Although Harvard professors are among the most highly paid in the profession, women here receive only 88 per cent of the salary of their male counterparts, a survey on faculty compensation by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) has revealed.

The survey found women professors in the U.S. tend to receive ten per cent less pay than men, but at Harvard, women receive 12 per cent less, while they receive only 2 per cent less at Yale.

Robert E. Kaufmann '62, associate dean for finance and administration, said yesterday that length of service, age and differences in fields would explain most of Harvard's salary discrepancy.

Such fields as law, business and the sciences, which tend to pay more, also tend to be male dominated, he said.

Phyllis Keller, Harvard's equal opportunity officer, said yesterday Harvard fixes pay levels for associate and assistant professors, and individuals' salaries depend entirely upon their length of service.

Small Fraction

Harvard has only half as many women professors as most universities. While 6 per cent of American professors are women, only 3 per cent of Harvard's are.

The survey showed Harvard's professors are in the 95th percentile for salary and fringe benefits. In the academic year 1976-77, Harvard professors received an average of $38,500.

Only Fashion Institute of Technology and Rockefeller University, both in New York, paid more. Their professors received $41,400, the AAUP reported.

Harvard hires an average percentage of women at the associate and assistant professor levels. At those levels, the University pays salaries that fall between the 60th and 80th percentile of the nation, according to the study.