Tenure Criteria Research Articles

Faculty assessment of scholarship of teaching and learning among United States pharmacy programs

IntroductionPharmacy faculty understanding of the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) and its recognition remain unclear. This study aimed to determine faculty SoTL perceptions and whether it should be recognized in promotion and tenure decisions. MethodsA survey instrument was developed and distributed to 6454 faculty in 139 United States pharmacy programs. The survey provided a list of scholarly activities and respondents were asked to select activities they perceived as SoTL and solicited faculty attitudes toward SoTL, its recognition and value in promotion and tenure, and SoTL engagement. Results were stratified based on SoTL participation, disciplines, and years of experience. ResultsSix hundred forty-three pharmacy faculty responded to the survey. Diverse scholarly works from teaching and learning practices to curriculum development, which lead to peer-reviewed public dissemination, were perceived as SoTL by most (78–98%) of the respondents. Participation in SoTL was reported by 74%. Pharmaceutical/biomedical science faculty were significantly less likely to accept the SoTL definition than pharmacy practice or social and administrative sciences faculty. Over 90% of participants indicated that college/school and departmental policies should encourage participation in SoTL activities. More than 70% of respondents strongly agreed that SoTL should be incorporated into criteria for promotion and tenure. Competing time commitments, lack of funding, interest, and institutional SoTL recognition were identified as challenges. ConclusionFindings demonstrate that pharmacy faculty perceive SoTL as a broad spectrum of scholarly activities, including classroom practices and beyond, that culminate into peer-reviewed public dissemination. Pharmacy faculty support the incorporation of SoTL into promotion and tenure criteria.

Academic Advancement in Global Surgery: Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure: Recommendations From the American Surgical Association Working Group on Global Surgery.

: There is growing interest in global surgery among US academic surgical departments. As academic global surgery is a relatively new field, departments may have minimal experience in evaluation of faculty contributions and how they integrate into the existing academic paradigm for promotion and tenure. The American Surgical Association Working Group on Global Surgery has developed recommendations for promotion and tenure in global surgery, highlighting criteria that: (1) would be similar to usual promotion and tenure criteria (eg, publications); (2) would likely be undervalued in current criteria (eg, training, administrative roles, or other activities that are conducted at low- and middle-income partner institutions and promote the partnerships upon which other global surgery activities depend); and (3) should not be considered (eg, mission trips or other clinical work, if not otherwise linked to funding, training, research, or building partnerships).

Evaluating journal quality by integrating department journal lists in a developing country: Are they representative?

The appraisal of research output is of particular interest to scholars and academic administrators, and the career success of academicians is partially dependent on the journals in which their manuscripts are published. Department journal lists (DJLs) which are reflective of the priorities of the schools that created them, are a frequently used criterion for promotion and tenure (P&T) decision in academic departments. Although previous studies have employed DJLs in the assessment of faculty publications, the sample population has been restricted to developed countries rather than developing countries. This study empirically investigated the characteristics (e.g., journal scope, ranking schemes) of the DJLs currently used by Chinese business and management (B&M) schools. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work that shows how do Chinese academia recognize the quality of English-language journals, as well as the difference between the Chinese and Western academicians regarding the recognition of journal quality. Our findings indicated that a major difference exists not only across Chinese B&M schools but also between China and the developed countries, i.e. the top-level journals were likely underrated by Chinese B&M community, and those journals at the medium-level journals were likely overrated by Chinese B&M community. Some suggestions will inform librarians on practices associated with the process of DJL compiled and research evaluation.

Generational perceptions of promotion and tenure expectations by faculty in a striving university: A quest for legitimacy?

AbstractStriving universities seek to gain prestige in the academic market. One characteristic of striving universities is a change in the faculty reward system. In this study, we examined historical promotion and tenure criteria in five disciplinary units at one striving university and then conducted interviews with senior faculty and recently tenured faculty in each unit to better understand the striving dynamics at play. Findings demonstrated that pressures to seek legitimacy were a result of the faculty themselves, the institution’s desire to gain legitimacy through an increased research profile and the disciplinary ties outside the university.

