January 2011 

Occupational Employment

Statistics (OES) Highlights

An Occupational Comparison of Private and 

State Colleges and Universities

Private colleges employed a higher share of educators than State colleges did in May 

2009—but also a higher share of managers. Education, training, and library 

occupations made up about 42 percent of employment in private sector colleges, 

universities, and professional schools, but 39 percent of employment in colleges 

owned by State government. The corresponding figures for management occupations 

were 8 and 6 percent, respectively. Overall, colleges, universities, and professional 

$0 $20,000 $40,000 $60,000 $80,000 $100,000 $120,000

Transportation and material moving 

Installation, maintenance, and repair 

Sales and related 

Building/grounds cleaning and maintenance 

Protective service 

Healthcare support 

Education, training, and library 

Legal 

Life, physical, and social science 

Architecture and engineering 

Annual mean wage

Private

State

Chart 1. Annual mean wages for selected occupational groups in private and 

State colleges, universities, and professional schools, May 2009
2 

schools had employment of about 2.8 million in May 2009; about 41 percent of these 

jobs were found in the private sector, and about 58 percent in State government.1

 

After education, training, and library occupations, office and administrative support 

was the largest occupational group in this industry, making up 20 percent of 

employment in private colleges and a similar employment share of 19 percent in 

State colleges. In addition to education and management occupations, private 

colleges had a slightly higher share of arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media 

occupations than State colleges: 3 percent of total employment compared with 2 

percent. State colleges had slightly higher shares of employment in computer and 

mathematical science; building and grounds cleaning and maintenance; and 

installation, maintenance, and repair occupations, although each of these 

occupational groups made up 4 percent or less of employment in both private and 

State colleges.

Private sector colleges had higher average wages in 12 of the 20 occupational groups 

for which both private and State college wages were available. Some of the groups 

with the largest wage differences between private and State colleges are shown in 

chart 1. (See page 9 to view these data in table format.) Average wages for 

education, training, and library occupations were $7,250, or nearly 11 percent,

higher per year in private sector colleges than in State colleges. Other groups had 

even larger wage differences. For example, the annual mean wage for legal 

occupations was approximately one-third, or $27,110, higher in private sector 

colleges, while average wages for architecture and engineering occupations were 

$10,830 (17 percent) higher in private sector colleges. Sales and related occupations 

had an annual mean wage of $37,640 in private sector colleges and $30,990 in State 

colleges, a difference of $6,650 or 21 percent. 

Protective service was one of only two occupational groups for which wages were 

significantly higher in State colleges than in private colleges; the other was arts, 

design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations (not shown in the chart). 

Wage differences for six occupational groups, including business and financial 
3 

operations occupations and healthcare practitioner and technical occupations, were 

not statistically significant.

(See page 10 to view these data in table format.)

$53,450 

$68,600 

$41,570 

$60,150 

$89,160 

$27,840 

$73,180 

$33,650 

$94,470 

$43,220 

0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000

First-line supervisors of office/admin. support workers

English language and literature teachers, ...

Coaches and scouts

Education teachers, postsecondary

Business teachers, postsecondary

Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping 

Art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary

Secretaries, except legal, medical, and executive

Education administrators, postsecondary

Executive secretaries and administrative assistants

Employment 

Chart 2: Employment and annual mean wages for the largest occupations in 

private colleges, universities, and professional schools, May 2009

$63,490 

$92,650 

$63,790 

$93,950 

$104,370 

$42,890 

$25,700 

$111,220 

$33,040 

$28,070 

0 25,000 50,000 75,000 100,000 125,000

Art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary

Business teachers, postsecondary

Education teachers, postsecondary

Biological science teachers, postsecondary

Education administrators, postsecondary

Executive secretaries and administrative assistants

Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping 

Health specialties teachers, postsecondary

Secretaries, except legal, medical, and executive

Office clerks, general

Employment

Chart 3: Employment and annual mean wages for the largest occupations in State 

colleges, universities, and professional schools, May 2009
4 

Most of the largest occupations in both private and State colleges were 

postsecondary teaching and office and administrative support jobs. The largest 

occupations in private and State colleges, excluding graduate assistants and residual 

