Where to Find Online Professor Jobs: A Complete Guide

Last Updated on: 30th August 2022, 04:43 am

Online professor jobs provide flexibility and freedom. But how do you get one, and what are they like? In this article, I provide a complete list of the best places to look for online professor jobs, plus a list of 25 universities hiring online faculty now. I also discuss the pros and cons of teaching online.

Where to Find Online Professor Jobs

Job Boards

There are many ways to find online professor positions. The most common, of course, is through traditional job boards like Indeed. However, there are also higher-education-specific job boards. These are the eight best websites I’ve found for those looking for online professor jobs.

• Chronicle of Higher Education
• Higher Ed Jobs
• Academic Employment Network
• Inside Higher Ed
• Higher Education Recruitment Consortium
• Academic Keys
• Women in Higher Education
• Higher Ed 360
• Academic Jobs Online

Universities Hiring Online Professors

Another simple way of finding an online faculty position is by looking at job postings for online universities and universities that hire online faculty. Here is a list of 25 universities hiring online faculty.

• Walden University
• Grand Canyon University
• Northcentral University
• American Public University System
• Capella University
• Argosy University
• Laureate Universities
• Adler University
• Southern New Hampshire University
• UC Berkeley Online Extension
• University of Phoenix
• Western Governors University
• Strayer University
• Le Tourneau University
• Franklin University
• University of Maryland University College
• Colorado State University — Global Campus
• Colorado Technical University
• Trident University International
• Purdue Global University
• University of the People
• Park University
• Amberton University
• Regis College
• Bradley University
• Simmons University

Networking

Job boards and university websites are a good place to start, but I don’t recommend stopping there. I also suggest reaching out to your network. Many studies have indicated that more job positions are filled through networking than through traditional job searches. Your network is not only your opportunity to find jobs that may not yet be listed (and thus have less competition), but also an indication of trust to your potential employer.

Alumni and Advisors

Your network could include alumni from your graduate (or undergraduate) program as well as professors and advisors you had during the time of your studies. Even if someone doesn’t work for an online university, they might know someone who does, so it never hurts to ask.

Professional Organizations

Joining a professional association in your field is an excellent way to build contacts–many of these organizations also post jobs for their members to see. The American Association of University Professors is another great option.

Conferences

Conferences in your field are also a way to meet those who already hold online professor jobs and may know of job openings.

The Difference Between Traditional and Online Professor Jobs

Many people dream of teaching. Giving back, student adulation, and being able to tell everyone that you teach at a university are common reasons for teaching. But what if the teaching job is online? What does that look like? Will you get the psychic rewards teaching online?

While some people fantasize about going to work in their pajamas, others feel like they’d never be able to live without in-person interaction with students. Is an online professor job just like a classroom job? The short answer is “No.” It is not better or worse, but there are some differences. I’ll discuss some of the important ones below.

Classroom

In an online class, you don’t get to wander the room and dispense wisdom. However, you don’t have to worry about getting locked out of the room and you can wear anything you want. Another great point is that you can do it from anywhere that you can get an internet connection. I have communicated with students while on a bicycle tour of France and from the beach in Costa Rica.

Pros:
Flexibility of location (and attire)

Cons:
No direct contact with students

Academic Freedom

This is a broad heading for what you can do in the classroom. In an online format, much of the outline and material has been defined for you so there are fewer chances to get into deep conversations about the material. You will most likely have discussion areas but the act of typing seems to limit these discussions. All in all, you will usually have less academic freedom in an online format than you would in a traditional classroom setting.

Pros:
Outline and materials are often provided for you
Structure

Cons:
Less academic freedom

Job Outlook

Enrollment in brick-and-mortar universities is steadily decreasing, leading to fewer jobs for professors in the classroom. As schools struggle to balance their budgets, they rely more on adjunct professors, who are paid less and don’t receive benefits. However, enrollment in online universities is increasing, leading to more demand for professors qualified to teach online.

Pros:
Job outlook for online professor positions is positive

Cons:
Demand for in-classroom professors is decreasing
Professors are being replaced with adjuncts

Student Relations

It is much easier to develop a rapport with students in a traditional classroom. Everyone is in the same place and you can see in their faces if a point isn’t being understood. In the online format, most classes are asynchronous. While this may make your schedule more flexible, deep deep relationships are harder to foster. If connecting with your students is important to you, then online teaching may not be the best choice.

Pros:
More flexible schedule

Cons:
No face-to-face contact with students

Salary

Everyone wants to be paid. But how does an online professor’s salary compare to that of a traditional teaching job? How much you are paid will depend on the position and the field you are in. As an adjunct, you will not be overpaid in any way. Full-time professors are paid a bit more, but still often make less than those who teach in the classroom.

In the online world, I have seen compensation start at around $1200 for a 3 credit course up to in excess of $3500 for a similar 3 credit class. It can be argued that in the online format your costs are lower as you don’t have to drive to campus or buy a tweed jacket with leather elbow patches.

Pros:
No commuting or wardrobe costs

Cons:
Salary is often lower than in-classroom jobs

Publishing

Most online schools have not put much emphasis on their faculty publishing. Therefore there is usually little demand for faculty to publish. On the flip side, if you want to publish as an online professor there may be few assets at the school to help you on that journey.

Pros:
Less pressure to publish

Cons:
Fewer resources and less support for publishing

Collegiality

If you are looking to interact with fellow scholars and get into discussions about deep ideas, the online format may not be right for you. Since all faculty members teach from a distance, you can’t develop relationships based upon interactions in the hall. You may not even know who the other faculty members are when you teach online. Like most distance jobs, it can be a little lonely.

Pros:
Reduced drama and politics

Cons:
No relationships with colleagues

Flexibility

This is one area in which online professor jobs shine. Teaching online gives you the flexibility to travel, watch your child’s hockey game, or simply work on your own schedule. However, be mindful that this can also be a negative as well, since a lack of separate office and set class schedule requires self-discipline.

Pros:
Work from anywhere with an internet connection at flexible times

Cons:
No in-person interaction with students or colleagues

Summary

If you are working full time and want to teach, an online teaching job can be great. You can continue to teach while on business travel and do many of the traditional classroom activities during downtime.

But, if your goal is a full-time job you will find that there are many more traditional professor jobs than online professor jobs. These jobs are growing so if you are patient there may be more of these jobs in the future.