As members of a residential community, Exeter teachers work to realize excellence not only in classroom teaching but also in their dormitory work, their advising of students, their coaching, and their wider involvement as a constructive force in the lives of students. In a dorm, faculty and proctors work together as a team to make the residential experience one in which students can learn from one another. If not a resident in a dormitory immediately, a new faculty member is affiliated with a dormitory or small house and generally does dorm duty one night a week, plus one weekend per month. Most faculty, whether living in a dormitory or not, are assigned student advisees. As advisers, faculty are the main liaison between parents and the Academy.
Professional counselors are available as a resource as well.
In some instances, other activities are substituted for coaching. Committee work is distributed as evenly as possible among faculty members and according to individual interests, if possible. A faculty member volunteers or is asked to serve as an adviser to a student activity, again according to interests and workload. It is expected that all teachers at Phillips Exeter Academy will have a proven mastery of the subject matter for which a teaching position is sought. As such it is expected that teaching faculty will have advanced degrees and teaching experience in their specific discipline.