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Best states for a director of student affairs
- Rank 1 - 10
- 11 - 20
- 21 - 30
- 31 - 40
- 41 - 51
Are you wondering which place in the United States is the best state for directors of student affairs? Knowing how challenging it is to figure out where to start your career or where to move to advance your career, we decided to bring you a list of best states for director of student affairs jobs.We wanted to look at the best states for directors of student affairs -- where there are plenty of director of student affairs jobs to go around and directors of student affairs get paid what they deserve during every phase of their career.
To that end, we dove into our dataset of job and salary numbers to figure out which states have the best opportunities for directors of student affairs. New York is the best state for directors of student affairs, where the median salary is $90,830.We found that New York is the best state for director of student affairs jobs, whereas Kansas is the worst.
10 best states for directors of student affairs in 2026
1. New York
Total director of student affairs jobs: 855 Average annual salary: $90,830 Lowest 10 percent earn: $52,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $158,000 Location Quotient: 1.7
2. California
Total director of student affairs jobs: 1,312 Average annual salary: $92,656 Lowest 10 percent earn: $50,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $171,000 Location Quotient: 1.14
3. District of Columbia
Total director of student affairs jobs: 199 Average annual salary: $89,849 Lowest 10 percent earn: $50,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $158,000 Location Quotient: 3.02
4. Connecticut
Total director of student affairs jobs: 136 Average annual salary: $85,231 Lowest 10 percent earn: $48,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $149,000 Location Quotient: 1.05
5. Wisconsin
Total director of student affairs jobs: 193 Average annual salary: $83,378 Lowest 10 percent earn: $45,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $151,000 Location Quotient: 0.89
6. Michigan
Total director of student affairs jobs: 220 Average annual salary: $85,855 Lowest 10 percent earn: $48,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $153,000 Location Quotient: 0.72
7. South Dakota
Total director of student affairs jobs: 216 Average annual salary: $71,624 Lowest 10 percent earn: $38,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $134,000 Location Quotient: 5.14
8. New Jersey
Total director of student affairs jobs: 0 Average annual salary: $91,123 Lowest 10 percent earn: $52,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $158,000 Location Quotient: 0
9. Louisiana
Total director of student affairs jobs: 517 Average annual salary: $73,447 Lowest 10 percent earn: $37,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $142,000 Location Quotient: 4.12
10. Nevada
Total director of student affairs jobs: 55 Average annual salary: $82,162 Lowest 10 percent earn: $43,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $155,000 Location Quotient: 0.67
Director of student affairs jobsNear Columbus, OH
How Zippia determines the best states to be a director of student affairs
You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.
Detailed list of the best states for a director of student affairs
| Rank | State | Average salary | Lowest 10% earn | Population | Job count |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York | $90,830 | $52,000 | 19,849,399 | 855 |
| 2 | California | $92,656 | $50,000 | 39,536,653 | 1,312 |
| 3 | District of Columbia | $89,849 | $50,000 | 693,972 | 199 |
| 4 | Connecticut | $85,231 | $48,000 | 3,588,184 | 136 |
| 5 | Wisconsin | $83,378 | $45,000 | 5,795,483 | 193 |
| 6 | Michigan | $85,855 | $48,000 | 9,962,311 | 220 |
| 7 | South Dakota | $71,624 | $38,000 | 869,666 | 216 |
| 8 | New Jersey | $91,123 | $52,000 | 9,005,644 | 0 |
| 9 | Louisiana | $73,447 | $37,000 | 4,684,333 | 517 |
