Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary Salary
The median pay for a art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary in Durham-Chapel Hill, NC is $62,130/year, per BLS data. The range runs from $41K at the entry level to $100K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 97.57), that's roughly $63,677 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,711/month, about 41.1% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $62K get you in Durham-Chapel Hill?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Durham-Chapel Hill’s Regional Price Parity (97.57). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondaries
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What this looks like in Durham-Chapel Hill
Pay for art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary in Durham-Chapel Hill runs about 21% below the U.S. median of $79K. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,711/month, which is 41.8% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 97.57) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. That combination, below-market pay with high housing costs, makes this a financially demanding market for art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondarys.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondaries in metros near Durham-Chapel Hill, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia | $73K | $75K |
| Greensboro-High Point | $77K | $83K |
| Raleigh-Cary | $84K | $86K |
| Wilmington | $76K | $79K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Durham-Chapel Hill, NC
Entry-level art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondaries (10th percentile) start around $41K. Mid-career wages sit at $62K. Top earners bring in $100K or more, a $59K spread from bottom to top.
Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delaware | $103K | +31% | 150 |
| California | $99K | +26% | 9,820 |
| New York | $99K | +26% | 14,920 |
| Vermont | $98K | +25% | 180 |
| Rhode Island | $98K | +24% | 440 |
| District of Columbia | $97K | +23% | 350 |
| Massachusetts | $86K | +9% | 4,960 |
| Maryland | $86K | +9% | 1,280 |
| Michigan | $83K | +6% | 2,410 |
| New Jersey | $80K | +2% | 3,300 |
| Georgia | $80K | +2% | 1,910 |
| Maine | $80K | +2% | 340 |
| New Hampshire | $79K | +1% | 440 |
| Louisiana | $79K | +0% | 720 |
| Connecticut | $79K | -0% | 1,430 |
| Montana | $78K | -0% | 190 |
| Ohio | $78K | -1% | 3,940 |
| Washington | $78K | -1% | 1,400 |
| Minnesota | $78K | -1% | 1,310 |
| Iowa | $78K | -1% | 910 |
| Texas | $78K | -1% | 6,730 |
| Wisconsin | $78K | -1% | 1,840 |
| Pennsylvania | $77K | -2% | 4,170 |
| Oregon | $77K | -2% | 1,440 |
| New Mexico | $76K | -3% | 380 |
| Indiana | $76K | -3% | 1,920 |
| Missouri | $76K | -3% | 1,450 |
| Nebraska | $75K | -4% | 490 |
| Virginia | $75K | -5% | 2,840 |
| North Carolina | $74K | -6% | 2,880 |
| West Virginia | $73K | -7% | 340 |
| Idaho | $72K | -8% | 250 |
| Arizona | $72K | -8% | 1,040 |
| Tennessee | $72K | -8% | 1,370 |
| Colorado | $70K | -11% | 1,950 |
| North Dakota | $67K | -15% | 130 |
| Utah | $66K | -16% | 790 |
| Kentucky | $64K | -18% | 900 |
| Florida | $64K | -19% | 2,490 |
| Alabama | $64K | -19% | 900 |
| South Dakota | $63K | -19% | 200 |
| Illinois | $63K | -20% | 4,170 |
| South Carolina | $62K | -21% | 1,290 |
| Oklahoma | $62K | -21% | 760 |
| Kansas | $61K | -22% | 640 |
| Arkansas | $61K | -23% | 360 |
| Mississippi | $61K | -23% | 540 |
| Wyoming | $59K | -25% | 180 |
| Nevada | $53K | -33% | 260 |
Showing 1–10 of 49 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Durham-Chapel Hill numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary afford a 2BR apartment alone in Durham-Chapel Hill?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $62K, rent takes 41.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,711/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,200/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondaries in Durham-Chapel Hill?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondaries typically earn — is $41K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,456/month. At HUD’s $1,711/month FMR, rent would take 70% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary a high-paying job in Durham-Chapel Hill?
Local pay runs 21% below the national median — $62K here vs. $79K nationally.
How does Durham-Chapel Hill compare to the national average for art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondaries?
Durham-Chapel Hill pays $62K median vs. the U.S. average of $79K — that’s -21%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 97.57), the purchasing-power equivalent is $64K — below the national median.
How much do art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondaries make in Durham-Chapel Hill, NC?
The median is $62,130 a year. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $40,940, and experienced art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondaries can clear $100,080. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $62K enough to live in Durham-Chapel Hill?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,097/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,711/month, which eats 41.8% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary salary go in Durham-Chapel Hill?
Durham-Chapel Hill has a Regional Price Parity of 97.57 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary salary is worth about $63,677 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondaries get paid the most?
The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.