College Professor

What a College Professor Does

College professors teach students who enroll in postsecondary institutions, including colleges, universities, trade/vocational schools, and community colleges. They are responsible for putting together a lesson plan, delivering the material to students, responding to the learning needs of students, and evaluating a student's comprehension of the material taught, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. College professors may provide a lecture and use slides or PowerPoint presentations to facilitate the instruction and highlight key points; others teach lab courses and give instruction to students on proper handling of equipment. As the semester progresses, a college professor grades college students using tests or quizzes or assigning papers or projects that reflect classroom instruction. They usually teach one or more closely-related courses, and must sometimes tailor instruction for undergraduate students and graduate students. Outside the classroom, they maintain regular office hours in which their students can approach them with questions or concerns. Many college professors spend a good deal of their time conducting research in their chosen subject area and participating in continuing education opportunities in which they expand their knowledge in the field.

How to Become a College Professor

College professors are required to hold different credentials depending on what type of higher education institution at which they are employed. At major research universities, virtually all faculty members must hold a terminal degree in their field, usually a PhD. In fact, the majority of four-year colleges and universities require their tenure-track, full-time professors to hold a doctorate, according to the Bureau. However, teaching at the college level in certain disciplines, such as the arts, may only require a master's degree in the discipline. Two-year colleges have traditionally been more willing to bring on faculty who hold master's degrees, the Bureau notes. However, two-year colleges will generally give preference to a candidate with a doctoral degree if there is significant competition for a job. College professors must have strong communication and people skills, and will increasingly need to acquire training for teaching distance learning courses for online students. Tenured college professors must often slowly move up through the ranks of instructor, assistant professor and associate professor until they reach the rank of professor after many years at one university, the Bureau explains.

Career Outlook for College Professors

While college professors often find their work very rewarding, it can be a challenge to become tenured in the field, as competition for tenure-track positions is steep. That being said, postsecondary teachers will experience faster than average employment growth from 2008 to 2018; employment of postsecondary teachers is expected to grow by 15 percent in that decade the Bureau projects. Job openings will result from large numbers of expected retirements as the Baby Boomer generation ages and leaves the workforce. Increased demand for postsecondary teachers will be spurred by higher enrollment in colleges in universities, particularly of adults returning to college to increase their career prospects and higher levels of recent high school graduates attending college. More teaching positions should be available in high-demand areas, such as business and nursing. The average annual salary of a postsecondary teacher was $58,830 as of May 2008, the Bureau shows, but average salaries for full-time faculty were $79,439, according to a survey by the American Association of University Professors. Top-level professors averaged $108,749 a year, the survey revealed.