I’m a college professor and I look younger than my age. The other day I was outside the classroom waiting for the previous professor (an older male) to pack up so I could go in and teach my class. Some of my students were already sitting there. He motioned to say it was ok to come in and looked surprised when I placed my things on the table in front of the classroom. He looked me up and down, and then said, “Wow, I thought you were a student. You look too vibrant to be a professor”. I was too stunned to respond. And this sort of comment happens in academia ALL the time.
