Junior Professors Seek 'Balance,' Study Says

Harvard junior faculty members like their courses, their colleagues, and their influence over their own research—but they think tenure standards are unclear, formal mentoring programs aren’t completely effective, and child-care services need improvement, according to a study conducted by the Graduate School of Education (GSE).

The survey—released yesterday by the Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education, a project based at the GSE and supported by a grant from the Ford Foundation—queried 4,500 assistant professors from 51 colleges and universities, including Harvard.

The results, researchers say, represent a dramatic change from previous generations’ preferences.

Assistant professors “want the ability to find balance in their lives,” said one of the study’s principal investigators, Cathy A. Trower. “They’re willing to work hard, but they want to decide, when, where, and how. It’s a generational shift.”

In the web-based poll, over two-thirds of the 244 Harvard assistant professors who completed the survey said they were satisfied with “teaching-related issues”—including the courses they taught, the discretion they have over their courses, the size of their classes, and the quality of their interactions with students, according to information provided by the assistant provost for faculty development and diversity, Shawn J. Bohen.

Over two-thirds also said they were satisfied with their influence over their research, amount of personal and professional interaction with tenure-track colleagues, and quality of resources, services, and facilities, according to Bohen.

However, the study also determined that only one-third of tenure-track faculty members responded positively to clarity of tenure standards, assistance in obtaining external grants, and quality and availability of certain benefits—such as spousal hiring assistance, personal leave time, and child care.

Gender-based differences in departmental satisfaction were also prevalent. Females cited dissatisfaction over their colleagues’ support for them having and raising children.

“It is still very difficult in those fields to convince a lot of more senior faculty that you’re serious about your scholarship and you’re serious about family,” said Trower. “Older scholars sometimes make you make that choice. It’s a societal phenomenon.”

Assistant professors said in interviews that they cared most that their environment fostered the best possible work.

“I like the fact that I have excellent colleagues, but it also happens to be the best economics department in the world,” said Roland G. Fryer Jr., an assistant professor of economics. “We just care about doing good science. Everyone, regardless of gender, race, just wants to do quality work.”

Collegiality, one of the focuses of the study, played a large role in influencing assistant professors’ attitudes towards their respective departments.

“I think that the most important factor is to be able to get your work done,” said Elizabeth M. Penn, assistant professor of government. “Collegiality creates a condition to get your work done.”