California·Educational Instruction and Library Occupations·SOC 25-1022

Best Mathematical Science Teacher, Postsecondary programs in California, ranked by enrollment

Teach courses pertaining to mathematical concepts, statistics, and actuarial science and to the application of original and standardized mathematical techniques in solving specific problems and situations.

185 schools in California run programs that feed this job, graduating 11,514 people a year. The job pays a median of $130,680 in California across about 3,810 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledProfessorInstructorMathematics ProfessorMathematics Instructor (Math Instructor)LecturerMath TeacherMath ProfessorAlgebra Teacher
Graduates / yr
11,514
in California
Median pay · California
$130,680
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
3,810
people employed
Schools
185
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
50%
across those schools
Median net price
$26,727
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in California that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

18 programs in California that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in California (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own California page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
16,489
56.4%
175$48,772$21,544
21,438
12.5%
19$59,718$20,150
3907
7.9%
18$60,930$21,143
4731
6.3%
12$60,930$21,143
5722
6.3%
11$89,651$23,175
6254
2.2%
6$48,772$21,544
7208
1.8%
8$62,069$23,500
8186
1.6%
6$60,930$21,143
9167
1.5%
7$72,338$18,500
10145
1.3%
3$60,930$21,143
11112
1.0%
4$59,718$20,150
1269
0.6%
2$59,718$20,150
1368
0.6%
8$43,033$26,044
147
0.1%
1$59,718$20,150
154
0.0%
1$59,063$21,500
163
0.0%
1$48,772$21,544
173
0.0%
2
181
0.0%
1$60,930$21,143

Top 25 schools in California

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 29 of the 185 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1University of California - San Diego
La Jolla, CA Public · 10 feeder programs
1,009Mathematics and Computer Science$89,65186%27%
2University of California - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA Public · 8 feeder programs
806Statistics, General$59,71893%9%
3University of California - Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, CA Public · 4 feeder programs
728Statistics, General$55,11083%33%
4University of California - Berkeley
Berkeley, CA Public · 6 feeder programs
621Applied Mathematics, General$71,81493%11%
5University of California - Davis
Davis, CA Public · 5 feeder programs
459Statistics, General$49,26486%42%
6University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA Private not-for-profit · 8 feeder programs
415Financial Mathematics$71,62292%$26,87310%
7University of California - Irvine
Irvine, CA Public · 5 feeder programs
379Mathematics, General$45,92487%29%
8Stanford University
Stanford, CA Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs
237Mathematics, General92%$12,0324%
9Los Angeles Pierce College
Woodland Hills, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
179Mathematics, General46%
10University of California - Riverside
Riverside, CA Public · 2 feeder programs
163Mathematics, General$27,22776%76%
11Irvine Valley College
Irvine, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
150Mathematics, General57%
12San Diego State University
San Diego, CA Public · 4 feeder programs
146Statistics, General$57,73476%36%
13El Camino Community College District
Torrance, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
140Mathematics, General42%
14California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA Public · 3 feeder programs
135Mathematics, General$32,16269%46%
15Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, CA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs
133Mathematics and Computer Science$91,85188%$44,09448%
16California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo, CA Public · 2 feeder programs
132Statistics, General86%31%
17De Anza College
Cupertino, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
121Mathematics, General68%
18Pasadena City College
Pasadena, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
110Mathematics, General48%
19San Jose State University
San Jose, CA Public · 4 feeder programs
107Applied Mathematics, General69%85%
20Grossmont College
El Cajon, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
104Mathematics, General37%
21Ohlone College
Fremont, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
99Mathematics, General52%
22University of California - Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, CA Public · 4 feeder programs
97Mathematics, General$40,79875%66%
23Golden Gate University
San Francisco, CA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
95Financial Mathematics
24California State University - Fullerton
Fullerton, CA Public · 2 feeder programs
94Mathematics, General$44,90370%91%
25Allan Hancock College
Santa Maria, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
93Mathematics, General26%

