associate professor

American  

noun

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

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associate professor British  

noun

1. (in the US and Canada) a university teacher lower in rank than a full professor but higher than an assistant professor

2. (in New Zealand) a senior lecturer holding the rank below professor

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Other Word Forms

• associate professorship noun

Etymology

Origin of associate professor

First recorded in 1815–25

Example Sentences

Changes in the dominance hierarchy can fuel more aggression and tension, said Aaron Sandel, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Texas at Austin and study co-author.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026

Dr Theocharis Kyriacou, who is associate professor of AI at York St John University, explained government guidelines on the use of AI in schools were only produced a year ago.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

"What makes this question so hard to answer is that direct observations are very sparse in northern Alaska," says Rawlins, extension associate professor of Earth, Geographic, and Climate Sciences at UMass Amherst.

From Science Daily • Apr. 4, 2026

The study’s findings are in line with existing research that paints a grim picture of the statewide housing crisis, said Carolina Reid, an associate professor of city and regional planning at UC Berkeley.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 28, 2026

Panofsky, who had risen precociously in his two years at Berkeley to the rank of associate professor, detested the very idea of the oath, but signed— “reluctantly,” as he put it later.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik