I've seen the discussion about the cost of living in Scotland and living on £30K. I'd really like to know from those who've had the experience of both the UK and US about how starting salaries at the level of Lecturer/Asst. Prof. compare. For instance, what is the norm for the US as a starting point? Is £52K 'equivalent to say the £30K that standard here? Is that enough to survive on comfortably? How does it compare with the taxes, cost of living in the UK? I'd like to hear what the norms are in the US?
(I've also seen the references to the AUUP etc for averages in the US on other threads but they aren't that helpful....also, it's in the Humanities.)
This may help -- on the job search wiki some of the folks have started a list of starting salaries for their recent hires in literature:
http://wikihost.org/wikis/academe/wiki/english_literature_starting_salariesUnless you're in an expensive major metro area (NYC, LA, etc.), most starting salaries in the US for assistant profs in the humanities run in the $40K range. On rare occasions in cheap rural areas they may dip into the high $30Ks.
Based on the response I got to my question about salaries in Scotland, I'd say your percentage of take-home pay to gross pay (what you get after taxes, health insurance premiums, retirement plan contributions, etc. are taken out) is roughly equivalent. My take-home is roughly 2/3 of my salary, maybe a little more.
From what I remember of my stay in London a few years back and what I've heard from those who've been there more recently, most retail items are priced at a comparable rate, pounds to dollars -- that is, a sandwich at Pret a Manger that cost 5 pounds would cost $5 in the US, a shirt that runs 25 pounds in the UK would be $25 in the US, and so on. Petrol is much cheaper here, but it's gone up and is still going up (it's close to $3/gallon right now... I remember when it was under $1).
From what I've read about starting salaries and cost of living in the UK, unless you're in a very expensive metro area in the US, the starting salaries in the US are definitely more generous and would enable you to live more comfortably. The monthly expenses lists I was able to find on the part of Scotland I'm interested in imply that making 30K in the UK is not that much different from making 30K here in the US (i.e. in most parts of the country you can live comfortably on it, but not much more than just comfortably). Outside of the Northeast and California, an assistant professor's salary can feasibly buy a nice house, especially in smaller cities and rural areas. The real problem you will have is in travelling back to the UK -- the US dollar is so weak right now you'll be paying $2 for a pound (ouch!).
