Prevailing Wage for Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary
Prevailing wage for Adjunct Instructor positions is set by DOL using Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey data tied to the worksite location. Whether you're filing as an Adjunct Professor, Criminal Justice Instructor, or Assistant Professor, DOL assigns one of four experience-based wage levels, and the floor varies significantly by metro area.
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Level 1 covers entry-level Adjunct Instructors with limited teaching experience, typically under two years, who work under close faculty supervision, deliver assigned courses in a structured curriculum, and have not yet developed independent research or program responsibilities.
Level 2 applies to qualified Adjunct Instructors with two or more years of classroom experience who work with moderate supervision. This is the most common filing level for this occupation, reflecting standard departmental expectations for course delivery and student advising.
Level 3 covers experienced criminal justice instructors who operate with significant independence, lead curriculum development, mentor junior faculty, maintain an active research or professional practice profile, and contribute to departmental governance or accreditation efforts.
Level 4 applies to fully competent senior faculty, typically Associate Professors or above, who lead programs, supervise research, hold tenure-track or tenured appointments, and are recognized within the criminal justice or law enforcement education field for scholarly or practitioner contributions.
Prevailing Wage for Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary by OES area
Each shape is a DOL OES area, the unit prevailing wage is published for.
What’s an OES area?
The Department of Labor publishes prevailing wages for geographic zones called OES areas. Every U.S. county belongs to exactly one, and the wage floor applies across the whole area. A worker in Oakland gets the San Francisco metro wage, not a separate Oakland wage.
Top 10 cities · Level 1
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See which U.S. employers are actively hiring for Adjunct Instructor and sponsoring H-1B, OPT, and green card visas at or above the prevailing wage.
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Verify your campus worksite before filing
Postsecondary teachers who split teaching across multiple campuses must list the primary worksite on the LCA. Community colleges operating satellite locations in separate metros can trigger a different, sometimes lower, prevailing wage than the main campus zip code suggests.
Watch for SOC misclassification on LCA filings
Employers occasionally file criminal justice teaching roles under SOC 25-1099 (Postsecondary Teachers, All Other) instead of 25-1111. That substitution can set a different wage floor, so confirm the SOC code on your Labor Condition Application matches 25-1111 before signing your offer.
Compare salary against California metro floors
Riverside and San Diego post some of the highest Level 1 prevailing wages for this occupation nationally. If your offer is in a California metro, confirm the offered salary clears that city's floor, since adjunct salaries are often budgeted at statewide averages that fall short of local DOL figures.
Find employers who have sponsored this role before
On Migrate Mate, you can filter by visa type and see which colleges and universities have a verified history of sponsoring criminal justice teaching positions, helping you focus on institutions whose HR teams are already familiar with the LCA and H-1B petition process for faculty.
Jobs for Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary are hiring across the US. Find yours.
Find Jobs for Adjunct InstructorPrevailing Wage by Reported Job Title
DOL classifies these titles under SOC 25-1111.00 alongside Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary, so the same four-tier wage schedule applies to each. Tap a title to see the full breakdown.
Adjunct Instructor Prevailing Wage
Adjunct Instructor Prevailing Wage
Adjunct Instructor positions fall under SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Adjunct Professor Prevailing Wage
Adjunct Professor Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Adjunct Professor for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Assistant Professor Prevailing Wage
Assistant Professor Prevailing Wage
Assistant Professor is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Associate Professor Prevailing Wage
Associate Professor Prevailing Wage
Associate Professor positions fall under SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Criminal Justice Instructor Prevailing Wage
Criminal Justice Instructor Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Criminal Justice Instructor for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Criminal Justice Professor Prevailing Wage
Criminal Justice Professor Prevailing Wage
Criminal Justice Professor is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Digital Forensics Instructor Prevailing Wage
Digital Forensics Instructor Prevailing Wage
Digital Forensics Instructor positions fall under SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Instructor Prevailing Wage
Instructor Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Instructor for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Justice Professor Prevailing Wage
Justice Professor Prevailing Wage
Justice Professor is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Professor Prevailing Wage
Professor Prevailing Wage
Professor positions fall under SOC 25-1111.00 (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does DOL set the prevailing wage for an Adjunct Instructor position?
DOL uses Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics across hundreds of metropolitan areas. For SOC 25-1111, OFLC maps the reported wages to four experience levels using a standard formula. The employer selects the level that matches the position's actual duties and required experience, then must offer at least that wage on the certified LCA.
What do the four wage levels mean and how do I know which one applies to my offer?
Level 1 is entry-level with close supervision; Level 2 reflects qualified independent work and is the most common filing level for adjunct and assistant professor roles; Level 3 covers experienced faculty with curriculum or research leadership; Level 4 is reserved for senior, fully competent positions with program-wide responsibility. Review the job description and compare the stated duties, supervision requirements, and experience expectations against DOL's level definitions to identify where your offer falls.
Why does the prevailing wage for the same Adjunct Instructor role differ so much between cities?
DOL calculates wages from regional Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics surveys, so the floor reflects local labor market conditions rather than a national average. The LCA worksite rule requires employers to use the wage for the specific metro where you will actually teach. High-cost metros like San Francisco and Riverside produce significantly higher floors than smaller markets. Instructors accepting positions in low-wage metros such as Raleigh should verify the offer clears that city's specific DOL figure, not the national median.
What happens if an employer offers a salary below the prevailing wage for a sponsored position?
USCIS will deny the H-1B or other sponsored petition if the offered wage does not meet or exceed the prevailing wage certified on the LCA. DOL can also audit or debar employers found to have underpaid sponsored workers. If you identify a shortfall before filing, OFLC guidance requires the employer to adjust the offered wage to the correct level before certification. Accepting a below-floor offer does not protect you from status consequences if the petition is denied.
How can I look up the prevailing wage for an Adjunct Instructor position in a specific U.S. city?
Use the OFLC Wage Search tool, which lets you query by SOC code 25-1111 and metropolitan area to retrieve the current four-level wage table for your worksite city. Cross-reference the result against the wage listed in your job offer or the certified LCA. To see which institutions have a sponsorship history for criminal justice teaching roles, Migrate Mate lets you filter by visa type and role so you can identify active sponsors before you apply.
See which employers are hiring and sponsoring visas for Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Teachers, Postsecondary right now.
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