List of academic ranks


This list of academic ranks identifies the hierarchical ranking structure found amongst scholars and personnel in academia. The lists below refer specifically to colleges and universities throughout the world, although other institutions of higher learning may follow a similar schema.

Afghanistan

Tenured positions :
There are other types of professorship with significant honour and contribution to our society, such as Distinguished Professor, or Emeritus Professor.

Austria

Bangladesh

Teachers are categorised in four main classes in Bangladesh at university level. The ascending rank of teacher is Lecturer, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor and Professor. The initial position Lecturer is generally enrolled from master's degree holder. Master's degree is required for normal university level Lecturer. After PhD, the appointment starts with Assistant Professor, then gradually Associate Professor and Professor depending on research/teaching experience. Beside these, professor of Emeritus is given to extraordinary professor after their retirement.
Academic ranks
Administrative ranks
;Dutch speaking community
Administrative ranks:
;French speaking community
Administrative ranks:
Administrative ranks
Honorary ranks
There is no official academic ranking in Brazilian private universities. However, most of the public Federal Universities apply the following :
; University:
; Academy of Sciences
; Higher administration of the academy of sciences:
; Administrative ranks
Faculty
Assistant professor is the entry-level rank for non-tenured members of faculty.
Non-faculty teaching and research personnel
Administrative ranks

Costa Rica

Honorary academic rank
Administrative ranks
Tenured:
Tenure-track faculty positions
Non-tenure track positions

Denmark

Egypt

Teachers are categorized in five main classes in Egypt at university level. The ascending rank of teacher is Demonstrator, Assistant Lecturer, Lecturer, Associate Professor and Professor. The initial position Demonstrator is generally enrolled as the top student of the class. Master's degree is required for university level Assistant Lecturer. After PhD, the appointment starts with Lecturer, then gradually Associate Professor and Professor depending on research/teaching experience. Beside these, professor of Emeritus is given to extraordinary professor after their retirement.
In Finland, there is less of a distinction between graduates and undergraduates: university students may be employed as research assistants before they graduate with a master's degree. A doctoral student must already hold a master's degree, and is typically employed by the university, or enjoys a similar grant, and will be called tohtorikoulutettava, tutkija or assistentti. Besides post-doctoral researchers and senior teaching assistants, there are several mid-level non-professorial positions, such as teaching researcher. Senior teachers and researchers may be employed as e.g. erikoistutkija or yliopistotutkija. Docent is a non-professiorial rank and title awarded to academics qualified as a principal investigator and for supervision of doctoral students; however, they do not belong to the professor corps and may be employed elsewhere. Professors are understood as research group leaders and managers, and traditionally there is no direct equivalent of an assistant/associate/full professor career path, although Aalto University is introducing these. Qualifications for a professor's position are earned as a docent or in other mid-career positions. In management, professors serve as department heads and deans. The leader of a university is called a rector, assisted by multiple vice-rectors. Vice-rectors may retain their professor positions or work full-time as a vice-rector. Some universities have an even more senior officer called Chancellor, who is concerned more with outreach and public relations than with daily management.

France

In French business schools, ranks are the same as in the United States: Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and finally Professor.

Germany

Greece

Administrative ranks
The holders of administrative ranks must be Professors or Associate Professors. The only exception is Secretary General, who is not a faculty member.
Administrative ranks
The holders of administrative ranks must be Professors or Associate Professors.

Guyana

Administrative ranks
In the past, Hong Kong followed the British system. In recent years it is moving towards the North American counterpart, with the titles renamed to their corresponding equivalence, associate professor, and assistant professor ). Hong Kong's universities usually differ between professorial grades and lecturers. Depending on institutions, the title of "professor" is assumed by chair professors and professors, or assistant professors and above.
Academic ranks
Administrative ranks
In Icelandic universities, especially The University of Iceland, prófessor is the most senior ranking teaching position. Below prófessor is dósent, then lektor. This three step hierarchy is akin to the US-scale, of full-, associate- and assistant-professors. Until the early 1990s no upward mobility was available in the Icelandic system. Most university teachers were hired as "prófessor." A "dósent" or a "lektor" wishing to ascend to a higher rank had to apply for a new position when it became available. Currently much more university teachers are hired as junior rank "lektor" and are promoted to "dósent" and "prófessor" if their work proves worthy of it.
Regular Academic ranks : Academic institutions in India have the mandate of teaching, training and research. This also includes research universities.
  1. Professor
  2. Associate Professor
  3. Assistant Professor
  4. In addition to these, there are government sponsored fellowships such as Ramanujan & Ramalingaswami. The fellowship is awarded to able candidates for a 5-year contract period during which they are hosted by an academic or research organisation. Their primary function is to carry out high quality original research. They may become a regular faculty as an assistant professor or associate professor during this period subject to their performance.
  5. Assistant Professor / Adhoc faculty – They are primarily involved in teaching for a limited contract period typically 6 months – 1 year.
Research ranks : Research institutions such as national labs have a different kind of hierarchy and are primarily concerned with basic and applied research. They guide Ph.D. students in their research thesis but do not grant degrees. In most cases the Ph.D. candidates are registered with another university which grants the degree. Awarding of degree is subjected to meeting the same criteria as Ph.D. guided by university professors.
  1. Scientist H
  2. Scientist G
  3. Scientist F
  4. Scientist E
  5. Scientist D
  6. Scientist C
  7. Scientist B
Non-faculty ranks
  1. Research associate
  2. Senior research fellow
  3. Junior research fellow
Administrative ranks in universities
  1. Chancellor
  2. Vice chancellor
  3. Pro vice chancellor
  4. Deans / directors
  5. Chairmen / HODs / wardens
Administrative ranks in research institutions
  1. Director general
  2. Director
  3. Chairman of departments / divisions

