Academic ranks in the United States are the titles, relative importance and power of professors, researchers, and administrative personnel held in academia.
Although it can engender professional stigmatization, tenured faculty are usually permitted to remain in the associate grade indefinitely, with some institutions now conferring emeritus status at that rank.
Often tied to secure, long-term contracts with significant review processes, these ranks are generally not tenure-track and emphasize practitioner knowledge and skills rather than scholarly research.
Depending on the discipline and range of experience, incumbents in these positions may only possess an undergraduate degree or a secondary school diploma.
Recently, some institutions have created separate tenure tracks for such positions, which may also be given other names such as "lecturer with security of employment".
Any faculty title preceded with the qualifier "Adjunct" normally denotes part-time status (usually less than half-time).
Adjunct faculty may have primary employment elsewhere (either another school, or as a practicing professional), though in today's saturated academic market many doctorate-holders seek to earn a living from several adjunct jobs (to the advantage of institutions, which do not typically offer such faculty retirement/health benefits or long-term contracts).
Named chairs typically but not exclusively include a small discretionary fund from an endowment set aside for the recipient's use.
In some cases, an assistant professor who accepts a position of similar rank at another university may negotiate "time towards tenure", which indicates a shorter required probationary period, usually in recognition of prior academic achievements.
Teaching assistants (TAs) are known by various related terms and are typically graduate students who have varying levels of responsibility.
), most commonly to meritorious clerics for an outstanding work or another achievement in the field of religious and Biblical studies.