Requirements For College Instructors
The specific requirements for college instructors are usually dictated by the accreditation agencies with whom the university is affiliated.
Then, there are university-related requirements that may supersede those of the accreditation agency.
It is worth contacting schools that you are interesting in teaching at because these requirements can vary widely.
The general rule required by accreditation agencies is that a professor is certified to teach a course as long as they have one degree higher than that of the course.
For instance, if you want to teach an undergraduate course, you must have a master's degree.
If it is a master's or doctoral level course you must have a terminal degree such as a Ph.
D.
Although it is now frowned upon, a person with a bachelor's degree may be allowed to teach Associate of Art's (AA) classes.
People who do not have a college degree but have significant professional experience may be eligible to teach at the college level.
There are two other requirements that may affect a person's eligibility to teach at the university level, the number of core courses and how the course is listed on the syllabus.
With increasing frequency, certification agencies require professors to not only have a minimum of a master's degree but to also have a minimum concentration of 18 hours of coursework in a specific field.
Thus, having an MBA is not sufficient to teach.
You would need 18 hours of coursework in a specialty such as finance, accounting, or economics, too.
Some accreditation agencies also want transcripts to directly reflect the field in the course description.
For example, if you wish to teach psychology, your transcripts should have at least 18 graduate hours with the course descriptor starting with "PSY".
Some universities will only hire new faculty if they have prior teaching experience.
Luckily this is not true for all universities.
Community colleges are more willing to give inexperienced professors a chance to teach and are willing to work with them to heighten their teaching skills.
However, schools that have a need for a course to be covered and are having a problem finding suitable experienced faculty to teach the course are usually willing to give a new professor a break.
Then, there are university-related requirements that may supersede those of the accreditation agency.
It is worth contacting schools that you are interesting in teaching at because these requirements can vary widely.
The general rule required by accreditation agencies is that a professor is certified to teach a course as long as they have one degree higher than that of the course.
For instance, if you want to teach an undergraduate course, you must have a master's degree.
If it is a master's or doctoral level course you must have a terminal degree such as a Ph.
D.
Although it is now frowned upon, a person with a bachelor's degree may be allowed to teach Associate of Art's (AA) classes.
People who do not have a college degree but have significant professional experience may be eligible to teach at the college level.
There are two other requirements that may affect a person's eligibility to teach at the university level, the number of core courses and how the course is listed on the syllabus.
With increasing frequency, certification agencies require professors to not only have a minimum of a master's degree but to also have a minimum concentration of 18 hours of coursework in a specific field.
Thus, having an MBA is not sufficient to teach.
You would need 18 hours of coursework in a specialty such as finance, accounting, or economics, too.
Some accreditation agencies also want transcripts to directly reflect the field in the course description.
For example, if you wish to teach psychology, your transcripts should have at least 18 graduate hours with the course descriptor starting with "PSY".
Some universities will only hire new faculty if they have prior teaching experience.
Luckily this is not true for all universities.
Community colleges are more willing to give inexperienced professors a chance to teach and are willing to work with them to heighten their teaching skills.
However, schools that have a need for a course to be covered and are having a problem finding suitable experienced faculty to teach the course are usually willing to give a new professor a break.
