Professor (Prof) is an academic level at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Figuratively, professor is derived from Latin known as a "person who expresses". Professors are usually experts in their field and teachers of the highest rank. The word professor comes from an old French word professeur and directly from the Latin word professor that is a person who professes to be an expert in a specific field of art or science. Professors often conduct original research and mostly teach undergraduate, professional, or postgraduate courses in their fields of expertise. In universities with graduate schools, professors may oversee and guide graduate students conducting research for an essay or dissertation. In most 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. The role of professor may be more public-facing than that of more junior staff.
A professor is also a well recognized and accomplished expert in a specific academic field with mostly post-doctoral academics equivalent qualifications who teach in four-year 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 other facilities needed for them to continue their research
Professors are qualified experts in their field who generally perform some or all the following tasks;
- Managing, teaching, research, and publications in their field of study;
- Presenting lectures and seminars in their specific field of study;
- Performing, research and publishing of advanced original researched in journals to be reviewed by peers;
- Mentoring and training of junior academic staffs and students;
- Conducting, control and holding of important managerial positions such as head of departments, deans and vice chancellors;
Step 1
Get an undergraduate degree. The road to becoming a professor starts with a bachelor's degree. It is a requirement for entering graduate school.
Step 2
Choose a subject to dedicate yourself to. People who want to become professors must then choose a subject to teach and begin gaining knowledge in that area, usually by studying the subject while also chasing their undergraduate degree but should not always focus all their attention. In addition to taking assignments in a precise subject matter area, while also partaking in an internship program in their undergraduate years can also help develop their knowledge and skills.
Step 3
Earn a graduate degree. Expectant professors must further their education with a graduate degree. In general, those who want to work as professors at community colleges are needed to earn a master's degree, while those who want to lecture at four-year colleges and universities should earn a doctorate.
Step 4
Participate in an assistantship. During their graduate years, students who want to become professors should participate in an assistantship program at their school, which is a kind of financial aid that allows students to get full or partial tuition reduction and income as they gain experience under the direction of a professor.
There are diverse kinds of assistantships available, depending on the students' academic department. Research assistantships allow students to carry out certain duties, such as gathering, documentation, and analyzing research data. Those in teaching assistantships partake in instructional events which may include evaluation of tests and assignments, meeting with students during office hours, and giving lectures. Those in managerial assistantship work with the staff of an academic department and perform duties such as giving academic advise and counseling to students, giving presentations, and grading programs in the department.
Step 5
Get post-doctoral experience. In order to effectively compete for professor positions, people who have completed the aforementioned steps should obtain post-doctoral experience. This allows those who completed their Ph.D. to conduct original research and begin to gather a record of studies published in academic journals.
Salary Structures for Professors
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in May 2017 the mean salary for professors was $76,000 a year, with the bottom ten percent earning around $39,000 and the top ten percent earning $170,160. There are several deciding factors that go into how much a professor earn, including the type of institution they work for. For example, professors at private colleges and universities earn a mean income of $77,000 and those at state schools earn $79,300. In addition, professors who work for local junior colleges make a mean income of $76,900 and educators at state junior colleges make $56,000.
Also, the agency reports that a professors field of specialization can influence their earning potential a survey taken observed that Teachers of law were the top earners in 2018, with median wages of $111,140. Engineering and economics were also high-demand subjects, with the median salary for each of these areas reaching six figures. Health specialty professors followed close behind at $97,370.
In addition to the division by field of specialization, an added a breakdown of professor salary by type of school. State community colleges provided the lowest mean wages, followed by private colleges and universities, then state colleges and universities. Local community colleges offered the highest average salaries.
Another way to grade professors salary is by Progress Based on Experience One of the most important notions in higher education is the buildup of earning power over time. While entry-level professors aren’t at the peak of their salary potential, conditions can change drastically, especially for educators who earn coveted positions.
1. Professor Ranks
Not all professors are equal. A hierarchy of academic levels distinguishes one professor from the next. You might want to know the variance between an assistant professor and an associate professor? Wondering how long it might take to climb up the ladder? This article breaks down some of the hidden details surrounding the structure of this level of academia.
2. Assistant Professor
Assistant professors are starting block professors at colleges and universities. An assistant professor position usually requires a Ph.D. and knowledge with teaching and research in a specific field of study. Becoming an assistant professor is the first step to becoming employed for a long time. An assistant professor's responsibilities usually include research, teaching, and academic advising.
3. Associate Professor
An associate professor is a mid-level professor who usually has a doctorate or other professional degree and teaches courses related to their studies. The responsibilities of an associate professor are akin to an assistant professor. One key variance is that associate professors have more experience and often have a longer employment time.
4. Endowed Professor
An endowed professor is a professor whose position is paid for by funds contributed to a college, trust fund, or other financial institution. The title is a high honor because it is normally held only by notable faculty members.
5. Distinguished Professor
Distinguished professor is a title sometimes given to the top tenured professors in a university, school, or department. The honor is given to highly regarded professors who are leaders in their fields of study. Distinguished professors are selected through a nomination process, and they often receive additional salary and research funds. Candidates are usually selected by a committee and then endorsed by administrators, such as the school's dean or president.
6. Professor Emeritus
A professor emeritus is a retired professor who was granted the title as an honor. Though some emeriti professors continue working part-time following retirement, many no longer work actively at all. At some institutions, all professors who retire in good standing become professors emeriti. Other schools require a special act or vote. Typically, professors receive the title "professor emeritus" regardless of gender, but some organizations will grant retired female faculty the title "professor emerita."
- Professors have a high social standing
- Professors can make decent money
- You will have decent job security
- Good future job prospects for professors
- Decent work-life balance for professors
You can make additional money
- Professors have a high social standing
- Professors can make decent money
- You will have decent job security
- Professors also enjoy pretty high job security.
- Decent work-life balance for professors
- Some professors think they know everything
- You may become arrogant
- Professors don’t earn as much as if they worked in the corporate world
- You need funding to finance your research
- You and your students may be unmotivated
- You will have a rather rigid schedule
- It takes a long time to become a professor
- Not a good job if you are an introverted person
- You may become arrogant