# Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary

US SOC code 25-1021. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/25-1021

Also called: CS professor, Computer science professor, CS lecturer, Computer science lecturer, CS faculty.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **35,480** US postsecondary computer science teachers, with median pay of **$96,980** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2021, the highest was **37,600**, in May 2021. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/CSCapacity/CSCapacity-History1980s.html) of **805** from 1975, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for postsecondary computer science teachers: Zoom + remote learning + Gradescope, 2020 to 2023.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 4.9% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=25-1021&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **36.9%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend.

## Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1953
- Latest US employment: 35,480 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [3]
- Latest US median pay: $96,980 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [6]
- Outlook: +4.9% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [21]

### All 28 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1975 | 805 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Stanford CS Capacity Project [1] |
| 1979 | 837 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Stanford CS Capacity Project [1] |
| 1980 | n/a | $28,000 (estimate) | Est., AAUP Annual Report on the Economic… [4] |
| 1990 | n/a | $52,000 (estimate) | Est., ERIC EJ408775 [5] |
| 2000 | 27,770 | $68,000 (estimate) | BLS OEWS 2000 (employment) [2]; Est., Approximate 2000 median annual salary… (pay) [4] |
| 2003 | 34,470 | $51,030 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [3] |
| 2004 | 37,260 | $52,630 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [3] |
| 2005 | 38,520 | $54,270 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [3] |
| 2006 | 36,630 | $57,620 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [3] |
| 2007 | 33,840 | $62,020 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [3] |
| 2008 | 32,520 | $66,440 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [3] |
| 2009 | 32,240 | $68,580 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [3] |
| 2010 | 33,080 | $70,300 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [3] |
| 2011 | 33,510 | $73,090 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [3] |
| 2012 | 34,350 | $72,200 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [3] |
| 2013 | 35,770 | $73,100 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [3] |
| 2014 | 35,410 | $72,010 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [3] |
| 2015 | 33,760 | $74,840 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [3] |
| 2016 | 32,540 | $77,570 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [3] |
| 2017 | 32,230 | $78,630 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [3] |
| 2018 | 32,430 | $82,220 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [3] |
| 2019 | 31,800 | $85,180 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [3] |
| 2020 | 32,230 | $85,540 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [3] |
| 2021 | 37,600 | $77,910 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [3] |
| 2022 | 33,870 | $84,760 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [3] |
| 2023 | 36,150 | $96,430 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [3] |
| 2024 | 36,240 | $96,690 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [3] |
| 2025 | 35,480 | $96,980 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [3] |

## Sources (90)

### Employment series

1. [Stanford CS Capacity Project: A History of Capacity Challenges in Computer Science (faculty 805 in 1975, 837 in 1979)](https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/CSCapacity/CSCapacity-History1980s.html), Stanford University CS Department
2. [BLS OES 2000 national estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oes00nat.zip), Bureau of Labor Statistics
3. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Wage series

4. [AAUP Annual Report on the Economic Status of the Profession 2000-01 (historical salary trend tables; 1980-81 baseline)](https://www.aaup.org/reports-publications/2000-01salarysurvey), American Association of University Professors
5. [ERIC EJ408775: "Average Faculty Salary Reaches $41,650, Up 6.1% in a Year, AAUP Survey Finds", Chronicle of Higher Education (1990)](https://eric.ed.gov/?q=salary+AND+gap+AND+men+AND+women&pg=2&id=EJ408775), Chronicle of Higher Education via ERIC / AAUP
6. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
7. [BLS OEWS May 2024, national cross-industry estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

### Tool eras

8. [Cambridge Diploma in Computer Science: History of the world's first computing diploma (1953)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambridge_Diploma_in_Computer_Science), Wikipedia
9. [IBM History of Computer Science: early university computing and teaching](https://www.ibm.com/history/computer-science), IBM
10. [Purdue Department of Computer Science History (VAX 11/780 acquired 1978, early timesharing infrastructure)](https://www.cs.purdue.edu/history/index.html), Purdue University Department of Computer Science
11. [Wikipedia: UNIX (history, 1969 Bell Labs, university licensing from 1975)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unix), Wikipedia
12. [Stanford CS Capacity Project: History of CS in the 1980s (enrollment boom, faculty shortage, retraining programs)](https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/CSCapacity/CSCapacity-History1980s.html), Stanford University CS Department
13. [Stanford CS Capacity Project: History of CS in the 2000s (dot-com enrollment boom, bust, and aftermath)](https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/CSCapacity/CSCapacity-History2000s.html), Stanford University CS Department
14. [Inside Higher Ed: "Even with booms in student enrollment, not enough degrees to keep up with jobs in CS" (2017)](https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/10/27/even-booms-student-enrollment-not-enough-degrees-keep-jobs-computer-science), Inside Higher Ed
15. [Computing Education Research Blog: CS enrollment boom and bust cycles and their relationship to faculty capacity (2015)](https://computinged.wordpress.com/2015/02/04/could-our-cs-enrollment-boom-and-bust-cycle-be-the-result-of-inability-to-manage-the-boom/), Computing Education Research Blog
16. [Gradescope: AI-assisted grading and programming autograder documentation (context: 3,000+ institutions by 2024)](https://guides.gradescope.com/hc/en-us/articles/24838908062093-AI-assisted-grading-and-answer-groups), Gradescope / Turnitin
17. [Codio: Embracing AI in Computing Education, SIGCSE 2025 Key Insights (post-COVID assessment landscape)](https://www.codio.com/blog/embracing-ai-in-computing-education), Codio
18. [ACM ICER 2025: Effects of GitHub Copilot on Computing Students (brownfield study, 34.9% faster task completion)](https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3702652.3744219), ACM Digital Library
19. [Federal Reserve FEDS Notes: Educational Exposure to Generative AI (February 2026, CS/Math highest exposure major category)](https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/educational-exposure-to-generative-artificial-intelligence-20250226.html), Federal Reserve Board
20. [OpenAI / Campus Technology: California State University system-wide ChatGPT Edu deployment, 460,000 users (February 2025)](https://campustechnology.com/articles/2025/02/05/california-state-university-launches-systemwide-chatgpt-edu-deployment.aspx), Campus Technology

### Forecasts and exposure studies

21. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 25-1021 Computer science teachers, postsecondary (2025: 43.9 thousand; 2035: 46.1 thousand; +4.9%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=25-1021&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
22. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 25-1021.00, human-rated β 0.369)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

23. [Cambridge Diploma in Computer Science (Wikipedia: history of world's first computing diploma, 1953)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambridge_Diploma_in_Computer_Science), Wikipedia
24. [Purdue Department of Computer Science History (October 24, 1962 founding, five faculty, 24 students)](https://www.cs.purdue.edu/history/index.html), Purdue University Department of Computer Science
25. [University of Wisconsin: Sister Mary Kenneth Keller, first US woman to earn a PhD in Computer Science (1965)](https://www.cs.wisc.edu/2019/03/18/2759/), University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Computer Sciences
26. [Stanford CS Capacity Project: 1980s history (NSF analysis, 650 positions, 100 academic-track PhDs, 15-20% enrollment growth)](https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/CSCapacity/CSCapacity-History1980s.html), Stanford University CS Department
27. [O\*NET OnLine 25-1021.00: BLS SOC 25-1021 introduction context and 2000 employment reference](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/25-1021.00), O\*NET / Bureau of Labor Statistics
28. [Computing Education Research Blog: CS enrollment boom, MOOC adoption, and faculty demand cycle (2015)](https://computinged.wordpress.com/2015/02/04/could-our-cs-enrollment-boom-and-bust-cycle-be-the-result-of-inability-to-manage-the-boom/), Computing Education Research Blog
29. [Codio: SIGCSE 2025 key insights (AI tools in CS education, assessment redesign as central faculty task)](https://www.codio.com/blog/embracing-ai-in-computing-education), Codio

### Predecessors & successors

30. [IBM: History of Computer Science (mathematicians and engineers as founding CS instructors)](https://www.ibm.com/history/computer-science), IBM
31. [Purdue CS History: founding faculty included engineers and mathematicians who cross-trained in computing](https://www.cs.purdue.edu/history/index.html), Purdue University Department of Computer Science
32. [Stanford CS Capacity Project: industry-to-academia pathway as a secondary faculty supply channel](https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/CSCapacity/CSCapacity-History1980s.html), Stanford University CS Department
33. [CACM Blog: Who Earned the First Computer Science PhD? (Purdue 1966, Wisconsin 1965, pipeline history)](https://cacm.acm.org/blogcacm/who-earned-first-computer-science-ph-d/), Communications of the ACM

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary (25-1021.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/25-1021.00), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Federal Reserve FEDS Notes — Educational Exposure to Generative AI (Feb 2026)](https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/educational-exposure-to-generative-artificial-intelligence-20250226.html), accessed 2026-05-23
- [ACM ICER 2025 — Effects of GitHub Copilot on Computing Students (brownfield study)](https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3702652.3744219), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Codio — Embracing AI in Computing Education: SIGCSE 2025 Key Insights](https://www.codio.com/blog/embracing-ai-in-computing-education), accessed 2026-05-23
- [OpenAI — ChatGPT Edu: California State University system-wide deployment (Feb 2025)](https://campustechnology.com/articles/2025/02/05/california-state-university-launches-systemwide-chatgpt-edu-deployment.aspx), accessed 2026-05-23
- [CalMatters — Costly and unreliable: AI and plagiarism detectors wreak havoc in higher ed (2025)](https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2025/06/ai-detector/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Gradescope — AI-assisted grading and programming autograder documentation](https://guides.gradescope.com/hc/en-us/articles/24838908062093-AI-assisted-grading-and-answer-groups), accessed 2026-05-23
- [BLS OES May 2023 — Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary (25-1021): median wage $96,690](https://www.bls.gov/oes/2023/may/oes251021.htm), accessed 2026-05-23
- [SIGCSE TS 2025 — Empowering Future Software Engineers: Integrating AI Tools into Advanced CS Curriculum](https://sigcse2025.sigcse.org/details/sigcse-ts-2025-lightning-talks/13/Empowering-Future-Software-Engineers-Integrating-AI-Tools-into-Advanced-CS-Curriculu), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Gradescope — Programming autograder: runs test harnesses at scale, distributes results back to students and instructors](https://guides.gradescope.com/hc/en-us/articles/22254107840909-Creating-a-Programming-Assignment), accessed 2026-05-23
- [University of Miami — AI-Assisted Grading with Gradescope: 30-50% grading time reduction reported](https://lpt.it.miami.edu/resources/faculty-and-staff/leverage-ai-tools/ai-assisted-grading/index.html), accessed 2026-05-23
- [arxiv — ChatGPT in CS courses: supports novice programmers through immediate code generation but risks fostering overreliance on foundational problem-solving](https://arxiv.org/pdf/2402.01640), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Google — NotebookLM: AI research assistant for document synthesis, available free to verified students via Google Gemini Advanced offer](https://notebooklm.google.com/), accessed 2026-05-23

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.