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So I have a question about addressing a university professor. I have heard a lot of conflicting things.
What I've seen most commonly is that "Professor" is generally okay but some institutions prefer that you use this only in the case of people who are full tenured professors and you should use "Doctor" for professors with a doctorate and "Mr." for professors that do not.
At the university that I attended, I usually used "Professor" but I used "Doctor" on occasion with no complaints.
What should you do if you are dealing with a professor from an institution where you do not know the protocol or someone from a foreign country?
I believe using "Professor" is the best choice, until told otherwise by that person. Whether speaking to a tenured professor, an associate professor, or an assistant professor (drop the "associate" or "assistant" from the reference, though, or you run the risk of making that person sad), "Professor" is the appropriate form of address. If, then, the person says "Call me Jane," then call her "Jane". If the person corrects you and insists that he be called "Doctor", well then that person is a pretentious ass, but you should probably call him "Doctor" anyway, if only to satiate his apparent need for personal affirmation. (I believe I can say that, as someone with a doctorate in a non-medical field. I could not fathom anyone calling me "Doctor" and would certainly correct someone if she so referred to me — and tell her to call me by my first name, actually. I believe the title "Doctor" should be reserved for a person with an M.D. or a D.D.S. After all, when someone's heart stops at the local campus eatery, that lovely explanation of Rorty's contingency of language from the "Doctor" with the Ph.D. is likely not to be much help.)
Ph.D. stands for 'Doctor of Philosophy' (Philosophiae Doctor), and while it is probably pretentious in most social situations, it seems perfectly acceptable to me in professional environments (say, when introducing one at a professional conference or talk). They are truly doctors. Assistant professors (at least in the U.S.) typically hold a doctorate in their degree, but are not yet tenured. Tenure usually comes with the promotion to associate professor; promotion to 'full' professor comes sometime later. Some professors teaching lower division courses may not, or not yet, hold their doctorate, but it is nevertheless polite to address them as 'professor'. Finally, a professor of history, or, for that matter, the person working behind the counter at the local eatery, may be just as likely as your podiatrist or orthopedist to be able to perform the Heimlich maneuver.
In any case, I agree, your best bet is to begin the conversation or letter with 'Professor Soandso,' and cover all of your bases.
You're correct, mkh13, that Ph.D. is, in fact, a doctoral degree, which means that the title "Doctor" is not entirely inappropriate. My degree is also technically a doctorate (juris doctor), but I've never heard an attorney, even a fully-tenured law professor, insist upon being called "Doctor" (we, as a group, tend to be much more careful with our words, I suppose; we'd not want someone to think we could offer him medical advice, then impose liability upon us for failure thereof). I was being a bit snarky about the professor who insists upon being called "Doctor" being pretentious, that just happened to be my anecdotal experience from the universities where I've been. Again, this is my personal opinion, but "Doctor" is most appropriate for those who hold a doctoral medical degree; I think the appellation "Professor" is just as worthy of respect as the title "Doctor". The "Professor" is bringing up the new crop of intellectuals, after all.
On the last note of your first paragraph, mkh13, you noted that I gave less respect to the everyday life-saver than that which is due. You're right, the Ph.D., the MBA, the B.A., the GED-recipient, or the homeless dropout could each possibly be able to perform CPR (I'm able, though not licensed, even though I have a non-medical degree). However, that possibility is increased to 100 percent if the "Doctor" is an actual medical doctor. I'll put my life in the hands of the medical doctor, thank you very much.
I am a professor with a PhD Here's the rule of thumb: in a university setting, if you don't know what your professor's degree is, she is called "Professor Smith" or just "Professor." If you know she has a PhD, she can be called either "Dr. Smith" or "Prof. Smith."
The professor herself refers to her rank and tenure (Assistant, Associate), but unless being introduced in a formal academic situation no one else ever uses those categories. An exception would be on NPR, when the newsreader explains that "Jane Smith is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Washington District University." I can say from experience that being referred to as an "Assistant Professor" in such situations doesn't make me "sad." I'm only a couple of years out of the degree, and I'm pretty happy just to have the job!
Tunawrites is recounting an old conversation about the types of doctorates in America. We have professional doctorates (Medical doctors (MD), Juris Doctors (JD), Divinity doctors (DDiv), and Education doctors (EdD)) as well as academic doctors (PhD). One reason the confusion comes up is that it is often unclear what distinguishes each of these degrees. A medical doctor or a lawyer takes a degree to qualify to practice a profession, which is now (for good reason) heavily regulated by the government. PhDs (and some EdDs) qualify for their degree by creating new research, ideas, approaches, or "knowledge" in their fields of study. There are actually PhD equivalents in the fields of law and medicine, sometimes combined with the PhD (MD/PhD or JD/PhD), or sometimes as standalone degrees. The equivalent to a PhD in law is an SJD, a degree which requires that one create new research in the field of law. Another way of thinking of it for law and other fields is the "terminal degree" i.e. what is the highest degree one can receive in this field. In most cases (except medicine) one only calls a terminal-degree holder "doctor."
The usual rule for social situations in America is that only medical doctors are called "doctor," possibly for the reasons that tunawrites suggests above. Because I'm an academic, it's hard to separate social and professional situations. I've usually called those with PhDs and MDs "doctor" in formal situations (like addressing wedding invitations), but most people with PhDs don't expect it; some don't like it. I'll agree that in such situations it's pretentious. However, in some parts of the world the rules are different. In parts of Europe, for example, those with PhDs are called "doctor" in all social situations.
If you are my student, all I ask is that you don't call me "Mrs." I didn't take my husband's name, and if you call me "Mrs. Smith" I'll start looking around for my mom.
I love that story, pfriedman7. And Ms. (maybe "Prof." but definitely not "Mrs.") Jennifer provided the best and most complete explanation, so you, crestmere, should pay particular attention to that post.
Anyway, in summary for crestmere, who first asked the question: you will never be wrong if you call the university professor "Professor" (unless she tells you otherwise).
(Also, Jennifer, the comment about saying "Assistant" professor making that professor "sad" was entirely facetious. I am also glad you have a job, and I wish all the best to you and all others committed to teaching -- you are the most important people in the world.)
Pfriedman7 refers to an interesting local tradition. At UVa, professors are almost always called "Mr." or "Ms." From what I understand, the idea was that no one wanted to point out the fact that the university's founder, Thomas Jefferson, did not hold a doctorate. I may be perpetuating an urban legend, but I've heard this from several people with connections to the school.
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