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Boston Career Explorer

Educational Instruction and Library

Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary

Teach courses in political science, international affairs, and international relations. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

Also called: Adjunct Professor, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Faculty Member, Government Professor, Instructor

Median pay in Greater Boston
$131,690
Jobs in Greater Boston
670
Massachusetts 2024–2034
+5.8%
60 openings a year
Typical U.S. entry requirement
Doctoral or professional degree

Greater Boston: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, May 2025. Growth and openings: Massachusetts statewide projection.

Pay range in Greater Boston

Yearly pay in Greater Boston by percentile
10th25thMedian75th90th
$81,820$101,040$131,690$173,890$258,520

10% of workers earn less than the first figure and 10% earn more than the last.

What you’d do

  • Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as classical political thought, international relations, and democracy and citizenship.
  • Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences.
  • Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, and papers.
  • Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.
  • Plan, evaluate, and revise curricula, course content, course materials, and methods of instruction.
  • Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in professional journals, books, or electronic media.

AI and this job

AI exposure: how much of this job’s work AI tools can do or help with, based on national research. It is not a forecast of job loss.

Higher exposure87 of 100

The index averages three national research measures, each shown as a percentile of all jobs:

  • AIOE 94
  • Language-model AIOE 99
  • GPTs-are-GPTs 67

Observed AI use today: Little or none (Anthropic Economic Index)

AI exposure is higher for this job, though observed AI use is little or none so far. AI tools can help with drafting course materials, tracking new literature, and grading. Leading classroom debate and shaping a course still depend on the teacher's judgment and presence.

Likely to change

  • Drafting course materials and curricula
  • Grading papers and summarizing readings

Still relies on people

  • Moderating classroom debate
  • Mentoring students and colleagues

Written with AI from the data on this page. Check with a career coach before making a decision.

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Training near Boston

College and school programs in the Boston metro area that lead to this job, with 2023-24 completions (IPEDS).

41 programs near Boston (plus 35 graduate)

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