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Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary

Teach courses in criminal justice, corrections, and law enforcement administration. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

Also called: Adjunct Instructor, Adjunct Professor, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Criminal Justice Instructor, Criminal Justice Professor

Median pay in Greater Boston
$85,560
Jobs in Greater Boston
230
Massachusetts 2024–2034
+5.8%
30 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
$52,110$65,310$85,560$107,010$164,600

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 criminal law, defensive policing, and investigation techniques.
  • Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.
  • Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, and papers.
  • Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others.
  • Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences.
  • Maintain student attendance records, grades, and other required records.

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 exposure88 of 100

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

  • AIOE 96
  • Language-model AIOE 99
  • GPTs-are-GPTs 70

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

AI exposure for this job is higher, so AI tools could help with or change some tasks. Preparing lectures, writing and grading exams, and reading current literature are the tasks they touch most. There is little or no observed AI use in this job so far. Leading classroom discussions and teaching judgment in a sensitive field still depend on people.

Likely to change

  • Preparing lectures and writing exams
  • Grading assignments and scanning current literature

Still relies on people

  • Leading classroom discussions on tough topics
  • Connecting law enforcement practice to 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).

43 programs near Boston (plus 17 graduate)

Related occupations

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