Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Higher Education Employment Growth Slows in Q3 2017

  • 03/28/18

STATE COLLEGE, PA – According to HigherEdJobs, the leading job and career site for higher education professionals, the total number of jobs in higher education increased during Q3 2017, but by the smallest third quarter amount since 2014.

According to an analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data by HigherEdJobs, higher education employment increased 0.3 percent, or roughly 10,200 jobs, during the third quarter. This was the one of the smallest third quarter increases in higher education jobs in ten years. Although public colleges and universities have more than 930,000 more jobs than private institutions, public schools added only 3,300 jobs, or 0.14 percent, in Q3 2017 from Q3 2016, while private schools added about 6,900 jobs, or about 0.50 percent. Meanwhile, community colleges lost about 9,020 jobs, or 1.4 percent, during Q3 2017 from Q3 2016, the 15th consecutive decline for this group. Since Q4 2013, community colleges have contracted by almost 150,000 jobs, or 19.3 percent.

Despite the increase in jobs in higher education, the number of job postings for open positions in academia declined 0.7 percent in Q3 2017, only the second time this metric has declined since at least 2014, regardless of quarter. The decline in Q3 2017 higher education job postings was driven by decreases for both full-time faculty and full-time administrative positions and was geographically widespread with a few exceptions. Meanwhile, postings for part-time faculty and part-time administrative positions both increased during Q3 2017. Despite the recent decrease in full-time faculty job postings and increase in part-time faculty job postings, postings for full-time faculty still outnumbered postings for part-time faculty two-to-one.

The report analyzes the most current data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and HigherEdJobs' posting trends from roughly 880 colleges and universities that have continuously subscribed to the company's unlimited posting plan for four years. The full report can be viewed at www.higheredjobs.com/career/quarterly-report.cfm.

HigherEdJobs® is the leading source for jobs and career information in academia. During 2017, 5,400 colleges and universities posted more than 223,500 faculty, administrative, and executive job postings to the company's website, which receives 1.4 million unique visitors a month. HigherEdJobs is published by Internet Employment Linkage, Inc. and is headquartered in State College, PA.

Featured

  • Esports are Growing in Popularity

    Video games and esports are a popular social hobby, and it’s one that’s accessible to a wide variety of physical ability levels. Some esport student-athletes have started to earn scholarship opportunities, and high schools are beginning to form teams equipped with the same degree of resources as their physical sports teams. However, the two have very different needs.

  • Phoenix High School Completes First Phase of Campus Renovations

    Metro Tech High School, part of the Phoenix Union High School District (PXU) in Phoenix, Ariz., recently announced the completion of the first stage of a campus renovation project, according to a news release. The school reopened a series of public-facing business operations spaces including credit union, daycare, floral, cosmetology, and culinary services. It also includes new CTE learning spaces for the school’s nursing assistant, pharmacy, and sports medicine programs.

  • University of Rochester to Break Ground on New Student Life Center

    The University of Rochester in Rochester, N.Y., recently began construction on a new Student Life building, according to a news release. The first floor will contain campus-wide gathering, program, and rehearsal space; the second floor will play home to the Greenbaum Center for Jewish Life.

  • DLR Group Announces New Mid-Atlantic Higher Education Leader

    Integrated design firm DLR Group recently announced that it has promoted Principal Shawn Gaither, AIA, LEED AP, to the role of higher education leader in the Mid-Atlantic, according to a news release. Gaither has served with the firm for more than 20 years, most recently as the national higher education business development leader.