Job Description of an English Professor
Although an English professor's primary job is to teach the students, they have other duties as well. One job duty they have is to research various issues regarding their field, write about their findings and publish them in different journals, books or magazines. An English professor who specializes in African-American literary history may write several articles on the Harlem Renaissance and how this enabled African-Americans to showcase their literature to wider audiences. Or a professor may do some fieldwork while researching oral traditions of the Appalachian area.
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Student Guidance
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English professors also assist their students when necessary. For example, a student may be struggling with a long research paper on a comparison between modernist and postmodernist writers in America. The professor may offer the student some of his own books on the subject or write down specific scholarly articles that will get the student inspired. This is why they keep office hours on certain days of each week. Also they often advise students on career opportunities and tell them how to apply for certain jobs.
Course Development
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Because students should have challenging but enjoyable courses in English, English professors also spend their time developing courses for the upcoming semester. They also research various textbooks on the subject they plan to teach and get approval of their courses from the department dean.
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Administrative Duties
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English professors also perform administrative duties such as grading students' exams and research papers, sending emails to colleagues or their supervisors, revising their own articles and preparing business letters.
Training and Education
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For English professors at two-year colleges, at least a master's degree in English or liberal arts is required to teach, and for those teaching at four-year universities, they often hold a doctorates degree in English or a related field. Many universities also require that their future professors have three to four years of collegiate teaching experience as well as research experience. Many professors received their first teaching experiences as teaching assistants in graduate school.
Salary and Outlook
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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary for professors is $108,000, and for an assistant professor, it is $63,827. As for job projections, the number of professors is expected to grow by 15 percent by the year 2018. This increase could be attributed to the increase of young people and older students in universities to increase their marketability in a changing and competitive workforce.
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References
Resources
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