Professional roles of a university teacher and their changes

Abstract

This paper discusses the professional roles of a university teacher, transitions between them and the ways in which the university teacher copes with his work in several simultaneous roles. Interviews performed with academics bring some of the determinants of perception and the development of these roles. The most notable transitions and the dual roles are those of student - teacher, teacher researcher and teacher - supervisor, where the basic determinant of all the roles remains a student. While a beginning university teacher enters university trying to shed the role of a student and become a teacher, years later, after having obtained the position of associate professor, he returns to students as their supervisor who tries to prepare them for the career of a university teacher.