How to Become a College Professor

Short answer: to teach full time at a four-year college you typically need a doctorate, which took a median of 7.3 years from the start of graduate school in 2024, and many scientists add a postdoc before their first faculty job. Community colleges often hire faculty with a master's degree and at least 18 graduate credits in the subject. Pay grows with rank: assistant professors averaged $97,232 in 2025-26 and full professors $163,836.

By the AcademicCareers.com editorial team · Updated October 14, 2026 · 11-minute read

The path at a glance

Most college professors follow the same broad route: a bachelor's degree, graduate school ending in a doctorate, sometimes a postdoc, a national job search and a probationary period of up to seven years before tenure. Community colleges and teaching-focused jobs offer shorter routes. Select each stage to see what it involves and how long it usually takes.

Counting four years of college and a median of 8.6 years from the bachelor's degree to a research doctorate, a typical professor at a four-year college starts a first full-time faculty job more than a decade after starting college. Plan your finances and your field choice with that in mind.

Two example paths (fictional). Maya studies chemistry. She finishes her bachelor's degree at 22 and her PhD at 28, close to the 6.0-year median for the physical sciences, spends three years as a postdoc and starts on the tenure track at 31, with a tenure decision due by 37. Leo wants to teach English at a community college. After a bachelor's degree at 22, he earns a two-year master's in English, teaches as an adjunct for three years while working elsewhere, and is hired full time at 27.

The degree you need, by field

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), professors at four-year colleges and universities typically need a PhD or other doctorate in their field, while community colleges may hire faculty with a master's degree. Some fields have their own terminal degrees, such as the MFA in studio art and creative writing, the EdD in education and the DNP in nursing practice.

How long the doctorate takes depends heavily on the field. These are the medians for 2024's research doctorates, mostly PhDs:

Education looks slow because most of the time passes before the doctoral program starts: the program itself takes a median of 5.5 years. Across all fields, the median from entering a doctoral program to finishing is 5.7 years.

Community college and lecturer routes

You do not need a doctorate for every faculty job. Under widely used accreditation guidelines, such as those of SACSCOC, faculty teaching transfer and other undergraduate courses need a master's degree with at least 18 graduate semester hours in the subject. Career and technical courses can require a degree in the field plus work experience; graduate courses need a doctorate or terminal degree.

Adjunct teaching is a common way in: more than a third of the jobs listed on AcademicCareers.com in October 2026 were part-time or adjunct positions, and a few courses a term build the teaching record full-time searches look for. Full-time lecturers and instructors focus on teaching, usually on renewable contracts. AAUP's 2025-26 averages were $84,292 for lecturers, $74,087 for instructors and $89,692 for all full-time faculty at two-year colleges with ranks. Browse community college faculty jobs, lecturer jobs and adjunct faculty jobs, and read how to become an adjunct professor.

Build teaching and research experience

What a search committee weighs depends on the institution. Research universities look first at publications, grants and the promise of your research. Liberal arts colleges and regional universities want strong teaching alongside active scholarship. Community colleges care most about teaching a wide range of students well.

• Teaching: work as a teaching assistant, then teach your own course. Join a teaching certificate program if your university has one, and keep syllabi, assignments and student evaluations.
• Research: publish in respected journals, present at conferences, and apply for fellowships and small grants.
• Service: organize a seminar series or mentor undergraduates; committees notice colleagues who contribute.

Do you need a postdoc?

It depends on your field. In the 2024 Survey of Earned Doctorates, 64.4 percent of new PhDs in the biological and biomedical sciences with definite plans were heading to a postdoc, as were 55.8 percent in the physical sciences and 55.6 percent in psychology, against 23.6 percent in the humanities and arts and 7.9 percent in business. In the lab sciences, a postdoc is the usual step before a research faculty job; in the humanities, it is less common and often a chance to turn a dissertation into a book.

NIH's postdoc stipends start at $63,480, and postdocs are temporary by design. See postdoc salaries and benefits and current postdoctoral positions.

