Are all college/university professors required to do research and publication?

Question

I am considering pursuing a PhD in French Linguistics. One of the career options in this path is teaching at the college level. However, I'm not sure that I would enjoy the research and publication required of university professors. Are all professors required to do research?

A follow up question: can a PhD in French Linguistics teach French more generally, or would my career become limited to schools that have a French Linguistics program?

Answer 1

Yes, you can do it, and there are schools out there that will accept you.

As for that first answer: getting a PhD is something you do for your own reasons, and outside of universities, a PhD is a great degree for raising one's salary.

Go for your dream!

Answer 2

In top schools where they would be likely to have a program in linguistics (as opposed to teaching Freshman introductory French I to meet their language requirement) your career will depend almost entirely on the quality and volume of your publications. Why should they hire someone to teach a minimal number of courses unless that person is widely reqconized as a leader in the field who has contributed significantly to the advance of the discipline?

The number of schools who have linguistics programs in French is probably pertty tiny. So unless you have a very aggressive attitude toward academic publication, you should look in some other direction. Before you start any PhD program and throw away six years of your life and a lot of money, you should check all the people who have gotten PhDs from that department in the last ten years (which is probably not many) and call them up and ask them for advice. I bet you would get an earfull!

Answer 3

Yes -- college professors are expected to do research. At the better universities, they don't even care if you are a good teacher, as long as you do good research.

If you are not interested in doing research, then you should not pursue a PhD.

Go back & read what I just wrote -- burn it into your memory. This is the most important piece of advice anyone will give you.

Saying you want to get a PhD but don't want to do research is like saying that you want to be an astronaut or submarine captain, but have a fear of being put into an enclosed space. There is no way you can do it and be good at it.

The only reason to get a PhD is so that you can do research.

Answer 4

If a professor wants tenure then yes they have to publish. It also depends on the type of institution where the professor teaches. A place like the Ohio State University which is a major research institution and Columbus State Community College (a community college in Ohio) have vastly different requirements for being a professor. The final determinant is whether the professor is a researcher (who generally has teaching assistants teach most of his/her classes) or a professor who wants to teach students.

Answer 5

No, it depends on the level of the university.
I taught at a small college where no research was required.
Though you could seek those opportunities if you wanted.
But it was ok just to teach as a phd professor there.
It wasn't an ivy league college or anything.
Some universities are 'teaching' universities not 'research' universities. So yes, you can at a lower level institution.

Answer 6

It depends on the school. Usually some research and publication is necessary to achieve tenure.