The Ideal Advertising Professor: A ZMET-Based Inquiry

Abstract Advertising departments in universities worldwide must grapple with a fast-changing industry that continues to redefine itself amid technological change and disruption. It is a reality that has prompted extensive discussion among researchers, educators, administrators, and advertising practitioners. There have been workshops addressing the need to consider the skills and qualifications of the contemporary advertising professor. However, left out of the conversation are the students, and thus their expectations about their instructors remain largely unknown. How do students imagine the ideal advertising professor? What qualities are they looking for? What do they want to learn, and how do they envision their relationship with their advertising professors? We explored students’ mindset using the Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET), obtaining rich insight into their thoughts, feelings, and expectations about the ideal advertising professor. The study can serve as a tool of reflection for advertising educators about their teaching practices, and of assessment for advertising departments during hiring and promotion.