(“all other”) occupations, are shown in charts 2 and 3. There is considerable overlap 

between the two charts: 7 of the 10 occupations are the same in both charts, 

including postsecondary education administrators; postsecondary art, drama, and 

music teachers; postsecondary business teachers, and postsecondary education 

teachers. Janitors; executive secretaries and administrative assistants; and 

secretaries, except legal, medical, and executive, were also among the largest 

occupations in both private and State colleges.

(See page 11 to view these data in table format.)

Employment concentrations for postsecondary education administrators, coaches and 

scouts, and selected postsecondary teaching occupations are shown in chart 4. 

Relative to total employment, both postsecondary education administrators and 

coaches and scouts were more prevalent in private colleges than in State colleges.

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

Biological science teachers, postsecondary

Agricultural sciences teachers, postsecondary

Atmospheric/earth/marine/space sciences teachers

Home economics teachers, postsecondary

Library science teachers, postsecondary

Education administrators, postsecondary

Coaches and scouts

Philosophy and religion teachers, postsecondary

Business teachers, postsecondary

Art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary

Employment per 1,000 jobs

Private

State

Chart 4. Employment concentrations for selected occupations in private and 

State colleges, universities, and professional schools, May 2009
5 

Postsecondary education administrators represented 32 out of every 1,000 jobs in 

private sector colleges, compared with 25 out of every 1,000 jobs in State colleges. 

The employment share of coaches and scouts in private colleges was about double 

that in State colleges: coaches and scouts made up about 16 out of every 1,000 jobs 

in private colleges, but 8 out of every 1,000 jobs in State colleges. This large 

difference in employment shares is reflected in the employment estimates for 

coaches and scouts. Although private sector colleges had lower overall employment 

than State colleges, they employed a larger number of coaches and scouts—18,430 

compared with 12,850.

Wages tell a different story: State colleges had higher pay for both postsecondary 

education administrators and coaches and scouts. (Chart 5; see page 11 to view the 

data in table format.) Postsecondary education administrators earned an average of 

$94,470 per year in private colleges, but $104,370—nearly $10,000 more—in State 

colleges. The wage difference for coaches and scouts was even greater. They earned 

$0 $25,000 $50,000 $75,000 $100,000 $125,000

Coaches and scouts

Education administrators, postsecondary

Law teachers, postsecondary

Biological science teachers, postsecondary

Computer science teachers, postsecondary

Atmospheric, earth, marine, and space 

sciences teachers, postsecondary

Art, drama, and music teachers, 

postsecondary

Engineering teachers, postsecondary

Anthropology and archeology teachers, 

postsecondary

Area, ethnic, and cultural studies teachers, 

postsecondary

Annual mean wage

Private

State

Chart 5. Annual mean wages for selected occupations in private and State 

colleges, universities, and professional schools, May 2009 
6 

an average of $41,570 annually in private colleges, compared with $58,810 in State 

colleges.

Postsecondary teaching occupations with high employment in private colleges also 

tended to have high employment in State colleges. For example, geography teachers 

and forestry and conservation science teachers were among the smallest 

postsecondary teaching occupations in both private and State colleges, while art, 

drama, and music; education; and business were among the largest postsecondary 

teaching specialties in both types of colleges. 

However, measured in terms of employment per 1,000 jobs, many postsecondary 

teaching occupations tended to be more common in one type of college or the other. 

