Academic titles

Why is translating titles so difficult?

Translating academic titles can be challenging for a number of reasons, such as:

• Most Swedish titles are regulated in the Higher Education Ordinance
• Some Swedish universities use British titles while others use American titles. Some have a combination of the two.
• Many university teachers choose their own title, sometimes going against the decided structure at the HEI
• The British and American ranking and promotion systems differ from each other and are different than the Swedish systems, making it difficult to find a proper equivalent
• The US and Canada use the tenure system
• Academic titles can reflect both competence and appointment/position – what should you use for a comparison?
• The UK is moving away from their old titles towards American title usage

American or British titles?

The Swedish Council for Higher Education, the agency responsible for the Swedish-English Dictionary, translates to British English. In some cases, they provide the American term as well. We’ve attempted to use British titles as the main equivalent to Swedish titles, providing American titles where appropriate.

The translation group who works with term equivalents has noticed that in the UK, many universities have switched from the British ranking system, using American ranks/titles for their teaching staff. This seems to be the trend in Sweden as well.

The American ranking/title system is quite simple to understand, which may explain the transition. As a translator, it’s up to you to decide what system you’d prefer to use for your title translations.

Academic Ranks in Sweden

Academic ranks in Sweden are regulated in national legislation, while they are not in the US or UK. There are often local regulations at the universities that supplement the national ones.

Understanding adjunkt, adjungerad and adjunct

The Swedish term “adjunkt” is the title for an appointment that is no longer regulated in Swedish legislation, but is still used and regulated at the local level by the individual institution. Generally an academic degree is required, but not necessarily a doctorate. The emphasis is on teaching responsibilities rather than research. The English title “lecturer” is used as an equivalent. The Swedish title "adjunkt" should not be translated to the English title "adjunct."

The Swedish term “adjungerad” is an adjective used to qualify an appointment, for example “adjungerad professor”. The term “adjungerad” is translated “adjunct”. “Adjunct” can be used by itself as a noun, or as an adjective as in “adjunct professor” or “adjunct lecturer”. In general, an adjunct is a part-time faculty member who is hired on a contractual basis for a fixed term - the individual does not have a full-time appointment at the higher education institution and is generally mainly employed outside academia.

The terms of this appointment vary in different parts of the world. You can find out more about how the English term “adjunct” is used at the following link:

Adjunct professor at Wikipedia

Understanding Docent

One achieves the recognition docent by achievement through extensive research and publication. Docent is not an appointment/position but is instead a recognition of academic status. Therefore, we suggest that you use Docent in English texts.

Fine and applied arts

Positions in the fine and applied arts (konstnärliga) focus on artistic expertise instead of research, with greater expertise associated with a higher rank.

Academic ranks in the United Kingdom

The following is a general outline for how the teaching track works in the United Kingdom. Please note that many universities in the UK have switched to the US system for academic titles. There are a number of additional titles that are used in the UK, which can vary from institution to institution. We’ve provided a reasonable selection that can be used.

Research, teaching or combined track for academic ranks

An individual can choose a research, teaching or combined track for their academic career at a university in the UK. Therefore, you’ll find various levels of teaching and research experience for the above titles based on the chosen career path. In the chart, we have generalised. Please note that there are a number of variations here depending on the university.

Academic Ranks in the United States

The following is a general outline for how the teaching track works in the United States. Please note that universities may have other criteria for promoting teaching staff. For example, a wave of retirement may present a need for more teaching staff, speeding up promotion/tenure.

*Always a tenured position
**Associate Professor position generally comes when granted tenure.
*** The needs of the university and department are also of importance.

More about tenure

Some countries, such as the United States and Canada, use the tenure system as part of their academic teacher promotion process. A tenured professor is a faculty member at a college or university who has a full-time teaching position and strong job security that protects academic freedom.