    Indonesia

Academic ranks
According to the Joint Regulations of the Ministry of Education And Culture And Head of National Civil Service Agency No 4/VIII/PB/2014; No 24 Year 2014 and the Regulation of Ministry of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform No. 46 Year 2013 and No. 17 Year 2013 Article 6, the academic ranks for lecturer and researcher are
Academic ranks for lecturers
  1. Asisten Ahli
  2. Lektor
  3. Lektor Kepala
  4. Guru Besar, Profesor
Academic ranks for researchers
  1. Peneliti Pertama
  2. Peneliti Ahli Muda
  3. Peneliti Ahli Madya
  4. Peneliti Ahli Utama
Administrative ranks
Holders of bachelor's degree when granted to teach in a college:
Holders of master's degrees when granted to teach in a college:
Holders of Ph.D. degrees:
Terms of address in general: ostād
Emeritus ranks
Administrative ranks
Holders of master's degrees can be :
Holders of PhD degrees can be :
Note: Holders of PhD degrees are automatically promoted to lecturer if they were assistant lecturers before they received their PhD.
Academic:
Administrative Ranks:
Tenured positions :
Non-tenured positions :
An honorary title as Professore Emerito also exists and is typically appointed to illustrious academics after retirement.

Jamaica

Tenured or non-tenured faculty
The ranking is as follows:
The Japanese system includes non-tenure, term-limited, tokunin positions at all ranks, including professor. These are referred to as ninki tsuki positions and officially include tokunin in the title. Limited tenure track positions have recently been introduced. In this system Jokyō corresponds to assistant professor. A major difference between the United States system and Japan is that granting of tenure and promotion to associate professor are not linked; one may be tenured yet remain an assistant professor. Advancing upward typically requires a higher-level post to be vacated, even in the new tenure-track system.

Jordan

Latvia

Administrative positions:
Academic positions:
Academic positions at the Lebanese American University:
At the University of Macau there are nine levels of faculty rank, namely
At the Macau Polytechnic Institute there are three levels
Administrative positions:

Malta

The ranking system in most Mexican public universities is as follows
Usually Mexican academics are also fellows of the Sistema Nacional de Investigadores that has four levels that more or less correlate to the Asociado and Titular A, B, and C professorships. The rank as professor is determined by the individual's institution while the SNI level is determined by an independent committee that evaluates the researchers nationwide.
Many universities and research institutions make a distinction between "Profesores" -Professors- and "Investigadores" -Researchers-, the main difference is that "Profesores" have a higher load of teaching, while "Investigadores" have a higher load of research, but normally all of them take part in both activities and are considered equivalent.
Research rankings are awarded by the Sistema Nacional de Investigadores which depends on the national research council :
All titles, both professors and researchers, can be given in a:
Administrative academic positions:
Academic Positions
1. Professeur d'Enseignement Supérieur
2. Professeur Habilité à Diriger les Recherches
3. Professeur Assistant
Before Academic Position
1. Docteur
2. Doctorant

Nepal

Academic Positions
1. Professor Emeritus
2. Professor
3. Associate professor/Reader
4. Assistant Professor
5. Lecturer
6. Teaching Assistant
7. Instructor
8. Technical support staff
Administrative Positions

