Professor

Last updated

Professor
Einstein 1921 by F Schmutzer - restoration.jpg
Albert Einstein as a professor
Occupation
NamesProfessor
Occupation type
 Education, research, teaching
Activity sectors
 Academics
Description
CompetenciesAcademic knowledge, research, writing journal articles or book chapters, teaching
Education required
 Master's degree, doctoral degree (e.g., PhD), professional degree, or other terminal degree
Fields of
employment
 Academics
Related jobs
 Teacher, lecturer, reader, researcher

Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) [1] is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors are usually experts in their field and teachers of the highest rank. [1]

Contents

In most systems of academic ranks, "professor" as an unqualified title refers only to the most senior academic position, sometimes informally known as "full professor". [2] [3] In some countries and institutions, the word professor is also used in titles of lower ranks such as associate professor and assistant professor; this is particularly the case in the United States, where the unqualified word is also used colloquially to refer to associate and assistant professors as well, and often to instructors or lecturers. [4]

Professors often conduct original research and commonly teach undergraduate, postgraduate, or professional courses in their fields of expertise. In universities with graduate schools, professors may mentor and supervise graduate students conducting research for a thesis or dissertation. In many universities, full professors take on senior managerial roles such as leading departments, research teams and institutes, and filling roles such as president, principal or vice-chancellor. [5] The role of professor may be more public-facing than that of more junior staff, and professors are expected to be national or international leaders in their field of expertise. [5]

Etymology

The Ancient Greek philosopher Socrates was one of the earliest recorded professors Socrates Louvre.jpg
The Ancient Greek philosopher Socrates was one of the earliest recorded professors

The term professor was first used in the late 14th century to mean 'one who teaches a branch of knowledge'. [1] The word comes "...from Old French professeur (14c.) and directly from [the] Latin professor[, for] 'person who professes to be an expert in some art or science; teacher of highest rank'"; the Latin term came from the "...agent noun from profiteri 'lay claim to, declare openly'". As a title that is "prefixed to a name, it dates from 1706". The "[s]hort form prof is recorded from 1838". The term professor is also used with a different meaning: "[o]ne professing religion. This canting use of the word comes down from the Elizabethan period, but is obsolete in England." [1]

Description

A professor is an accomplished and recognized academic. In most Commonwealth nations, as well as northern Europe, the title professor is the highest academic rank at a university. In the United States and Canada, the title of professor applies to most post-doctoral academics, so a larger percentage are thus designated. In these areas, professors are scholars with doctorate degrees (typically PhD degrees) or equivalent qualifications who teach in colleges and universities. An emeritus professor is a title given to selected retired professors with whom the university wishes to continue to be associated due to their stature and ongoing research. Emeritus professors do not receive a salary, but they are often given office or lab space, and use of libraries, labs, and so on. [7] [8]

The term professor is also used in the titles assistant professor and associate professor , [9] which are not considered professor-level positions in all European countries. In Australia, the title associate professor is used in place of the term reader as used in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries; ranking above senior lecturer and below full professor. [10]

Beyond holding the proper academic title, universities in many countries also give notable artists, athletes and foreign dignitaries the title honorary professor, even if these persons do not have the academic qualifications typically necessary for professorship and they do not take up professorial duties. However, such "professors" usually do not undertake academic work for the granting institution. In general, the title of professor is strictly used for academic positions rather than for those holding it on honorary basis.

Tasks

Toni Morrison, Emeritus Professor at Princeton University Toni Morrison 2008-2.jpg
Toni Morrison, Emeritus Professor at Princeton University

Professors are qualified experts in their field who generally perform some or all the following tasks: [11] [12]

Other roles of professorial tasks depend on the institution, its legacy, protocols, place (country), and time. For example, professors at research-oriented universities in North America and, generally, at European universities, are promoted primarily on the basis of research achievements and external grant-raising success.

Around the world

Many colleges and universities and other institutions of higher learning throughout the world follow a similar hierarchical ranking structure amongst scholars in academia; the list above provides details.

Salary

Salary of professors, as reported in the 2005 report the Deutscher Hochschulverband [de] DHV. Bars are for assistant professor, associate professor and full professor, respectively. Professor salaries.svg
Salary of professors, as reported in the 2005 report the Deutscher Hochschulverband  [ de ] DHV. Bars are for assistant professor, associate professor and full professor, respectively.

