--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Universities hire professors the way some…" description: "\"Universities hire professors the way some men choose wives - they want the ones the others will admire.\" — Morris Kline" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abb/morris-kline-25507_admiration_universities-hire-professors-the-way-som_72155.png" --- # Universities hire professors the way some men choose wives… ![“Universities hire professors the way some men choose wives - they want the ones the others will admire.” quote by Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abb/morris-kline-25507_admiration_universities-hire-professors-the-way-som_72155.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abb/morris-kline-25507_admiration_universities-hire-professors-the-way-som_72155.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abb/morris-kline-25507_admiration_universities-hire-professors-the-way-som_72155.png) > “Universities hire professors the way some men choose wives - they want the ones the others will admire.” [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques academic hiring as driven by prestige and external validation rather than merit, likening it to selecting a spouse for status. **In simple terms:** Hiring for admiration over substance. Key Takeaway Prestige can eclipse competence. Themes Power dynamics Social status Institutional bias Meritocracy Cultural norms Mood Critical Skeptical Reflective Type Anecdotal Observational Satirical When to use this quote - University hiring committees - Departmental promotions - Faculty recruitment processes - Professional networking events Key Concepts Academic hiring Social perception Reputation management Practical Applications - Developing transparent hiring criteria - Implementing blind review of candidates Questions to Reflect On - How does reputation influence hiring decisions? - What mechanisms can ensure merit‑based selection? A Different Perspective Some argue that hiring based on reputation can attract high‑impact scholars who elevate the institution's profile. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Admiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/admiration/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) [Math](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/math/) [Mathematics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematics/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Professors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/professors/) [University](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/university/) [Wife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wife/) ## Related quotes > [I had the great good fortune of getting my Ph.D. in the very first year that universities were actively seeking women faculty. The government…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-s-dweck/i-had-the-great-good-fortune-of-getting-my-ph-d-in-the-very-first/) [Carol S. 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They don't want some lump spouse watching ice hockey in the late hours of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-see/women-want-a-family-life-that-glitters-and-is-stable-they-don-t-want/) [Carolyn See](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-see/) > [“People want to believe they know other people. Parents want to believe they know their kids. Wives want to believe they know their husbands.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/people-want-to-believe-they-know-other-people-parents-want-to-believe/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Q. Why do men die before their wives? A. They want to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-h-beth/q-why-do-men-die-before-their-wives-a-they-want-to/) [L H, Beth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-h-beth/) > [Ex-Professor Moriarty of mathematical celebrity... is the Napoleon of crime, Watson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/ex-professor-moriarty-of-mathematical-celebrity-is-the-napoleon-of/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [There is one thing a professor can be absolutely certain of: almost every student entering the university believes, or says he believes, that truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-bloom/there-is-one-thing-a-professor-can-be-absolutely-certain-of-almost/) [Allan Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-bloom/) > [“Yeah, I know what your English Professor tried to tell you. 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But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/robin-williams-was-an-airman-a-doctor-a-genie-a-nanny-a-president-a/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [“Like a delicatessen owner who sells rancid meat and then blames his business failure on the vulgarization of customer taste, humanities professors account for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-saul-morson/like-a-delicatessen-owner-who-sells-rancid-meat-and-then-blames-his/) [Gary Saul Morson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-saul-morson/) > [Astrology is knocking at the gates of our universities: A Tübingen professor has switched over to astrology and a course on astrology was given…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/astrology-is-knocking-at-the-gates-of-our-universities-a-t-bingen/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [ The young man \[Turgot\] destined for an ecclesiastical career was placed within walls carefully designed to keep out all currents of new thought; his… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-dickson-white/the-young-man-turgot-destined-for-an-ecclesiastical-career-was-placed/) [Andrew Dickson White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-dickson-white/) ## More by Morris Kline > [The tantalizing and compelling pursuit of mathematical problems offers mental absorption, peace of mind amid endless challenges, repose in activity, battle without conflict, refuge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-kline/the-tantalizing-and-compelling-pursuit-of-mathematical-problems/) [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) > [Mathematicians create by acts of insights and intuition. Logic then sanctions the conquests of intuition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-kline/mathematicians-create-by-acts-of-insights-and-intuition-logic-then/) [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) > [In brief, the whole world is the totality of mathematically expressible motions of objects in space and time, and the entire universe is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-kline/in-brief-the-whole-world-is-the-totality-of-mathematically/) [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) > [Statistics: the mathematical theory of ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-kline/statistics-the-mathematical-theory-of-ignorance/) [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) > [Though determinants and matrices received a great deal of attention in the nineteenth century and thousands of papers were written on these subjects, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-kline/though-determinants-and-matrices-received-a-great-deal-of-attention/) [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) > [“All mathematical proofs must be deductive. 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Conclusions obtained by induction seem well warranted”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-kline/same-phenomenon-and-concludes-that-the-phenomenon-will-always-occur/) [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) > [On all levels primary, and secondary and undergraduate - mathematics is taught as an isolated subject with few, if any, ties to the real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-kline/on-all-levels-primary-and-secondary-and-undergraduate-mathematics-is/) [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) > [The most fertile source of insight is hindsight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-kline/the-most-fertile-source-of-insight-is-hindsight/) [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) > [“Because we are forced to learn about numbers and operations with numbers while we are still too young to appreciate them—a preparation for life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-kline/because-we-are-forced-to-learn-about-numbers-and-operations-with/) [Morris Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) [Explore all 22 Morris Kline quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-kline/) ## More Admiration quotes > [I have tremendous admiration for companies with the kind of pioneering spirit and innovation eBay has demonstrated from day one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-hammer/i-have-tremendous-admiration-for-companies-with-the-kind-of/) [Bonnie Hammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-hammer/) > [The older you've gotten, the more respect and admiration you've received.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jupp-heynckes/the-older-you-ve-gotten-the-more-respect-and-admiration-you-ve/) [Jupp Heynckes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jupp-heynckes/) > [I still don't feel I know Hitchcock at all. 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