Almost all universities have an academic rank system. As you already knew, in the United States a tenure-track position starts with assistant professor. An assistant professor has a chance to be promoted to an associated, and then a full professor. Someone said that academic ranks in Europe are different, and a tenure track position starts with a full-time lecturer, and that assistant professor in the US and a full-time lecturer in Europe are equivalent.
Quite often promotion to a higher rank is associated with salary raise. Also, one's promotion may provide a sense of achievement for him or herself. Other than these, what is the meaning of academic rank to you? Does a professor with a higher academic rank have a higher authority than his or her lower counterpart? In other words, does the rank show the hierarchy of authority? Or does it simply mean that the high rank professor deserves a better respect?
Additionally, do you think that universities need to create more OR less academic ranks than the current common ranks? And on what grounds do you think that way?
I think the hierarchy of academic ranks is justified insofar as it is adequately symbolizes the research achievements and the overall trajectory of scholars. Nevertheless, as with other major structural reforms unfolding across university life, faculty staff ranking has also undergone significant amendments. For example, it is now ever more relevant for academic promotions to have a competitive and nearly impeccable record of student teaching evaluations. Whilst teaching has certainly been a major conponent of academic life historically, the current system of student evaluations potentially undermines the process of academic promotion. Students evaluations of university teachers are currently an inadequate tool to validate teaching performance and outcomes. Take the case of the common cognitive biases and the issue methodological inefficiency.
Dear Alejandra,
I agree that students' teaching evaluation alone is not sufficient to assess a professor's teaching performance. Sometime, universities also use peer teaching evaluation (evaluation by fellow professors), but it is still short to measure one's teaching performance.
Thank you for your answer.
Don
It's complex really. Measurement of parameters may be subject to personal judgment in some instances
Yes there should be a system of ranking based on research and teaching performances of University lecturers. Students ranking should make about 40% of the aggregate score. Others include publications, innovation, scientific presentation, membership of professional body etc... In my country, lecturers rise from Assistant Lecturer - Lecturer II - Lecturer I - Senior Lecturer - Reader/Associate Professor - Professor. However, a Senior Lecturer can be promoted to the position of a Professor.
Hi,
The promotion from an assistant professor to associate and full professor depends on several indicators, by descending order of importance- The scientific achievements, that is, the number of papers published, their value, the type of journals where these articles were published etc' Then there is the expert judgement that should be all excellent in recommending the candidate for promotion. Then there is the teaching evaluation, that is shown by a regular mechanism of feedback questionnaires conducted every semester at the university. Then there is the candidate's participation in national land international conferences, and his contribution to university's committees. Also, his personality and his collegiate relations with other faculty members is considered.
A person that passes all this successfully deserves his promotion, and respect.
In the USA, there are different standards for promotion depending on the University. In all cases, recommendations originate with the faculty who submits an application to the department, then a departmental committee makes a recommendation to the college and a college committee makes a recommendation to the university upper administration. The process at the last level varies and in our cases it goes to committee of college deans that makes a final recommendation to the chief academic officer who makes the final decision.
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