Coming to Terms With Academic Titles at US Colleges
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This is the VOA Special English Education Report.
Not everyone who teaches in a college or university is a [A]professor[/A]. Many are [A]instructors[/A] or lecturers. In fact, not even all professors are full professors. Many of them are [A]assistant[/A] or associate professors or adjunct professors.
So what do all of these different [A]academic[/A] titles mean at American colleges and universities? Get ready for a short lecture, especially if you are [A]thinking[/A] of a career in higher education.
Professors usually need a doctoral degree. But sometimes a school will offer [A]positions[/A] to people who have not yet received their [A]doctorate[/A].
This person would be called an instructor until the degree has been [A]completed[/A]. After that, the instructor could become an [A]assistant professor[/A]. Assistant professors do not have tenure.
Tenure means a permanent [A]appointment[/A]. This goal of greater job security is harder to reach these days. Fewer teaching positions offer the chance for [A]tenure[/A].
Teachers and [A]researchers [/A]who are hired into positions that do offer it are said to be "on the tenure track." Assistant professor is the first job on this path.
Assistant professors generally have five to seven years to gain tenure. During this time, other faculty [A]members[/A] study the person's work. If tenure is denied, then the assistant professor usually has a year to find [A]another[/A] job.
Candidates for tenure may feel great pressure to get [A]research[/A] published. "Publish or perish" is the traditional saying.
An assistant professor who receives tenure becomes an associate professor. An associate professor may later be appointed a full professor.
Assistant, associate and full professors [A]perform[/A] many duties. They teach classes. They advise students. And they carry out research. They also serve on [A]committees[/A] and take part in other [A]activities[/A].
Other faculty members are not [A]expected[/A] to do all these jobs. They are not on a tenure track. Instead, they might be in [A]adjunct[/A] or visiting positions.
A visiting professor has a job at one school but works at another for a period of time. An [A]adjunct [/A]professor is also a limited or part-time [A]position[/A], to do research or teach classes. Adjunct professors have a doctorate.
Another position is that of [A]lecturer[/A]. Lecturers teach classes, but they may or may not have a doctorate.
