Workforce Studies2007: Report of the APA Salary Survey
Marlene Wicherski
APA Center for Workforce Studies
March 2010
Introduction
The 2007 Salaries in Psychology report represents the fourteenth volume in the series and over twenty years of effort by the American Psychological Association to gather salary data on psychological personnel. The survey was initiated in 1981, in response to increasing requests for current national salary data. As has been the case in past reports, selected summary statistics are presented for current salaries of APA members who are working full time in a variety of positions and, where there is a sufficient number of responses (N=5), for individual employment settings within a position. For doctoral-level respondents, salary data are presented by position, employment setting, median years since doctorate, and by sex, race/ethnicity, and geographic region. Salary breakdowns for master’s-level respondents are by position, employment setting, and median years since degree only. Master’s-level salary breakdowns are sparse in some categories due to an insufficient number of respondents at this degree level.
The data represent (1) salaries for individuals who are employed full time (at least 35 hours per week in salaried positions), (2) net income after office expenses for self-employed individuals who are working at least 35 hours per week, and (3) net income for individuals with a full-time (at least 32 hours per week) independent practice. Because many psychologists have additional sources of income from multiple work activities and settings, these data may not represent total income.
Method
Individuals were eligible for inclusion in the study if they had indicated employment in the Membership Directory database, were under 65 years of age, and were U.S. residents. A total of 51,776 APA members, participants were recruited in June 2007. Those with a viable email address on file were sent an email solicitation directing them to an online version of the survey. The online and paper versions of the questionnaire (see Appendix A) requested the following information: employment setting, type of position, hours per week spent in the position, total years of work experience, total annual earned income, full time salary or net income, zip code of employment setting, and demographic information. In order for nonrespondents to be tracked, each of the survey forms was marked with a unique ID number. Four rounds of email reminders were sent to nonrespondents in July and August. In order to boost the number of respondents at the master’s-degree level, a follow-up paper survey was mailed to master’s-level nonrespondents in December 2007 (N=2,691).
A total of 12,818 APA members responded to the survey either through the web or the paper version. Of that total, 12,120 were employed and provided some data on employment setting, position, and other relevant variables. Surveys were excluded if the respondent failed to provide accurate data on variables (e.g., level of degree, employment status and type of position) required to conduct specific analyses for data tables and statistics within the salaries report. Ninety-four percent (N = 9,007) of the respondents with full-time positions were at the doctoral level, while only 6% (N = 540) were at the master's level.
Organization of the Report
The report is divided into 16 sections. The first 13 of these provide salary data for a specific type of position at the doctoral level. The sections are as follows:
1. Faculty Positions
2. Educational Administration
3. Research Positions
4. Administration of Research
5. Direct Human Services - Clinical (licensed)
6. Direct Human Services - Counseling (licensed)
7. Direct Human Services - School (licensed)
8. Direct Human Services - Other Psychological Subfields (licensed)
9. Administration of Human Services
10. Applied Psychology (Industrial/Organizational)
11. Applied Psychology (Other Psychological Subfields)
12. Administration of Applied Psychology
13. Other Administrative Positions
14. Master's-level Respondents
15. Doctoral-level Salaries by Sex, Race/Ethnicity and Years of Experience
16. Doctoral-level Salaries for Selected Positions, Regions, Cities, and States
Salaries for the three major health service provider subfields (clinical, counseling, and school) are presented separately, in Sections 5, 6, and 7, in addition to Section 8, for respondents involved in the provision of direct human services in "other psychological subfields." Only licensed psychologists are included in these positions. Salaries for "applied psychology positions" are presented separately for industrial/organizational and other subfields of psychology. All data for master's-level respondents are reported in Section 14 of the report due to the very small number of respondents at this level.
For both doctoral- and master's-level respondents, data are presented separately for each position. Salary data for faculty positions (Section 1) are broken down by academic rank. For all other positions at the doctoral level, salaries are reported by years of experience: 0-1; 2-4; 5-9; 10-14; 15-19; 20-24; 25-29; and 30 years or more. In many instances, the number of respondents in the "0-1" category is too small to report detailed information, primarily because many psychologists do not join APA until a year or two after they receive their degree. For the analysis on the master’s level, due to the smaller number of respondents, years of experience were collapsed into fewer categories: 5 years or less, 6-9, 10-14, 15-19, 20-24, 25-29, and 30 or more.
