This document summarizes research examining job satisfaction among experienced professors at a liberal arts college. Surveys and interviews were conducted. The results showed that professors were generally satisfied with their jobs, and that professional satisfaction factors like autonomy, intellectual challenge, and meaningful work were the strongest motivators for remaining in academia. While scholarship and relationships with colleagues also contributed substantially to satisfaction, service obligations and practical factors were less important motivators. The opportunity to conduct research had a greater influence on decisions to stay than institutional service.
2. Background Purpose: examine career satisfaction and explore motivations for staying in the profession Target: experienced professors at a moderate- sized liberal arts college Characters: tenure-track faculty who had been teaching in higher education for at least 15 years Methods: Experienced Teacher Survey and Interview
3. Four Questions To what extent are experienced college professors satisfied with their work? What are the primary areas of satisfaction that motivate professors to remain in their positions? What role does scholarship play in the lives of professors? How important is it for professors to provide service to their institution?
4. ETS Data Source Of the 170 surveys that were distributed, 74 (43.5%) were returned by experienced professors
5. Interview Data Source 25 professors =12 males + 13 females; 12 SOLA, 6 SOS, 3 SEBA, 4 SOE
6. QUESTION 1 To what extent are experienced college professors satisfied with their work?
7. Result for Question 1 In table 1 ,by mean scores ranging from 3.25 (SD, 0.60) to 3.50 (SD, 0.65) on the 4-point scale The survey data suggest that these experienced professors were satisfied with their jobs
8. QUESTION 2 What are the primary areas of satisfaction that motivate professors to remain in their positions?
9. Result for Question 2 Professional satisfaction factors Practical satisfaction factors Social satisfaction factors
10. Professional satisfaction factors Professional Satisfaction factors contributed substantially to the professors' overall satisfaction with their work and were an important reason for their remaining in teaching
11. Practical satisfaction factors Practical factors were important to professors, but not as important as the Professional Satisfaction factors
12. Social satisfaction factors Two relationships : faculty colleagues and administrators Having good relationships with faculty colleagues is more important than relationships with administrators
13. QUESTION 3 What role does scholarship play in the lives of professors?
14. Result for Question 3 Engaging in scholarship appears to have had a greater influence on the participants' decision to remain in the profession than the opportunity to perform service
15. QUESTION 4 How important is it for professors to provide service to their institution?
16. Result for Question 4 The opportunity to perform service was the lowest quantitative factor professors identified as an influence in their decision to remain in the profession.
17. Conclusion Professional Satisfaction factors is the most powerful motivators that induced experienced professorsto remain in the classroom. Scholarship was also a great source of satisfaction for the professors (although time and expectations were constraints), as was their relationships with colleagues. Service to the institution and Practical Satisfaction factors were generally rated lower as motivators
18. Conclusion Having a good administrator ranked near the bottom of factors professors identified as important for their job satisfaction
19. Some Questions Do you think you would get similar answers from professors at large research universities such as Penn State, Arizona State, Texas AM or Virginia Tech? Do you think the overall satisfaction level would be lower if non-tenured professors were surveyed? And if so, what specific areas do you think would score the lowest?
