What is the odds of being a professor at a top tier university?

[daric soldar]

It sounds like the only reason you want to be a professor, PhysicsMonk, is for the ego boost. To show the world you're the best.

You may make it. You may become a professor at an ivy-league university. You may have graduate students who worship the ground you walk on (at least, until they get that slip of paper and they're no longer your slaves). But will that make you happy forever knowing you will be the professor teaching the course every student just has to "get through" so they can get their degree because you don't even care about the students or their success?

If you really want to teach at an excellent school, please do it because you love the work, not for the bragging rights. I imagine that most people get bored of those rights after a few years and kinda wish they'd done something they actually like (or pays the bills) than something they can use to say to an average Joe on the street, "I teach at Yale! Yeah, that school you hear about in movies! You'll never make it there! Bahaha!"

I'm not insulting you. Just trying to help you. Think what will make you happy. Forget about everyone else, about all the possible accolades, rewards, power, or praise you can receive from everyone else. Think about what YOU want to do.

I think it is pretty sad you have a lot of people with many years of experience from getting their phd, and do a job that any HS drop out can do.

Have you ever thought about people who clean junior high schools because they enjoy it and don't care about what other people think of them?