Professional Biography
After teaching in both public and private schools for a number of years, Dr. Ingersoll obtained a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1992. From 1995 to 2000 he was a faculty member in the Sociology Department at the University of Georgia. In 2000 he came to the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania and in 2012 was appointed Board of Overseers Professor of Education and Sociology.
Dr. Ingersoll’s nationally recognized research has influenced several major national and state policy initiatives. His research was cited by President Clinton in a number of speeches announcing his teacher recruitment and training initiatives, influenced the No Child Left Behind Act, and has been featured in numerous major education reports, including those published by the National Governors' Association, the National Association of State Boards of Education, the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, the Education Trust, the Alliance for Excellence in Education, the international Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, President Obama’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, and the National Education Association. From 2005 to 2007, Professor Ingersoll served on a National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council Committee evaluating National Board Teacher Certification.
Dr. Ingersoll has given more than 300 keynote addresses, speeches, and presentations to a wide variety of audiences — researchers, education officials, school leaders, educators, and the public. He has also been interviewed for hundreds of news media stories. In addition, Dr. Ingersoll has been invited to make numerous presentations to local, state, and federal legislative and policymaking groups. These include: the Aspen Institute's Education Policy Program for Members of Congress; the Congressional Hearings on Teacher Preparation Initiatives held by the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Education and the Workforce; the National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century, chaired by Senator John Glenn; the Science and the Congress Briefing; the Congressional Research Service's seminar for new members of Congress, sponsored by the U.S. House of Representatives; National Conference of State Legislators; the Council of the City of New York; and official education commissions in dozens of states.
Ph.D. (Sociology) University of Pennsylvania, 1992
- Teacher supply, demand, shortages, and turnover
- Teacher preparation & quality
- Beginning teacher induction & mentoring
- School organization, leadership, & accountability
- Teacher workforce trends
- Teaching as a profession
- Racial-ethnic diversity in the teaching force
Research Interests and Current Projects
Dr. Ingersoll's research is concerned with the character of elementary and secondary schools as workplaces, teachers as employees, and teaching as a job. He has published more than 100 articles, reports, chapters, and essays on topics such as teacher turnover, migration, and attrition; math and science teacher shortages; teacher education and the problem of underqualified teachers; induction and mentoring for beginning teachers; school accountability; teacher leadership and empowerment in schools; changes in the demographic character of the teaching force; the status of teaching as a profession; and shortages of teachers from underrepresented racial-ethnic groups.
Selected Publications
- Richard M. Ingersoll

Who Controls Teachers’ Work
Harvard University Press
Related News
Eight Penn GSE faculty feature prominently in the rankings, which celebrate the most influential education researchers in the nation.
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Number of diverse teachers in Oregon on the rise, but retention remains a challenge
In the Media | Oregon Capital Chronicle
Richard Ingersoll notes that nearly half of teachers leave the profession within the first five years, contributing to ongoing retention challenges.
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Richard Ingersoll discusses the issue of teacher turnover within school districts, and how it negatively impacts hiring.
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Education Week
In the Media | Education Week
Richard Ingersoll highlights the complexities and uncertainties in evaluating teacher shortages, pointing out high attrition rates and a significant reserve pool of former teachers, while questioning whether shortages stem from low supply or poor retention.
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'There is no reason for us to come'
In the Media | Business Insider
Richard Ingersoll highlights the critical need for qualified teachers and suggests reducing teacher turnover by offering support, decision-making input, and mentorship programs for new teachers to address shortages while underscoring the importance of adequate compensation and respect.
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Richard Ingersoll identifies a critical issue in education: the mismatch between the growing number of STEM classes and the declining preparation of teachers for these subjects. He notes the shift towards less experienced teachers, contributing to a "revolving door" phenomenon in schools, which impacts teacher retention and student learning.
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Ingersoll provides critical insights into the evolving nature of teacher preparation across the U.S. in Education Week.
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Teacher Preparation, Explained: Alternative Routes, Enrollment Trends, and More
In the Media | EducationWeek
TopicsRichard Ingersoll suggests the main issue in teacher supply is not the quantity produced but the high rate of teachers leaving the profession before retirement.
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A new year means a new version of the RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings, with the 2024 edition announced yesterday by Education Week. Nine researchers from the University of Pennsylvania made the annual 200-member list, which was created by Rick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) to gauge the public impact of ed scholars’ contributions.
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Topics
New study attributes high turnover to job dissatisfaction.
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Male elementary school teachers are few in number, but large in impact
In the Media | New Hampshire Union Leader
Richard Ingersoll concerns about the underrepresentation of male teachers in elementary school, and emphasizes the need for a more balanced gender mix among educators.
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Richard Ingersoll says giving educators more authority at their workplace makes them feel like respected professionals; teachers need to be given a lot of discretion.
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Richard Ingersoll identifies the primary causes of the teacher shortage–poor working conditions, low pay, and management issues–and discusses solutions to improve teacher retention.
