<p>I think DS might make a terrific math prof. (I’ve seen some of his math club lectures online.) I have not encouraged it because it seems that college prof can be a tough road. It seems it would be hard to find a position, and there is often great pressure to publish. One of the best teachers at my engineering college was refused tenure because he focused on the classroom, without much research.</p>
<p>H is a community college prof. Good salary (better than median listed), no research, but teaching heavier load that ever before, usually 15-25 credits, due to less state money and hiring freeze (school uses more adjuncts every year). Classes are all full due to economy, more people back in school. He spends a lot of class time on remedial basics and students are less prepared every year. </p>
<p>But stressed? No, it’s his job. His lectures are standard, just need tweaking, homework and labs to be graded, exam preparation. He tends to let thing pile up, so at semester end he is scrambling to get things completed and doesn’t get a lot of sleep, but that stress if self-inflicted. </p>
<p>However, he is tenured, gets 4 months off in the summer and 3 weeks at semester break, has great benefits and a pension at retirement. </p>
<p>Hard for me to put professor in the stressful occupation column.</p>
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In an earlier life I was a structural engineer. Very high stress.</p>
<p>As we all know on CC, there are many colleges in this country from Harvard to ABC U. in Whoknowswhere. The requirements, stress and pay are very different for the vastly different colleges and areas of teaching for professors. Some involve a great deal of stress and others , not so much. Some pay a lot more than $62k, and some not.</p>
<p>Remember, the front end is as difficult or more than most professional jobs. Professor’s pay is usually not as good as doctors, dentists or lawyers. But the educational requirement are equal or greater. The job stress, after tenure, is usually lower than these other professional jobs. But so is the pay. It’s a trade off.</p>
<p>I’ve been working as a professor for over 20 years. My H longer. He is now a Dean. (I worked in non academic jobs before this one.). We do not work at large research institutions and do work in fields where professors tend to be paid more. But I think it is a great profession. I have tremendous freedom. No one knows when I come in to my office. I do set my teaching schedule each semester and I have a lot of time off from teaching. There are stresses and requirements, for sure. But it is actually a great job. </p>
<p>I’m encouraging D2 to go into the profession. She has seen the life, and it fits her. D1 is better suited to her current profession, derivative trading. She works 11-12 hour intense days, no lunch time (by choice) and works holidays. July 4th is only a holiday in the US. after all . Trading goes on. But D2 is very highly paid.</p>
<p>So, I think being a professor is a great job. This current list was not the first time I have seen it listed, wherever else, as a low stress, ideal job.</p>
<p>It’s a great job if you can get a tenure-track position. We have a friend who has a kid who just got a tenure-track spot, she’s only 32 and baby 3 is on the way so this is great.<br>
Too many schools are now using lots of adjuncts.
My sister has taught for the last 8 years as a part time adjunct . Many of her co-workers are young PhDs in the language who can’t find tenure track positions. They drive all over the city teaching one or two classes a day at three schools. No office in which to hold (unpaid) office hours. Crappy deal for them and worse for the students.</p>
<p>
The principal french horn player is often highest or second highest paid player in the orchestra, after the concertmaster. The physical demands are incredible, and make it hard to stay in this role for more than 15 or 20 years before you wear out (there are exceptions). In addition it is one of the most exposed from a performance perspective. So that can create a lot of stress.</p>
<p>But I think the main stressors in these jobs are not so much the specific job-related tasks, but the political BS that goes along with it.</p>
<p>In an orchestra you can wind up sitting next to the same person for literally decades. And if you don’t like that person or get along with them, or if they are major-league a-holes, that is stressful.</p>
<p>I suspect being a professor is similar in that respect.</p>
<p>
Wow, it’s like Godwin’s law. Voila, an adjunct bashing thread. </p>
<p>Adjuncts are typically not paid by the hour, so obviously office hours are part of the expectation that goes with the salary, just like grading hours and prep hours. God forbid your precious pups should get any adjunct professors in college, what with the worseness of their status and all that.</p>
<p>[The</a> Forbes-College Professor War Is So On](<a href=“http://gawker.com/5973391/the-forbes+college-professor-war-is-so-on]The”>http://gawker.com/5973391/the-forbes+college-professor-war-is-so-on)</p>
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<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>Anecdotes versus over-generalization … the eternal battle.</p>
<p>Is there much doubt that a number of professors are working very hard? Nope. Are there many as driven as MLH’s father who puts in ungodly hours at the ripe age of 75? I seriously doubt that!</p>
<p>Based on the family members who have chosen a career in the academic world, I’d say that I simply do NOT buy the argument of stress and hard work being omnipresent. And neither do I trust what THEY say about their work demands. They are experts about complaining about what they WILL do, how much there is to do, and how long it takes them to actually do it. </p>
<p>The reality is that when I compare the life of my family members who own their own businesses to those who work in public service, there is simply no comparison. There are the ones who arrive late at family gatherings and leave as soon as possible because they HAVE to. And then there the academicians who graded their last papers two weeks before Christmas and won’t see a student for another two weeks. And look forward to Easter break and the many weeks of summer idleness. </p>
<p>Talking about long hours is quite different from actually having to execute them. People who have enjoyed glorified sinecures for so long simply do not understand what most folks have to do week after week to earn a living.</p>
<p>I recall that decades ago a comedian said the most stressful job was being a bank security guard in Alaska…every customer enters wearing a ski mask.</p>
<p>This is a timely thread for me since I am stewing about a related topic. Do professors who teach online classes get paid the same as those who show up in person? I just paid full tuition per credit for my D to take an online class through her university. They never have a meeting and the professor tells the students to contact IT with any questions! There was no rubric for the class so my D had to email her to find out what the grade is based on. She did get back to her but, seriously, that is one cushy job!</p>