In recent years, higher education institutions have faced increasing pressure to prioritize disciplines with clear career pathways over traditional liberal arts programs, according to a new report from the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources (CUPA-HR).
The report, "Two Decades of Change: Faculty Discipline Trends in Higher Education," analyzes data from CUPA-HR's Faculty in Higher Education Survey from 2003-04 to 2023-24, revealing significant shifts in faculty size, tenure status, and salaries across academic disciplines.
Health Professions emerged as the discipline with the most dramatic growth, more than doubling its faculty numbers from 2003-04 to 2023-24. This expansion likely reflects both increasing healthcare demands related to an aging U.S. population and a strategic emphasis on programs with clear career trajectories.
Business also showed robust growth of 20.8% during this period and led all disciplines in new assistant professor hires for 2023-24, with 26% of institutions reporting at least one new hire in the field.
Meanwhile, several disciplines saw faculty numbers decline over the 20-year period, including Engineering Technology, English Language/Literature, Liberal Arts and Humanities, Consumer Sciences, and Education.
The highest-paid disciplines have remained relatively consistent over the two decades studied. Business has been the highest-paid discipline since 2015-16, with Computer Science, Engineering, and Legal Professions consistently ranking among the top four highest-paid fields throughout the period.
Business faculty also saw the largest percentage increase in median salary at 66.2% from 2003-04 to 2023-24, which researchers attribute in part to competition with the private sector for qualified candidates.
