Prospects in the Academic Labor Market for Economists

Abstract

This paper discussed what the academic labor market for economists is likely to look like in the years ahead. After tracing out trends in PhD production of new economists, including the increasing share of new PhDs who are foreign residents, it presents new evidence on the growing use of part-time and full-time non tenure-track faculty in U.S. economics departments, the growing salary differentials between economists employed at private and public doctoral universities, and how economists' salaries have changed relative to those of faculty in other disciplines.