Your “super old” professor that wears suspenders, crazy jackets, and has unruly white hair may not be going anywhere anytime soon–and neither will his other old buddies, studies show.
According to the University of Iowa’s Center on Aging, one third of university faculty are over the age of 55. Compare that to the rest of the workforce, which is 20 percent over 55, and the image of the nutty professor is a whole lot more real.
Safeguarded by tenure and with no set retirement age, many university professors are just hanging around; 60 percent planning on keeping their “professor” title until at least age 70, a study reveals.
The concern of young guns in the education arena is the reality of the older faculty members becoming somewhat obsolete, filling roles and taking up money where there may no longer be a demand.
“Some senior faculty simply may not be as effective in the role as they once were” said senior economist at the TIAA-CREF Institute, Paul Yaboski. “A certain degree of churn is healthy and productive.”
Besides the issue of tenure which, from an employer’s point of view, cuts down on competition–like hiring younger, cheaper faculty not yet concerned with tenure–letting professors’ stay forever prevents a university from bringing in “fresh blood, fresh ideas, people up-to-date on teaching techniques and research techniques,” Yablonksi said.
But, who says old dogs can’t learn new tricks?
Ken Nickerson, a professor at the University of Nebraska, has withstood multiple buyout offers, including being offered an extra year’s salary if he would step down. He stays because he still feels like he has work to do, like he can still contribute.
“I can still publish papers, I can still participate in intellectual discussions with my graduate students,” Nickerson said to NPRedu.
With 90 percent of the faculty who plan to work past the typical retirement age reporting that it is because they still find they’re jobs fulfilling and enjoyable, universities looking to market themselves as modern and on the cutting edge find themselves in a tough spot with their happy, older faculty.
So, it looks like the age gap between doe-eyed college freshman and their grandparent-like professors isn’t going to be closing anytime soon.
But you know what they say, “do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.”
