Who makes more, college professors or coaches?

I bet you’re thinking this is a no-brainer and the coaches win by far. Not so fast, the medical departments at colleges rake in money for patient care and consulting.

Here is a breakdown for the UC system in California which includes Berkeley, UCLA, and San Francisco with a combined 100+ Nobel Laureates:

2010 Pay

  1. Coach – $2.4 million – Jeff Tedford (Berekeley)
  2. Coach – $2.1 million – Ben Howland (UCLA)
  3. Prof. – $2.0 million – Ronald Busuttil (UCLA)
  4. Coach – $1.9 million – Mike Montgomery (Berkeley)
  5. Prof. – $1.8 million – Khalil Tabsh (UCLA)
  6. Prof. – $1.5 million – Anthony Azakie (UCSF)
  7. Prof. – $1.5 million – Philip Leboit (UCSF)
  8. Prof. – $1.5 million – Timothy McCalmont (UCSF)
  9. Prof. – $1.4 million – Richard Shemin  (UCLA)
  10. Coach – $1.2 million – Rick Neuheisel (UCLA)

The coaches hold four of the ten spots. The disparity in pay between the two groups isn’t all that great either. Average of the top 10 has the professors earning $1.6 million and the coaches earning $1.9 million.

If you keep going, the next fifteen are all on the healthcare side with twelve professors and three health executives. Of the top 100 they take up 84 spots, with only fourteen non-healthcare salaries.

#3 - Ronald Busuttil, Transplant Surgeon

It’s also worth noting that the next coaches on the list are Norm Chow (UCLA) at #95, and Joanne Boyle (Berkeley) at #119.

I have to admit the numbers are pretty shocking. The common understanding is that professors make little money, while doctors make good money. Combine the two and it’s a gold mine.

One that doesn’t pull money from the schools themselves. Like the coaches they are largely paid with the money they pull in. In the world of college academics this is called an “auxiliary program” (thanks Norman), and the opposite is normally true. These programs (sports, healthcare) funnel money, prestige, and students to the schools.

A final note, these salaries are determined by combining each persons base pay with their incentives and bonuses. For the coaches this means winning, playoffs, and championships. For the health professors it means seeing patients and receiving awards for their research.

Take out this extra pay and not one in the top 10 earns above $317,000 in base pay. Many of those lower on the list have a set base pay of $500,000 and $800,000.

Interesting, to say the least, and I hope I informed your opinion of college salaries.

Entrance to UCLA Medical Center (only 20% of the whole complex)

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Information pulled from the OC Register article: UC coaches’ pay outstrips Nobel laureates’

Photo of Jeff Tedford by Avinash & of the UCLA Medical Center by Benny Chan

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