetts

Academic dean jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be an academic dean

Detailed list of the best states for an academic dean

Highest paying states for academic deans

Academic dean best states FAQs

What is the best state for academic deans?

What is the highest paying state for academic deans?

What is the worst state for academic deans?

Search for academic dean jobs

Total academic dean jobs:	34
Average annual salary:	$111,251
Lowest 10 percent earn:	$65,000
Highest 10 percent earn:	$189,000
Location Quotient:	1.3