How Do I Become a Clinical Professor?

A clinical professor is an individual working in a profession such as medicine, law, or business who offers practical training to students in a university setting. The particular distribution of work that a clinical professor does may vary from position to position. Some mostly give practical instruction and do very little clinical or research work of their own, while others give very little instruction compared to the amount of clinical work that they do. The path that one must take to become a clinical professor varies from profession to profession, but it generally requires a potential candidate to perform well throughout his education and become a well-regarded professional in his field.

The first step for someone who wants to be a clinical professor is to choose a particular field to pursue. If one wants to become a clinical professor of medicine, for instance, he should follow a pre-medical track as an undergraduate and should try to get relevant internships and do volunteer work. In many cases, there is not a set track that one must follow to become a clinical professor in law, business, or many other professional fields. That said, excelling in school and taking classes relevant to one's future career plans is still very important.

Professional school of one form or another is the next important step for someone who wants to become a clinical professor. A student who wants to become a clinical professor in medicine, for instance, must attend medical school. In some cases, as with business school, one must gain some work experience before entering the professional school. Many people are able to find internships or relevant work during their years in professional school; this can be helpful, but only if it does not have a deleterious effect on one's education.

After professional school, one must spend a number of years building one's professional career. This often begins with internships, residencies, and other closely-supervised positions. After this, one is generally able to seek formal employment or build one's own business. Remaining active in one's field by building business connections, publishing research, and constantly striving to improve one's career is essential for someone who wants to become a clinical professor. At this point, the professional should begin to research universities and apply for positions — he may be able to become a clinical professor immediately upon attaining employment with a university while at other times he will need to work as an assistant for other clinical professors first.