EDUCATOR’S PAGE
Who and What Are Professors?
The academy, a reference to the “for- mal academy” of higher learning (i.e., col- lege or university), employs individuals with advanced degrees to teach, conduct research, and serve the academic insti- tution. Most of the individuals teaching your university classes hold terminal degrees, usually doctorates, in their respective fields of study. So, your geol- ogy professors likely hold at least a mas- ter’s degree, but more often, a doctorate in geology or a related discipline. As I bandy about the word “professor,” it occurs to me that I ought to describe what this means. The nomenclature of the faculty at universities is hierarchical, meaning that there are certain classes of faculty within the academic caste sys- tem. In general, regular departmental faculty members are called professors, and depending on the institution, their individual emphasis may be teaching, or at larger institutions, research. The pro- fessor’s load, in other words what he or she does each semester at the university, may be primarily teaching, research, or a combination of both. Most professors, even if they are predominately dedicated to research, will teach a couple of classes a year.
Faculty members may be lecturers or professors. A lecturer is often a title reserved for term-specific instructors, full-time non-tenure track7 instructors, faculty not holding a terminal degree, or part-time instructors. Full-time faculty members at the institution, who are on a tenure-track or on a fixed term, are referred to as professors. Entry level members of the faculty are generally hired as assistant professors. Assistant professors are not tenured and reside at the bottom end (or, is that backside?) of the seniority list at a university. The next rung up on the professional ladder of academic standing is occupied by the associate professor. Associate professors are usually, but not always, tenured, meaning they have continuing contracts for subsequent future employment at the university and are more-or-less “secure” in their jobs.8 The highest rank held by a member of the faculty is usually that of
full professor. These folks are the senior, or most veteran, members of the faculty.
At least colloquially, there is a dis- tinction between staff, faculty, and administration at a university. Staff members are non-faculty employees, such as administrative assistants, coun- seling providers, recruiters, and other professionals and paraprofessionals. Members of the faculty are the instruc- tors. Administration encompasses the upper tier of leadership, and each depart- ment (or college) is under the direct supervision of a dean. A provost is the academic leader at the institution and oversees all aspects related to the func- tionality of teaching and learning. There will also be one or more vice presidents and a president at the academic insti- tution, who are the political entities at the university, responsible for securing donations, obtaining funding, and man- aging the community integration of the institution.
What Are Majors and Minors?
A lot of students begin formal aca- demic preparation as undeclared majors at a university. The major is the pri- mary field of emphasis, such as geol- ogy, business, accounting, engineering, mathematics, nursing, information technology, computer programming, etc. Most degrees consist of a general coursework (or liberal arts) component plus a major component. In other words, in addition to pursuing classes in your desired field of study (i.e., the major), university students are required to com- plete a number of liberal arts electives (e.g., philosophy, physical education, health, whatever may be outside the major). The purpose of this requirement is to provide students a rich and diverse background in general subject matter knowledge. Students often must take so many classes or credits in various catego- ries of liberal arts study as a minimum requirement at the university regardless of the intended major.
In addition to the required major and set of elective liberal arts credits, stu- dents may select a minor field of empha- sis. For example, some students may
7. Probationary faculty that are working toward tenure are said to be on a tenure-track.
8. The means by which a professor earns tenure varies greatly by college or university, but usually involves some combination of success in teaching, scholarship (research/publications), and/or professional service. Some institutions, particularly many private ones, do not grant tenure.
9. The example here only describes classes for which A-F grades are obtained and not “satisfactory” or “unsatisfactory” grades. The refer- ences include a detailed itemization of which point values are assigned to which letters (e.g., C+ = 2.33).
www.aipg.org
major in biology and minor in chemistry, or major in physics and minor in math- ematics. A minimal number of credits are required in a university minor. The usual total number of credits to earn an undergraduate degree from a university is around 120 (semester credits).
How are Grades Determined?
What has been covered so far is peripheral information, useful for under- standing the general functionality of a university. Next, I want to take a brief look at assessment – clearly one of the most essential, and directly relevant, aspects of formal schooling. Be advised that each professor has his or her own way of grading – within the institution’s allotted grade determining scheme – so it is vital to understand just how your per- formance in each class will be calculated. I include this here because when I first started out as a college student, nobody explained any of this to me, and it is very useful to understand. Whether you agree with the idea of assigning grades based on performance or not, most academic institutions do formally assign letter grades (or numerical equivalents). Let’s quickly delve into this a smidge more.
Grade Point Average
Your grade point average (GPA) is a reflection of your formal academic per- formance at the institution, and you will likely receive a GPA for each semester’s performance as well as your to-date cumulative record at the institution. Universities determine GPA by assign- ing a numerical value to each equivalent letter, such as “A = 4.0” and “B = 3.0;” occasionally, an institution will include a +/- for the grades, such as “A = 4.0”, “A- = 3.7”, “B+ = 3.3”, etc. To figure out your GPA, take the numerical value for the grade you have earned and multiply it by the number of credit hours; sum the totals for each class in the semester and divide by the completed number of credits in the term.9 See Table 1 on next page for an example.
Weighted Percentages
A common practice among instruc- tors at any level is to assign a weighted
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