In the North American system, used in the United States and many other countries, it is a position between assistant professor and a full professorship.
[1][2][3] In this system, an associate professorship is typically the first promotion obtained after gaining a faculty position, and in the United States it is usually connected to tenure.
[4] In the Commonwealth system, the title associate professor is traditionally used in place of reader in certain countries.
[7] In this system, an associate professorship is typically the second or third promotion obtained after gaining an academic position, and someone promoted to associate professor has usually been a permanent employee already in their two previous ranks as lecturer and senior lecturer.
[8] Traditionally, British universities have used the title reader, while associate professor in place of reader is traditionally used in Australia and New Zealand,[9] South Africa, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, and Ireland within an otherwise British system of ranks.