Prof salaries nationwide outpace inflation; U. profs paid most in Pa.

Professors' salaries nationwide have risen faster than the rate of inflation for the second year in a row, according to this week's issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education. A recent American Association of University Professors survey showed that average salaries for all professors increased 3.3 percent more than the previous year. Currently, the average professor earns $49,490. At private doctoral institutions the average salary for a full professor is $84,790. Ranking first in Pennsylvania, the University pays the average full professor $93,200. The average for associate professors is $64,000 and for assistant professors is $54,700. While the University's average salary is far above the national average, it placed fourth in the Ivy League. The average salary for a full professor at Harvard is $104,200, Princeton $98,200 and Yale $96,500. But University spokesperson Barbara Beck said that she is not worried that the University placed behind three institutions. The University tries to set itself apart from the other Ivies, Beck said, and attracts professors who value the University's individuality, not the salary. "Philadelphia is an attraction, there is great research here and new leadership, which automatically attracts great faculty," Beck said. "One of the special things about Penn is that it is distinct from Harvard, Yale and Princeton. There is a notion here of theory into practice or practice into theory." For the first time in 13 years, the AAUP reported, professors at public colleges earned larger salary increases on average than those at private institutions. On average, professors' salaries at public institutions rose 3.6 percent. But the gap between professors and other professionals is widening. Lawyers earn 70 percent more than professors on average, compared to 46 percent in 1979.

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