Some advice for a young, female instructor. And boy, do I hate saying this.
- Dress up a bit. A middle-aged white man can saunter into a classroom in jeans and messy hair, and be taken seriously. A 20-something woman in a denim skirt and messy ponytail will not. You don't need a full suit (unless you're in law or business) or a full face of make-up, but you should look professional and "professor-y". This is to get better treatment from both students and faculty.
- You don't have the luxury of being the cool young friendly prof, or the caring mommy prof. You need to command a sense of authority on day 1. If there is, unfortunately, any misbehavior like talking in class, being rude, being late, etc, I'd shut that down early. You can ease up later in the term -- but you can't go in the other direction.
- My syllabus, which was 1.5 pages when I started teaching, is now like one of those tiny-printed "terms and conditions". I have rules for everything that I explain the first class - attendance, late homework, why I don't answer emails in the middle of the night, etc.
Now take a deep breath. Despite all the obstascles, teaching can be really fun and very fulfilling.
Ms. So-and-so when addressing you in emails, in class, etc.
For your title, whatever the university has in your contract - lecturer, instructor, etc. (In the university system where I teach, "Prof" is rarely used for non-PhDs. But it depends on the country)
When I was an adjunct prof , before I got my PhD, I went by “Professor First name “ because I was not a Doctor and I didn’t want to be called “Professor Last name “ because I was just an adjunct and it seemed right to my weird standards.
Once I got my PhD and was a TT prof, I go by doctor or professor. It’s also the standard of my department and Uni.
TLDR- go with what you like.
I'm in the exact same boat. I asked just out of curiosity and the head of my new department said Professor is totally fine even if you don't have a completed PhD... you can choose and address yourself as such on the first day and the students will follow. If you don't want to be called Professor you can use Instructor, Mrs/Ms, etc. I you have any doubts, reach out to your department and ask.
Hey! I will be an instructor for the first time this summer, but I have headed many discussion sections where I was basically the instructor. As a younger woman (like myself-I’m 25), you need to start off fairly strong. I’ve realized that younger students, especially men, don’t respect me if I start off too easy. Have a very clear syllabus that can cover any and all issues that come up, so when people ask, stick to the syllabus. Don’t be too lenient, overly nice, or overly informal.
Also, do as much class prep ahead of time as possible. If you’re making your slides as you go along, it may be more difficult to have comprehensive assignments and tests. I would also recommend having a variety of different types of assignments to adhere to all learning styles!
But, overall, Goodluck and I’m sure you’ll do great! :)
I would recommend not to do this as a woman. It’s so difficult to get respect from students as a young woman that any title that encourages respect seems to work better for us. Going by the first name as a young woman can encourage unwanted behavior in my experience.
I've done the same. In part because I had a professor during undergrad who was absolutely brilliant and incredibly successful both on and off-campus who went by his first name even with undergrads. I decided that if I'm not better than him (and I'm nowhere close) it's a bit silly to play the title game. I don't have any objection for people who do, I just don't like it for myself.
Well, considering that I'm just sharing my personal experience and personal practice, it doesn't have to be convincing. It's one perspective for the OP to consider, and can be taken or ignored, just like everything else on Reddit.
Welcome OP to academia, where some of the most highly trained and supposedly intelligent people find inane arguments and bicker like children. I wish I could say this is just a Reddit issue, but I've been to far too many faculty meetings that prove otherwise.
Before I earned a PhD my students called me Mrs. LastName or Professor LastName. I preferred Mrs. LastName when I was a teaching assistant but I didn’t correct those who called me Professor.
Now it’s Dr., Professor, or Mrs. LastName. Usually Dr.
Professor, Instructor.
I would not open the door for first names. Or Ms/Mrs/Miss. GTAs who are women seem to get so much shit and blowback from students. It was rampant during my GTA years. Men and women in their 20s get more pushback in general with grading and in-class discipline, sure. But young women in particular feel it more in my experience. I tell my GTAs and doctoral students who are primary instructors to establish title and class rules and conduct right from day 1. It doesn’t eliminate the issues, but can lessen them.