| 10 | Nevada | $82,162 | $43,000 | 2,998,039 | 55 |
| 11 | Iowa | $71,061 | $37,000 | 3,145,711 | 639 |
| 12 | Maryland | $86,288 | $48,000 | 6,052,177 | 195 |
| 13 | Pennsylvania | $73,492 | $41,000 | 12,805,537 | 509 |
| 14 | West Virginia | $77,446 | $41,000 | 1,815,857 | 37 |
| 15 | Massachusetts | $75,403 | $43,000 | 6,859,819 | 545 |
| 16 | Kentucky | $71,794 | $37,000 | 4,454,189 | 135 |
| 17 | Ohio | $72,559 | $39,000 | 11,658,609 | 310 |
| 18 | Delaware | $72,023 | $40,000 | 961,939 | 62 |
| 19 | Wyoming | $68,372 | $36,000 | 579,315 | 34 |
| 20 | Washington | $73,964 | $39,000 | 7,405,743 | 288 |
| 21 | Georgia | $73,503 | $37,000 | 10,429,379 | 309 |
| 22 | Rhode Island | $69,849 | $40,000 | 1,059,639 | 56 |
| 23 | Oregon | $70,661 | $37,000 | 4,142,776 | 181 |
| 24 | Alabama | $65,138 | $33,000 | 4,874,747 | 606 |
| 25 | Idaho | $70,077 | $37,000 | 1,716,943 | 38 |
| 26 | New Hampshire | $71,733 | $41,000 | 1,342,795 | 0 |
| 27 | Montana | $70,239 | $38,000 | 1,050,493 | 0 |
| 28 | Tennessee | $62,273 | $31,000 | 6,715,984 | 256 |
| 29 | Minnesota | $65,683 | $35,000 | 5,576,606 | 242 |
| 30 | Maine | $64,405 | $37,000 | 1,335,907 | 42 |
| 31 | Texas | $65,958 | $33,000 | 28,304,596 | 0 |
| 32 | Missouri | $66,240 | $34,000 | 6,113,532 | 0 |
| 33 | Virginia | $68,395 | $37,000 | 8,470,020 | 0 |
| 34 | Alaska | $50,820 | $38,000 | 739,795 | 46 |
| 35 | Indiana | $61,512 | $32,000 | 6,666,818 | 206 |
| 36 | Illinois | $61,756 | $32,000 | 12,802,023 | 525 |
| 37 | Hawaii | $53,241 | $44,000 | 1,427,538 | 28 |
| 38 | Arizona | $64,464 | $33,000 | 7,016,270 | 0 |
| 39 | North Carolina | $61,932 | $32,000 | 10,273,419 | 281 |
| 40 | Arkansas | $53,449 | $27,000 | 3,004,279 | 548 |
| 41 | Colorado | $61,353 | $31,000 | 5,607,154 | 248 |
| 42 | Oklahoma | $54,001 | $27,000 | 3,930,864 | 486 |
| 43 | North Dakota | $60,169 | $33,000 | 755,393 | 23 |
| 44 | New Mexico | $61,691 | $31,000 | 2,088,070 | 43 |
| 45 | Utah | $61,267 | $31,000 | 3,101,833 | 0 |
| 46 | Vermont | $62,217 | $35,000 | 623,657 | 0 |
| 47 | South Carolina | $57,916 | $29,000 | 5,024,369 | 123 |
| 48 | Florida | $58,528 | $29,000 | 20,984,400 | 389 |
| 49 | Mississippi | $57,055 | $28,000 | 2,984,100 | 0 |
| 50 | Nebraska | $56,762 | $29,000 | 1,920,076 | 0 |
| 51 | Kansas | $55,091 | $28,000 | 2,913,123 | 79 |
Highest paying states for directors of student affairs
| Rank | State | Avg. Director Of Student Affairs Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York | $90,830 |
| 2 | California | $92,656 |
| 3 | District of Columbia | $89,849 |
| 4 | Connecticut | $85,231 |
| 5 | Wisconsin | $83,378 |
| 6 | Michigan | $85,855 |
| 7 | South Dakota | $71,624 |
| 8 | New Jersey | $91,123 |
| 9 | Louisiana | $73,447 |
| 10 | Nevada | $82,162 |
| 11 | Iowa | $71,061 |
| 12 | Maryland | $86,288 |
| 13 | Pennsylvania | $73,492 |
| 14 | West Virginia | $77,446 |
| 15 | Massachusetts | $75,403 |
| 16 | Kentucky | $71,794 |
| 17 | Ohio | $72,559 |
| 18 | Delaware | $72,023 |
| 19 | Wyoming | $68,372 |
| 20 | Washington | $73,964 |
| 21 | Georgia | $73,503 |
| 22 | Rhode Island | $69,849 |
| 23 | Oregon | $70,661 |
| 24 | Alabama | $65,138 |
| 25 | Idaho | $70,077 |
| 26 | New Hampshire | $71,733 |
| 27 | Montana | $70,239 |
| 28 | Tennessee | $62,273 |
| 29 | Minnesota | $65,683 |
| 30 | Maine | $64,405 |
| 31 | Texas | $65,958 |
| 32 | Missouri | $66,240 |
| 33 | Virginia | $68,395 |
| 34 | Alaska | $50,820 |
| 35 | Indiana | $61,512 |
| 36 | Illinois | $61,756 |
| 37 | Hawaii | $53,241 |
| 38 | Arizona | $64,464 |
| 39 | North Carolina | $61,932 |
| 40 | Arkansas | $53,449 |
| 41 | Colorado | $61,353 |
| 42 | Oklahoma | $54,001 |
| 43 | North Dakota | $60,169 |
| 44 | New Mexico | $61,691 |
| 45 | Utah | $61,267 |
| 46 | Vermont | $62,217 |
| 47 | South Carolina | $57,916 |
| 48 | Florida | $58,528 |
| 49 | Mississippi | $57,055 |
| 50 | Nebraska | $56,762 |
| 51 | Kansas | $55,091 |
Director of student affairs best states FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025