docent

The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French maître de conférences (MCF), and equal to or above the title of associate professor. Docent is also used at some (mainly German) universities generically for a person who has the right to teach. The term is derived from the Latin word , which is the present active participle of ('to teach, to lecture'). Becoming a docent is often referred to as habilitation or doctor of science and is an academic qualification that shows that the holder is qualified to be employed at the level of associate or full professor. Docent is the highest academic title in several countries, and the qualifying criteria are research output that corresponds to 3–5 doctoral dissertations, supervision of PhD students, and experience in teaching at the undergraduate and graduate level. Belgium In the Flemish universities of Belgium docent is the first of four university professor ranks, the others being (head docent), (professor) and . To be awarded the docent title at the Flemish universities, a candidate has to have a doctorate. In the French-speaking universities, the word docent is not used in their titles. Germany, Austria, and Switzerland In Germany, Austria, and in the German-speaking part of Switzerland, or denotes an academic appointment at a university or similar institution, at a mid-level ranking of seniority.