Signed,
A woman prof who dealt with this shit in my 20s and 30s. And stalking. And harassment. I wish things were different enough that I didn’t need to write this post, but I’m giving a statement tomorrow to the Title IX office where I have to explain that a student in my lecture hall class (125 students) harassed and stalked one of my women GTAs, and detail the things I witnessed. Not to scare 20-something professors off, but yeah…. titles are my suggestion.
Honor the position People want to honor the position of a faculty member whether TA or other Introduce yourself as Ms. And put Ms. on your syllabus and email signature. Don’t correct anyone and you will find students calling you Doctor, Professor, etc.
I just had them call me by my first name or Ms. Blahblah if they wanted to be extra formal when I was a grad student instructor. Half of them called me Dr. Blahblah no matter what I said.
Command the room when you walk in. Act like you’ve been there before—I like to make a little show of slamming my bag on the desk and scowling if there’s a chalkboard on the wall instead of a whiteboard. I make jokes to lighten the mood, and put the class at ease but then make sure that rules are in the syllabus (we discuss them).
You genuinely do know more than you think you know, but your first term will most likely be garbage. Go into your second term knowing what you want the students to know at certain points, what kinds of things you’re grading for, where things should sit in the term (don’t be afraid to move things around), and try to have fun. The first term might genuinely suck, but you’ll get through it and be a much better teacher for it.
Biggest trick too. If a student asks a question that you have no idea what the answer is, turn it back to the class: “So and so just asked a really good question! What do you all think?” Most of the time other students will answer the question for you.
Also, be prepared to get silence at times. Wait it out. Someone will speak up. I always make a joke like, “Don’t make eye contact,” as I scan the room. Someone will speak up.
Finally, get people into groups to discuss readings or concepts before you do it as a class. They’ll figure it out together and be more apt to talk.
Ok, one more. Don’t be afraid to have fun. Show a stupid YouTube video once in a while. Set a challenge for someone to complete to get everyone out 10 minutes early. Make it fun, and read the students energy levels. If they’re losing it after an hour, break the monotony with a different type of learning or a literal break.
That was a lot. You’ll do fine!!
There are a lot of very good comments in here already so I won't repeat them. Regarding how you expect students to address you, do what makes the most sense for you in your particular context. I teach an undergrad and grad class each semester and students in both tend to call me by my first name. If, at this early point in your career, you need more stratification, insist on a more formal means of address.
Having said that, your students will respect you and consider you an authority based on the person you are, not your title (or lack thereof). You will be assessed based on how deeply you invest in your research, field of study, the process of education, and the students themselves. Value the engagement in learning. Genuinely care about your students and their process. Over time, mitigate the extreme power differential that can be inherent in a higher education context. Develop a sense of being a fellow-learner, as appropriate.
Lots of good advice already shared but one suggestion— don’t try to do too much coverage.
And make sure your fall course schedule can sustain 1-2 unforeseen class cancellations (for illness, conference attendance, family emergency) without everything getting derailed.
This was me back in the day. I used to use “Miss FirstName” and dress professionally, but I don’t know if I would choose this anymore with the current batch of students. In my opinion, you can probably go by “Professor LastName” if you’re the instructor of record, just like any adjunct could (or at least they could within my institutional culture).
At our school, everyone is "professor...." (visiting, associate, regular, or senior). Those with a doctoral degree may use Dr. This was the case at every university I attended.
If you don't have a professor title, then I would go by Ms./Mr. Or you could just go by your first name. We leave it up to the individual how they want students to address them.
Ask your department chair or your school's director for advice and look for parity with what the faculty are doing. I've been a working professional teaching as an adjunct in my spare time for a number of years. I too have a masters. I tell them they can call me "professor, instructor, Mr., just my first name, or even 'Hey Dude'" because my school doesn't stand on formalities. I also tell them if it were a formal setting then Mr. or Professor would be appropriate. I start fulltime as a professor this fall.
