the path of a university teacher

As the new year began, I decided to introduce a new section in the blog. I thought it would be useful to give you an overview about the plethora of the different career paths English can offer you. Let us see them briefly and realistically, taking into account that every position, even the most prestigious and the most crappy, has its joys and its challenges. What does it mean to be on the top of the academic world and be a university professor? What makes people choose a job in high schools when it is so underprivileged? What do you do with the loads of information -- from technical data to company secrets -- when you are an interpreter? How can you enjoy an office job in a multinational company? Should you go abroad, for an exotic experience or on a humanitarian mission, to teach English in an orphanage in Senegal?

The accounts will never be completely objective; while trying to be general, the interviewees share their own personal stories and challenge you to think with them. What does it mean to be a university professor? Let us see what an insider thinks.

Hi, Eva. As one of my favorite university professors, could you tell us where you work and for how long, so we see your background? 

I have been teaching at the English Applied Linguistics Department (of a university whose name the editor hid away) since 2007. 

 

Have you taught in any other environment?  

Yes, I have taught in three secondary schools in Budapest, in one tertiary college in London (teaching Russian and Russian studies at GCSE and A levels).   

Wow, quite a few places! What do you feel to be the main differences? 

One of the differences is that a teacher in a school gets to know their students much better than a lecturer at a university – sees the students more frequently and usually teaches them for a longer period of time (not only for 1 or 2 semesters). This affects not only your relationship with the students but also the way you teach: when you know your students, it is much easier to tailor the course to your students' needs. It is also much easier and, in fact, more accepted to make changes in the syllabus, methods, etc. as you go along in order to suit the needs of particular students better. 

What do you like about university teaching? 

The intellectual stimulation and challenges from my students as well as the discussions with them. I also like working with my students, be it a thesis, a project or a presentation. Another good thing about university teaching is that it is an intellectually  demanding job which keeps you on your toes. 

What are the main challenges in university teaching, generally and specifically for you? 

One of the main challenges in university teaching is to develop critical thinking, or thinking as such in students. To show that making the brain sweat while working on a problem is a pleasurable activity. The biggest challenge for me is motivation, how I can get my students to enjoy doing things in their heads. This is where the lack of contact, the once a week seminars present a real problem..

True, rarely do students (people) like to make efforts. To follow the thought, how can one overcome this challenge? What do you think a good university instructor is like? Who would you recommend a career as a university teacher for? 

A good university instructor is a thinking person, an intellectual who is open, tolerant and interested in their students. Somebody who has an inquisitive mind and for whom teaching and professional development go hand in hand. A good university instructor should be a teacher rather than a lecturer. 

Unfortunately current trends go against this. In a publish-or-perish culture, teaching is of secondary importance. 

Thank god, there are those who do it anyway. Thank you!