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Job outlook for associate deans in the United States
Associate dean job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected associate dean job growth rate is 7% from 2018-2028.
About 15,500 new jobs for associate deans are projected over the next decade.
Associate dean salaries have increased 7% for associate deans in the last 5 years.
There are over 9,939 associate deans currently employed in the United States.
There are 1,089 active associate dean job openings in the US.
The average associate dean salary is $89,798.
Are associate dean jobs in demand?
Associate dean job and salary trends over time
Associate dean jobs over time
Associate dean job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 9,939 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 8,976 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 9,231 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 9,138 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 9,057 | 0.00% |
Average associate dean salary over time
Associate dean salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $89,798 | $43.17 | +2.2% |
| 2024 | $87,873 | $42.25 | +1.1% |
| 2023 | $86,887 | $41.77 | +2.1% |
| 2022 | $85,064 | $40.90 | +1.8% |
| 2021 | $83,590 | $40.19 | +2.5% |
Associate dean jobs by state
Most common states for associate deans
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 15 | 2% |
| 2 | Alaska | 739,795 | 13 | 2% |
| 3 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 66 | 1% |
| 4 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 49 | 1% |
| 5 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 47 | 1% |
| 6 | Wisconsin | 5,795,483 | 40 | 1% |
| 7 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 21 | 1% |
| 8 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 11 | 1% |
| 9 | California | 39,536,653 | 91 | 0% |
| 10 | New York | 19,849,399 | 78 | 0% |
| 11 | Michigan | 9,962,311 | 28 | 0% |
| 12 | Pennsylvania | 12,805,537 | 27 | 0% |
| 13 | Ohio | 11,658,609 | 23 | 0% |
| 14 | New Jersey | 9,005,644 | 22 | 0% |
| 15 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 18 | 0% |
| 16 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 16 | 0% |
| 17 | Arizona | 7,016,270 | 11 | 0% |
| 18 | West Virginia | 1,815,857 | 4 | 0% |
| 19 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 4 | 0% |
| 20 | Nevada | 2,998,039 | 1 | 0% |
Most common cities for associate deans
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lawndale | 1 | 3% | $113,074 |
| 2 | Los Altos | 1 | 3% | $121,023 |
| 3 | Beverly | 1 | 2% | $85,521 |
| 4 | Fairfield | 1 | 2% | $85,845 |
| 5 | Washington | 7 | 1% | $109,057 |
| 6 | Bridgeport | 2 | 1% | $85,793 |
| 7 | Alhambra | 1 | 1% | $113,228 |
| 8 | Davenport | 1 | 1% | $70,151 |
| 9 | Fullerton | 1 | 1% | $112,372 |
| 10 | Gainesville | 1 | 1% | $78,640 |
| 11 | Detroit | 3 | 0% | $88,534 |
| 12 | Baltimore | 2 | 0% | $104,685 |
| 13 | Atlanta | 1 | 0% | $73,022 |
| 14 | Aurora | 1 | 0% | $58,108 |
| 15 | Chicago | 1 | 0% | $71,819 |
| 16 | Denver | 1 | 0% | $58,123 |
Associate Dean job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of associate dean experts
University of Toledo
Medaille College
West Virginia University
Bluefield State College
Melissa Gregory
Dean and ProfessorUniversity of Toledo
Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
What general advice would you give to an Associate Dean?
Melissa Gregory: Melissa Valiska Gregory, Dean, College of Arts and Letters, University of Toledo, https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-gregory-193546290/, https://www.utoledo.edu/?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=PPC&utm_campaign=Gen-Enrollment&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwqpSwBhClARIsADlZ_TlC5r5c4-Sw7v9XW7tXvN3mlDs-TrgkdXuf8J8xwnvs7T-HF2gVPgoaAkYCEALw_wcB
What Associate Dean skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Melissa Gregory: I'm copying some UToledo faculty on this message in case you want to reach out to them for quotes:
Dr. Barry Jackisch, History
Dr. Patrick Lawrence, Geography and Planning
Dr. Kim Nielsen, Disability Studies
What will help Associate Deans increase their earning potential?
Melissa Gregory: Today's contemporary liberal arts degrees typically do two things:
(1) prepare you for a lifetime of career adaptation by cultivating deep infrastructure skills such as communication, analysis, creativity, quantitative abilities, and others, which prepares you to adapt to the jobs that don't even exist, yet; and (2) offer you real-life professional experience in the form of internships and other kinds of hands-on training that provide you with specific credentials for graduate school or the current job market.
In other words, the key to a liberal arts degree is its flexibility. A liberal arts degree isn't as explicitly career-aligned as, say, a degree in pharmacy or engineering. But that is the whole point: a liberal arts degree takes the long view of how a graduate might advance successfully through a lifetime of work where economic, political, and technological forces regularly close out old jobs and create new opportunities (e.g., "sustainability" did not used to be a job category - now it is!). When coupled with professional experience, a flexible degree that has rigorously trained you to be smart and adaptive prepares you to enter the workforce quickly and also sets you up for long-term success.
Colleen Wilkinson
Associate Professor, Program DirectorMedaille College
Department of Education
What soft skills should all Associate Deans possess?
Colleen Wilkinson: Teaching is not a silo profession. We are in constant communication and collaboration with many stakeholders. Teacher Candidates need to be flexible in order to work well with all the different players in the game to make sure the student wins!
Stephanie Lorenze
Service Associate Professor, Coordinator for Teacher EducationWest Virginia University
Department of Curriculum and Instruction/Literacy Studies
What will help Associate Deans increase their earning potential?
Stephanie Lorenze: Legislators and communities who value their work through actions.
What experience really stands out on Associate Dean resumes?
Amanda Banks Ph.D.: Adaptability and expertise in teaching diverse students in inclusive classrooms are growing focal points of many school districts nationally. With recent changes in federal education legislation (Every Student Succeeds Act, 2015), there has been a growing need for educators to universally design effective learning opportunities for a wide range of learners (Universal Design for Learning) to ensure students' academic progress regardless of their socioeconomic background or learning ability. Identifying potential teachers who can help students and schools successfully meet state and federal accountability standards is paramount to hiring committees.
Candidates should showcase any firsthand experiences they have in working with students within and outside of the classroom, especially diverse student populations (e.g., special education, bilingual education). Strong collaboration skills, content expertise, and instructional flexibility are three professional qualities that definitely set a candidate apart from the rest. Recent graduates who anticipate entering the job market in the near future should actively search for such volunteer opportunities if they didn't have these types of experiences in their preparation program.