How is the routine of a University Professor?

I received a few questions from a dear reader of the site about the routine of a University Professor. As I have been in the academic environment these last few years (UFSJ, UFJF, USP, Unifesp), and as now, this year, I am going to teach at a private college here in my city, Fasul, I will answer the questions in this text for those who interested in knowing more about this profession.

Training to be a teacher and selection processes

The minimum training to be a college professor is to have a degree. With a degree, it is possible to get a placement in federal, state or private colleges.

For public colleges (federal and state), the selection process is by public tender and the professor – after 2 years of experience, duration of the probationary period – will have career stability, that is, it is very unlikely that he will be fired.

In general, to be able to participate in these public tenders, the teacher will have to have a degree more than just graduation. You will need to have a master’s degree and, in the vast majority of cases, a doctorate. For example, for a position as a professor at a federal university for psychology, the candidate must have a degree in psychology, a master’s and a doctorate in psychology.

However, there are exceptions. For colleges further away from the Southeast, it is common for colleges to be unable to find PhDs at times. Then, there is the reopening of the contest requiring only the master’s degree. It is also possible to find some vacancies that are more “open”, that is, they require a degree in an area and a doctorate in a related area. Let’s say, for a position in Educational Psychology, the professor may have a background in psychology and a doctorate in pedagogy or philosophy of education.

Another possibility for teaching at public colleges is the selection process for substitute professors. Sometimes professors take a leave of absence or a vacancy arises after retirement, and the faculty fills it with a temporary professor. The contract ranges from 6 months to 2 years.

For private colleges, the selection process is generally simpler. Teachers will not always have specific training for the subject they are teaching. And the faculty will not always want to pay a doctor’s salary (since a specialist or master’s salary is lower).

How is the routine of a University Professor?

The routine of a university professor varies according to many factors: whether he teaches at a public or private college, whether he is a permanent or substitute, whether he is at a college that offers postgraduate degrees (master’s, doctorate, postdoctoral).

A professor at a private college can teach at night and have other jobs during the day, for example, being a teacher in high schools or having other types of work related to his education. I knew a law school professor who had his law firm during the day and taught at night.

In federal colleges, it is common for the contest to require a specific amount of time to work during the week, usually 20 hours a week (which would correspond to part-time) or 40 hours a week. In many cases, for effective teachers, the contest will also indicate the need for exclusive dedication: it will not be possible to have another job.

In smaller federal colleges, where there are still no postgraduate courses, it is common for the professor to dedicate himself to his undergraduate classes, offer research opportunities and work with extension (projects that contribute directly to the local community).

When the faculty is larger – in the sense of offering graduate courses – the professor will have to teach undergraduate, master’s and/or doctoral courses. Some postgraduate classes are offered to doctoral and master’s students simultaneously. Each semester, the collegiate of professors defines the grade for each one.

In the public tender held, the professor entered to teach specific disciplines. A psychology professor who teaches social psychology will always take the related subjects. In masters and doctorates, when they are created, the disciplines that each one will take are also defined. At all these levels, however, elective courses are offered from time to time. Students, if they wish, may or may not participate.

At many points in their careers, professors at universities can accumulate positions: they continue to teach (perhaps a little less than usual), and they also work in administrative sectors. This is the case when accepting the position of course coordinator or in a dean’s office.

With regard to research, the professor can propose research for students in scientific initiation, masters, doctorate and learn in orientation. You can use this time to write and publish articles and books. But it’s rare that you get research funded just for you.

In general, this becomes possible with a leave of absence from the faculty and research at another institution in the so-called post-doctoral internship. Therefore, despite the variations of institutions, it is likely that the professor has a workload more focused on teaching and dealing with administrative matters than on carrying out original research.

That is why, as far as I know, there is no such thing as a researcher here in Brazil, just a researcher. There is an obligation to teach, research generally takes a backseat to the organizational structure. Of course, many professors are brilliant in their research, but they need to organize their schedules very well to juggle all the functions in which they are required.

The teacher’s vocation

It is curious that the word teacher and profession have the same origin, from professio, to profess. A person professes – speaks – what he believes, what he was called to do in a lifetime (hence the idea of ​​vocation, to be called to).

As the teaching profession is extremely undervalued in our country, in basic education and high school, many students who like to study go to college and continue studying for a master’s, doctorate, post-doctoral degree. As teaching in Higher Education is still prestigious with better salaries, career stability, and, in a sense, enjoys social status, many seek this path.

However, as in every profession, there are trained and poorly trained professionals. Many professors, even at large universities, do not want to teach. They prefer to research and are lazy teachers. Many have a background so linked to research that they do not learn how to teach, they are not didactic. It is what we often hear: “He/she knows a lot, but does not know how to teach”.

In undergraduate courses, the student completes a significant workload in didactic subjects. However, for several other graduations this type of discipline does not exist. Which would explain the lack of didactics of dozens of teachers.

Salary and career stability

In theory, we could talk about three basic levels of salaries in the academic career:

1. Full Professor: the average starting salary ranges from 7 to 8,000 reais per month. Over time, there is an increase in compensation due to time in office. It is also possible to progress in the career, for example, from Assistant Professor to Adjunct Professor, full professor, etc. In general, the Professor passes the exam and only leaves due to retirement.
2. Doctor professor at a renowned private university: salary is similar to salary 1. The biggest difference is the fact that there is no career stability. It is possible to be fired, although in these larger universities tenure is relatively higher than in smaller ones.
3. Professor at small universities: remuneration can be per month or per hour/class given. To give you an idea, a Doctor Professor receives around 50 reais per hour/class. Career stability is not guaranteed. Changing a director, for example, there is the possibility of being fired.

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