Academic rank - Definition and Overview

Academic organizations typically have a rather rigid set of ranks.

United States

Within the United States the hierarchy of ranks is:

• Full Professor
• Associate Professor
• Assistant Professor
• [Various statuses requiring a Ph.D. that are neither professorships nor post-doctoral fellowships, varying from one university to another. Among these are Lecturer and Instructor. At some universities, those titles are held by persons without doctorates; at some others, they are held only by persons with doctorates.]
• Post-doctoral fellow
• Graduate assistant including teaching assistants and research assistants.
• Graduate or professional student (law, medicine, and accounting)
• Undergraduate student

There is a parallel system of administrative ranks

• President
• Chancellor (sometimes higher than President in a few universities)
• Provost
• Vice President
• Vice Chancellor
• Vice Provost
• Associate Vice President
• Associate Vice Chancellor
• Associate Vice Provost
• Assistant Vice President
• Assistant Vice Chancellor
• Assistant Vice Provost
• Dean
• Associate Dean
• Assistant Dean
• Director of Department (Administrative Department)
• Associate Director of Department (Administrative Department)
• Assistant Director of Department (Administrative Department)
• Head of Department (Academic Department)

United Kingdom

Academic ranks:

• Professor
• Reader
• Principal Lecturer (usually only used in New Universities)
• Senior Lecturer
• Lecturer
• Research Fellow
• Teaching assistant
• Postgraduate Student/Research Assistant
• Undergraduate

Administrative ranks:

• Chancellor (honorific)
• Pro-Chancellor (honorific)
• Vice Chancellor
• Pro-Vice Chancellor
• Registrar or Bursar
• Dean of Faculty
• Head of Department/School

See also

• Academia