A professor typically earns a base salary and a range of employee benefits. In addition, a professor who undertakes additional roles in their institution (e.g., department chair, dean, head of graduate studies, etc.) sometimes earns additional income. Some professors also earn additional income by moonlighting in other jobs, such as consulting, publishing academic or popular press books, giving speeches, or coaching executives. Some fields (e.g., business and computer science) give professors more opportunities for outside work.

Germany and Switzerland

A report from 2005 by the "Deutscher Hochschulverband DHV", [13] a lobby group for German professors, the salary of professors, the annual salary of a German professor is €46,680 in group "W2" (mid-level) and €56,683 in group "W3" (the highest level), without performance-related bonuses. The anticipated average earnings with performance-related bonuses for a German professor is €71,500. The anticipated average earnings of a professor working in Switzerland vary for example between 158,953 CHF (€102,729) to 232,073 CHF (€149,985) at the University of Zurich and 187,937 CHF (€121,461) to 247,280 CHF (€159,774) at the ETH Zurich; the regulations are different depending on the Cantons of Switzerland.

Italy

As late as 2021, in the Italian universities there are about 18 thousand Assistant Professors, 23 thousand Associate Professors, and 14 thousand Full Professors. The role of "professore a contratto" (the equivalent of an "adjunct professor"), a non-tenured position which does not require a PhD nor any habilitation, is paid at the end of the academic year nearly €3000 for the entire academic year, [14] without salary during the academic year. [15] There are about 28 thousand "Professori a contratto" in Italy, . [16] Associate Professors have a gross salary in between 52.937,59 and 96.186,12 euros per year, Full Professors have a gross salary in between 75.431,76 and 131.674 Euros per year, and adjunct professors of around 3,000 euros per year. [17]

Saudi Arabia

According to The World Salaries , the salary of a professor in any public university is 447,300 SAR, or 119 217.18 USD [18]

Spain

The salaries of civil servant professors in Spain are fixed on a nationwide basis, but there are some bonuses related to performance and seniority and a number of bonuses granted by the Autonomous Regional governments. These bonuses include three-year premiums (Spanish : trienios, according to seniority), five-year premiums (quinquenios, according to compliance with teaching criteria set by the university) and six-year premiums (sexenios, according to compliance with research criteria laid down by the national government). These salary bonuses are relatively small. Nevertheless, the total number of sexenios is a prerequisite for being a member of different committees.

The importance of these sexenios as a prestige factor in the university was enhanced by legislation in 2001 (LOU). Some indicative numbers can be interesting, in spite of the variance in the data. We report net monthly payments (after taxes and social security fees), without bonuses: Ayudante, €1,200; Ayudante Doctor, €1,400; Contratado Doctor; €1,800; Profesor Titular, €2,000; Catedrático, €2,400. There are a total of 14 payments per year, including 2 extra payments in July and December (but for less than a normal monthly payment).

United States

Professors in the United States commonly occupy any of several positions in academia. In the U.S., the word "professor" informally refers collectively to the academic ranks of assistant professor, associate professor, or professor. This usage differs from the predominant usage of the word "professor" internationally, where the unqualified word "professor" only refers to full professors. The majority of university lecturers and instructors in the United States, as of 2015, do not occupy these tenure-track ranks, but are part-time adjuncts. [19]

Table of wages

In 2007 the Dutch social fund for the academic sector SoFoKleS [20] commissioned a comparative study of the wage structure of academic professions in the Netherlands in relation to that of other countries. Among the countries reviewed are the United States, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, France, Sweden and the Netherlands. To improve comparability, adjustments have been made to correct for purchasing power and taxes. Because of differences between institutions in the US and UK these countries have two listings of which one denotes the salary in top-tier institutions (based on the Shanghai-ranking).

The table below shows the final reference wages (per year) expressed in net amounts of Dutch euros in 2014 (i.e., converted into Dutch purchasing power). [21]

NL comparison, 2014, net salaries, in NL purchasing power
CountryAssistant professorAssociate professorFull professor
United States€46,475€52,367€77,061
United States – top universities€59,310€68,429€103,666
United Kingdom€36,436€44,952€60,478
United Kingdom – top universities€39,855€45,235€84,894
Germany€33,182€42,124€47,894
France€24,686€30,088€38,247
Netherlands€34,671€42,062€50,847
Switzerland€78,396€89,951€101,493
Belgium€32,540€37,429€42,535
Sweden€30,005€35,783€42,357
Norway€34,947€37,500€45,113

Research professor

In a number of countries, the title "research professor" refers to a professor who is exclusively or mainly engaged in research, and who has few or no teaching obligations. For example, the title is used in this sense in the United Kingdom (where it is known as a research professor at some universities and professorial research fellow at some other institutions) and in northern Europe. A research professor is usually the most senior rank of a research-focused career pathway in those countries and is regarded as equal to the ordinary full professor rank. Most often they are permanent employees, and the position is often held by particularly distinguished scholars; thus the position is often seen as more prestigious than an ordinary full professorship. The title is used in a somewhat similar sense in the United States, with the exception that research professors in the United States are often not permanent employees and often must fund their salary from external sources, [22] which is usually not the case elsewhere.

