Become A Department Chairperson

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Working As A Department Chairperson

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
Making Decisions and Solving Problems
Getting Information
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work

Deal with People
Mostly Sitting
Make Decisions
$88,580
Average Salary

What Does A Department Chairperson Do

A Department Chairperson is a faculty member who provides academic and administrative leadership to an academic department. They exercise leadership in recruiting and retaining capable faculty, communicate departmental needs and desires to the Dean and Provost, and coordinate the academic advisement process.

How To Become A Department Chairperson

Although a bachelor’s degree may be acceptable for some entry-level positions, a master’s or higher degree is often required. Employers often want candidates who have experience working in the field, particularly for occupations such as registrars and academic deans.

Education

Educational requirements vary for different positions. A bachelor’s degree may be sufficient, but a master’s degree or Ph.D. is generally required. Degrees can be in a variety of disciplines, such as social work, accounting, or marketing.

Provosts and deans often must have a Ph.D. Some provosts and deans begin their career as professors and later move into administration. These administrators have doctorates in the field in which they taught. Other provosts and deans have a Ph.D. in higher education or a related field.

Work Experience in a Related Occupation

Employers typically prefer to hire candidates who have several years of experience in a college administrative setting. Some postsecondary education administrators work in the registrar’s office or as a resident assistant while in college to gain the necessary experience. For other positions, such as those in admissions and student affairs, experience may or may not be necessary.

Important Qualities

Computer skills. Postsecondary education administrators often need to be adept at working with computers so they can create and maintain databases and use computer programs to manage student and school records.

Interpersonal skills. Postsecondary education administrators need to build good relationships with colleagues, students, and parents. Those in admissions and student affairs need to be outgoing so they can encourage prospective students to apply to the school and existing students to participate in cocurricular activities.

Organizational skills. Administrators need to be organized so they can manage records, prioritize tasks, and coordinate the activities with their staff.

Problem-solving skills. Administrators often need to respond to difficult situations, develop creative solutions to problems, and react calmly when problems arise.

Advancement

Education administrators with advanced degrees can be promoted to higher level positions within their department or the college. Some become college presidents, an occupation which is discussed in the profile on top executives.

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Department Chairperson jobs

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Department Chairperson Career Paths

Department Chairperson

Education Director

Academic Dean

10 Yearsyrs

Program Director Adjunct Faculty

Assistant Principal

10 Yearsyrs

Assistant Principal Adjunct Instructor

Associate Dean

10 Yearsyrs

Educator Education Director

Campus Director

7 Yearsyrs

Adjunct Faculty Education Director

Center Director

7 Yearsyrs

Medical Director Career Services Director

College Director

6 Yearsyrs

Adjunct Professor Associate Dean

Dean

5 Yearsyrs

Professor Program Coordinator

Development Director

9 Yearsyrs

Coach Assistant Principal

Director Of Instruction

6 Yearsyrs

Curriculum Developer Special Education Teacher

Director Of Special Education

12 Yearsyrs

Program Coordinator Training Coordinator

Director Of Training

7 Yearsyrs

Program Director Educator

Education Director

7 Yearsyrs

Writer Grant Writer

Educational Program Director

6 Yearsyrs

Assistant Principal Middle School Principal

Elementary School Principal

12 Yearsyrs

Program Coordinator Assistant Director

Interim Director

10 Yearsyrs

Adjunct Professor Senior Project Manager

Education Director

Adjunct Faculty Assistant Principal

School Principal

10 Yearsyrs

Associate Professor Adjunct Professor

School Superintendent

14 Yearsyrs

Average Length of Employment

Elementary Educator 5.6 years
Foreign Languages Department Chairperson 5.1 years
Social Studies Department Chairperson 4.7 years
Mathematics Department Chairperson 4.6 years
Science Department Chairperson 4.6 years
Department Chairperson 4.0 years
Assistant Principal 3.8 years
Technology Teacher/Technology Coordinator 3.7 years
Consultant Teacher 3.1 years
Curriculum Coordinator 2.8 years
Coach/Instructor 2.7 years
Mentor Teacher 2.6 years
Committee Chairperson 2.6 years
Learning Center Instructor 2.2 years

Top Careers Before Department Chairperson

Top Careers After Department Chairperson

Department Chairperson Demographics

Gender

Female
56.3%
Male
40.0%
Unknown
3.7%

Ethnicity

White
80.5%
Hispanic or Latino
8.6%
Asian
8.0%
Unknown
2.1%
Black or African American
0.7%

Languages Spoken

Spanish
41.7%
French
15.4%
Mandarin
6.0%
German
5.6%
Italian
4.1%
Chinese
4.1%
Portuguese
3.4%
Russian
3.0%
Arabic
3.0%
Japanese
2.6%
Korean
1.5%
Carrier
1.5%
Greek
1.5%
Cantonese
1.5%
Dakota
1.1%
Swedish
0.8%
Vietnamese
0.8%
Hindi
0.8%
Dutch
0.8%
Catalan
0.8%

