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Management and Evaluation

Titles and Duties of Faculty Members

Titles and Duties of Faculty Members, etc.

The titles and duties of faculty members at this university are prescribed in Article 92 of the School Education Act and Article 22 of the Kyushu University Rules (see the table entitled Titles and Duties of Faculty Members, etc.)

○Summary of the provisions in the relevant legislation

It has been pointed out that the conventional approach to the organization of academic staff at universities has not necessarily been appropriate, particularly in relation to young university lecturers who are pursuing research activities with a flexible mind-set.

To address this issue, Article 92 of the School Education Act entered into force on April 1, 2007; the gist of its provisions is as follows.

  • ・The existing post of assistant will be clearly divided into assistant professors, whose main duties involve conducting education and research themselves, and assistants, whose main duties are to assist with education and research.
  • ・To position the existing post of assistant professor appropriately in accordance with the actual situation and give it international currency, the post will now be called associate professor.
  • ・The provisions clearly distinguish between the knowledge and abilities of those in the posts of professor, associate professor, and assistant professor, although the content of their duties is the same.

When setting out the specific division of duties between faculty members at this university, the positioning of each post and the nature of the duties that they involve must be borne in mind, to ensure that these duties can be carried out systematically, based on an appropriate division of roles and cooperation between faculty members.

Titles and duties of faculty members (from Article 92 of the School Education Act and Article 22 of the Kyushu University Rules)
Title Knowledge and abilities required for each position Duties
Professor Has particularly outstanding knowledge, abilities, and achievements in education, research, or practice in a specialized field. Teaching students, supervising their research, or conducting his/her own research.
Associate Professor Has demonstrated outstanding knowledge, ability, and achievements in terms of education, research, or practice in his/her field of specialism Teaching students, supervising their research, or conducting his/her own research.
Assistant Professor Has demonstrated knowledge and ability in terms of education, research, or practice in his/her field of specialism Teaching students, supervising their research, or conducting his/her own research.
Lecturer   Carrying out duties equivalent to those of a professor or associate professor
Research Associate (Assistant)   Carrying out the duties required for the smooth conduct of education and research in the organization to which he/she is assigned
Research Associate   Assisting professors and associate professors in the conduct of their duties.

(Note 1) The post of research associate (assistant) corresponds to the post of assistant in Article 92 (9) of the School Education Act.
(Note 2) The post of research associate is unique to this university and is based on Article 92 (2) of the School Education Act.