In fiction

Traditional fictional portrayals of professors, in accordance with a stereotype, are shy, absent-minded individuals often lost in thought. In many cases, fictional professors are socially or physically awkward. Examples include the 1961 film The Absent-Minded Professor or Professor Calculus of The Adventures of Tintin stories. Professors have also been portrayed as being misguided into an evil pathway, such as Professor Metz, who helped Bond villain Blofeld in the film Diamonds Are Forever ; or simply evil, like Professor Moriarty, archenemy of British detective Sherlock Holmes. The modern animated series Futurama has Professor Hubert Farnsworth, a typical absent-minded but genius-level professor. A related stereotype is the mad scientist.

Vladimir Nabokov, author and professor of English at Cornell, frequently used professors as the protagonists in his novels. Professor Henry Higgins is a main character in George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion . In the Harry Potter series, set at the wizard school Hogwarts, the teachers are known as professors, many of whom play important roles, notably Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape. In the board game Cluedo , Professor Plum has been depicted as an absent-minded academic. Christopher Lloyd played Plum's film counterpart, a psychologist who had an affair with one of his patients.

Since the 1980s and 1990s, various stereotypes were re-evaluated, including professors. Writers began to depict professors as just normal human beings and might be quite well-rounded in abilities, excelling both in intelligence and in physical skills. An example of a fictional professor not depicted as shy or absent-minded is Indiana Jones, a professor as well as an archeologist-adventurer, who is skilled at both scholarship and fighting. The popularity of the Indiana Jones movie franchise had a significant impact on the previous stereotype, and created a new archetype which is both deeply knowledgeable and physically capable. [23] The character generally referred to simply as the Professor on the television sitcom series, Gilligan's Island , although described alternatively as a high-school science teacher or research scientist, is depicted as a sensible advisor, a clever inventor, and a helpful friend to his fellow castaways. John Houseman's portrayal of law school professor Charles W. Kingsfield, Jr., in The Paper Chase (1973) remains the epitome of the strict, authoritarian professor who demands perfection from students. Annalise Keating (played by Viola Davis) from the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) legal drama mystery television series How to Get Away with Murder is a law professor at the fictional Middleton University. [24] Early in the series, Annalise is a self-sufficient and confident woman, respected for being a great law professor and a great lawyer, feared and admired by her students, [25] whose image breaks down as the series progresses. [26] Sandra Oh stars as an English professor, Ji-Yoon Kim, recently promoted to the role of department chair in the 2021 Netflix series The Chair. The series includes her character's negotiation of liberal arts campus politics, in particular issues of racism, sexism, and social mores. [27]

Mysterious, older men with magical powers (and unclear academic standing) are sometimes given the title of "Professor" in literature and theater. Notable examples include Professor X in the X-Men franchise, Professor Marvel in The Wizard of Oz [28] and Professor Drosselmeyer (as he is sometimes known) from the ballet The Nutcracker . Also, the magician played by Christian Bale in the film The Prestige [29] adopts 'The Professor' as his stage name. A variation of this type of non-academic professor is the "crackpot inventor", as portrayed by Professor Potts in the film version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang or the Jerry Lewis-inspired Professor Frink character on The Simpsons . Other professors of this type are the thoughtful and kind Professor Digory Kirke of C. S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia .

Non-academic usage

The title has been used by comedians, such as "Professor" Irwin Corey and Soupy Sales in his role as "The Big Professor". In the past, pianists in saloons and other rough environments have been called "professor". [30] The puppeteer of a Punch and Judy show is also traditionally known as "Professor". [31] Aside from such examples in the performing arts, one apparently novel example is known where the title of professor has latterly been applied to a college appointee with an explicitly "non-academic role", which seems to be primarily linked to claims of "strategic importance". [32]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">College</span> Educational institution or part of one

A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary school.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rector (academia)</span> Academic official

A rector is a senior official in an educational institution, and can refer to an official in either a university or a secondary school. Outside the English-speaking world, the rector is often the most senior official in a university, while in the United States, the equivalent is often referred to as the president, and in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth of Nations, the equivalent is the vice-chancellor. The term and office of a rector can be referred to as a rectorate. The title is used widely in universities in Europe and is very common in Latin American countries. It is also used in Brunei, Macau, Turkey, Russia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Israel and the Middle East. In the ancient universities of Scotland the office is sometimes referred to as Lord Rector, is the third most senior official, and is usually responsible for chairing the University Court.

Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct research.

The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French maître de conférences (MCF), and equal to or above the title of assistant professor. In Southeast European countries, it is the first position that people achieve once they enter the University, and after the completion of their PhD degree.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Absent-minded professor</span> Stock character in film

The absent-minded professor is a stock character of popular fiction, usually portrayed as a talented academic whose academic brilliance is accompanied by below-par functioning in other areas, leading to forgetfulness and mistakes. One explanation of this is that highly talented individuals often have unevenly distributed capabilities, being brilliant in their field of choice but below average on other measures of ability. Alternatively, they are considered to be so engrossed in their field of study that they forget their surroundings. The phrase is also commonly used in English to describe people who are so engrossed in their own world that they fail to keep track of their surroundings. It is a common stereotype that professors get so obsessed with their research that they pay little attention to anything else.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teaching assistant</span> Individual who assists a teacher with instructional responsibilities

A teaching assistant (TA) or education assistant (EA) is an individual who assists a professor or teacher with instructional responsibilities. TAs include graduate teaching assistants (GTAs), who are graduate students; undergraduate teaching assistants (UTAs), who are undergraduate students; secondary school TAs, who are either high school students or adults; and elementary school TAs, who are adults.

Tenure is a type of academic appointment that protects its holder from being fired or laid off except for cause, or under extraordinary circumstances such as financial exigency or program discontinuation. Academic tenure originated in the United States in the early 20th century, and several other countries have since adopted it. Tenure is a means of defending the principle of academic freedom, which holds that it benefits society in the long run if academics are free to hold and espouse a variety of views, even if the views are unpopular or controversial.

The following summarizes basic academic ranks in the French higher education system. Most academic institutions are state-run and most academics with permanent positions are civil servants, and thus are tenured.

Professors in the United States commonly occupy any of several positions of teaching and research within a college or university. In the U.S., the word "professor" is often used to refer to anyone who teaches at a college of university level at any academic rank. This usage differs from the predominant usage of the word professor in other countries, where the unqualified word "professor" only refers to "full professors", nor is it generally used in the United States for secondary education teachers. Other tenure-track faculty positions include assistant professor and associate professor (mid-level). Other teaching-focused positions that use the term "professor" include Clinical Professor, Professor of Practice, and Teaching Professor. Most faculty with titles of "Lecturer" and "Instructor" in the U.S. are not eligible for tenure, though they are still often referred to as "professors" in a general sense and as a courtesy form of address. Non-tenure-track positions may be full or part time, although the qualifier "adjunct" always denotes part-time.

Academic ranks in the United States are the titles, relative importance and power of professors, researchers, and administrative personnel held in academia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museum docent</span> Title for people who serve as guides and educators

Museum docent is a title given in the United States of America to people who serve as guides and educators for the institutions they serve, usually as a volunteer (unpaid) position. The English word itself is derived from the Latin word docēns, the present active participle of docēre. Cognates of this word are found in several extant Romance Languages and are often associated with university professors or teachers in general. For example, in Spanish language, the word "docente" means "teacher".

Academic staff, also known as faculty or academics, are vague terms that describe teachers or research staff of a school, college, university or research institute.

Academic ranks in Canada are the titles, relative importance and power of professors, researchers, and administrative personnel held in academia.

Academic ranks in Germany are the titles, relative importance and power of professors, researchers, and administrative personnel held in academia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Academic ranks in the United Kingdom</span> Overview of academic ranks in the United Kingdom

Academic ranks in the United Kingdom are the titles, relative seniority and responsibility of employees in universities. In general the country has three academic career pathways: one focused on research, one on teaching, and one that combines the two.

Academic ranks in Norway are the system of merit-based ranks used by academic employees in academia. Similar to the British rank system, the Norwegian rank system is broadly divided into three pathways, a combined research and teaching career pathway, a research career pathway and a teaching career pathway.

