What Does A Seminary Professor Do? (Part 2): Research

Most people know that in higher education, faculty are expected to do research and publish. Now, for seminary professors, what you do, why, and how much depends on the person and the institutional culture/regulations. Some seminaries have little to no expectation that faculty are actively publishing. In fact, some seminaries might discourage it because they would rather have the faculty member invest that time in teaching preparation and working with students. On the other end of the spectrum, I know institutions that place a good deal of pressure on faculty to publish often and at a certain academic level (e.g., elite publications). Most seminaries fall closer to the middle of this spectrum – faculty are required to do some publishing and to sit before advancement and tenure committees and demonstrate reasonable effort and success in remaining active in the guild.

What do seminary professors research and publish?

Again, it varies quite widely based on the institution. As for me, I try operate at two levels. First, my calling is to equip pastors to understand and teach the New Testament in their ministries. So, I like to write commentaries and textbooks along those lines. Second, I try to stay active in “the guild,” so I work on academic articles and more advanced works to make contributions to NT studies.

How does research fit into your weekly schedule?

The short answer: anywhere you can squeeze it! Yes, there are sabbaticals, but those are very few and very far between for most of us. Yes, there is the summer, but as for me, 1) I need a bit of a brain break, and 2) I try to carve out time to spend with my family on vacation, so I don’t treat the whole summer as a research bonanza. I take the month of May (when I am not teaching) and I try to blitz several research projects. But I tend to stay away from research in July and early August.

During term, I am definitely very busy with course preparation, meetings, grading, administrative tasks, and working with TAs, etc. So, it is hard to find any regularly scheduled time for research. In my “ideal” weekly calendar, I might have  8-12 hours blocked off for “research” time, but that can easily get side-lined with last-minute meetings, or a host of other unpredictable duties. I would say, on a good week, I can squeeze in 12 hours, but most weeks 8-10 hours. And there are the “here and there” moments for research – in a parking lot waiting to pick up the kids, late at night or early in the morning right before a deadline, on a plane, at a hotel, etc. And, there may be blessed weeks where a big meeting gets canceled, or class was not meeting, or I don’t have to do much prep because I had prepped the lecture on another occasion, or there is light or no grading.

To give you just a bit of snapshot of what is often on the “plate” of a seminary faculty member, here is a quick sense of various research bits I was working on this week:

-I had to complete small edits on a book review for a journal

-I made progress towards required revisions for a journal article

-I received an invitation to write for a multi-contributor project. Need to mull it over.

-I met with some students about a collaborative book project – needed to give them some instructions.

-I spend a short bit of time talking to a colleague about a book project we would edit together

-I talked to two editors separately about projects in the works (one on the phone, the other via email)

-I am proofreading chapters from a book. I try to proofread one chapter a week, but not always successful

-I am trying to work through proposed revisions for another project, but it is hard to find time for it. I keep putting it off.

-I am slated to do 3 book reviews; one book is read, and I just started the review draft. Another I have read 75% (no writing done yet), and the third I have just read the introduction. Due dates April, May, June, so I don’t feel too much pressure right now, but it is on my mind.

-I have on my calendar to send a reminder to contributors for another project to complete their essays and send them to me (the editor) by April 1.

-I have a short essay due in July – but I kind of want to get it off my plate and it is not hard to write. So I am slowly chipping away, I will try to write 200-300 words per week (total 2500).

So, I have a lot of writing projects going on. Some people like to be writing lots of different things at once for variety (like me), but others like to focus and do basically just one thing at a time. That’s more of a personality thing.

What if I don’t like doing research?

Well, again, at most seminaries the expectation is not that faculty are constantly producing books. The concern is that faculty are actively making contributions to their guild. Many (like me) do “more” for personal and professional benefit. But if you just don’t like doing research at all, higher ed might not be the right fit for you.

Do you get institutional support?

Most seminaries can’t pay you extra to do research  – research is assumed or stated in your contract. But some places offer course release you can apply for, to lessen your teaching load to work on a special writing project. At other places, you might also get editorial/research help. Some seminaries have generous sabbatical policies. At most places, you get a bit of help, either financially or release or support.

There are some grant-funding bodies out there that can pay you to work on a project of interest to them. These are often highly competitive or very narrow in scope. But always worth checking into.

Does publishing pay?

Not really. Unless you are NT Wright or Tremper Longman, you really can’t expect book royalties to be a major part of your income stream. Of course there is some money involved, but imagine it as $5 an hour of work you put into the book, at best. When you publish with elite European or university presses, you often get nothing (maybe in-house credit if you are lucky). Textbooks may get you some cash, but it is not something to bank on. Think, buy a couch, not buy a car.

How does research affect teaching?

For me, it depends on what one chooses to research. I try to work on projects related to the courses I regularly teach. In that case, it has a great effect. Sometimes I have students read portions of my work in progress. Research gives fresh ideas for lectures. Sometimes get feedback on ideas that will improve my work.

Any Questions?