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Boston Career Explorer

Educational Instruction and Library

Psychology Teachers, Postsecondary

Teach courses in psychology, such as child, clinical, and developmental psychology, and psychological counseling. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

Also called: Adjunct Instructor, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Clinical Psychology Professor, Faculty Member, Instructor

Median pay in Greater Boston
$82,930
Jobs in Greater Boston
1,690
Massachusetts 2024–2034
+7.4%
140 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
$59,350$66,570$82,930$107,080$140,080

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 abnormal psychology, cognitive processes, and work motivation.
  • Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.
  • Evaluate and grade students' class work, laboratory work, assignments, and papers.
  • Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences.
  • Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others.
  • Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts.

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 exposure84 of 100

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

  • AIOE 90
  • Language-model AIOE 98
  • GPTs-are-GPTs 63

Observed AI use today: Substantial (Anthropic Economic Index)

AI exposure is higher for this job, and observed AI use is substantial. AI tools can help with drafting lectures, grading, writing exam questions, and summarizing research. Facilitating discussion, supporting students, and teaching the human side of psychology still rely on the instructor.

Likely to change

  • Drafting lectures and exam questions
  • Grading assignments and summarizing research

Still relies on people

  • Facilitating class discussion
  • Supporting and mentoring students

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).

49 programs near Boston (plus 72 graduate)

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