OBJECTIVE: to describe faculty member training as a strategy for the development of leaders and the promotion of continuous academic progress in teaching, research, and extension. METHOD: this reflection article presents a history of the highest academic degree obtained in Brazil, describing the characteristics of the competitions and highlighting aspects and activities that show, nowadays, intellectual and scientific maturation. RESULTS: aspiring professors submit their academic trajectory to analysis and judgment by peers, based on strict assessment criteria, to receive a professor habilitation. Its purpose is to promote a moment of analysis of their academic career and to identify the remarkable contribution to the advancement of the university and the country through consolidated and impactful activities. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: pursuing this highest degree in the Brazilian academic career can be a moment of individual and collective advancement, contributing to the consolidation of areas of knowledge.