Redefining Academic Success

Abstract

A. I. Leshner makes such a compellingly simple recommendation in his 16 May Editorial (“Just give them grants,” p. [849][1]) that one cannot but wonder why it need be made at all. If junior academic scientists need a government-funded grant to launch their independent research career, why not just give them grants? Problem solved. However, if the academic research community is really going to tackle what is, despite the Editorial's straightforward prose, a very complicated issue, then it should also consider another seemingly simple question extracted from the Editorial's first sentence. Why is it that securing external funding for independent research is a “gold standard” for academic success, particularly in the first few years of a career spanning decades? Shouldn't the early investment in a junior faculty member's scholarly research be the responsibility of the institution hiring him or her? Might not considerations of success also include the originality of the individual's research, the contributions the research could make to the intellectual content of his or her chosen field of research, and the value of the individual as a colleague? Surely there are ways for institutions to develop internal metrics of success. So, here is another simple recommendation: It is time for academic institutions to stop ceding their promotion and tenure decisions to the NIH and other external funding bodies. [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.1159794