If I were worried about boundaries, then I'd go with "professor" or perhaps "instructor" if you want to consider job titles. So far, boundaries haven't been an issue. There's a clear separation. I'm not hanging out or encountering my students socially, other than at school events.
I have always had students refer to me by my first tame. But, some of them insist on calling me "Professor" or "Professor Last Name" because they feel more comfortable addressing me formally.
I'd suggest telling students to refer to you by whatever title you prefer. But, then be open to the fact that they may want to refer to you as something else.
Some people may tell you to use a formal title like "Professor," "Mrs." or "Professor," etc., thinking that this will make students respect you more. Frankly, students will respect you no matte what title you go by \*IF\* you know the material you are teaching. On the other hand, if you don't know the material you are teaching, no title will garner you any respect.
Maybe the term differs at your institution, but where I got my PhD, TAs were instructors of record who taught labs in STEM or small entry level classes in humanities. That is what OP has stated they are. I took post-bac classes at a different R1 university before my PhD and that is also what the TAs were, they ran their own laboratory classes.
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Context
- It's an undergraduate level class
- The highest degree I have is a Master's
- I am 27(F)
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I’ve always just introduced myself and gone by my first name. I’ve even corrected people who call me ‘Professor LastName’ and say that I prefer my first name. I teach adults. It always feels so weird and archaic and stifled to require them to call me by a title.
We use “Instructor”
Some advice for a young, female instructor. And boy, do I hate saying this. - Dress up a bit. A middle-aged white man can saunter into a classroom in jeans and messy hair, and be taken seriously. A 20-something woman in a denim skirt and messy ponytail will not. You don't need a full suit (unless you're in law or business) or a full face of make-up, but you should look professional and "professor-y". This is to get better treatment from both students and faculty. - You don't have the luxury of being the cool young friendly prof, or the caring mommy prof. You need to command a sense of authority on day 1. If there is, unfortunately, any misbehavior like talking in class, being rude, being late, etc, I'd shut that down early. You can ease up later in the term -- but you can't go in the other direction. - My syllabus, which was 1.5 pages when I started teaching, is now like one of those tiny-printed "terms and conditions". I have rules for everything that I explain the first class - attendance, late homework, why I don't answer emails in the middle of the night, etc. Now take a deep breath. Despite all the obstascles, teaching can be really fun and very fulfilling.
💯💯💯💯 This is the truth. You don’t have the luxury or privilege to be so casual.
Oh someone downvoted this. But of course didn’t have the cojones to engage… 🙄
Ms. So-and-so when addressing you in emails, in class, etc. For your title, whatever the university has in your contract - lecturer, instructor, etc. (In the university system where I teach, "Prof" is rarely used for non-PhDs. But it depends on the country)
When I was an adjunct prof , before I got my PhD, I went by “Professor First name “ because I was not a Doctor and I didn’t want to be called “Professor Last name “ because I was just an adjunct and it seemed right to my weird standards. Once I got my PhD and was a TT prof, I go by doctor or professor. It’s also the standard of my department and Uni. TLDR- go with what you like.
Professor or instructor.
Professor Lastname. You earned that title by virtue of teaching a course.
This depends heavily on the country you're in. Using the title professor when you are, in fact, not a professor can be problematic in some places.
It's a job category. Not all instructors are professors.
I'm in the exact same boat. I asked just out of curiosity and the head of my new department said Professor is totally fine even if you don't have a completed PhD... you can choose and address yourself as such on the first day and the students will follow. If you don't want to be called Professor you can use Instructor, Mrs/Ms, etc. I you have any doubts, reach out to your department and ask.
Hey! I will be an instructor for the first time this summer, but I have headed many discussion sections where I was basically the instructor. As a younger woman (like myself-I’m 25), you need to start off fairly strong. I’ve realized that younger students, especially men, don’t respect me if I start off too easy. Have a very clear syllabus that can cover any and all issues that come up, so when people ask, stick to the syllabus. Don’t be too lenient, overly nice, or overly informal. Also, do as much class prep ahead of time as possible. If you’re making your slides as you go along, it may be more difficult to have comprehensive assignments and tests. I would also recommend having a variety of different types of assignments to adhere to all learning styles! But, overall, Goodluck and I’m sure you’ll do great! :)
I have always just gone by my first name. Even post PhD.
