Best programs to become a postsecondary economics teacher in Washington
15 Washington schools offer programs that train postsecondary economics teachers, graduating 611 people a year. Postsecondary economics teachers in Washington earn a median of $96,500 across about 190 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
BLS lists a doctoral or professional degree as the typical entry-level education for postsecondary economics teachers. The fields of study that lead most directly to this job in Washington are Economics, Political Economy and Business/Managerial Economics (IPEDS completions).
Teach courses in economics.
10 programs in Washington that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Washington (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 Washington page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 45.0603In Washington → | 384 | 62.8% | 5 | $51,725 | $22,907 |
| 2 | CIP 45.0601In Washington → | 110 | 18.0% | 8 | $51,725 | $22,907 |
| 3 | CIP 45.1004In Washington → | 48 | 7.9% | 2 | $35,631 | $23,538 |
| 4 | CIP 45.0699In Washington → | 15 | 2.5% | 2 | $51,725 | $22,907 |
| 5 | CIP 52.0601In Washington → | 15 | 2.5% | 1 | $53,269 | $21,962 |
| 6 | CIP 51.2007In Washington → | 12 | 2.0% | 1 | $48,728 | $23,761 |
| 7 | CIP 45.0602In Washington → | 11 | 1.8% | 1 | $51,725 | $22,907 |
| 8 | CIP 30.4901In Washington → | 8 | 1.3% | 2 | — | — |
| 9 | CIP 45.0604In Washington → | 5 | 0.8% | 2 | $51,725 | $22,907 |
| 10 | CIP 03.0204In Washington → | 3 | 0.5% | 1 | $37,946 | $24,125 |
Top 15 schools in Washington
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 12 of the 15 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Washington - Seattle Campus Seattle, WA Public · 2 feeder programs | 276 | Econometrics and Quantitative Economics | $53,934 | 85% | — | 39% |
| 2 | Washington State University Pullman, WA Public · 1 feeder program | 61 | Econometrics and Quantitative Economics | $39,762 | 60% | — | 87% |
| 3 | Whitman College Walla Walla, WA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 46 | Econometrics and Quantitative Economics | $46,832 | 81% | $28,508 | 38% |
| 4 | University of Washington - Bothell Campus Bothell, WA Public · 1 feeder program | 36 | Political Economy | $41,246 | 65% | — | 91% |
| 5 | Western Washington University Bellingham, WA Public · 5 feeder programs | 35 | Economics, General | $45,401 | 65% | — | 93% |
| 6 | University of Puget Sound Tacoma, WA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 26 | Economics, General | $48,153 | 68% | $35,057 | 72% |
| 7 | Seattle University Seattle, WA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 23 | Business/Managerial Economics | — | 76% | $31,900 | 77% |
| 8 | Eastern Washington University Cheney, WA Public · 1 feeder program | 21 | Economics, General | $37,368 | 43% | — | 91% |
| 9 | Gonzaga University Spokane, WA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder program | 21 | Econometrics and Quantitative Economics | $44,845 | 86% | $30,006 | 82% |
| 10 | Whitworth University Spokane, WA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder program | 18 | Economics, General | $63,134 | 71% | $23,510 | 90% |
| 11 | Seattle Pacific University Seattle, WA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 15 | Economics, General | $41,502 | 62% | $24,653 | 83% |
| 12 | Central Washington University Ellensburg, WA Public · 1 feeder program | 13 | Economics, General | $52,129 | 54% | — | 91% |
| 13 | University of Washington - Tacoma Campus Tacoma, WA Public · 1 feeder program | 11 | Applied Economics | — | 63% | — | 83% |
| 14 | Pacific Lutheran University Tacoma, WA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder program | 8 | Economics, General | $43,806 | 69% | $19,944 | 78% |
| 15 | Northwest University - Center for Online and Extended Education Kirkland, WA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder program | 1 | Development Economics and International Development | — | 50% | $26,831 | — |
All 15 schools in Washington
Every school in Washington 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.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Washington - Seattle Campus | Seattle | Public | 276 | 2 |
| Washington State University | Pullman | Public | 61 | 1 |
| Whitman College | Walla Walla | Private not-for-profit | 46 | 3 |
| University of Washington - Bothell Campus | Bothell | Public | 36 | 1 |
| Western Washington University | Bellingham | Public | 35 | 5 |
| University of Puget Sound | Tacoma | Private not-for-profit | 26 | 2 |
| Seattle University | Seattle | Private not-for-profit | 23 | 2 |
| Eastern Washington University | Cheney | Public | 21 | 1 |
| Gonzaga University | Spokane | Private not-for-profit | 21 | 1 |
| Whitworth University | Spokane | Private not-for-profit | 18 | 1 |
| Seattle Pacific University | Seattle | Private not-for-profit | 15 | 2 |
| Central Washington University | Ellensburg | Public | 13 | 1 |
| University of Washington - Tacoma Campus | Tacoma | Public | 11 | 1 |
| Pacific Lutheran University | Tacoma | Private not-for-profit | 8 | 1 |
| Northwest University - Center for Online and Extended Education | Kirkland | Private not-for-profit | 1 | 1 |
Fields of study in Washington that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
What economics teachers, postsecondary earn in Washington
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $123,920. Washington pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in Washington
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
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 and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Economics Teachers, Postsecondary page.
How to become a postsecondary economics teacher
- Typical entry education
- Doctoral or professional degree
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Washington
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 15 majors mapped to Economics Teachers, Postsecondary15 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 01.0103Agricultural Economics
- 03.0204Environmental/Natural Resource Economics
- 30.3901Economics and Computer Science
- 30.4001Economics and Foreign Language/Literature
- 30.4901Mathematical Economics
- 30.5101Philosophy, Politics, and Economics
- 45.0601Economics, General
- 45.0602Applied Economics
- 45.0603Econometrics and Quantitative Economics
- 45.0604Development Economics and International Development
- 45.0605International Economics
- 45.0699Economics, Other
- 45.1004Political Economy
- 51.2007Pharmacoeconomics/Pharmaceutical Economics
- 52.0601Business/Managerial Economics
Common questions
Answers for people weighing economics teachers, postsecondary programs in Washington.
What degree do you need to become a postsecondary economics teacher?+
BLS lists a doctoral or professional degree as the typical entry-level education for postsecondary economics teachers. The fields of study that lead most directly to this job in Washington are Economics, Political Economy and Business/Managerial Economics (IPEDS completions).
Which college majors lead to becoming a postsecondary economics teacher?+
The fields of study that lead most directly to this job in Washington are Economics, Political Economy and Business/Managerial Economics (IPEDS completions). In all, 10 feeder programs graduate about 611 people a year in Washington (IPEDS completions).
How much do economics teachers, postsecondary earn in Washington?+
The median is $96,500 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 22.1% below the U.S. median of $123,920. 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 economics teachers, postsecondary growing?+
BLS projects a +2.1% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 1,200 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Washington?+
15 institutions in Washington reported graduates from at least one of the 10 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 economics teachers, postsecondary work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Professor, Instructor, Economics Professor, Economics Instructor among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 25-1063.
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 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected 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 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, 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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