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[mulerooster]

I'm from the US and will be graduating soon with my PhD in a hard-science field.  I'd like to go into university teaching after receiving my PhD (ideally, I'd teach classes/lectures or laboratory sections).  I know what I need to do to get a teaching job in the US at a small liberal arts college or a community college, but I'm wondering what I would need to do if I want a similar job in the UK.  Does a similar job even exist in the UK?  What would be the job title of such a position, and is it possible to get such a position full-time?  I know there are lectureship positions in the UK.  Is that the same as a visiting professor or an adjunct professor in the US?  Is there another title for this type of position that I should be searching for?

I appreciate any advice you can give me about getting a teaching job at a university in the UK.  I probably need visa advice too, but for now I'm just wondering what types of jobs exist and how difficult it would be for an American to get one. 

Also, does the UK have an equivalent of teaching postdoctoral fellowships?

[theblondeassassin]

I recall vaguely seeing a figure that around 10% of permanent faculty in the UK are from North America.

It varies across field and university, but some brief answers:

- Lecturer is the entry-level rank for most full-time "tenure-track equivalent" faculty members, and the end-level rank for many. The "traditional" ranks are: lecturer, reader, professor. (Oxford ranks are lecturer/professor only now).

   * Old university - Assistant / associate professor

   * Middle-aged university - Assistant professor, with promotion to senior lecturer possible

   * New university - Assistant professor, with promotion to senior / principal lecturer possible

- Below lecturer - There are some equivalents to VAP/Post-doc, but they go by a myriad of names. Look for "Fixed-term" in the description of teaching/research posts. "Teaching Fellowships" or "Departmental Lecturer" are the local equivalent at my University. Research officer/fellow is another possible track, as you can teach up to 6 hours per week on most of those contracts, and many people use that as a stepping stone to lecturer. Keep an eye out for idiosyncratic terms in ads, such as "lector" or "junior research fellow".

- Read the Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) job ads, and subscribe to jobs.ac.uk listings for job postings.

- It used to be a lot easier to get a job as a non-EU citizen, it's hard now, it will only get harder from here on out. It's much easier at established rank (full professor level or above) these days than at lower ranks, as your employer needs to argue that no-one else in the UK/EU could do your job. It can still be done though, and if you can get your foot in the door as a researcher/post-doc it's a lot easier to stay on.

[totoro]

There are 4 ranks usually in the UK and Australian systems with the top two being equal to professor in the US and the bottom one lecturer equal to assistant professor. I think it would be hard to get the non-continuing positions below this level  as a non-EU citizen not currently in the US. Here in Australia there is a rank below lecturer called associate lecturer (level A) which normally are PhD students. Some of these teach their own courses and are called "associate lecturer" and some just do lab sessions and tutorials and are called "tutors" which are part-time positions. There are also people called "sessional lecturers" which are the equivalent of adjuncts in the US. (Adjunct in Australia is a full-prof level position who has a professional job elsewhere or an academic in another university). I don't know how all that works in the UK. I was a post-doc in the UK and did my masters there, PhD in the US but I'm a UK citizen. I haven't heard of "teaching postdocs" here or in the UK.

I think you are aiming low and should try to shoot for post-docs and/or lecturer positions or you won't have a chance.

[britsci]

There are very few teaching-only positions in the UK.  There is no such thing as a liberal-arts college here.  Some science departments will have one or two teaching-only positions, called 'Teaching Fellows' at my department, but these are few and far between.

The UK 'Lecturer' position is the equivalent of the US 'Assistant Professor', and will involve teaching and research.

[msbeatie3]

I'm from the US and will be graduating soon with my PhD in a hard-science field.  I'd like to go into university teaching after receiving my PhD (ideally, I'd teach classes/lectures or laboratory sections).  I know what I need to do to get a teaching job in the US at a small liberal arts college or a community college, but I'm wondering what I would need to do if I want a similar job in the UK.  Does a similar job even exist in the UK?  What would be the job title of such a position, and is it possible to get such a position full-time?  I know there are lectureship positions in the UK.  Is that the same as a visiting professor or an adjunct professor in the US?  Is there another title for this type of position that I should be searching for?

I appreciate any advice you can give me about getting a teaching job at a university in the UK.  I probably need visa advice too, but for now I'm just wondering what types of jobs exist and how difficult it would be for an American to get one. 

Also, does the UK have an equivalent of teaching postdoctoral fellowships?

Hi there,

I believe that there are smaller schools other than uni's who are hiring for teacher jobs. You just have to keep your eye out for them because they are not in such a high of demand as other positions. Have you thought of maybe trying a K-12 school first? Maybe that will help you with achieving your overall dream

Best,

Lyndsay

[seniorscholar]

Have you thought of maybe trying a K-12 school first? Maybe that will help you with achieving your overall dream

You do realize, don't you, that you're on a "teaching in the UK" forum, and that very very few people in the UK know what a "K-12" school is (because that's a US designation)?

[scotia]

Have you thought of maybe trying a K-12 school first? Maybe that will help you with achieving your overall dream

You do realize, don't you, that you're on a "teaching in the UK" forum, and that very very few people in the UK know what a "K-12" school is (because that's a US designation)?

It is also very difficult to get a school teaching job - other than at some independent schools - in the UK without having done a school teaching qualification (they have different names in different parts of the UK).