More extensive information on starting salaries is available in the report of the results of APA's 2005 Doctorate Employment Survey (e.g., Kohout and Wicherski, 2007).
Each section begins with a description of the position. The first “figure” in each section gives frequency distributions and summary statistics for salaries of respondents. These summary statistics include percentiles, medians, means and standard deviations. No statistics are reported when the N is less than 5.
Where there were a sufficient number of respondents, salaries are presented for specific employment settings for a particular position. Appendix A contains a complete listing of these settings in the survey instrument. In these cases, each section presents summary statistics for doctoral-level respondents employed in specific settings, broken down by academic rank or years of work experience. Medians, means, quartiles, and standard deviations are reported.
Respondents provided 11-12-month salaries for most positions, and they are reported in this manner. The exception to this is "Faculty Positions" in Section 1, where salaries are reported on a 9-10-month basis.
Caveats
Readers should be aware of the possible sources of error when using the information from this report. Eligibility for inclusion was based partially on data provided by APA members in 2007. There may have been changes in these data between the collection of membership data and the selection of the sample for the Salary Survey from these data one year later. Furthermore, some members were excluded because they did not report employment data or reported inaccurate employment data.
An overall response rate of 24.8% was obtained for the 2007 Salary Survey (24% from the initial email group and 14% from the follow-up paper survey to the master’s level). The Salary Survey was originally anonymous but this was changed in 1989 to allow follow-up mailings to nonrespondents in an effort to boost the response rate.
Appendix C contains a summary of the characteristics of the population from which the sample was drawn, and of respondents and nonrespondents. This table provides some idea of the degree of non-respondent bias (i.e., whether those who responded differed greatly from those who did not) and how representative the sample is of the population from which it was drawn. Data in Appendix C indicate that respondents and those in the sample were quite similar with respect to major field, highest degree earned, licensure/certification status, gender, and distribution by region. Differences, where they existed, were not substantive. The population is overwhelmingly at the doctoral level, but attempts were made to augment the representation of respondents at the master's level by deliberately including all eligible master's-level APA members in the sample. This effort was successful in that the percentage of the survey respondents who were at the master's level was comparable with the representation among the eligible membership (both are about 7%).
The number of respondents in some categories is very small and the statistics reported should be viewed with caution. This is particularly the case for the salaries of master's-level respondents. In addition, the number of respondents reported in the summary statistics may differ from the number of respondents reported in the figures because in some instances, respondents may have failed to provide complete information on all variables.
Salary data in this report are based on a nationwide sample. For locations where the cost of living differs significantly from the national average, salaries would be expected to vary accordingly. Tables 16.A through 16.D present information on salaries by region, selected cities, and for selected states.
Faculty Positions
As is typically the case, doctoral-level respondents in faculty positions comprised one of the largest groups of respondents to this survey (N=3,502). The majority of incumbents in these positions worked in university settings (65%), specifically, university psychology departments (45%), university education departments (9%), other academic departments in universities (6%), university business departments (3%), and university research centers (1%). Fifteen percent were employed in medical school settings, while 11% were employed in four-year college settings.
The largest single proportion of doctoral faculty identified clinical psychology as their major subfield (29%). Social psychology and developmental psychology were represented at 10% and 9% respectively. These were followed by counseling psychology (8%) and child clinical (5%), and 4% each identified cognitive and industrial/organizational as their major subfield.
Frequency distributions and summary statistics are presented for doctoral-level faculty in Figure 1. The data are reported by academic rank: full professor, associate professor, assistant professor, lecturer/instructor, and other faculty positions.
Table 1 contains salary information in specific employment settings by rank. Faculty salaries typically are reported on a 9-10-month basis and the salaries reported in Table 1 reflect this academic schedule. Conversely, faculty in research centers or institutes or medical and professional schools are often paid on an 11-12-month basis. The 9-10-month salaries can be converted to their 11-12-month equivalents by multiplying the reported salaries by 11/9.