Academic ranks in Italy are the titles, relative importance and power of professors, researchers, and administrative personnel held in academia.

An adjunct professor is a type of academic appointment in higher education who does not work at the establishment full-time. The terms of this appointment and the job security of the tenure vary in different parts of the world, but the term is generally agreed to mean a bona-fide part-time faculty member in an adjunct position at an institution of higher education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scholar</span> Person who pursues academic and intellectual activities

A scholar is a person who is a researcher or has expertise in an academic discipline. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher at a university. An academic usually holds an advanced degree or a terminal degree, such as a master's degree or a doctorate (PhD). Independent scholars and public intellectuals work outside the academy yet may publish in academic journals and participate in scholarly public discussion.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Harper, Douglas. "Professor". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 28 July 2007.
  2. ↑ Pettigrew, Todd (17 June 2011). "Assistant? Associate? What the words before "professor" mean: Titles may not mean what you think they do". Maclean's. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  3. ↑ "United Kingdom, Academic Career Structure". European University Institute. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  4. ↑ Hartley, Tom (26 January 2013). "Dr Who or Professor Who? On Academic Email Etiquette". Tom Hartley. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  5. 1 2 "Promoted from doctor to professor: what changes?". Times Higher Education. 14 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
  6. ↑ David K. Knox "Socrates: The First Professor" Innovative Higher Education December 1998, Volume 23, Issue 2, pp 115–126
  7. ↑ "Difference Between a Teacher and a Professor". Western Governors University. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  8. ↑ van Dijk, Esther E.; van Tartwijk, Jan; van der Schaaf, Marieke F.; Kluijtmans, Manon (1 November 2020). "What makes an expert university teacher? A systematic review and synthesis of frameworks for teacher expertise in higher education" (PDF). Educational Research Review. 31: 100365. doi: 10.1016/j.edurev.2020.100365 . ISSN   1747-938X.
  9. ↑ "Associate Professor – definition of associate professor". Free Online Dictionary. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  10. ↑ "Australia, Academic Career Structure". European University Institute. Retrieved 4 December 2018.
  11. ↑ "Difference Between a Teacher and a Professor". Western Governors University. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  12. ↑ "What exactly is a professor these days?". Times Higher Education (THE). 13 November 2015. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  13. ↑ "Deutscher Hochschulverband". Hochschulverband.de. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  14. ↑ "University L'Orientale of Naples – table of annual fees for contract professors" (PDF).
  15. ↑ Monella, Lillo Montalto (26 January 2018). "Essere professore a contratto all'università...per 3,75 euro l'ora". euronews (in Italian). Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  16. ↑ "Esplora i dati". USTAT. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  17. ↑ "Salary Sapienza University of Rome Italy (in Italian) Tabella stipendi personale Docente". Sapienza Università di Roma. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  18. ↑ "Average Professor – Education Salary in Saudi Arabia for 2023". World Salaries. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  19. ↑ "COE – Characteristics of Postsecondary Faculty". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
  20. ↑ "SoFoKleS | Sociaal Fonds voor de KennisSector". Sofokles.nl. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  21. ↑ SEO Economic Research (23 September 2015). "International wage differences in academic occupations" (PDF). Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  22. ↑ Classification of Ranks and Titles.
  23. ↑ Hiscock, Peter (2012). "Cinema, Supernatural Archaeology, and the Hidden Human Past". Numen. 59 (2/3): 156–177. ISSN   0029-5973.
  24. ↑ "Viola Davis as Annalise Keating". ABC. The Walt Disney Company . Retrieved 21 May 2016.
  25. ↑ Kumari Upadhyaya, Kayla (25 September 2014). "How To Get Away With Murder: "Pilot"". The A.V. Club . Retrieved 21 May 2016.
  26. ↑ Kumari Upadhyaya, Kayla (23 October 2015). "A new lie has consequences for everyone on How To Get Away With Murder". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 21 May 2016.
  27. ↑ Dettmar, Kevin (2 September 2021). "What 'The Chair' Gets Unexpectedly Right About the Ivory Tower". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  28. ↑ "The Wizard of Oz (1939)". IMDb. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  29. ↑ "The Prestige (2006)". IMDb. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  30. ↑ "Music: Machines & Musicians". Time. 30 August 1937. Archived from the original on 17 April 2008. Retrieved 9 August 2009.
  31. ↑ "A working life: The Punch and Judy man". the Guardian. 22 August 2008. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  32. ↑ "REINFORCEMENTS!". Union Theological College, Belfast. 26 August 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.