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Only 24 hours in the day PART TWO: Breakdown by type of institution

The above image is of the Anthropology Museum at Beloit College (creative commons license).

 

Last week we covered some general results from a survey we ran here on the blog in late May.  This week I am sharing a more careful breakdown for each of the different types of institutions.  We plan to run this survey again this fall to get a more comprehensive view of each of these categories.  In some cases (Art & Design schools) we have a low sample size to draw from.  Next time we’ll try to paint a more comprehensive picture.

 

R1 Universities (n=34, 16 Asst Profs, 9 Assoc Profs, 8 Full Profs, 1 Endowed Chair).  Based on our data set, this category was the most variable, but also the largest group.  These professors are teaching from 0 to 5 classes per semester.  They might be teaching exclusively graduate students, mixed graduate and undergraduate, or 100% undergraduate.  They spend 0-42 hours in the classroom per week, with 5-100 students in each class and 0-500 total students per semester.  People reported that that their University valued teaching across the spectrum, from: “teaching is not important at all” to “excellence in the classroom is required for tenure.”  The professors are spending anywhere between 0 and >75% of their time on research.

 

Harkness Tower at Yale (creative commons license).
Harkness Tower at Yale (creative commons license).

 

R2 Universities (n=13, 8 Asst Profs, 3 Assoc Profs, 1 Full Prof, 1 Endowed Chair).  These professors are teaching 1 to 4 classes per semester and anywhere from 0-100% of their students are undergraduates.  They spend 3-30 hours per week in the classroom with 10-100 students per class and 20-210 students per semester.  People reported the importance of teaching as anywhere from: “teaching excellence is considered a bonus” to “excellence in the classroom is required for tenure.”  The professors are spending anywhere between 10 and >75% of their time on research.

 

Master’s granting institutions (n=14, 8 Asst Profs, 3 Assoc Profs, 3 Full Profs).  These professors reported teaching 1 to 5 classes per semester to anywhere from 0-100% undergraduates.  This totalled 3-30 hours per week in the classroom with 15-115 students per class and 10-250 student per semester.  There was a clear emphasis on teaching at these schools with responses in two categories: “teaching is a significant component of tenure decisions” and “excellence in the classroom is required for tenure.”  These professors reported spending between <10% and 50% of their time on research.

 

Tier 1 SLACs (n=7, 4 Asst Profs, 1 Assoc Prof, 1 Full Prof, 1 Endowed Chair).  These professors are teaching 2-3 classes per semester to all undergraduates.  This totals 5-12 hours per week in the classroom with 12-80 students per class and 25-150 students per semester.  Teaching is very important and ranges from “teaching is a significant component of tenure decisions to “excellence in the classroom is required for tenure.”  Professors are spending anywhere between 10-75% of their time on research.

 

All other SLACs (n=12, 8 Asst Profs, 3 Assoc Profs, 1 Full Prof).  Based on our dataset, these professors are teaching 2-5 classes per semester and all of their students are undergraduates.  They are spending 8-20 hours in the classroom per week with 15-50 students per class and 40-120 students per semester.  Teaching is again emphasized, with all respondents answering either “teaching is a significant component of tenure decisions” or “excellence in the classroom is required for tenure.”  Professors are spending anywhere between <10%-50% of their time on research.

 

The nature lab at the Rhode Island School of Design (creative commons license).
The nature lab at the Rhode Island School of Design (creative commons license).

 

Art & Design Schools (n=3, 2 Asst Profs, 1 Assoc Prof).  In this very small group, professors are teaching between 1 and 4 classes per semester and all of their students are undergraduates.  This totals 2-12 hours in the classroom per week, with 20-25 students per class and 20-100 students per semester.  Teaching is again emphasized, with all respondents answering either “teaching is a significant component of tenure decisions” or “excellence in the classroom is required for tenure.”  This small group is spending anywhere between <10% to 50% of their time on research.

 

Community Colleges (n=4, all Asst Profs).  These professors are teaching 3-4 classes per semester to all undergraduates.  This means 16-24 hours per week in the classroom with 20-30 students per class and 80-100 students per semester.  Teaching is variable with respondents answering anything from “teaching excellence is considered a bonus” to “excellence in the classroom is required for tenure.”  These professors are spending anywhere from 0-50% of their time on research.

READ: Only 24 hours in the day: academic trade-offs in teaching and research – Part One
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