The overall median 9-10-month full-time faculty salary was $72,000 in 2007, based on 2,953 valid responses. Graduate faculty salaries are examined in more detail in the report, 2007-2008 Faculty Salaries in Graduate Departments of Psychology (Wicherski, Dang, Finno, and Kohout, 2008). In addition, medical school faculty salaries are described at length in the Report of the 2003 Medical School/Academic Medical Center Psychologists Employment Survey (Pate and Kohout, 2004). Both reports include salary breakdowns by years of experience, academic rank, geographic region, and other categories, and can be found at APA’s Center for Workforce Studies website.
Educational Administration
Educational administration refers to administrative positions in college or university settings (e.g., president, provost, or dean). These individuals may also hold a faculty appointment. Department chairs, however, are excluded from this category; their salaries are reported by academic rank in Section 1. The category also includes school superintendents or other administrative positions related to education.
Of the 250 doctoral-level respondents in this category, 33% were employed in university administrative offices. Six percent each claimed university education departments, university student counseling centers, four-year college administrative offices, school district offices, and other university academic departments or units as their primary places of employment. Similar proportions of respondents were employed in other educational settings, free standing professional schools of psychology, and university psychology departments (5% each).
The largest single proportion of educational administrators claimed clinical psychology as their major subfield (21%), followed by counseling (11%), developmental (12%), educational (8%), school (6%), and social (6%) psychology.
Figure 2 presents the summary statistics and frequency distributions for the doctoral-level respondents in this category. Table 2 presents 11-12-month salaries by years of experience and employment setting.
Doctoral-level respondents working full time in educational administration reported a median 11-12-month salary of $112,000 in 2007, based on 219 valid responses.
Research Positions
There were 542 respondents who worked full time in research positions in the 2007 Salary Survey. Activities associated with research positions include basic or applied research, such as non-faculty positions in academic settings, employment as an investigator in a laboratory or a research institute, and research positions in private industry.
The largest single proportion of respondents was employed in private research organizations (14%). Twelve percent were in university psychology departments. This was followed by university research centers and medical school psychiatry departments (10% each). Another 8% percent of respondents were located in medical school departments other than psychiatry and 8% in government research organizations.
Based on 457 valid responses, the most typical major subfield of respondents was clinical (25%). This was followed by developmental (9%) and social psychology (8%). Six percent were in health psychology and 4% in counseling psychology.
The summary statistics and frequency distributions for research positions are presented in Figure 3. Summary statistics for 11-12-month salaries by years of work experience and employment setting are presented in Table 3.
The overall median 11-12-month salary in 2007 for doctoral-level respondents in full-time research positions was $89,000, based on 521 valid responses.
Research Administration
There were 176 full time, doctoral-level research administrators who responded to the 2007 Salary Survey. These positions involve the management or administration of a research organization or program. Although individuals employed in these positions also may be involved in other aspects of the research process (e.g., design, data collection and analyses), their primary responsibility is managing research, including the supervision of research personnel. Summary statistics and frequency distributions are presented in Table 4 and Figure 4, respectively.
The largest single proportion of respondents in this category reported working in private research organizations (15%). This was followed by medical school psychiatry departments (12%), university research centers (10%), government research organizations (10%), medical schools other than psychiatry departments (6%), university psychology departments (6%), business/industry (5%), and other non-profit organizations (5%).
About 24% of the 156 respondents who provided valid responses in this category indicated clinical psychology as their major subfield, followed by child clinical and quantitative/mathematical/psychometrics/statistics at 6% each. Another 5% each of the respondents were in experimental, developmental, educational, and health psychology.
The overall 11-12-month median full-time salary in 2007 for doctoral respondents in research administration was $110,000. Overall median salary was based on 174 valid responses.
Direct Human Service Positions
Direct Human Services - Clinical
Sixteen hundred ninety-six doctoral-level respondents were licensed, claimed clinical psychology as their major field, and were involved primarily in the direct delivery of health and mental health services to clients in 2007.