All 185 schools in California

Every school in California with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in California that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
University of California - San DiegoLa JollaPublic1,00910
University of California - Los AngelesLos AngelesPublic8068
University of California - Santa BarbaraSanta BarbaraPublic7284
University of California - BerkeleyBerkeleyPublic6216
University of California - DavisDavisPublic4595
University of Southern CaliforniaLos AngelesPrivate not-for-profit4158
University of California - IrvineIrvinePublic3795
Stanford UniversityStanfordPrivate not-for-profit2374
Los Angeles Pierce CollegeWoodland HillsPublic1791
University of California - RiversideRiversidePublic1632
Irvine Valley CollegeIrvinePublic1501
San Diego State UniversitySan DiegoPublic1464
El Camino Community College DistrictTorrancePublic1401
California State University - Long BeachLong BeachPublic1353
Santa Clara UniversitySanta ClaraPrivate not-for-profit1333

What mathematical science teachers, postsecondary earn in California

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in California
$130,680
Mean annual
$141,340
Jobs in state
3,810
What the range looks like
10th pct$77,570Median$130,68090th pct$226,560
Versus the national median
+63.5%

U.S. median $79,940. California pays above the national figure.

Job concentration
0.68×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in California

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
$134,920median
470 jobs
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA
$150,550median
340 jobs
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA
$131,980median
100 jobs
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
$131,070median
1,400 jobs
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
$135,860median
390 jobs
Fresno, CA
$135,890median
100 jobs
Visalia, CA
$130,910median
30 jobs
Bakersfield-Delano, CA
$128,920median
40 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+2.3%
About as fast as average
Openings per year
4,400
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
1,300
58,900 → 60,200
Typical entry education
Doctoral or professional degree

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Mathematical Science Teachers, Postsecondary page.

How to become a Mathematical Science Teacher, Postsecondary

Job zone 5 of 5 · SVP 8.0 and above
Typical entry education
Doctoral or professional degree

Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.

Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.

Top skills

MathematicsSpeakingActive ListeningReading ComprehensionWritingCritical Thinking

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in California

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 23 majors mapped to Mathematical Science Teachers, Postsecondary20 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 13.1311Mathematics Teacher Education
  • 26.1102Biostatistics
  • 27.0101Mathematics, General
  • 27.0102Algebra and Number Theory(no graduates reported)
  • 27.0103Analysis and Functional Analysis
  • 27.0104Geometry/Geometric Analysis(no graduates reported)
  • 27.0105Topology and Foundations
  • 27.0199Mathematics, Other
  • 27.0301Applied Mathematics, General
  • 27.0304Computational and Applied Mathematics
  • 27.0305Financial Mathematics
  • 27.0306Mathematical Biology
  • 27.0399Applied Mathematics, Other
  • 27.0501Statistics, General
  • 27.0502Mathematical Statistics and Probability
  • 27.0503Mathematics and Statistics
  • 27.0599Statistics, Other
  • 27.0601Applied Statistics, General
  • 27.9999Mathematics and Statistics, Other
  • 30.0801Mathematics and Computer Science
  • 30.5001Mathematics and Atmospheric/Oceanic Science(no graduates reported)
  • 38.0102Logic
  • 52.1302Business Statistics

Common questions

Answers for people weighing mathematical science teachers, postsecondary programs in California.

What degree do you need to become a Mathematical Science Teacher, Postsecondary?+

Doctoral or professional degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Mathematics, General, which awarded 6,489 degrees in California in 2024-25, 56.4% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Mathematical Science Teacher, Postsecondary?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 18 programs to this occupation. The largest are Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, Mathematics and Computer Science, plus 5 more. Together they graduate about 11,514 people a year in California.

How much do mathematical science teachers, postsecondary earn in California?+

The median is $130,680 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 63.5% above the U.S. median of $79,940. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for mathematical science teachers, postsecondary growing?+

BLS projects a +2.3% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 4,400 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in California?+

185 institutions in California reported graduates from at least one of the 18 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do mathematical science teachers, postsecondary work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Professor, Instructor, Mathematics Professor, Mathematics Instructor (Math Instructor) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 25-1022.

Mathematical Science Teachers, Postsecondary in other statesNew YorkTexasMassachusettsIllinoisPennsylvaniaMarylandUtahConnecticut

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

  • BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

    May 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.

  • IPEDS Completions

    2024-25 (provisional)

    Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.

  • College Scorecard, Field of Study

    2020-21 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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