Professorial roles: a study of the professorial populations within nursing and midwifery, social work and allied health professions

• Published in: Journal of research in nursing 2012-07, Vol.17 (4), p.395-411
• Main Authors: Jackson, Christine S., Callinan, Carol, Cowell, Anthony
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1744-9871; 1744-988X
• DOI: 10.1177/1744987110389512

The professorial populations in nursing/midwifery, social work and allied health are relatively new in academia compared to longer established professions, such as medicine and dentistry. Less is known about the roles, career pathways, characteristics and career aspirations of the professoriate within these emerging professions. A survey was undertaken from sample populations in each of the three professorial groups in order to obtain qualitative and quantitative data on professorial roles and activities, career pathway information and support mechanisms for professorial positions. This paper discusses the findings of the survey that relate specifically to professorial roles and activities and whether the identified roles reflect the professorial activities proposed by the National Conference of University Professors (NCUP). Other aspects of this survey, including career pathways, findings relating to gender and support mechanisms, will form the basis of future papers. The findings suggest that the professorial roles studied in this survey reflect those described by the NCUP. Professors of nursing, allied health professions and social work balance a wide range of roles and activities. Research, and related activities, as one would expect, constitute a substantial aspect of work activity, but many professors express frustration with an environment that requires a heterogeneous role profile combined with an unrealistically high workload in order to successfully pursue their research careers. The survey highlighted support networks as a critical success factor in terms of professorial career development. However, professors from across the disciplines commented on the lack of support (institutional and external) available to professors in both pre-professorial and professorial grades. Established and personal chair holders appear to have similar roles, with few statistically significant differences found between these two sub-populations.