You teach accounting at a university, balancing classroom instruction with research and service. Beyond preparing future accountants, you're contributing to the field through publications, staying current with standards changes, and shaping how the profession is taught.
As an Accounting Professor, your day typically involves teaching, research, and service at a college or university. You're preparing lectures, teaching classes, advising students, conducting research on accounting topics, publishing in academic journals, and serving on committees — balancing the traditional three pillars of academic life while specializing in accounting.
The collaboration often centers on working with faculty, students, and sometimes practitioners. You're coordinating with colleagues on curriculum and department matters, mentoring doctoral students or working with co-authors on research, advising undergraduates and masters students, and sometimes maintaining connections to practice through consulting or professional organizations.
What's harder than expected is often the pressure of research expectations alongside teaching responsibilities. Getting published in top accounting journals is difficult and time-consuming, and tenure decisions depend heavily on research productivity. The accounting field evolves rapidly, requiring you to stay current with standards and practice while pursuing academic research that may feel disconnected from practice. People who thrive here tend to combine accounting expertise with genuine intellectual curiosity, enjoy both teaching and research, can manage the unstructured nature of academic work, and find satisfaction in advancing accounting knowledge while preparing future accountants.
Where this role sits in the broader career landscape — and where it can take you.
Roles like this one sit within a broader occupational category. The numbers below reflect that full landscape — helpful for context, but your specific experience will depend on level, specialty, and where you work.
You teach accounting at a university, balancing classroom instruction with research and service. Beyond preparing future accountants, you're contributing to the field through publications, staying current with standards changes, and shaping how the profession is taught.
Median pay for an Accounting Professor is about $97K nationally, with the field ranging roughly from $46K to $211K depending on experience, employer, and metro (BLS).
Core skills for this role include Speaking, Instructing, Active Listening, Writing, and Reading Comprehension.
Most people in this role hold a professional degree.
Employment in this field is projected to grow about 5.7% through 2034, with roughly 81,780 people working in it today (BLS).
Closely related roles include Accounting Director, Junior Accounting Professor, and Business Analyst.
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