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Richard Ingersoll discusses teachers leaving the profession and how he arrived at his statistic that nearly half of educators quit within the first five years in a video interview.
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Eight University of Pennsylvania-affiliated researchers are ranked in the top 200 nationwide – and all eight are associated with Penn GSE.
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Pa. waived the basic skills requirement for educators. Will it work to attract more teachers?
In the Media | The Philadelphia Inquirer
Pam Grossman and Richard Ingersoll speak on the potential drawbacks of waiving basic skills tests for teacher preparation programs.
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How bad is the teacher shortage? Depends on where you live.
In the Media | The New York Times
How bad is the teacher shortage? The answer depends on where you live, according to an article in the New York Times. Jacey Fortin and Eliza Fawcett spoke with experts and educators from across the country, including Richard Ingersoll.
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Oregon schools lean heavily on emergency teachers, including untrained ones
In the Media | Oregon Capital Chronicle
TopicsResearch from Richard Ingersoll shows that nearly half of teachers nationwide quit within their first five years on the job.
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#PennGSEExperts Pam Grossman and Richard M. Ingersoll were interviewed for a recent Philadelphia Inquirer article about the looming crisis. Between 30 and 50 percent of new teachers now leave the profession after their first five years.
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As COVID thins school staffing, who’s teaching kids?
In the Media | U.S. News and World Report
Richard Ingersoll expressed concern about lowering the bar for teachers. “Remote sometimes might be much more preferable to getting some substitute in there who’s basically babysitting,” he said.
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Richard Ingersoll comments on teachers leaving the profession if the economy continues to improve and they continue to feel stress. “Typically we find that employees across the economy tend to quit less during economic downtimes,” he said. “There’s a lot of indications that in fact, during the pandemic, teacher turnover and teacher retirements may have even gone down.”
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"There might be a whole lot of pent up frustration and the retiring, quitting can go up dramatically starting this summer." — Richard Ingersoll
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New survey: 1 in 4 U.S. teachers may quit
In the Media | The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Richard Ingersoll said that it will take year or two to determine if the pandemic drove teachers to quit the profession. “Everything I have seen on this is anecdotal, or conjecture, or for specific school districts,” he said.
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Black teachers ground down by racial battle fatigue after a year like no other
In the Media | The Hechinger Report
TopicsRichard Ingersoll spoke about the pandemic’s impact on the teaching workforce and suggested that the economy’s recovery could increase teacher turnover and retirements.
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Study: Teaching force grew at more than double the enrollment rate
In the Media | The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
TopicsRichard Ingersoll spoke about how schools and school boards are working to meet demands from parents and lawmakers. “All these demands by parents are very understandable, such as lower class size,” said Ingersoll. “Who wouldn’t want their child to be in a class of 18? And, yes, let’s teach Mandarin and, yes, let’s bring back Latin. There are so many demands but very little recognition of the costs.”
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Setting the Bar Higher
In the Media | Inside Higher Ed
TopicsRichard Ingersoll said that admission standards for elementary teaching programs are already low, certainly compared to other professions such as medicine and law. The solution presented to address shortages in the national teacher workforce has been to “widen the gate and lower the bar,” but lowering academic standards “any further doesn’t make much sense,” Ingersoll said.
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2020 has shone a light on the importance of good teachers, but many are paid less than a living wage in the U.S.
In the Media | CNBC
TopicsRichard Ingersoll said cultural misunderstandings about what it takes to be a good teacher have contributed to low wages for educators. “There was this idea that you don’t have to be that smart. It’s not as complex,” he said. “Or as difficult as being an accountant, working with numbers. Or being a dentist, working with teeth.”
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What it’s like to be a teacher in 2020 America
In the Media | The New York Times
TopicsRichard Ingersoll explained how it was decided that women would teach in public schools 150 years ago. “The argument was, ‘Look, women will learn to be better mothers by practicing on other people’s children,’” he said. “Proponents made the case it was a win-win.”
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Will teacher concerns over COVID cause more of them to flee classroom?
In the Media | The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Richard Ingersoll said it’s too early to know if the pandemic will worsen teacher shortages. “Traditionally, employees in general across industries and occupations quit at higher rates in good economic times and at lower rates in bad economic times," he said. "The reason is simple—even if someone dislikes their job, they are loath to quit if there is financial uncertainty, or if there are not other jobs available.”
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Despite COVID concerns, economics still driving teacher retirement decisions
In the Media | Laredo Morning Times
“Even if you don’t like your job, if there aren’t other options out there, you’re going to be loath to leave. There aren’t a lot of options out there,” said Richard Ingersoll.
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Richard Ingersoll weighed in on teacher burnout, which has worsened in recent years. “A lot of it boils down to working conditions,” he said.
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Here's What Gen. Z Teachers Around the World Want in Their Jobs
In the Media | Education Week Online
TopicsRichard Ingersoll’s research points out that the overall teaching profession is getting younger.
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Six researchers from Penn GSE have made Education Week’s 2020 Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings list.