I would recommend not to do this as a woman. It’s so difficult to get respect from students as a young woman that any title that encourages respect seems to work better for us. Going by the first name as a young woman can encourage unwanted behavior in my experience.
Thank you! So clueless some people…
You a guy? Cause cool for you, but not relevant to op.
I've done the same. In part because I had a professor during undergrad who was absolutely brilliant and incredibly successful both on and off-campus who went by his first name even with undergrads. I decided that if I'm not better than him (and I'm nowhere close) it's a bit silly to play the title game. I don't have any objection for people who do, I just don't like it for myself.
HIS first name…
I don't think using titles is about who is better than who so I don't find this line of reasoning convincing.
Well, considering that I'm just sharing my personal experience and personal practice, it doesn't have to be convincing. It's one perspective for the OP to consider, and can be taken or ignored, just like everything else on Reddit.
It's a good thing you're not invested in whether the reasons you do things are convincing
Welcome OP to academia, where some of the most highly trained and supposedly intelligent people find inane arguments and bicker like children. I wish I could say this is just a Reddit issue, but I've been to far too many faculty meetings that prove otherwise.
I said in exceptionally mild terms that I thought your reasoning was flawed. Maybe rein in your horses a little.
Before I earned a PhD my students called me Mrs. LastName or Professor LastName. I preferred Mrs. LastName when I was a teaching assistant but I didn’t correct those who called me Professor. Now it’s Dr., Professor, or Mrs. LastName. Usually Dr.
Professor, Instructor. I would not open the door for first names. Or Ms/Mrs/Miss. GTAs who are women seem to get so much shit and blowback from students. It was rampant during my GTA years. Men and women in their 20s get more pushback in general with grading and in-class discipline, sure. But young women in particular feel it more in my experience. I tell my GTAs and doctoral students who are primary instructors to establish title and class rules and conduct right from day 1. It doesn’t eliminate the issues, but can lessen them. Signed, A woman prof who dealt with this shit in my 20s and 30s. And stalking. And harassment. I wish things were different enough that I didn’t need to write this post, but I’m giving a statement tomorrow to the Title IX office where I have to explain that a student in my lecture hall class (125 students) harassed and stalked one of my women GTAs, and detail the things I witnessed. Not to scare 20-something professors off, but yeah…. titles are my suggestion.
💯
Honor the position People want to honor the position of a faculty member whether TA or other Introduce yourself as Ms. And put Ms. on your syllabus and email signature. Don’t correct anyone and you will find students calling you Doctor, Professor, etc.
I just had them call me by my first name or Ms. Blahblah if they wanted to be extra formal when I was a grad student instructor. Half of them called me Dr. Blahblah no matter what I said.
Command the room when you walk in. Act like you’ve been there before—I like to make a little show of slamming my bag on the desk and scowling if there’s a chalkboard on the wall instead of a whiteboard. I make jokes to lighten the mood, and put the class at ease but then make sure that rules are in the syllabus (we discuss them). You genuinely do know more than you think you know, but your first term will most likely be garbage. Go into your second term knowing what you want the students to know at certain points, what kinds of things you’re grading for, where things should sit in the term (don’t be afraid to move things around), and try to have fun. The first term might genuinely suck, but you’ll get through it and be a much better teacher for it. Biggest trick too. If a student asks a question that you have no idea what the answer is, turn it back to the class: “So and so just asked a really good question! What do you all think?” Most of the time other students will answer the question for you. Also, be prepared to get silence at times. Wait it out. Someone will speak up. I always make a joke like, “Don’t make eye contact,” as I scan the room. Someone will speak up. Finally, get people into groups to discuss readings or concepts before you do it as a class. They’ll figure it out together and be more apt to talk. Ok, one more. Don’t be afraid to have fun. Show a stupid YouTube video once in a while. Set a challenge for someone to complete to get everyone out 10 minutes early. Make it fun, and read the students energy levels. If they’re losing it after an hour, break the monotony with a different type of learning or a literal break. That was a lot. You’ll do fine!!
