Economics Teachers, Postsecondary
Teach courses in economics. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.
Most important skills
- Speaking
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Writing
- Instructing
- Critical Thinking
- Learning Strategies
- Active Learning
Key knowledge
- Mathematics
- Education and Training
- Economics and Accounting
- English Language
- Computers and Electronics
- Administration and Management
- Law and Government
- Sociology and Anthropology
What the work involves
- Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as econometrics, price theory, and macroeconomics.
- Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts.
- Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, and papers.
- Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others.
- 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.
- Maintain regularly scheduled office hours to advise and assist students.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Social, Investigative, Conventional.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Doctoral Degree (80.8% of respondents)
- Related experience
- None (37.2%)
- On-the-job training
- None or short demonstration (59.9%)
- 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 Economics 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 | Low | Lower on contact with others than 62% of occupations compared | 45% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Moderate | Lower on dealing with the public than 50% of occupations compared | 52% of surveyed respondents chose “Important” |
| Teamwork | Very low | Lower on teamwork than 93% of occupations compared | 40% of surveyed respondents chose “Fairly important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Very high | Higher on freedom to make decisions than 92% of occupations compared | 79% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom” |
| Time pressure | Very low | Lower on time pressure than 83% of occupations compared | 44% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day” |
| Conflict situations | Low | Lower on conflict situations than 78% of occupations compared | 47% 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 75% of occupations compared | 72% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Consequence of error | Very low | Lower on consequence of error than 92% of occupations compared | — |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: very low
- Conflict situations: low
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: low
- Consequence of error: very 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: 0%
- Contact with others about half the time: 21.15%
- Contact with others most of the time: 33.81%
- Constant contact with others: 45.04%
n = 25, Incumbent 08/2019
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 8.77%
- Fairly important: 6.28%
- Important: 51.76%
- Very important: 1.37%
- Extremely important: 31.83%
n = 25, Incumbent 08/2019
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 1.69%
- Fairly important: 39.53%
- Important: 3.67%
- Very important: 35.11%
- Extremely important: 19.99%
n = 25, Incumbent 08/2019
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0.35%
- Very little freedom: 0%
- Limited freedom: 5.27%
- Some freedom: 15.03%
- A lot of freedom: 79.35%
n = 25, Incumbent 08/2019
Time pressure
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 24.13%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 22.84%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 44.27%
- Every day: 8.76%
n = 25, Incumbent 08/2019
Conflict situations
- Never: 20.99%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 24.61%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 47.12%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 6.63%
- Every day: 0.66%
n = 25, Incumbent 08/2019
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 0.42%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 72.29%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 18.65%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 8.64%
- Every day: 0%
n = 25, Incumbent 08/2019
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Fairly serious: 17.45%
- Serious: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Very serious: 0%
- Extremely serious: 7.25%
n = 24, Incumbent 08/2019
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O*NET-SOC 25-1063.00 · SOC 25-1063 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8