INTRODUCTION: Burnout syndrome is a phenomenon characterized by chronic emotional exhaustion that can lead to physical, psychological, and social consequences. Because they need to support themselves financially, university professors have accepted increasingly longer working hours and accumulated duties, resulting in greater exposure to factors that may induce the onset of mental disorders such as burnout syndrome. OBJECTIVES: This cross-sectional epidemiological study aimed to determine the prevalence of burnout syndrome and predisposing factors in university professors working in Salvador, Brazil. METHODS: The sample consisted of 210 participants. The Maslach Burnout Inventory adapted for teachers, the gold standard for detecting burnout syndrome, and a sociodemographic questionnaire were administered to identify variables that may influence the development of burnout. Then, the data were compiled in Excel and analyzed with the aid of GraphPad Prism. RESULTS: The prevalence of burnout was 41% (n = 86). A stratified data analysis showed that being under 40 years of age, being single, being childless, teaching natural sciences, and working at several institutions are risk factors for developing burnout syndrome. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of burnout syndrome in university professors was 41%. Professors who were young, single, childless, taught natural sciences, and worked at more than one institution were found to be more likely to develop burnout syndrome.