Addressing People in Academia

Shoud you call that person Dr, Prof or Mx?.

higher ed
firstgen
for students
Author
Published

July 28, 2020

When I started college I did not know how to address professors. I was a first generation student and an international student so I was extremely confused. I went to a small liberal arts college where (most) professors were fine with being called by their first names. Culturally, I felt uncomfortable calling my elders by first name. I hope this post is useful for someone in a similar situation.

Addressing people in academia is one of the challenges of being in an academic setting. Below I provide general information with a side note that each academic has their own preference. I should also note that I am only familiar with academic life in the United States so this post may or may not be relevant for those in other countries. I share this post with my students on my syllabus or on my course website.

Doctoral/Medical
Degree Required
Job Specific Gender Neutral Based on
Marital Status
Dr.
Miss
Mr.
Mrs.
Ms.
Mx.
Prof.
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Footnotes

  1. Thank you for the addendum Holly Beale↩︎