New Zealand

Nigeria

Academic Positions
Administrative Positions

Pakistan

The hiring of academic positions in public universities throughout Pakistan is managed by the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, the requirement for all positions vary with respect to the field of studies e.g. Engineering, IT, Medical, Law, and Arts and Design.
There are four faculty ranks lecturer, assistant professor, associate professor, and professor.
In engineering public universities, a lecturer requires an M.Sc. or B.Sc. degree and high academic standing in the field.
An assistant professor position requires a Ph.D. in relevant field with no experience.
An associate professorship can be conducted in the fourth year of employment, although, it is becoming more common for promotion and tenure to be awarded in the sixth year of employment. The review requires a certain number 5/8/10 research publications by the calendar years 2007/2008/2012 respectively, in HEC/PEC recognized journals.
A professor requires ten years post-PhD teaching/research experience in an HEC recognized university or a post-graduate institution or professional experience in the relevant field in a national or international organization. It requires a minimum of 8/12/15 research publications by the calendar years 2007/2008/2012 respectively, in HEC/PEC recognized journals
After some recent reforms in the University Law, the Peruvian universities consider these ranks:
Extraordinary Professors: Principally, this is a category of recognition for his contribution as professor or researcher when he retires or as a professional when he has built a great contribution to society throughout his career. To have 10% as maximum of these professors in any university is mandatory.
Research Professors: Principally, full-time research position with few teaching responsibilities. Research professorships are almost always funded by grants or fellowships apart from the regular university budget. He is designated because of its academic excellence. He has a special bonus of fifty percent of its total payments. The competent authority of each university evaluates every two years, the production of the ordinary professors, for their permanence as a researcher.
Ordinary Professors: Often full-time professors with research competences. Principal faculty. To have 25% as minimum of these professors in any university is mandatory.
Lecturer : Often part-time professors. Complementary faculty. Generally, the primary employer is not the university with which they have the status. Principally, this kind of professor come from practitioner market and not develop research activities. MSc required.
In addition, the universities developed prior ranks, as junior temporary rank, to get experience and training :
The lectures are usually hired by private universities as they can offer this type of part-time contract. The instructors are usually hired by public universities as their type of contract has to be full-time. Even if the duties of these two ranks are similar and the terminology for both is the same in Spanish: "Jefe de prácticas", we should consider the differences in their type of contract.

Philippines

Administrative ranks
Other professors
Tenure
Due to Philippine labor laws regarding permanency, a faculty member who has not received tenure within three years of initial hire cannot continue as a full-time hire at the same university.

Poland

Research-and-teaching staff
and also for a special purpose:
Teaching staff:
Extinct ranks:
Administrative ranks
Research-and-teaching staff
Special

Rwanda

Academic ranks

Singapore

Singapore universities adopt a hybrid of US and British academic ranks. Faculty members on the tenure-track are appointed for sustained excellence in both teaching and research. Assistant Professors are appointed on term contracts, while Associate Professors and Professors may be appointed either with tenure or on term contract. Faculty members on the Educator Track engage in high quality educational activities. They are oriented towards teaching excellence, student learning, and pedagogical research and innovation. Appointments in this Track include Teaching Assistants, Instructors, Lecturers, Senior Lecturers and Associate Professors. They are on term contracts which are usually of 1 – 3 years in the first instance. Research track faculty members focus on conducting fundamental research of high international quality. Appointments on this Track include Research Assistants, Research Fellows, Senior Research Fellows, Associate Professor and Professor. They are on term contracts of 1 – 3 years in the first instance. Practice Track faculty members are scholar-practitioners with professional skills and expertise in industry to complement the teaching and research enterprise of the university. They also contribute significantly to the outreach activities of the School. Appointments are to Associate Professor and Professor. They are on term contracts of 1 – 3 years in the first instance.
Special
Administrative
Honorary ranks
Administrative ranks
Honorary ranks

South Korea

Protected job titles :
Other positions:
The appointment of professors follows the British system and is governed by the University Grants Commission regulations. A points-based system considers contributions to the research field, national development and institutional development. Several types of professorships exist:
Professor positions are clearly separated from other junior faculty positions such as, in seniority order: senior lecturer , senior lecturer , lecturer, lecturer, assistant lecturer.
Administrative ranks
Researcher level
Higher titles
Honorary titles
;German-language universities
;French-language universities
The academic rankings in the Syrian Arab Republic are very similar to the Egyptian ones; see Academic ranks in Egypt for details.

Taiwan

Professor
Associate professor
Assistant professor
Lecturer

Trinidad and Tobago

Administrative ranks
Academic ranks
Administrative ranks
Academic ranks
Administrative ranks
Research and teaching career pathway
Research career pathway
Teaching career pathway
Most common hierarchy
Dedication rank
Administrative ranks
Other professors
Auxiliary and Lab assistants
The appointment and ranking of academics is governed by the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development. A points-based system considers an academic's contributions to research, teaching, and university and community service. The following structure of grades and notches for Academic Staff exist at universities in Zimbabwe:
University Administrative ranks
Description of each Academic Rank
Grade 7 - Teaching Assistant/Assistant Lecturer/Assistant Research Fellow
Conditions: First Degree. Annual appointment for a maximum period of three years during which one must acquire a recognized master's degree.
Grade 6 - Lecturer/Research Fellow
Conditions: Lecturers may be tenured after three years subject to a minimum of 5 publications in refereed Journals. Research Fellows may be tenured after three years subject to a minimum of 7 publications in refereed Journals.
Grade 5 - Senior Lecturer/Senior Research Fellow
Conditions: Senior Lecturer. May be tenured on appointment. Senior Research Fellow - PhD/earned Doctorate with 8 - 12 publications in refereed journals. May be tenured on appointment.
Grade 4 - Associate Professor/Associate Research Professor
Conditions: Associate Professor - PhD/earned Doctorate with 21 but less than 35 publications in refereed journals. Tenured on appointment. Associate Research Professor - PhD Degree/earned Doctorate with 24 or more publications in refereed journals Associate Professor. Tenured on appointment.
Grade 3b - Professor/Research Professor
Conditions:
Professor - PhD/earned Doctorate with 35 or more Publications in refereed journals. Research Professor - PhD/earned Doctorate with 40 or more Publications in refereed journals.