How to Become a Dean

Short answer: most deans rise through the faculty: tenured professor, then department chair, then associate dean, then dean, with a record of managing budgets, people and programs at each step. Leadership programs such as the ACE Fellows Program and the HERS Leadership Institute can prepare you for the jump. Postsecondary education administrators, the federal job category that includes deans, earned a median of $104,590 in May 2025, and state medians run from $78,240 in Arkansas to $139,640 in New York. Hover over the map to see your state.

By the AcademicCareers.com editorial team · Updated October 14, 2026 · 10-minute read

The usual path to dean

Deans lead a college or school within a university. They hire and evaluate faculty, manage the budget, raise money, keep programs accredited and set academic direction. Most come from the faculty, and the path is well worn:

1. Tenured faculty member with a strong record in teaching and scholarship. Faculty want a dean who has done the work they do, and most deans hold tenure in an academic department.
2. Program director or department chair, your first real management job: schedules, budgets, hiring, evaluations and difficult conversations.
3. Associate or assistant dean for academic affairs, research, faculty or students, where you work across departments and with central administration.
4. Dean, after which some move on to provost and presidential roles.

The steps are not fixed. Some deans skip the associate dean role, especially at smaller colleges, and some come from professional practice in fields such as business, law, nursing and the arts. What every strong candidate has is evidence of results beyond a single department. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) notes that provosts and deans often must have a PhD, and that their numbers are limited because each institution has a set number of these positions.

What deans earn

The map shows the median annual wage of postsecondary education administrators in each state in May 2025. The BLS category includes academic deans along with registrars, admissions directors and other administrators, so read it as a guide to how pay differs between states rather than as a dean's salary.

New York ($139,640), New Jersey ($131,570) and Massachusetts ($128,970) have the highest medians; Arkansas has the lowest, $78,240. Nationally, the median is $104,590, and the top 10 percent earned more than $215,620.

For context, AAUP's 2025-26 average for full professors was $163,836, and $237,467 at private-independent doctoral universities. Dean appointments usually run twelve months rather than the nine of most faculty contracts, so compare offers on an annual basis, and ask what salary you would keep if you returned to the faculty.

Kinds of deans

“Dean” covers several quite different jobs. These are the main kinds you will see among deans and directors positions:

What search committees look for

Read a few leadership profiles for dean searches and the same themes recur. Committees look for evidence, with numbers, of:

• Budget and resource management: building a budget, making cuts fairly and growing revenue.
• Fundraising: working with the development office and donors; at many colleges this is a large part of the job.
• People leadership: hiring, mentoring and evaluating chairs and faculty, and resolving conflict.
• Enrollment and programs: launching or redesigning programs students want, and helping students finish.
• Accreditation and assessment: leading a self-study or a specialized accreditation review.
• Shared governance: working with faculty senates and committees, especially when you disagree.
• Communication: explaining decisions to faculty, students, the provost, alumni and the community.

Leadership programs and experience

ACE Fellows Program. The American Council on Education has run it since 1965, and its alumni include many college presidents and provosts. You apply with the backing of your supervisor and your institution's president. If selected, you are placed with a host institution for an academic year, a semester or a series of visits, where you shadow the president and senior leaders, attend cabinet and board meetings and take on projects. Fellows also meet as a cohort at retreats in August, January and June. Applications for the 2027-28 cohort are due December 2, 2026.

HERS Leadership Institute. Higher Education Resource Services has run its institute since 1972 for faculty and staff in mid- to senior-level positions. It focuses on women and gender-diverse leaders but is open to all, and its curriculum covers understanding yourself as a leader, working with others, institutional systems and leading change. You can attend a nine-day residential summer institute or three weekends during the academic year, and you join a network of more than 6,000 alumni.

Experience that stretches you. Programs help, but committees hire results. Before you apply, chair a major committee, lead an accreditation self-study, direct a center or launch a program, and ask your provost's office about leadership programs for chairs and support to attend one.