Department Chairperson

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Department Chairperson Education

Schools

University of Phoenix
14.7%
Walden University
8.8%
Nova Southeastern University
8.4%
Grand Canyon University
8.0%
Capella University
6.5%
Lamar University
4.9%
Liberty University
4.3%
George Mason University
4.1%
George Washington University
3.9%
Florida State University
3.9%
University of North Texas
3.7%
University of South Florida
3.5%
University of Houston
3.5%
University of Illinois at Chicago
3.5%
University of Texas at Arlington
3.3%
Michigan State University
3.1%
Arizona State University
3.1%
Georgia State University
3.1%
Harvard University
3.1%
University of Georgia
2.9%

Majors

Degrees

Masters
44.7%
Bachelors
17.5%
Other
16.1%
Doctorate
15.0%
Certificate
4.1%
Associate
2.1%
Diploma
0.3%
License
0.2%

Department Chairperson

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Real Department Chairperson Salaries

Job Title	Company	Location	Start Date	Salary
Chair, Department of Neurology	Creighton University	Omaha, NE	Oct 25, 2010	$350,000
Professor & Department Chair	University of Florida	Gainesville, FL	Oct 07, 2011	$225,000
Professor and Department Chair	University of Utah	Salt Lake City, UT	Jan 08, 2016	$210,000
Professor and Department Chair	The Ohio University	Athens, OH	Jan 13, 2014	$155,000
Department Chair, Clinical Psychology	Adler School of Professional Psychology	Chicago, IL	Aug 13, 2013	$144,200
Department Chair, Clinical Psychology	Adler School of Professional Psychology	Chicago, IL	Jul 31, 2011	$140,000
Professor and Department Chair	Old Dominion University	Norfolk, VA	Jul 25, 2011	$140,000
Department Chair	Syracuse University	Syracuse, NY	Jul 01, 2013	$122,000
Department Chair	Florida Atlantic University	Boca Raton, FL	Jul 01, 2013	$110,000
Assistant Chair-Voice Department	Berklee College of Music	Boston, MA	Aug 03, 2015	$110,000
Department Chair and Professor of English	Chapman University	Orange, CA	May 31, 2011	$110,000
Fashion Design Department Chair	College for Creative Studies	Detroit, MI	Oct 01, 2015	$105,000 - $145,000
Professor & Department Chair	University of Arkansas at Little Rock	Little Rock, AR	Jul 01, 2010	$99,000
Dance Department Chair	Cornish College of The Arts	Seattle, WA	Dec 01, 2015	$95,000
Chair of The Audio Arts and Acoustics Department	Columbia College Chicago	Chicago, IL	Jan 06, 2016	$90,000
Math Department Chairperson	Mdyhs Inc.	New York, NY	Sep 01, 2014	$77,753
Language Department Chair	Peddie School	Hightstown, NJ	Mar 23, 2016	$77,090
Math Teacher/Department Chair	The Birch Wathen Lenox School, Inc.	New York, NY	Aug 12, 2016	$75,369
Language Department Chair	The Peddie School	Hightstown, NJ	Sep 01, 2014	$69,263
Chair of The Piano Department	International School of Music, LLC	Bethesda, MD	Apr 09, 2015	$65,936
Department Chair	Holy Spirit Preparatory	Atlanta, GA	Feb 13, 2011	$65,430
Department Chair	Holy Spirit Preparatory	Atlanta, GA	Jul 18, 2011	$65,430
Latin Teacher, Department Chair	Landon School Corporation	Bethesda, MD	Aug 22, 2009	$65,362
Department Chair, Arts, CAS Coordinator	EF International Academy, Inc.	Tarrytown, NY	Jun 04, 2012	$65,000
Math Department Chair	Cosmos Foundation, Inc.	Brownsville, TX	Jun 07, 2011	$59,460
English Teacher-Department Chair	Cheyenne Mountain Charter Academy	Colorado Springs, CO	Jun 05, 2016	$52,112
English Teacher-Department Chair	Cheyenne Mountain Charter Academy	Colorado Springs, CO	May 21, 2016	$52,112
Piano Department Chair	International School of Music, LLC	Bethesda, MD	Sep 15, 2012	$51,915

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Top Skills for A Department Chairperson

Top Department Chairperson Skills

Curriculum Development
Department Chair
Classroom Management

You can check out examples of real life uses of top skills on resumes here:

Manage faculty resources, curriculum development and monitoring, and student success.
Create and manage daily electronic data for department chair's emails and campus announcements.
Identify and Coach teachers on effective teaching strategies, classroom management strategies, and strategies for altering student behavior.
Attended professional development and collaborated with fellow teachers and professors.
Worked with mathematics department to design interdisciplinary activities.