This article contains information on the updated Teacher’s Salary in the United States in 2023.
Teaching is a very important profession in the economies of every country. In recent times, the profession has become the last resort for many unemployed individuals, unlike in the past, when it was a profession for those who had passed through the necessary teaching training. This implies that even those with little or no teaching training have gone into this profession.
The job of a teacher is one of the most important but least appreciated occupations. The common saying that ” the reward of teachers is in Heaven” confirms this.
Before now, the teaching profession was known to be very lucrative and yet very tasking, but in recent times, as important and tasking as it is, there is no guarantee for a healthy living wage.
Even in the United States, where life is assumed to be all rosy, this is not left out. A large percentage of teachers in the U.S. don’t even make above the average wage of all occupations. If you’re looking to get into the world of teaching, bear in mind that a lot of factors go a long way to determining the salary being paid.
The factors range from, location, qualification, years of experience and what school you are working in. These are the biggest initial factors in determining the average salary of a teacher.
When the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) updates its occupational employment statistics, it breaks up school teachers into categories. The three broadest categories they use are
- Elementary school teachers,
- Middle school teachers
- Secondary (high school) teachers.
Below is how the salaries of teachers in the United States are checked on average.
HOW TO CHECK TEACHERS SALARY STRUCTURE IN THE UNITED STATES
A person working as a Teacher in the United States typically earns around 74,400 USD per year. Salaries range from 36,500 USD (lowest) to 116,000 USD (highest).
This average annual salary includes housing, transportation, and other benefits. Teacher salaries vary based on experience, skills, gender, or location, as earlier stated.
Below is a detailed breakdown based on different criteria.
The median, the maximum, the minimum, and the range of the Teachers Salary
Salary Range
Teacher salaries in the United States range from 36,500 USD per year (minimum salary) to 116,000 USD per year (maximum salary).
Median Salary
The median salary is 75,900 USD per year, this implies that half of people working as Teachers are earning less than 75,900 USD while the other half are earning more than 75,900 USD. The median represents the middle salary value.
Difference between the median and the average salary
While both are indicators, if your salary is higher than both the average and the median, then you are doing very well. If your salary is lower than both, then a lot of people are earning more than you, but there is nothing to worry about if it falls between the average and the median.
Average Yearly Salary
- 74,400 USD (6,200 USD monthly)
- LOW – 36,500
- USD HIGH – 116,000
Teacher Salary Comparison Based On Years Of Experience
The level of experience is the most important factor in determining the salary. Naturally, the more years of experience you have, the higher your wage.
A Teacher with less than two years of experience makes approximately 43,200 USD per year. Someone with an experience level between two and five years is expected to earn 55,600 USD per year, which is 29% more than someone with less than two years’ experience.
More so, an experience level between five and ten years earns a salary of 76,700 USD per year, which is 38% more than someone with two to five years of experience.
Additionally, teachers whose expertise spans anywhere between ten and fifteen years get a salary equivalent of 95,000 USD per year.
If the experience level is between fifteen and twenty years, then the expected wage is 102,000 USD per year, 7% more than someone with ten to fifteen years of experience.
Finally, a teacher with more than twenty years of professional experience gets a salary of 109,000 USD per year, 7% more than people with fifteen to twenty years of experience.
Teachers average salary in based of level of experience in summary
- 0 – 2 Years – 43,200 USD
- 2 – 5 Years +29% – 55,600 USD
- 5 – 10 Years +38% – 76,700 USD
- 10 – 15 Years +24% – 95,000 USD
- 15 – 20 Years +7% – 102,000 USD
- 20+ Years +7% – 109,000 USD
Teacher Salary Comparison by Education
There is a common saying that, “in order to earn more, you have to learn more”. We all know that higher education equals a bigger salary
When the education level is Bachelor’s Degree, the average salary of a Teacher is 54,000 USD per year while a Master’s Degree holder gets a salary of 86,700 USD per year.
Many people pursue higher education as a tactic to switch to a higher paying job. The numbers seem to support the theory.
Teacher Salary Comparison by Gender
Normally, gender should not have an effect on pay, but unfortunately, in reality, it does. Male Teachers in the United States earn 5% more than their female counterparts on average.
While Male teachers earn 76,200 USD, female teachers earn about 72,400 USD
Teacher’s Average Annual Salary Increment
Teachers in the United States observe a salary increase of approximately 11% every 17 months.
Salary increments vary from individual to individual depending on the above mentioned factors, but your performance and contribution to the success of the organization remain the most important factors in determining how much and how often you will be given a salary increase.
Teacher Bonus and Incentive Rates in United States
A teacher’s job is considered to be a low bonus job due to the generally limited involvement in direct revenue generation, but there are exceptions. The people who get the highest bonuses are usually mostly involved in the revenue generation cycle.
Types of Bonuses Considered
- Individual Performance-Based Bonuses: The most standard form of bonus that the employee is awarded is one based on their exceptional performance. Thus, not all are eligible for this.
- Goal-Based Bonuses: This type of bonus is only open to those who have achieved an important goal.
- Company Performance Bonuses: Oftentimes, some companies like to distribute excess earnings and profits to their staff collectively in the form of bonuses that are granted to everyone. The amount of the bonus given to each person may differ depending on their role in the organization.
- Holiday / End of Year Bonuses: These types of bonuses are given without a specific reason and are usually in the form of an appreciation token.
Most people tend to confuse bonuses with commissions. A commission is a prefixed rate at which someone gets paid for items sold or deals completed, while a bonus is, in most cases, unplanned. However, teachers are given bonuses, not commissions.
Teacher Average Hourly Wage in United States
The average hourly wage (pay per hour) in the United States is 36 USD. This means that an average Teacher in the United States earns approximately 36 USD for every working hour.
The hourly wage is the salary paid for one working hour. Usually, jobs are classified into two categories in the U.S.:
Salaried jobs pay a fixed amount regardless of the hours worked, while hourly jobs pay per worked hour.
The hourly wage calculation may differ slightly depending on the number of hours worked per week and the annual vacation allowance. One major difference between salaried employees and hourly employees is overtime eligibility. Salaried employees are usually exempt from overtime as opposed to hourly paid staff.
Government VS Private Sector Salary Comparison
Public sector employees in the United States earn 5% more than their private sector counterparts on average across all sectors.
While those in the Private Sector earn about 92,400 USD, those in the public sector earn about 97,100 USD
Conclusion
Teaching is a very important profession worldwide, but what teachers are paid doesn’t in any way correspond to the tasks involved. Many people would think that the case would be different in a country as popular as the United States, but the fact remains that teachers in the country are not much different from their counterparts in many other countries.
In the United States, states with higher than average salaries for teachers have more high-income families, higher populations, more private schools, and closer proximity to renowned universities. On the other hand, states with the lowest wages for teachers have a higher concentration of low-income families and far less government funding for their public schools. In other words, salaries being paid to teachers are solely determined by the basic factors stated in this article.
Finally, most teachers in the United States take on extra jobs because what they are paid is not always enough to make ends meet.
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