Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary
Teach courses in biological sciences. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.
Most important skills
- Speaking
- Learning Strategies
- Instructing
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Writing
- Science
- Active Learning
Key knowledge
- Biology
- English Language
- Mathematics
- Chemistry
- Education and Training
- Computers and Electronics
- Administrative
- Medicine and Dentistry
What the work involves
- Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as molecular biology, marine biology, and botany.
- Evaluate and grade students' class work, laboratory work, assignments, and papers.
- Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others.
- Supervise students' laboratory work.
- Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences.
- Maintain student attendance records, grades, and other required records.
- Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.
- Plan, evaluate, and revise curricula, course content, and course materials and methods of instruction.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Social, Investigative, Realistic.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Doctoral Degree (48.4% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years (28.4%)
- On-the-job training
- None or short demonstration (80.1%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 5: Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Moderate | Higher on contact with others than 52% of occupations compared | 67% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Moderate | Higher on dealing with the public than 54% of occupations compared | 41% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Teamwork | Moderate | Lower on teamwork than 54% of occupations compared | 58% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Very high | Higher on freedom to make decisions than 98% of occupations compared | 96% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom” |
| Time pressure | High | Higher on time pressure than 65% of occupations compared | 40% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Conflict situations | Moderate | Higher on conflict situations than 53% of occupations compared | 51% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Low | Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 63% of occupations compared | 51% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week” |
| Consequence of error | Low | Lower on consequence of error than 78% of occupations compared | 41% of surveyed respondents chose “Not serious at all” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: high
- Conflict situations: moderate
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: low
- Consequence of error: low
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 7.79%
- Contact with others about half the time: 10.58%
- Contact with others most of the time: 14.43%
- Constant contact with others: 67.2%
n = 43, Incumbent 08/2019
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 14.97%
- Fairly important: 16.01%
- Important: 10.44%
- Very important: 17.36%
- Extremely important: 41.21%
n = 43, Incumbent 08/2019
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0.63%
- Fairly important: 8.58%
- Important: 15.01%
- Very important: 17.8%
- Extremely important: 57.99%
n = 43, Incumbent 08/2019
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 0%
- Limited freedom: 0.61%
- Some freedom: 3.58%
- A lot of freedom: 95.81%
n = 43, Incumbent 08/2019
Time pressure
- Never: 2.25%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 9.09%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 9.79%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 39.16%
- Every day: 39.7%
n = 42, Incumbent 08/2019
Conflict situations
- Never: 7.98%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 18.85%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 50.85%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 22.14%
- Every day: 0.18%
n = 42, Incumbent 08/2019
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 10.77%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 30.01%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 50.77%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 8.27%
- Every day: 0.18%
n = 41, Incumbent 08/2019
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 40.51%
- Fairly serious: 10.75%
- Serious: 19.98%
- Very serious: 28.42%
- Extremely serious: 0.34%
n = 41, Incumbent 08/2019
Is this career right for me? Find jobs with conditions you prefer
Where people with this background could move
- Analyze
Recreation and Fitness Studies Teachers, Postsecondary
Closeness 92/100
- Analyze
Geneticists
Closeness 91/100
- Analyze
Geographers
Closeness 91/100 · job zone -1
- Analyze
Family and Consumer Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary
Closeness 91/100
- Analyze
Epidemiologists
Closeness 91/100
- Analyze
Anthropologists and Archeologists
Closeness 90/100
Find more alternativesCompare skills with another job
O*NET-SOC 25-1042.00 · SOC 25-1042 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8