Career Explorer Education
Changing shape
Political science teachers, postsecondary
Teach courses in political science, international affairs, and international relations. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.
Among the careers AI is changing fastest: more resilient than 19% of the 831 careers we score. AI exposure is high (the Bureau of Labor Statistics rates it high), and US jobs are projected to change by +2.5% by 2035, slower than average. The work leans on creative vision and emotional intelligence.
AI can do many of the tasks, and hiring is expected to grow slower than average or to shrink. The job is likely to change, so build the human parts of it.
- Median pay (2025)
- $98,070
- Job growth to 2035
- +2.5%
- Openings a year
- 1,500
- People doing it (2025)
- 21,500
- Usual route in
- Doctorate or professional degree
Where people already use AI for this work
- Maintain current knowledge in area of expertise
- Advise others on educational or vocational matters
- Teach academic or vocational subjects
From Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025).
Work AI rarely helps with
- Assess student capabilities, needs, or performance
- Develop educational programs, plans, or procedures
- Maintain operational records
What the work looks like
- Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as classical political thought, international relations, and democracy and citizenship.
- Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences.
- Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, and papers.
- Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.
- Plan, evaluate, and revise curricula, course content, course materials, and methods of instruction.
From O*NET 31.0, US Department of Labor.
Careers using similar strengths, with a stronger outlook
- Sociology teachers, postsecondaryChanging shape, Index 20, +2.2%
- Geography teachers, postsecondaryChanging shape, Index 21, +2.7%
- Area, ethnic, and cultural studies teachers, postsecondaryChanging shape, Index 26, +2.7%
- Computer science teachers, postsecondaryGrows with AI, Index 22, +4.9%
Also known as: Associate Professor, Political Science Instructor, Political Science Professor, Professor, Adjunct Professor, Assistant Professor, Faculty Member, Government Professor.
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Sources: US Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2025 to 2035; O*NET 31.0; Microsoft Research (2025); Anthropic Economic Index (2026); Eloundou and colleagues (Science, 2024); Felten, Raj and Seamans (2023). How we score. Updated 12 October 2026.