Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary
Median $78,620
Occupation · SOC 25-1122
Communications Teachers, Postsecondary: pay and where the jobs are
What communications teachers, postsecondary earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$78,580 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $90,010
- Hourly wages
- BLS publishes annual wages only
- Employment
- 29,420
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 25-1122.
Check your pay
See where your pay falls among communications teachers, postsecondary nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
Enter your pay to see where it falls.
Use these numbers
How much do communications teachers, postsecondary make?
The median annual wage for communications teachers, postsecondary was $78,580 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $47,590 and the highest-paid 10% more than $143,720. About 29,420 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in California ($135,000), Delaware ($100,260) and Oregon ($98,900). California also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for communications teachers, postsecondary looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $47,590 | — | $3,966 | $3,368 |
| 25th percentile | $61,250 | — | $5,104 | $4,283 |
| Median | $78,580 | — | $6,548 | $5,343 |
| 75th percentile | $102,450 | — | $8,538 | $6,742 |
| 90th percentile | $143,720 | — | $11,977 | $9,125 |
Communications Teachers, Postsecondary: pay by state
49 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$84,423 take-home in national prices
2
$73,827 take-home in national prices
3
$73,150 take-home in national prices
Where a median communications teachers, postsecondary paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 3,140 | $135,000 | $78,660 | $218,880 | $93,474 | $84,423 |
| Delaware | 60 | $100,260 | $52,090 | $162,360 | $73,686 | $73,827 |
| Oregon | 490 | $98,900 | $48,930 | $233,790 | $70,761 | $68,460 |
| Connecticut | 280 | $97,210 | $58,020 | $134,890 | $72,135 | $69,621 |
| Rhode Island | 110 | $95,910 | $66,540 | $129,640 | $72,268 | $70,657 |
| New Hampshire | 40 | $95,760 | $67,570 | $109,250 | $76,197 | $73,150 |
| Michigan | 630 | $87,670 | $46,990 | $137,120 | $67,031 | $69,666 |
| New York | 2,490 | $84,690 | $49,920 | $208,260 | $64,036 | $59,336 |
| District of Columbia | 180 | $83,910 | $53,150 | $137,160 | $63,697 | $57,958 |
| Maryland | 440 | $83,510 | $46,530 | $164,180 | $63,979 | $60,956 |
| Minnesota | 450 | $83,380 | $59,480 | $108,430 | $62,975 | $63,855 |
| Puerto Rico | 50 | $82,880 | $48,440 | $110,780 | — | — |
| Massachusetts | 1,110 | $82,610 | $60,730 | $161,740 | $62,656 | $59,245 |
| Nevada | 70 | $82,020 | $61,530 | $137,660 | $66,531 | $66,545 |
| South Carolina | 320 | $79,810 | $48,020 | $105,660 | $62,000 | $66,134 |
| Nebraska | 90 | $79,180 | $49,380 | $137,260 | $61,810 | $68,599 |
| Wisconsin | 640 | $78,780 | $53,180 | $118,400 | $61,084 | $64,917 |
| Illinois | 1,580 | $78,150 | $46,730 | $118,210 | $60,085 | $60,110 |
| North Dakota | 50 | $78,120 | $52,990 | $108,960 | $63,523 | $71,407 |
| Montana | 60 | $78,110 | $50,110 | $131,670 | $60,728 | $64,164 |
| Maine | 60 | $78,000 | $58,300 | $111,440 | $59,726 | $61,541 |
| Utah | 180 | $77,950 | $59,160 | $137,370 | $60,388 | $61,082 |
| West Virginia | 110 | $77,880 | $50,770 | $101,780 | $60,941 | $68,093 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,530 | $77,790 | $48,950 | $116,140 | $61,113 | $62,633 |
| New Jersey | 1,380 | $77,780 | $32,220 | $132,870 | $60,267 | $55,389 |
| Iowa | 320 | $77,700 | $51,380 | $104,740 | $61,191 | $69,724 |
| Ohio | 1,390 | $77,660 | $40,240 | $105,780 | $61,772 | $66,583 |
| Louisiana | 170 | $77,250 | $51,130 | $123,690 | $61,244 | $69,432 |
| Texas | 2,880 | $77,050 | $46,600 | $127,050 | $63,035 | $64,946 |
| Wyoming | 50 | $76,760 | $48,480 | $96,320 | $62,831 | $67,785 |
| Vermont | 60 | $76,120 | $48,150 | $115,450 | $59,861 | $61,108 |
| Washington | 420 | $75,330 | $49,960 | $102,640 | $60,780 | $56,797 |
| Virginia | 790 | $73,750 | $50,060 | $126,130 | $57,287 | $56,661 |
| Georgia | 460 | $73,430 | $38,850 | $108,090 | $57,572 | $59,789 |
| Missouri | 480 | $71,830 | $48,150 | $107,640 | $56,924 | $62,680 |
| South Dakota | 80 | $71,300 | $50,190 | $83,000 | $58,990 | $66,590 |
| Arizona | 630 | $71,230 | $71,230 | $110,870 | $57,553 | $57,166 |
| Colorado | 560 | $69,200 | $37,820 | $126,910 | $54,871 | $53,246 |
| Oklahoma | 230 | $66,650 | $38,100 | $86,330 | $53,265 | $60,636 |
| Tennessee | 440 | $66,630 | $49,800 | $103,320 | $55,704 | $60,634 |
| North Carolina | 950 | $65,850 | $43,360 | $106,930 | $52,972 | $56,158 |
| Florida | 1,260 | $65,740 | $51,120 | $98,830 | $55,002 | $53,186 |
| Indiana | 670 | $65,390 | $48,760 | $107,480 | $52,821 | $56,597 |
| Kansas | 300 | $64,180 | $30,370 | $137,740 | $50,967 | $56,587 |
| Alabama | 300 | $63,760 | $47,420 | $99,160 | $50,737 | $57,121 |
| Kentucky | 470 | $62,380 | $33,520 | $105,720 | $50,237 | $55,720 |
| Mississippi | 180 | $61,290 | $31,600 | $78,730 | $49,707 | $57,165 |
| Arkansas | 140 | $59,810 | $47,450 | $78,440 | $48,512 | $55,801 |
| New Mexico | 400 | $49,880 | $42,680 | $89,270 | $41,080 | $44,549 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 25-1122. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.