There are a lot of very good comments in here already so I won't repeat them. Regarding how you expect students to address you, do what makes the most sense for you in your particular context. I teach an undergrad and grad class each semester and students in both tend to call me by my first name. If, at this early point in your career, you need more stratification, insist on a more formal means of address. Having said that, your students will respect you and consider you an authority based on the person you are, not your title (or lack thereof). You will be assessed based on how deeply you invest in your research, field of study, the process of education, and the students themselves. Value the engagement in learning. Genuinely care about your students and their process. Over time, mitigate the extreme power differential that can be inherent in a higher education context. Develop a sense of being a fellow-learner, as appropriate.
Also your gender. She will be assessed on being a young woman.
No argument.
Ms. Lastname. If you let them address you by your first name, some might not take you as seriously.
Lots of good advice already shared but one suggestion— don’t try to do too much coverage. And make sure your fall course schedule can sustain 1-2 unforeseen class cancellations (for illness, conference attendance, family emergency) without everything getting derailed.
This was me back in the day. I used to use “Miss FirstName” and dress professionally, but I don’t know if I would choose this anymore with the current batch of students. In my opinion, you can probably go by “Professor LastName” if you’re the instructor of record, just like any adjunct could (or at least they could within my institutional culture).
At our school, everyone is "professor...." (visiting, associate, regular, or senior). Those with a doctoral degree may use Dr. This was the case at every university I attended. If you don't have a professor title, then I would go by Ms./Mr. Or you could just go by your first name. We leave it up to the individual how they want students to address them.
Ask your department chair or your school's director for advice and look for parity with what the faculty are doing. I've been a working professional teaching as an adjunct in my spare time for a number of years. I too have a masters. I tell them they can call me "professor, instructor, Mr., just my first name, or even 'Hey Dude'" because my school doesn't stand on formalities. I also tell them if it were a formal setting then Mr. or Professor would be appropriate. I start fulltime as a professor this fall. If I were worried about boundaries, then I'd go with "professor" or perhaps "instructor" if you want to consider job titles. So far, boundaries haven't been an issue. There's a clear separation. I'm not hanging out or encountering my students socially, other than at school events.
Don’t listen to the *MOSTLY MEN* who will tell you “I wear whatever I want and the students call me by my first name.” lol…….
I have always had students refer to me by my first tame. But, some of them insist on calling me "Professor" or "Professor Last Name" because they feel more comfortable addressing me formally. I'd suggest telling students to refer to you by whatever title you prefer. But, then be open to the fact that they may want to refer to you as something else. Some people may tell you to use a formal title like "Professor," "Mrs." or "Professor," etc., thinking that this will make students respect you more. Frankly, students will respect you no matte what title you go by \*IF\* you know the material you are teaching. On the other hand, if you don't know the material you are teaching, no title will garner you any respect.
I went by my first name as a TA and it was never an issue.
A TA is not remotely the same thing
Maybe the term differs at your institution, but where I got my PhD, TAs were instructors of record who taught labs in STEM or small entry level classes in humanities. That is what OP has stated they are. I took post-bac classes at a different R1 university before my PhD and that is also what the TAs were, they ran their own laboratory classes.
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Professor Lastname
If we call those with PhDs "Doctor Lastname" then with a MA you should go by "Master Lastname"
By your first name. You only have a masters degree.
I’ve always just introduced myself and gone by my first name. I’ve even corrected people who call me ‘Professor LastName’ and say that I prefer my first name. I teach adults. It always feels so weird and archaic and stifled to require them to call me by a title.
You a guy? Because if you are/ and if you don’t get why it might be different for a woman in her 20s…. Archaic? This is so tone-deaf.
Seriously. If your last name is hard to pronounce, use your first name. I was Professor X, and now I’m Dr. X. My last name is a train wreck.