How To Become A University Dean: What It Is and Career Path

What is a university dean and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted expert

Melissa Gregory

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a university dean. For example, did you know that they make an average of $50.94 an hour? That's $105,952 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 7% and produce 15,500 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a university dean?

Melissa Gregory

Dean and Professor, University of Toledo

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

ScoreUniversity DeanUS Average

Salary

7.8

Avg. Salary $105,952

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.1

Growth rate 7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.70%

Asian 4.39%

Black or African American 11.29%

Hispanic or Latino 14.42%

Unknown 4.01%

White 65.19%

Gender

female 58.25%

male 41.75%

Age - 47

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47

Stress level

8.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.8

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a university dean

Explore university dean education requirements

Most common university dean degrees

Bachelor's

68.3 %

Master's

12.7 %

High School Diploma

7.7 %

Start to develop specific university dean skills

Skills	Percentages
Scholarship	49.16%
GPA	31.19%
Sigma	19.66%

Complete relevant university dean training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New university deans learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a university dean based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real university dean resumes.

Research university dean duties and responsibilities

Produce, manage and evaluate all budgetary and programmatic aspects of a comprehensive career service program for students and alumni.
Work cooperatively with other offices and student groups in the implementation of various campus-wide multicultural activities and other major events.
Safeguard course and syllabus alignment by performing ongoing examination review.

Apply for university dean jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a university dean job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams