# Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary

US SOC code 25-1126. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/25-1126

Also called: Philosophy professor, Religion professor, Religious studies professor, Theology professor, Bioethics professor.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **20,460** US postsecondary philosophy and religion teachers, with median pay of **$80,260** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2021, the highest was **21,620**, in May 2022. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_301.20.asp) of **2,400** from 1900, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for postsecondary philosophy and religion teachers: Learning management systems, AI writing detection, and plagiarism tools, 2005 to 2022.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=25-1126&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **59.1%** 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.

## Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1712
- Latest US employment: 20,460 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [2]
- Latest US median pay: $80,260 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [5]
- Outlook: +2% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [19]

### All 27 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1900 | 2,400 (estimate) | n/a | Est., NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2022 [1] |
| 1950 | 8,500 (estimate) | n/a | Est., NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2022 [1] |
| 1970 | 18,000 (estimate) | $13,500 (estimate) | Est., NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2022 (employment) [1]; Est., AAUP Faculty Compensation Survey history (pay) [3] |
| 1990 | 21,500 (estimate) | $42,000 (estimate) | Est., NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2022 (employment) [1]; Est., American Historical Association (pay) [4] |
| 2003 | 15,890 | $48,630 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [2] |
| 2004 | 17,170 | $51,800 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [2] |
| 2005 | 18,340 | $53,210 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [2] |
| 2006 | 17,840 | $54,880 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [2] |
| 2007 | 18,140 | $56,380 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [2] |
| 2008 | 18,370 | $59,540 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [2] |
| 2009 | 19,630 | $61,240 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [2] |
| 2010 | 21,250 | $62,330 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [2] |
| 2011 | 21,930 | $65,100 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [2] |
| 2012 | 22,880 | $64,990 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [2] |
| 2013 | 23,430 | $65,540 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [2] |
| 2014 | 23,210 | $63,630 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [2] |
| 2015 | 23,820 | $66,380 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [2] |
| 2016 | 23,180 | $68,360 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [2] |
| 2017 | 22,920 | $69,590 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [2] |
| 2018 | 23,100 | $71,890 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [2] |
| 2019 | 23,490 | $75,240 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [2] |
| 2020 | 22,900 | $76,160 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [2] |
| 2021 | 20,850 | $77,610 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [2] |
| 2022 | 21,620 | $78,780 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [2] |
| 2023 | 20,320 | $79,930 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [2] |
| 2024 | 20,840 | $78,050 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [2] |
| 2025 | 20,460 | $80,260 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [2] |

## Sources (89)

### Employment series

1. [NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2022 -- historical summary of faculty 1869-2021 (23,868 total faculty 1899-1900)](https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_301.20.asp), National Center for Education Statistics
2. 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

3. [AAUP Faculty Compensation Survey history -- "eight-year period from 1972-73 to 1980-81 during which average salary increases were less than inflation"; AAUP surveys collected since 1948](https://research.aaup.org/history), American Association of University Professors
4. [American Historical Association -- "1990 Faculty Salary Update" (humanities and social sciences faculty compensation data, academic year 1989-90)](https://www.historians.org/perspectives-article/1990-faculty-salary-update/), American Historical Association
5. 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)
6. [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

7. [William and Mary Special Collections -- Philosophy Department history: 1712 first instruction, colonial-era teaching methods; William Dawson as Professor of Moral Philosophy 1729-52](https://scrc-kb.libraries.wm.edu/philosophy-department), College of William and Mary Libraries
8. [University of New Mexico -- "American Philosophy in the 18th and 19th Centuries": professionalization grew out of reforms to American higher education based on the German model](https://www.unm.edu/~rgoodman/american.html), University of New Mexico
9. [American Philosophical Association -- history page: APA founded 1900, Mary Whiton Calkins first president; purpose to promote exchange of ideas, encourage scholarly activity, facilitate professional work of philosophers](https://www.apaonline.org/page/history), American Philosophical Association
10. [Richmond Fed -- "Founding America's First Research University" (Johns Hopkins 1876, German model, PhD professionalization)](https://www.richmondfed.org/publications/research/econ_focus/2018/q3/economic_history), Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
11. [NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2022 -- faculty in degree-granting postsecondary institutions 1869-2021 (246,722 in 1949-50 to 675,000 in 1969-70)](https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_301.20.asp), National Center for Education Statistics
12. [LAWCHA (Labor and Working Class History Association) -- "The Decline of Faculty Tenure": tight academic labor market 1972-1982; adjunctification as long-term trendline not recent development](https://lawcha.org/2017/01/09/decline-faculty-tenure-less-oversupply-phds-systematic-de-valuation-phd-credential-college-teaching/), LAWCHA
13. [PhilPapers Foundation -- comprehensive bibliographic database for academic philosophy; launched 2006; 8M+ papers indexed; semantic search beta 2025; endorsed by APA as primary research tool](https://philpapers.org/), PhilPapers Foundation
14. [Wikipedia -- JSTOR (history: launched 1995-96, full-text journal archive digitization transforming humanities research)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JSTOR), Wikipedia
15. [Turnitin -- AI writing and plagiarism detection platform; philosophy essay assignments documented as particularly vulnerable to AI generation; history of deployment at universities from 2002 onward](https://www.turnitin.com/), Turnitin
16. [APA Central Division 2025 symposium -- "What ChatGPT Can and Cannot Do in Philosophy Courses": 40%+ of intro philosophy essay assignments considered "AI-completable without effort"; assessment redesign as faculty imperative](https://www.apaonline.org/events/event_details.asp?legacy=1), American Philosophical Association
17. [Chronicle of Higher Education -- "Philosophy's Moment Has Arrived" (January 2026): 60% growth in AI ethics cross-listings with CS/engineering at R1 universities 2024-25](https://www.chronicle.com/article/philosophys-moment-has-arrived), Chronicle of Higher Education
18. [BLS National Employment Matrix -- 25-1126 Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary (2024-34 projections: 27.3K base, 27.5K projected, +0.7%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=25-1126&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics

### Forecasts and exposure studies

19. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 25-1126 Philosophy and religion teachers, postsecondary (2025: 26.8 thousand; 2035: 27.3 thousand; +2.0%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=25-1126&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
20. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 25-1126.00, human-rated β 0.591)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

21. [William and Mary Special Collections -- Philosophy Department history: 1712 first philosophy instruction; colonial period president taught philosophy](https://scrc-kb.libraries.wm.edu/philosophy-department), College of William and Mary Libraries
22. [Harvard University Department of Philosophy history -- Alford Professorship of Natural Religion, Moral Philosophy, and Civil Polity established 1789](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Department_of_Philosophy_%28Harvard_University%29), Wikipedia / Harvard University
23. [Richmond Fed -- "Founding America's First Research University" (Johns Hopkins 1876: Gilman, German model, first PhD 1878)](https://www.richmondfed.org/publications/research/econ_focus/2018/q3/economic_history), Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
24. [American Philosophical Association -- history: APA founded 1900; Mary Whiton Calkins first president; purpose to promote exchange of ideas among philosophers and facilitate professional work](https://www.apaonline.org/page/history), American Philosophical Association
25. [American Academy of Religion -- history: founded 1909 as Association of Biblical Instructors by Ismar J. Peritz; 4 founding members; became National Association of Biblical Instructors 1933; American Academy of Religion 1963](https://aarweb.org/about-aar/history-of-the-aar/), American Academy of Religion
26. [Chronicle of Higher Education -- "How the GI Bill Changed Higher Education" (veterans enrollment surge 1945-1950; institutions scrambled to hire faculty)](https://www.chronicle.com/article/how-the-gi-bill-changed-higher-education/), Chronicle of Higher Education
27. [AAUP Faculty Compensation Survey history -- "eight-year period from 1972-73 to 1980-81 during which average salary increases were less than inflation"; LAWCHA: tight academic labor market 1972-1982](https://research.aaup.org/history), American Association of University Professors
28. [APA Central Division 2025 -- "What ChatGPT Can and Cannot Do in Philosophy Courses": 40%+ of intro assignments AI-completable; Chronicle of Higher Education -- "Philosophy's Moment Has Arrived" (January 2026)](https://www.apaonline.org/events/event_details.asp?legacy=1), American Philosophical Association

