the basics
What's it like to be a professor?
Overview
Teaching in a university or college as a professor allows educators to teach courses in a specialized subject, work with engaged students, and have a flexible schedule. There are two different types of professors: teaching and research. Teaching professors are what most people are familiar with, educators who spend their time in classrooms helping students reach their full potential. Research professors spend most of their time researching their subject of interest such as marketing or finance to write and publish journals for their university. Research professors, unlike teaching professors, have the opportunity to apply for tenure, where a professor is given a permanent position at the university. This guarantees some form of income for the professor even after they retire. Tenure is difficult to achieve but is one of the most sought after benefits by professors. It usually requires submitting a specific number of journals and working for a certain number of years. Professors are constantly learning and growing as they pass their interests to future generations.
Requirements
Most colleges and universities expect a PhD in the chosen subject to become a professor. However, some schools may accept a master’s degree. First, a professor must complete a bachelor’s and master’s degree. After, they must obtain a PhD which requires extensive amounts of education in the specialized area and may take 3-5 years depending on the school and program. This comes out to a total of 8-11 years of education. Although this may seem long, usually the bachelor’s degree doesn’t have to be related to the PhD subject, allowing someone to switch in and out of the professor route. For example, instead of going straight to a PhD, college grads can work for a few years and then apply for a professor role. Aside from education, it is recommended that aspiring professors work as a teaching assistant under a senior professor to gain teaching experience beforehand. They hold office hours, lead small discussions, grade papers, and perform administrative tasks for the professor.
What Can High School Students Do?
- Maintain a high GPA
- Tutor other students or siblings
- Find a possible subject to specialize in
- Take writing or research classes such as:
- AP English Language and Composition
- AP Research
- AP Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Science, or Physics
- Participate in a research-based competition
- National History Day: https://www.nhd.org/
- Your School Science Fair
- Regeneron Science Talent Search: https://www.regeneron.com/responsibility/sts-isef#:~:text=The%20Regeneron%20Science%20Talent%20Search,demonstrating%20exceptional%20scientific%20leadership%20potential. Or https://www.societyforscience.org/isef/
Please check out the sources below, they have links connecting more websites to further your research!