The majority of these respondents was employed in independent practice settings (61%), including individual private practice, group psychology practice, and primary care group practice (44%, 13%, and 4%, respectively). Approximately 14% and 6% of respondents reported that they worked in hospitals and clinics (e.g., CMHCs, HMOs, outpatient clinics), respectively.
The overall 11-12-month median full-time salary for licensed doctoral-level clinical psychologists was $85,000 in 2007, based on 1,608 valid responses. Figure 5 and Table 5 contain frequency distributions and summary statistics, respectively.
Direct Human Services - Counseling
Three hundred ninety respondents were licensed and indicated that they were primarily involved in the delivery of human services at the doctoral level in counseling psychology.
Fifty-three percent of the respondents were located in an independent practice setting comprising individual private practitioners (38%), group psychological practitioners (12%), and primary care group practice practitioners (3%). Twenty-two percent claimed university/college counseling centers as their primary employment setting. Nine percent and 4% of the responding psychologists in this category were located in hospital settings and clinics (e.g., CMHCs, HMOs, outpatient clinics), respectively.
The overall 11-12-month median full-time salary in 2007 for licensed doctoral-level counseling psychologists was $75,000. Overall median salary was based on 374 valid responses. Frequency distributions and summary statistics can be found in Figure 6 and Table 6, respectively.
Direct Human Services - School
One hundred seven doctoral-level respondents were licensed and indicated that they were working full time providing school psychology services. As expected, the largest single proportion of school psychologists was employed in a pre-college educational setting. Specifically, 63% could be found in elementary and secondary schools (41%) or school system district offices (15%). The next largest proportion of respondents (23%) reported working in independent practices; including individual private practices, group psychological practices, and primary care group practice (13%, 8%, and 2%, respectively).
The overall 11-12-month salary for licensed doctoral-level respondents providing school psychology services was $86,000 in 2007, based on 101 valid responses. Frequency distributions and summary statistics can be found in Figure 7 and Table 7, respectively.
Direct Human Services - Other Psychological Subfields
There were 498 351 respondents in this category. Respondents were licensed and primarily involved in the delivery of health/mental health services to client populations, but not in one of the three standard health service provider subfields (i.e., clinical, counseling, or school psychology). The largest proportions of these respondents identified subfields closely related to clinical psychology (one third in child clinical and clinical neuropsychology at 16%) as their major field. Other populous subfields were health psychology (11%) and forensic psychology (7%). This was followed by rehabilitation (5%) and neuroscience (4%).
Overall, 43% of respondents in this category were working in independent practice. Specifically, 28% were found in individual private practices, followed by group psychological practices (10%) and primary care group practices (6%). Twenty-four percent were located in hospitals, specifically 8 7% in public general hospitals, and 5% each in private general hospitals and rehabilitation facilities. Data for these psychologists are presented in Figure 8 and Table 8.
The overall median 11-12-month salary in 2007 for licensed doctoral-level respondents in this category was $84,000, based on 468 valid responses.
Administration of Human Services
Section 9 contains salary information for positions involving the administration of human services. That is, positions that involve managing or directing a program of human services. Although these individuals may be involved in the delivery of services, their primary responsibility is the administration of such activities, including the supervision of personnel. Salaries for the 741 respondents in this position are reported in Figure 9 and Table 9.
As might be expected, many of the psychologists in the administration of human services were employed in organized settings (43%). Specifically 19% of respondents were employed in clinics (CMHCs, HMOs, and outpatient clinics) and 23% were found in hospitals. Thirteen percent claimed university or college counseling centers as their primary work setting, followed by the criminal justice system, other human service settings (6%), other non-profit organizations (5%), and specialized health services (5%).
The single largest proportion of respondents indicated clinical psychology as their major field (56%), followed by counseling psychology (16%) and child clinical psychology (6%).
The overall median 11-12-month salary in 2007 for health service administrators at the doctoral level was $85,000, based on 723 valid responses.
Applied Psychology - Industrial/Organizational
This section presents the salaries of those respondents whose positions may be called applied psychology (e.g., personnel selection, assessment, systems or equipment design, organizational consultation, analysis or training) and whose current major field is industrial/organizational psychology. Salaries for the 152 doctoral-level respondents are described in Figure 10 and Table 10.
