Definition

Noun: - The position, office, or post of a professor at a college or university. It refers to the academic rank and employment status, often implying tenure and significant responsibilities in teaching and research.

Usage

• The word "professorship" is used to formally denote the specific job or appointment held by a professor.
• It is often modified by adjectives describing the type (e.g., , , ) or the field of study (e.g., ).
• It is commonly used with verbs like , , , , and .

Examples

• She was offered a professorship in molecular biology at the prestigious institute.
• After decades of service, he retired from his professorship with great honor.
• The university created a new endowed professorship in climate science funded by a generous donation.
• Securing a tenured professorship is a major career milestone for many academics.

Advanced Usage

• "Endowed professorship" or "named chair": A professorship funded by a permanent donation, often bearing the name of the donor or honoree. It usually provides funds for salary and research.
  • The Smith Family Professorship in Economics is one of the most respected endowed positions.
• "To be appointed to a professorship": The formal act of being given the position.
  • She was appointed to the professorship after a rigorous international search.

Variants and Related Words

• Professor (n): The person who holds a professorship.
• Professional (adj/n): Related to a profession; a person engaged in a specific activity as a paid occupation. (Note: This is a broader term, not specific to academia).
• Profess (v): To claim openly, declare, or teach as a professor does. (This is the verb from which "professor" and "professorship" are derived).

Synonyms

• Chair (n): (Especially in the context of an endowed position) A synonym for professorship.
  • He holds the Johnson Chair in History.
• Professorial position: A more descriptive phrase for the role.
• Academic chair: Another term emphasizing the leadership role within a department.

Notes on Meaning

• The core meaning is strictly the position or office. It does not refer to the person (that is a ), the act of teaching (), or the duration of time in the role (which might be called a in a collective sense).
• In some contexts, "professorship" and "chair" are used interchangeably, particularly when referring to established, named positions.

Noun

1. the position of professor
   • he was awarded an endowed chair in economics