Some of the postsecondary teaching occupations with the largest differences in 

employment concentrations are shown in chart 4. For example, although art, drama, 

and music teachers were one of the largest postsecondary teaching occupations in 

both private and State colleges, they were significantly more prevalent in private 

colleges, making up 27 out of every 1,000 jobs in private colleges compared with 15 

out of every 1,000 jobs in State colleges. The employment share of philosophy and 

religion teachers was more than 4 times as high in private colleges as in State 

colleges: 11 jobs per 1,000 compared with 2.6. On the other hand, State colleges 

had approximately 4 times as many postsecondary home economics teachers per 

1,000 jobs as private colleges did, and 8 times as many agricultural sciences 

teachers per 1,000 jobs. 

In general, postsecondary teaching occupations related to the social sciences; law 

and criminal justice; and the arts, communications, and humanities tended to have 

higher employment concentrations in private colleges; postsecondary teaching 

occupations that were more concentrated in State colleges were generally related to 

the physical or biological sciences, in addition to library science and home economics 

teachers. As well as the occupations shown in chart 4, postsecondary teaching 

occupations with higher employment shares in private colleges included psychology 

teachers, history teachers, and English language and literature teachers, while 
7 

forestry and conservation science teachers and physics teachers made up a higher 

share of employment in State colleges.

Average wages for postsecondary teaching occupations varied widely by specialty, 

with the highest-paying occupations having annual mean wages of $90,000 or more, 

compared with $65,000 or less for the lowest-paying occupations. Like employment 

concentrations, wages for postsecondary teaching occupations tended to be highly 

correlated between private and State colleges. Among the highest-paying teaching 

occupations in both types of colleges were health specialties, law, engineering, and 

economics. Similarly, vocational education, recreation and fitness studies, education, 

and library science were some of the lowest-paying teaching specialties in both

private and State colleges. 

Despite the overall similarity of private and State college wages for postsecondary 

teaching occupations, large wage differences existed in some specialties, including 

those shown in chart 5. Postsecondary area, ethnic, and cultural studies teachers 

were not only more prevalent in private colleges, but also higher paid: the annual 

mean wage for this occupation was $83,730 in private colleges, nearly $18,000 more 

than in State colleges. Anthropology and archeology teachers earned an average of 

$12,930 more per year in private colleges, and annual mean wages for both

engineering teachers and art, drama, and music teachers were about $10,000 higher 

in private colleges. 

Though State colleges had lower average wages for the education, training, and 

library occupations as a group, this was not the case for every individual 

postsecondary teaching occupation. For example, postsecondary law teachers earned 

about $9,150 more on average in State colleges than in private ones. Computer 

science and biological science teachers were among the several other postsecondary 

teaching occupations for which State colleges paid higher wages.

OES data by ownership, including cross-industry data for the private sector and data 

by ownership for schools and hospitals, are available at 

www.bls.gov/oes/current/ownership_data.htm. Complete May 2009 OES data are 
8 

available from the OES home page at www.bls.gov/oes. This highlight was prepared 

by Audrey Watson. For more information, please contact the OES program at 

www.bls.gov/oes/home.htm#contact.

 

1

Colleges, universities, and professional schools owned by local governments made up the 

remaining 1 percent of employment and are not discussed in this highlight. This industry 

includes schools that primarily grant bachelor’s and graduate degrees, and does not include 

other types of postsecondary institutions, such as junior colleges or technical and trade 

schools. 
9 

Table 1. Annual mean wages for selected occupational groups in private and 

State colleges, universities, and professional schools, May 2009

Occupational group

Annual 

mean wage, 

private 

colleges and 

universities

Annual 

mean wage, 

State 

colleges 

and 

universities

Wage 

difference 

(private – 

State)

Percent 

wage 

difference 

(relative 

to State 

colleges)