Of the doctoral-level respondents in this category, the largest proportions were employed in consulting firms (44%) followed by business and industry settings (21%). Ten percent were employed in a government agency, 7% worked as independent consultants, and 5% were self-employed.
The overall median 11-12-month salary for doctoral-level industrial/organizational psychologists in 2007 was $120,000, based on 145 valid responses. The standard deviation (69,883) is large for this group, indicating substantial variation around the mean of $137,779.
Applied Psychology - Other Psychology Subfields
Individuals whose positions may best be described as applied psychology and whose current major field is one other than industrial/organizational psychology are included in this section. Typically, these individuals are engaged in organizational consultation, marketing research, systems/equipment design, or other applied psychology activities. There were 107 doctoral-level respondents in these positions in 2007 and their salaries are reported in Figure 11 and Table 11.
One third of respondents were located in consulting firms, while 10% were self-employed and 9% were in business/industry settings. Seven percent worked in practices (individual private practices, primary care group practices, and group psychological practices). Twelve percent claimed government (federal, state, and local) agencies as their primary employment setting, among which 7% were employed in the federal government agencies. Another 6% worked as independent consultants.
Clinical psychology was the most frequently mentioned major field (30%) for this group. This was followed by counseling psychology (19%) and educational psychology (7%).
The overall 11-12-month median salary in 2007 for doctoral-level psychologists in these positions was $113,000, based on 103 valid responses. The standard deviation ($91,917) is large for this group, indicating substantial variation around the mean of $139,612.
Administration of Applied Psychology
There were 100 respondents in these administrative positions. Administration of applied psychology includes the management of an organization or program in applied psychology, such as a firm specializing in market research or in industrial/organizational psychology. The primary responsibility of individuals in these positions is the administration of such programs, including the supervision of personnel. Figure 12 and Table 12 contain salary data on these respondents.
Nineteen percent of these respondents was located in consulting firms. Twenty-two percent were located in government (federal, state, and local) agencies, while 12% each were employed in business/industry and hospital settings. Non-profit organizations were represented at 9%, followed by criminal justice systems and VA medical centers at 6% each.
About one third of the respondents in this position claimed clinical psychology as their major subfield (33%), followed by industrial/organizational psychology (23%) and counseling psychology (12%).
The overall median 11-12-month salary for doctoral-level respondents was $121,500 in 2007, based on 90 valid responses.
Other Administrative Positions
These positions involve managerial responsibilities in a business, government agency, or nonprofit association that cannot be described as the direct administration of educational, research, human services, or other applied psychology activities. These positions may be related to psychology, such as administration of government programs related to research funding, management of programs concerned with psychological issues in a nonprofit association, or personnel administration. There were 218 respondents at the doctoral level in 2007.
The largest single proportion of respondents in this category was employed in government agencies (26%), of which 10% were found in state and 9% in federal government agencies. This was followed by other non-profit organizations (24%), business/industry settings (12%), and hospitals (10%). Although scattered across a variety of settings, most of these respondents could be found outside academia.
Overall, clinical psychology was the most frequently mentioned subfield among this position (39%). This was followed by counseling (8%) and developmental psychology (5%).
The overall 11-12-month median salary for doctoral-level respondents in other administrative positions was $105,000 in 2007, based on 209 valid responses. Figure 13 and Table 13 show salary data for these respondents.
Master's-level Positions
This section contains salary information on master’s-level respondents, broken out by position and by years of experience where there are sufficient numbers of respondents (N=5). Some figures and tables have been omitted because of a low number of responses. Caution should be exercised when interpreting the data reported for master’s-level positions with a small N size.
The 2007 APA Salary Survey had 734 valid responses at the master’s level. Women represented fully two thirds of the respondents (66%). The most popular primary employment settings were individual private practice (15%), business and industry (12%), consulting firms (6%), elementary/secondary schools (6%), and group psychological practice (5%). Forty-five percent were employed in direct human service positions while 16% were located in applied psychology positions. All data reported below are for those respondents working in full- time positions.