How dean searches work

Most dean searches follow the same sequence, and many universities hire an executive search firm to run them:

1. Leadership profile. The provost appoints a search committee of faculty, staff, students and sometimes alumni, which describes the college's priorities and the qualities it wants.
2. Recruiting. The ad is posted, and the firm's consultants call potential candidates and ask for nominations. Being nominated is common and commits you to nothing.
3. Applications. Usually a letter and a CV, with references later.
4. First-round interviews. Confidential, often by video or at an airport hotel, with a longer list of semifinalists.
5. Campus visits. A few finalists spend a day or two meeting the provost, chairs, faculty, staff and students, often with open forums. Names are often made public at this stage, especially at public universities.
6. References and offer. Committees and firms check references, including people you did not list, before the provost makes an offer.

Expect several months from the ad to an offer. The search firm works for the university, not for you: be candid with the consultant, but negotiate with the provost. Our guide to negotiating a faculty job offer covers the basics; for a deanship, also settle the terms of your return to the faculty.

Interview questions to prepare for

Dean interviews test judgment more than knowledge. Practice with the cards below, then prepare one specific story, with numbers, for each priority in the leadership profile. Our guide to faculty interview questions covers the academic side.

Prepare questions of your own too: the college's budget model and any deficit, the provost's expectations for your first two years, fundraising goals and support from the development office, and how the last dean's term ended.

Your leadership CV and letter

Leadership CV. Keep your full academic record, since you will usually be reviewed for tenure in a department, but put a leadership section first. For each role, list results with numbers: budget managed, faculty hired, programs launched, enrollment or retention change, money raised and accreditation outcomes. Our guide to writing an academic CV covers the rest.

Example entry (fictional): Chair, Department of Biology, 2021-present. Manage a $3.8 million budget and 24 faculty. Led a curriculum redesign that raised first-year retention in the major from 78 to 86 percent; hired nine tenure-track faculty; won a $1.2 million training grant with two colleagues.

Letter. A dean's letter is longer than a faculty cover letter because it answers the leadership profile. A structure that works:

1. Why this college, and why now, in one paragraph.
2. Three or four sections that mirror the profile's priorities, each with evidence from your record.
3. How you lead: how you make decisions, share information and work with faculty governance.
4. A short close that looks ahead to the college's next five years.

References. Choose people who have seen you lead from different angles: someone you reported to, a peer and someone who reported to you. Tell them about the search before the firm calls. For tailoring the letter, see our guide to the faculty cover letter.

Is it right for you?

Deans trade most of their teaching and research for administration, usually on a twelve-month appointment, with evenings and travel for donors, events and recruitment. Decisions that affect colleagues' careers become routine, and not every decision will be popular. The reward is the chance to shape a whole college: its programs, its faculty and its students.

Ask yourself:

• Do I enjoy solving other people's problems more than working on my own research?
• Did I enjoy the budget and personnel parts of chairing, or only tolerate them?
• Can I make an unpopular decision and explain it calmly in a faculty meeting?
• Am I ready to spend real time on fundraising and external relations?

If the answers are yes, try the work first: serve as interim chair or associate dean, or apply for an ACE fellowship. Then watch dean jobs and provost and academic vice president openings to learn what institutions ask for.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to become a dean?

There is no set timeline. Most deans first earn tenure, often promotion to full professor as well, then spend several years as a chair or associate dean before applying.

Do you need a PhD to be a dean?

Usually a doctorate or the terminal degree in the field. BLS notes that provosts and deans often must have a PhD; law and medical school deans typically hold a JD or MD, and some professional schools hire deans from practice.

How much do deans make?

It depends on the size and type of college. Postsecondary education administrators, the BLS category that includes deans, earned a median of $104,590 in May 2025, and the top 10 percent more than $215,620. State medians range from $78,240 in Arkansas to $139,640 in New York.

Do deans keep tenure?

Usually, yes. Deans typically hold tenure in an academic department and can return to the faculty when they step down; negotiate the terms of that return, including salary and any leave, before you accept.

What is the difference between a dean and a provost?

A dean leads one college or school. The provost, the chief academic officer, oversees all of them, helps the president set academic policy, takes part in faculty appointment and tenure decisions, and manages budgets.

Can you become a dean without being a department chair?

Yes. Some deans move up from associate dean or center director roles, and some professional schools hire leaders from practice. You still need evidence that you can manage people, budgets and programs.