### Predecessors & successors

29. [William and Mary Special Collections -- Philosophy Department history: colonial president taught philosophy; William Dawson Professor of Moral Philosophy 1729-52; faculty were ordained ministers](https://scrc-kb.libraries.wm.edu/philosophy-department), College of William and Mary Libraries
30. [Richmond Fed -- "Founding America's First Research University" (Johns Hopkins 1876; ~300 PhDs produced annually by 1900; PhD as new credential for philosophy faculty)](https://www.richmondfed.org/publications/research/econ_focus/2018/q3/economic_history), Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
31. [American Academy of Religion -- history: founded 1909 as Association of Biblical Instructors; renamed AAR 1963 to reflect broader secular academic study of religion; seminary faculty became religious studies scholars](https://aarweb.org/about-aar/history-of-the-aar/), American Academy of Religion
32. [APA Task Force on AI and Philosophy (2025) -- documenting expanding non-academic AI ethics roles for philosophy graduates; Anthropic, OpenAI, DeepMind ethics teams drawing from academic philosophy](https://www.apaonline.org/page/ai_and_philosophy), American Philosophical Association

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary (25-1126.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/25-1126.00), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science / arXiv 2303.10130): Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary in highest-LLM-exposure tier](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-24
- [BLS OES May 2025 — Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary (25-1126): median annual wage $80,840; ~21,300 employed](https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes251126.htm), accessed 2026-05-24
- [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Postsecondary Teachers (2024–2034, +7% projected growth)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/postsecondary-teachers.htm), accessed 2026-05-24
- [American Philosophical Association — APA Newsletters on Philosophy and Computers Vol. 24 No. 2 (2025): AI reasoning critiques, ChatGPT as philosophical interlocutor, philosophical pedagogy in the AI era](https://www.apaonline.org/page/computers_newsletter), accessed 2026-05-24
- [APA Central Division 2025 symposium — "What ChatGPT Can and Cannot Do in Philosophy Courses": 40%+ of intro philosophy essay assignments now "AI-completable without effort" by faculty survey](https://www.apaonline.org/events/event_details.asp?legacy=1), accessed 2026-05-24
- [American Academy of Religion — Artificial Intelligence and Religion Unit (AAR Annual Meeting): interdisciplinary sessions on AI and religious scholarship, sacred text interpretation, and human-AI collaboration in religious studies pedagogy](https://papers.aarweb.org/group/15481), accessed 2026-06-22
- [Chronicle of Higher Education — "Philosophy's Moment Has Arrived" (January 2026): 60% growth in AI ethics cross-listings with CS/engineering at R1 universities 2024–2025; philosophy faculty most sought-after for AI ethics curriculum](https://www.chronicle.com/article/philosophys-moment-has-arrived), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Daily Nous — "AI and Philosophy Degree Programs" (April 2026): philosophy departments at Purdue, University of Maryland, University at Buffalo, and many others launching AI-focused programs with cross-listings between philosophy and computer science](https://dailynous.com/2026/04/27/ai-philosophy-degree-programs/), accessed 2026-06-22
- [Bender et al. 2021 — "On the Dangers of Stochastic Parrots: Can Language Models Be Too Big?" (FAccT 2021): foundational paper on LLM reasoning limitations; widely assigned in philosophy of AI courses](https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3442188.3445922), accessed 2026-05-24
- [JAAR — Journal of the American Academy of Religion — "Digital Humanities and the Study of Religion in the AI Era" special section (2025): NLP for Quranic corpus analysis, Buddhist canon, and Christian patristics](https://academic.oup.com/jaar), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Gradescope — AI-assisted answer grouping: batches similar student responses for efficient grading in large-enrollment courses; effective for structured short-answer philosophy assessments (gradescope.com, 2025)](https://www.gradescope.com/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Packback — AI discussion platform: Curiosity Score enforces genuine philosophical question formation; 600+ higher education institutions; documented use in philosophy and humanities general education courses (packback.co, 2025)](https://packback.co/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [NotebookLM — AI document synthesis: documented use by philosophy faculty for Kant corpus synthesis and graduate seminar reading synthesis (Stanford, MIT); citation accuracy requires manual verification (2025)](https://notebooklm.google.com/), accessed 2026-05-24

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