Faculty Positions
Thirty-two respondents with master’s degrees were located in faculty positions. The overall mean salary (9-10 months) was $53,276 and the median salary was $54,000. The first and third quartiles were $45,000 and $61,500, respectively. The average years of work experience for this group was 21. (Table 14a)
Research Positions
Sixteen respondents reported that they worked in research positions. The overall mean salary was $62,125, while the median salary was $52,500. The first and third quartiles were $43,000 and $68,500, respectively. This group reported an average of six years of work experience.
Administration of Research
Eleven respondents indicated employment in research administration, with an average of 11 years of work experience. The mean salary was $115,182 and the median was $72,000.
Direct Human Services
Clinical:
Fifty individuals with master’s degrees who provided services in Clinical Psychology answered the survey. They were located most often in individual private practice and group psychological practice settings. They reported an average of 20 21 years of work experience. Their overall mean salary was $71,166 and the median salary was $65,000. The 1st and 3rd quartiles were $42,750 and $80,250, respectively. The median salary for those with less than 10 years of work experience was $60,000 (N=14), and $65,000 for those with more than 30 years of work experience (N=14). Among these respondents, 18 worked in individual private practice settings, and they reported mean and median salaries of $72,176 and $68,000, respectively. (Table 14e)
Counseling:
There were 29 respondents with master’s degrees providing counseling psychology services full time, most of whom were located in individual private practice settings. Overall, this group had an average of 15 years of work experience. The overall mean salary was $55,464, while the median salary was $52,000. The first and third quartiles were $40,000 and $72,750, respectively. (Table 14f)
School:
Thirty master’s-level providers in school psychology responded to the survey. Their overall mean salary was $69,700 and the median was $65,000. The average years of work experience for this group was 13. (Table 14g)
Other Psychological Subfields:
Apart from those with master’s degrees in clinical, counseling and school psychology, there were 30 respondents in other subfields who were primarily involved in direct human services. Employment settings most often included individual private practice, group psychological practice, elementary/secondary school, and community mental health centers/clinics. Overall, this group reported an average of 20 years of work experience and had mean and median salaries of $62,962 and $56,500, respectively. The first and third quartiles were $38,750 and $74,250. (Table 14h)
Administration of Human Services
Forty respondents at the master’s level reported working full time in the administration of human services positions. The most popular employment settings included outpatient health clinics, community mental health centers/clinics, and specialized health services. The first and third quartiles were $56,500 and $102,000. This group had a mean of 18 years of work experience. The overall mean and median salaries reported were $76,106 and $62,000, respectively.
Applied Psychology Positions (Industrial/Organizational Psychology)
Forty-two respondents who worked in applied psychology positions provided data. They were mostly located in business/industry and consulting firm settings. The first and third quartiles were $72,500 and $110,000. The overall average years of experience and mean and median salaries were 13, $102,732, and $86,000, respectively. The median salary for those who had less than 10 years of experience was $80,500 (N=22). (Table 14j)
Applied Psychology Positions (Other Psychological Subfields)
Twelve respondents working full time in applied psychology positions in subfields other than I/O completed the survey. The most popular employment settings among them were business/industry and consulting firms. The first and third quartiles were $55,000 and $108,000. Their overall mean and median salaries were $88,182 and $70,000, respectively. The overall average years of work experience was 22.
Administration of Applied Psychology
Only 19 respondents at the master’s level were working in the administration of applied psychology, mostly located in consulting firms. Their overall mean salary was $91,611 and the median salary was $95,500. The first and third quartiles were $59,000 and $126,250. Average years of work experience was 12.
Other Administrative Positions
Twenty-six respondents worked in other administrative positions, mostly in business/industry. Their overall mean salary was $77,160 and the median salary was $70,000. Average years of work experience was 15.
Doctoral-level Salaries by Sex, Race/Ethnicity, and Years of Experience
This section presents doctoral-level salaries broken down by gender, race/ethnicity, and years of experience. Where possible (given sufficient Ns) the data also have been analyzed by type of position. Some of the categories have been left blank because there are too few responses.