In most places I am aware of I think the closest thing to what you seek is a Teaching Fellow, though in some post-92 universities there is a much lower research requirement and at least some of their lecturer positions largely require teaching and administration. My impression is that the number of teaching fellow posts being advertised is growing, but this may be discipline specific. Some of these positions are permanent (ie not limited term contracts), others may have a time limit.

If you are thinking of applying for jobs in the UK it is very important that you understand the UK system - some aspects are very different to the US system. The first thing to know is the UK ranks: although some universities are moving to adopt some of the US ranks, most still have some variation on lecturer/senior lecturer/reader/professor.

[mingus]

I recall vaguely seeing a figure that around 10% of permanent faculty in the UK are from North America.

It varies across field and university, but some brief answers:

- Lecturer is the entry-level rank for most full-time "tenure-track equivalent" faculty members, and the end-level rank for many. The "traditional" ranks are: lecturer, reader, professor. (Oxford ranks are lecturer/professor only now).

   * Old university - Assistant / associate professor

   * Middle-aged university - Assistant professor, with promotion to senior lecturer possible

   * New university - Assistant professor, with promotion to senior / principal lecturer possible

- Below lecturer - There are some equivalents to VAP/Post-doc, but they go by a myriad of names. Look for "Fixed-term" in the description of teaching/research posts. "Teaching Fellowships" or "Departmental Lecturer" are the local equivalent at my University. Research officer/fellow is another possible track, as you can teach up to 6 hours per week on most of those contracts, and many people use that as a stepping stone to lecturer. Keep an eye out for idiosyncratic terms in ads, such as "lector" or "junior research fellow".

- Read the Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) job ads, and subscribe to jobs.ac.uk listings for job postings.

- It used to be a lot easier to get a job as a non-EU citizen, it's hard now, it will only get harder from here on out. It's much easier at established rank (full professor level or above) these days than at lower ranks, as your employer needs to argue that no-one else in the UK/EU could do your job. It can still be done though, and if you can get your foot in the door as a researcher/post-doc it's a lot easier to stay on.

"The "traditional" ranks are: lecturer, reader, professor.".  Really? What happened to senior lecturer? I had one of those in two RG universities.

[mingus]

I doubt that the UK is the best place to be looking for an academic job right now.  The "academic outlook" perfectly matches the famous British weather.  But if you feel you must, then here it is:

Prior to 1992, the UK had less than one-half of the number of "universities" it now has.  However, those were real universities, in a sense that even a foreigner can understand.  After 92, there are now other "universities" all over the place, variously called the "post-92 universities", the "new universities", the "lesser universities", etc.  In the USA, these would be known as "community colleges". 

In the current climate, unless you are a high-flyer, the chances of you getting a place (even a postdoc) in the proper universities is small and almost zero if you are not an EU citizen.  The situation is somewhat different for the new universities: only a small proportion of their staff even have a PhD, and only a tiny proportion of those do any research.  So, if you have a PhD and are active in research, you should be able to land something there.  Look out for places that might be looking to boost their input into the next "assessment of university research".  Saddled with underperforming local staff, the only way these places will make a decent showing is to quickly get in a few "hot" foreigners.  That's where you could come in.

Good luck.

[chaosbydesign]

After 92, there are now other "universities" all over the place, variously called the "post-92 universities", the "new universities", the "lesser universities", etc.  In the USA, these would be known as "community colleges".

Community college =/= post-92 universities.

I don't know what the US equivalent of a post-92 is, but it's not a CC.

[totoro]

College of Further Education in the UK is the Community College equivalent. The best way to think of pre and post 92 is probably to compare University of California (pre) and California State University (post). But the comparison is not exact.

[oddlyodd]

The situation is somewhat different for the new universities: only a small proportion of their staff even have a PhD, and only a tiny proportion of those do any research. 

This is untrue, at least for all the departments at the post-92 universities for whom I've worked. You seem to have a prejudice against these institutions which is unfounded.

[theblondeassassin]

"The "traditional" ranks are: lecturer, reader, professor.".  Really? What happened to senior lecturer? I had one of those in two RG universities.

As above. Real*  universities don't have 'senior lecturers'.

*Forget about pre-/post-1992 - real universities were founded before 1292.

[mingus]

The situation is somewhat different for the new universities: only a small proportion of their staff even have a PhD, and only a tiny proportion of those do any research. 

This is untrue, at least for all the departments at the post-92 universities for whom I've worked. You seem to have a prejudice against these institutions which is unfounded.

There may be isolated pockets where that is true, but it would be true of an entire university.  My prejudice against these places is actually well-founded: they are bringing great disrepute to UK higher education.  With some luck, the incoming changes will force some of them to shut down or at least shrink considerably. 

Anyway, if you are going to make claims about the post-92s where you have worked, then you should supply the names of the universities and the departments; then we can examine things for ourselves.  Otherwise, you'll soon be claiming Nobel Prize winners in post-92s. 

[totoro]

Here is the department of economics at Portsmouth:

http://www.port.ac.uk/staffessentials/departments/academic/economics/stafflist/

Most have PhDs, but it's true a lot don't. At Earth Sciences almost all have PhDs:

http://www.port.ac.uk/staffessentials/departments/academic/earthandenvironmentalsciences/stafflist/