A Vice-Chancellor is to a university what a principal is to a school. This means the Vice-Chancellor is the highest authority in the university, both in terms of academics and administration. This person oversees the university council while also securing finances that'll allow the institution to achieve its aims and objectives. He or she is also responsible for carrying out essential civic and ceremonial duties.
That said, the route to becoming a vice-chancellor is not the easiest or quickest. The government appoints vice-Chancellors, and they usually do so in recognition of the candidate's exceptionality as an academician. However, this person must have had ten years of experience as a university professor or as a high-caliber member of any other equivalent establishment.
In the end, all the effort put into winning the post of vice-chancellor pays off. Why? $116,870 is what a Vice-Chancellor makes in the United States per year. In fact, people on a much higher cadre of this post earn about $214,000. Not bad.
Vice Chancellor Overview
Vice Chancellor Careers
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a vice chancellor. For example, did you know that they make an average of $70.09 an hour? That's $145,786 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 7% and produce 13,500 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does a Vice Chancellor Do
There are certain skills that many vice chancellors have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed computer skills, organizational skills and problem-solving skills.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be a vice chancellor, we found that a lot of resumes listed 10.8% of vice chancellors included oversight, while 9.4% of resumes included diversity, and 7.4% of resumes included human resources. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the vice chancellor job title. But what industry to start with? Most vice chancellors actually find jobs in the education and manufacturing industries.
How To Become a Vice Chancellor
If you're interested in becoming a vice chancellor, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 59.0% of vice chancellors have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 16.1% of vice chancellors have master's degrees. Even though most vice chancellors have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a vice chancellor. When we researched the most common majors for a vice chancellor, we found that they most commonly earn bachelor's degree degrees or master's degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on vice chancellor resumes include doctoral degree degrees or associate degree degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a vice chancellor. In fact, many vice chancellor jobs require experience in a role such as chairperson. Meanwhile, many vice chancellors also have previous career experience in roles such as administrative assistant or executive director.
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Average Salary for a Vice Chancellor
Best Paying Cities
Recently Added Salaries
Job TitleCompany  | Company | Start Date | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
University of California {Title:Assistant Vice Chancellor for Innovation and Business Engagement, City:Santa Cruz} {Title:Assistant Vice Chancellor for Innovation and Business Engagement, City:Santa Cruz} | University of California University of California | 06/29/2021 06/29/2021 | $170,00006/29/2021 $170,000 |
University of California {Title:Assistant Vice Chancellor, Controller, City:Merced} {Title:Assistant Vice Chancellor, Controller, City:Merced} | University of California University of California | 06/25/2021 06/25/2021 | $215,00006/25/2021 $215,000 |
University of Arkansas Assistant Vice Chancellor for Business Services Assistant Vice Chancellor for Business Services | University of Arkansas University of Arkansas | 06/21/2021 06/21/2021 | $105,00006/21/2021 $105,000 |
University of Colorado Assistant Vice Chancellor, Strategic Communications Assistant Vice Chancellor, Strategic Communications | University of Colorado University of Colorado | 06/02/2021 06/02/2021 | $95,00006/02/2021 $95,000 |
University of Denver Assistant Vice Chancellor, Student Engagement and 4-D Experience Assistant Vice Chancellor, Student Engagement and 4-D Experience | University of Denver University of Denver | 05/26/2021 05/26/2021 | $120,00005/26/2021 $120,000 |
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Top Colleges for Vice Chancellors
1. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
2. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
3. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
4. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
5. SUNY Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY • Private
6. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
7. New York University
New York, NY • Private
8. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
Minneapolis, MN • Private
9. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
10. Howard University
Washington, DC • Private
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Learn to handle basic human resource functions to ensure the best possible results...
Curriculum commensurate to Top B Schools Management Program: with downloadable resources, quiz, assessments & exercise...
Top Skills For a Vice Chancellor
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 10.8% of vice chancellors listed oversight on their resume, but soft skills such as computer skills and organizational skills are important as well.
- Oversight, 10.8%
- Diversity, 9.4%
- Human Resources, 7.4%
- Professional Development, 5.8%
- Strategic Plan, 5.2%
- Other Skills, 61.4% See All Vice Chancellor Skills
Best States For a Vice Chancellor
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a vice chancellor. The best states for people in this position are California, Oregon, Alaska, and Washington. Vice chancellors make the most in California with an average salary of $144,306. Whereas in Oregon and Alaska, they would average $129,939 and $129,253, respectively. While vice chancellors would only make an average of $127,121 in Washington, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. California
$144,306
Avg. Salary
2. Oregon
$129,939
Avg. Salary
3. Connecticut
$121,395
Avg. Salary