Table 15a presents salary data by years of work experience and gender. In general, the median salaries of men are higher than those reported by women. However, the disparities are less pronounced for men and women with less than 10 years of work experience. These smaller differences among "newer" psychologists have been observed in other survey results (Wicherski, Washington, and Kohout, 2004). The largest gender discrepancy in favor of men is evidenced in the 15-19 years work experience category and higher.
Table 15b contains salary data by sex, years of experience, and employment position. Similarly, with few exceptions, the salaries of men exceed those reported by women.
In Table 15c , salaries are reported by years of experience and race/ethnicity. Differences among the median salaries do exist, although they do not appear to be substantive.
Salary data are displayed by years of experience and minority status in Table 15d. Median salaries for minority and non-minority psychologists do not differ greatly.
Doctoral-level Salaries for Selected Positions, Regions, Cities, and States
The previous sections have presented national data on the salaries/net incomes of doctoral-level and master's-level respondents who report full-time employment. This section provides geographic breakdowns of doctoral-level salaries. Table 16a presents data on median salaries and median years since the doctorate by geographic region and position. All full-time respondents were categorized into regions on the basis of zip code. Numbers are less than the totals for each region because respondents may be missing data on salary, position, or employment setting.
The category of "independent practice" includes licensed psychologists who are involved in individual, group, or medical-psychological group practices. Faculty positions in universities are limited to those who identify their primary employment setting as psychology departments, education departments, business departments or schools, or other academic units located in universities. "Faculty in other settings" includes those in other academic settings such as research centers, four- and two-year colleges, and medical schools. Medical school faculty typically are paid on an 11-12-month basis. The academic-year (9-10-month) medians given in Table 16a can be converted to their calendar-year equivalents by multiplying by 11/9.
The data in this table should not be applied to an individual salary or setting but should be used only in making very general comparisons among the different regions and positions. This is because the median salaries may be affected by factors such as gender, year of degree, years of experience, employment setting, subfield of degree, and cost of living in a specific area. To illustrate one of these factors, years of experience has been provided for each category and region.
Table 16b and Table 16c present data on the median salaries of doctoral-level faculty and for licensed doctoral-level psychologists involved in the delivery of direct human services in independent practice settings. Salaries for these two tables are presented by selected metropolitan areas. Inclusion of a city in Table 16b first hinged on its availability in the Inter-City Cost of Living Index report produced by the American Chamber of Commerce Researcher’s Association (ACCRA) and then on a sufficient number of responses from that city. Both adjusted median salary and actual salary are reported, as is the size of the group on which the salary is based. The adjusted salary data for this table were based on urban area index data from the third quarter of 2007. This index measures and reports prices for consumer goods and services for cities that supply this information. Table 16c includes those metropolitan areas for which the cost of living indices were unavailable but had a sufficient number of responses from each city. Therefore, given that the salaries in Table 16c are not adjusted for regional differences in cost of living, caution should be exercised when interpreting these salaries.
Similarly, Table 16d provides data on the median salaries of doctoral-level university faculty and for licensed doctoral-level independent practitioners involved in direct human service by state. Those states with fewer than 10 respondents were excluded. This table also does not account for regional differences in cost of living. Hence, state-by-state comparisons should be made with this in mind.
| Appendix A | 2007 Salary Survey (PDF, 201KB) |
| Appendix B | States Comprising Geographic Regions in the United States (PDF, 34KB) |
| Appendix C | Characteristics of the Population, Respondents, and Nonrepondents to the 2007 APA Salary Survey (PDF, 149KB) |
This report is produced by the Center for Workforce Studies (CWS) in the Science Directorate of the American Psychological Association (APA). We are grateful for the support of Norman B. Anderson, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of the APA and Steven Breckler, PhD, Executive Director, Science Directorate.
CWS staff contributed to the various aspects of the survey such as deploying the survey and fielding responses. Special thanks to Brittany Hart, Ariel Finno, and Jessica Kohout, Ph.D., for their contributions to the project.
Most importantly, we would like to thank those members of the Association who took the time to respond to the survey as well as for their many comments on the survey itself and on their own employment experiences. These comments help us to revise and update the survey as needed and keep us aware of changes occurring in the employment of psychological personnel. The APA's ability to provide current national data on the salaries of psychologists hinges on their participation.