assistant professor

American  

noun

1. a teacher in a college or university who ranks above an instructor and below an associate professor.

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assistant professor British  

noun

1. a university teacher lower in rank than an associate professor

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Other Word Forms

• assistant professorship
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of assistant professor

An Americanism dating back to 1850–55

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

assistant professor

"We feel incredibly fortunate to be building simulations like Lumina," said Aaron Smith, an assistant professor of physics at the University of Texas at Dallas and an author on the paper.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 27, 2026

Abdelhadi, an assistant professor at the University of Chicago, didn’t reply to voicemails and emails.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

El-Sayed left a position as an assistant professor at Columbia University to work in public health, where he won awards for his success in protecting children’s health from environmental pollution.

From Salon ● Oct. 19, 2026

“That’s the real wild card,” said Sara Sadhwani, assistant professor of politics at Pomona College.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026

Ashoke has been hired as an assistant professor of electrical engineering at the university.

From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri

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