Architecture and engineering $74,130 $63,300 $10,830 17.1

Life, physical, and social science 56,460 50,410 6,050 12.0

Legal 109,530 82,420 27,110 32.9

Education, training, and library 74,900 67,650 7,250 10.7

Healthcare support 32,860 30,210 2,650 8.8

Protective service 36,030 41,190 -5,160 -12.5

Building and grounds cleaning and 

maintenance

29,690 27,160 2,530 9.3

Sales and related 37,640 30,990 6,650 21.5

Installation, maintenance, and repair 42,360 38,780 3,580 9.2

Transportation and material moving 30,280 27,550 2,730 9.9
10 

Table 2. Employment and annual mean wages for the largest occupations in 

private colleges, universities, and professional schools, May 2009

Occupation Employment Annual 

mean wage

Executive secretaries and administrative assistants 44,470 $43,220

Education administrators, postsecondary 36,470 94,470

Secretaries, except legal, medical, and executive 36,300 33,650

Art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary 30,970 73,180

Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners 28,300 27,840

Business teachers, postsecondary 27,270 89,160

Education teachers, postsecondary 21,000 60,510

Coaches and scouts 18,430 41,570

English language and literature teachers, postsecondary 17,320 68,600

First-line supervisors/managers of office and administrative 

support workers

15,590 53,450

Excludes graduate assistants and residual (“all other”) occupations.

Table 3. Employment and annual mean wages for the largest occupations in 

State colleges, universities, and professional schools, May 2009

Occupation Employment Annual 

mean wage

Office clerks, general 100,240 $28,070

Secretaries, except legal, medical, and executive 52,230 33,040

Health specialties teachers, postsecondary 51,300 111,220

Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners 48,590 25,700

Executive secretaries and administrative assistants 46,090 42,890

Education administrators, postsecondary 41,260 104,370

Biological science teachers, postsecondary 29,270 93,950

Education teachers, postsecondary 26,450 63,790

Business teachers, postsecondary 24,320 92,650

Art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary 24,130 63,490

Excludes graduate assistants and residual (“all other”) occupations.
11 

Table 4. Employment concentrations for selected occupations in private and State 

colleges, universities, and professional schools, May 2009

Occupation

Employment, 

private 

colleges and 

universities

Employment

per 1,000 

jobs, private 

colleges and 

universities

Employment, 

State 

colleges and 

universities

Employment 

per 1,000 

jobs, State 

colleges 

and 

universities

Art, drama, and music teachers, 

postsecondary

30,970 27.2 24,130 14.8

Business teachers, postsecondary 27,270 24.0 24,320 14.9

Philosophy and religion teachers, 

postsecondary

12,500 11.0 4,270 2.6

Coaches and scouts 18,430 16.2 12,850 7.9

Education administrators, 

postsecondary

36,470 32.1 41,260 25.3

Library science teachers, 

postsecondary

760 0.7 2,620 1.6

Home economics teachers, 

postsecondary

490 0.4 2,620 1.6

Atmospheric, earth, marine, and space 

sciences teachers, postsecondary

1,840 1.6 5,640 3.5

Agricultural sciences teachers, 

postsecondary

930 0.8 8,040 4.9

Biological science teachers, 

postsecondary

12,970 11.4 29,270 17.9

Table 5. Annual mean wages for selected occupations in private and State colleges, 

universities, and professional schools, May 2009

Occupation

Annual 

mean wage, 

private 

colleges 

and 

universities

Annual 

mean wage, 

State 

colleges 

and 

universities

Wage 

difference 

(private – 

State)

Area, ethnic, and cultural studies teachers, postsecondary $83,730 $66,000 $17,730

Anthropology and archeology teachers, postsecondary 83,950 71,020 12,930

Engineering teachers, postsecondary 102,760 92,520 10,240

Art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary 73,180 63,490 9,690

Atmospheric, earth, marine, and space sciences teachers, 

postsecondary

92,290 83,460 8,830

Computer science teachers, postsecondary 80,810 86,540 -5,730

Biological science teachers, postsecondary 85,800 93,950 -8,150

Law teachers, postsecondary 109,020 118,170 -9,150

Education administrators, postsecondary 94,470 104,370 -9,900

Coaches and scouts 41,570 58,810 -17,240