PRESIDENT'S COLUMN

The best job in the world: academics!

By Richard M. Suinn, PhD
APA President

I just left the best job in the world: being an academic faculty member. My entire career has been serving in academe--in a liberal arts college, a medical school, a state university with a graduate program--and now I am an emeritus professor.

It surprises me that students considering a career fail to choose academics first. There is at least one explanation: Despite our desire to encourage our best and brightest to become academics, we are our own worst enemy. Without malice, we sometimes bemoan our status: "We could earn a higher salary in other jobs." "University politics are taking away our academic freedom and ideals." "Teaching can be a chore."

However, this flagellation is deceiving because few of us would leave academe. Meanwhile, our best and brightest students perceive what appear to be negative attitudes and seek other careers. We're also sometimes guilty of the error of omission, rarely acknowledging publicly that "this truly is the best job in the world" and that, "while there may be opportunities elsewhere, this is what I want to do."

So, as I enter a less active academic position--have no fear, as long as I retain an office here at Colorado State University, I will remain active--I will do my part to tout the academic scene.

What's so good about it?

The educational system is a system that evolves slowly, but has many positive attributes. Institutions and their faculty prize the importance of education and training. Faculty truly want to be the key to students' learning about the content of their discipline, about their specialty area, about the science and practice of psychology. Our identities, satisfactions and self-esteem are tied up with being the instrument for enhancing learning.

The personal quality of the educational experience is a plus. Mentoring can be an important activity as it allows us to be involved in the broadest development of a young scholar. This occurs in the classroom, through modeling and by paying attention to the student as a complete person. It is revealed by understanding, listening, empathy, direct guidance, respect and caring for students' well-being. Seeing students develop, and meeting them in their later lives, can be an outstanding experience.

Technology and information about the teaching-learning process are improving learning. Technological aids, well-organized teaching materials and textbooks, experiential techniques all help the faculty to be better teachers. To some degree, class size may be a secondary variable affecting learning outcomes if the appropriate educational/learning approaches are in place. Under such conditions, teaching and learning are interactive and exciting events, never a chore or a bore.

What are the challenges?

Faculty and students are influenced by and can influence the system. Several challenges exist. Our curriculum plans must take into account the expansion of knowledge in psychology and other disciplines. We must consider how to cover the immense growth of information, whether to seek depth or breadth, whether to include the knowledge bases of other disciplines and how much of the more sophisticated statistics is enough to require.

Funding resources are limited yet pressure for admissions remains. Should enrollment be restricted to only those students who can be supported, and, thus, should we turn away other qualified applicants? Should faculty be expected to engage in contract and grant activity, thereby taking time away from direct teaching assignments?

Then there are the issues of whether our graduates are prepared for the job market and whether positions will be available for them. Perhaps we need to more carefully match graduate training to society's needs, which, of course, change over time. In medicine, general practitioners were once in demand, then specialists were needed. Today, there may be a slow return to the generalist who can collaborate with the specialist. Is there the same demand for applied psychologists? In what specialties? Are there new specialties or proficiencies that are more desirable? Clearly there is danger of making only market-driven decisions. Yet there are important "markets" out there: older people, people of color, rural communities, families and primary health care.

It is still the best job in the world. As a system, the educational environment brings some of the best traditions for those special people who can enjoy the identity of being academics. As a system, the educational environment is slow to change, but faculty can effect changes, and must accept the challenge of creating change in order for their jobs to remain the best in the world!



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