The academic job market calendar

Faculty hiring follows the academic year. Postings bought on AcademicCareers.com from 2019 to 2026 show the rhythm: 46.5 percent were bought between August and November, and October alone, at 15.6 percent, saw about three times as many as June.

Plan backward: draft your materials in the summer, ask your referees early, and set up a free job alert so new postings reach you the day they appear. Visiting, lecturer and adjunct jobs are often posted closer to the start of a term.

Your application documents

Most faculty applications ask for some combination of:

• Cover letter: one to two pages, tailored to the institution and the ad
• Academic CV: education, publications, teaching, grants and service; see our guide to the academic CV
• Teaching statement: how you teach, with evidence such as syllabi and evaluations
• Research statement: what you have done and what you will do next
• Writing sample, especially in the humanities
• Three or four references, usually letters sent directly by your referees

Follow each ad exactly. Committees screen many files quickly, and a missing document can end your candidacy before anyone reads your work.

What professors earn

Pay rises with rank and varies with the type of college. AAUP's 2025-26 survey of 768 institutions reported these averages:

Across every college, community colleges included, the Department of Education's 2023-24 average for full-time faculty was $96,840. The BLS, which counts all postsecondary teachers, reports a median of $85,330 for May 2025 and expects employment to grow 7 percent from 2025 to 2035, much faster than average. See professor salaries by rank for every state.

How tenure works

Tenure is a continuous appointment that can be ended only for adequate cause, retirement or in extraordinary circumstances such as financial exigency, according to AAUP's 1940 Statement of Principles. It exists to protect academic freedom in teaching and research.

The same statement says the probationary period should not exceed seven years and that the decision should come at least 12 months before it ends, leaving a final year for anyone denied tenure. BLS notes that the decision rests on research, contributions to the institution and teaching; how these are weighted depends on the institution's mission.

Tenure brings a raise. On AAUP's 2025-26 averages, moving from assistant to associate professor, usually with tenure, adds about $16,000, and moving to full professor about $50,000 more. Not every college offers tenure, and many full-time faculty work on renewable contracts instead. Browse tenure-track jobs to see what departments expect.

Alternatives to the tenure track

The tenure track is one route among several. Lecturer and instructor careers, community college positions and adjunct teaching alongside another job all keep you in the classroom. Research associate and staff scientist jobs keep you in research without running a group. Universities also hire PhDs into advising, research administration, teaching centers and academic leadership.

Outside academia, pay is often higher: in the 2024 Survey of Earned Doctorates, new PhDs taking industry jobs expected a median of $125,000, against $75,000 for academic jobs.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to become a college professor?

Usually more than a decade after starting college: four years for a bachelor's degree, a median of 8.6 years from the bachelor's to a research doctorate (2024) and, in many sciences, a postdoc. Community college and lecturer jobs that require a master's degree can come much sooner.

Can you become a professor without a PhD?

Yes, in some settings. Community colleges and many lecturer and instructor positions hire faculty with a master's degree and at least 18 graduate credits in the subject, and fields such as studio art and creative writing have their own terminal degree, the MFA.

Do I need a postdoc to become a professor?

In the lab sciences, usually: 64.4 percent of new biology PhDs with definite plans were heading to a postdoc in 2024. In the humanities and most professional fields, it helps but is not required.

How much do college professors make?

AAUP's 2025-26 averages were $97,232 for assistant professors, $113,427 for associate professors and $163,836 for full professors. Across all colleges, community colleges included, full-time faculty averaged $96,840 in 2023-24.

When are faculty jobs posted?

The busiest season is late summer and fall, for positions that start the next academic year. On AcademicCareers.com, 46.5 percent of postings are bought between August and November.

What is the difference between a lecturer and a professor?

Lecturers mainly teach, usually on renewable contracts. Professors, from assistant to full, normally teach, do research and serve on committees, and are often on the tenure track.