Why are Professors Always Grumpy?

[Chris Hillman]

Was this at an American university where he might have running for tenure? Demands upon young university instructors in the U.S. are often so heavy that people are trying to function on a few hours sleep per night for years on end.

One other thing most people with teaching experience report learning once they started teaching (besides the fact that's harder than it looks!) is that most students underestimate their own limitations and overestimate those of others. It's possible that your questions weren't as clearly expressed as you thought.

 

[Astronuc]

I've had a few grumpy professor. The worst one was very short with the students. It turned out he had a brain tumor, and once it was removed, he had a completely different personality.

Some professors have bad days, and some just don't seem to relate well to students.

I occassionally talk to professors I had about 20 yrs ago. They mentioned how competitive academia is these days, and I imagine some do get stressed out.

The best thing for a student to do is be prepared for class, take good notes, do the homework and turn it in on time, and read the textbook (I wonder sometimes about students in HW forums).

When I was a grad student, I enjoyed teaching and my door was always open - even outside of office hours.

 

[Moonbear]

Was this at an American university where he might have running for tenure? Demands upon young university instructors in the U.S. are often so heavy that people are trying to function on a few hours sleep per night for years on end.

Another problem that is growing, at least at major research institutions (less so at smaller colleges) is that faculty are hired and promoted based on their research activities, and while they are supposed to teach, teaching is given considerably less weight in things like tenure decisions, and especially during the hiring process. Unfortunately, that means there ARE lecturers who don't want to be lecturing, and quite simply aren't very good at it and lack the motivation to improve at it. I don't know how much this impacts math and physics departments, but I'm definitely seeing it in the biomedical departments, and there has been a noticeable cultural shift among faculty of different levels in their willingness to take on teaching responsibilities. I can't personally wrap my head around the mentality, because if I didn't like teaching, I would have never pursued a career in academia, but it seems a lot of people are applying for and obtaining university faculty positions who treat it more like a research institute than a university.

So, it may be true that some students are encountering more "grumpy" professors who are being pressured to get their research publications out and grants in while feeling "stuck" with teaching a course they don't have time or interest in teaching.

But, it may also be that there are also a lot of grumpy students who feel entitled to spoon-feeding and need to realize it's time to take more responsibility for their own learning. I've certainly seen plenty of that as well, and it's something you may not realize is so prevalent until you're standing on the other side of the lectern.