Why do universities hire professors with thick accents?

Question

I go to Berkeley.
My professor is from somewhere in England and most of her students find it very hard to understand her.
Why do universities hire these teachers? Don't they know there's an accent barrier? Are they deaf? Do they want us to fail?!!

Answer 1

There is no easy answer to this question as many factors play into the hiring of professors. Few things that may explain this.

1. It is illegal to deny hiring someone based on nationality. Universities are equal opportunity employers.

2. In most disciplines, the market is saturated with potential candidates. This may seem like it would be easier to hire someone who doesn't speak with an accent but most universities (especially large research universities) hire professors for the research potential not teaching. Those that have excellent research programs tend to bring in more grant money. Contrary to poplular thought, money received from students tuition does not cover most of the universities operating cost, grant money does. That's not to say that tuition is chump change for the univeristy. It still very important but univerisities want to bring in productive professors who birng in lots of money.

So when a professor is hired, the serach committee (a small group of university individuals, usually professors in the department that is hiring the individual) must justify it's selection. It can't turn down someone who is the top candidate because they have an accent. Therefore they will select the top candidate sometimes regardless of teaching potential. Although, I have seen a search committee pass over someone because they could not understand them.

Answer 2

You can't understand someone from England? That's a new one! I hear a lot of complaints about Asian faculty but very few about Europeans, even when their accents are very thick, which tells me more about the students than it does about the faculty.

The fact is that very few Americans are going on for Ph.D's these days, especially in some subject matters. Most are not willing to put in the time for a career that doesn't pay tremendously well compared to others for which they may be qualified. I teach business (at least we do pay reasonably well), and the last few years as we have looked to hire faculty I would guess that less than 10% of those who have applied for the jobs we have had available have been American-born, even though most of them have gotten their doctorates at U.S. universities. Those who are born here, if they are any good, have LOTS of options open to them, so even if we give them offers, we are lucky to get them.