Best practices and inclusion of team science principles in appointment promotion and tenure documents in research intensive schools of nursing

BackgroundNurse scientists are highly sought after and find satisfaction in serving as members of interdisciplinary research teams. These teams also tend to be highly productive. However, nurse scientists in academia also have to reach certain productivity milestones to be promoted and receive tenure that may be incongruent with team science principles. PurposeThis study therefore sought to examine whether APT documents in research intensive nursing schools incorporate team science principles. MethodsQualitatively analyzed the appointment, promotion and tenure documents of 18 U.S. based research intensive schools of nursing with over $2 million in NIH funding in fiscal year 2014. FindingsThe study found that only 8 of 18 documents included any reference to team science principles and even these mentions were largely negligible. There were few best practices to recommend across documents. By not recognizing team science within these documents, nursing risks marginalization within the larger scientific community by limiting mentorship and learning opportunities for early career nurse scientists. DiscussionSchools of nursing should revisit their promotion and tenure criteria and include a greater commitment to encouragement of team science.

The future of the impact agenda depends on the revaluation of academic freedom

Opponents of the impact agenda often base their arguments on the claim that requiring scholarly research to demonstrate broader societal impacts conflicts with academic freedom. This paper argues that this claim entails a narrow interpretation of academic freedom as freedom from interference. A richer interpretation is proposed of academic freedom as freedom to pursue research that may have broader impacts. Adopting a positive view of academic freedom will require disciplines to adjust their standards of academic rigor and universities to amend their criteria for promotion and tenure. It will also provide the foundation for an academic response to the rise of neopopulism.

Relationships among faculty perceptions of their tenure process and their commitment and engagement

PurposeNotwithstanding the rise of contingent faculty, tenured and tenured track faculty continue to play vital roles in US higher education and the tenure decision is central to the lives of many academics. While the literature is replete with anecdotes about faculty complaining about the process to which they were subject, there has been surprisingly little empirical research on faculty perceptions of the clarity and fairness of the tenure process and the relationship of these perceptions to work outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to examine the motivational impact of these processes on faculty who are pre-tenure as well as those who had successfully navigated the tenure process.Design/methodology/approachSelf-reported survey data were collected from 410 full-time pre-tenured and tenured faculty at three universities in the Northeastern USA. Participants were assessed on their uncertainty and their perceptions of justice in the tenure process as well as their affective and continuance organizational commitment and work engagement. Data were subject to exploratory factor analysis, correlation, and hierarchical regression.FindingsThe results indicated that there was a lack of clarity with respect to both the criteria for tenure and the procedures by which institutions made tenure decisions. The results indicated no gender differences in the perception of clarity, but the results suggest women perceived the tenure process as being less just than men do. Perceived justice was positively related to both affective organizational commitment and work engagement with affective commitment fully mediating the relationship with there being no relationship between continuance commitment and perceived justice. These relations held for both tenured and later career faculty and pre-tenured and earlier career faculty.Research limitations/implicationsThe study extends understanding of the dimensionality of justice perceptions in higher education setting. The design was cross-sectional and data common was self-report.Practical implicationsThe results provide empirical support to anecdotes of faculty feeling that tenure processes often lack clarity and appear to be capricious and unfair. It provides evidence that the negative impact of a process being viewed as unfair may affect the dedication and effort that the faculty who are granted tenure and remain at their institutions for decades afterward. At a time, when higher education is resource challenged, it behooves both faculty and administrators to critically review their tenure processes against best practices.Originality/valueThis study adds to the limited empirical literature on the tenure process and does so from a motivational perspective.

Perceptions of Tenure and Promotion Guidelines and Criteria Among Athletic Training Doctoral Students

Purpose: Evidence suggested that athletic training doctoral candidates are being socialized through a variety of formal and informal experiences to prepare them for roles in higher education. It is unclear, however, if they are aware of the expectations associated with tenure and/or promotion which are necessary for transition into higher education. Perceptions of tenure and promotion among doctoral students preparing to enter the athletic training professoriate were investigated. Methods: Twenty-four students (16=females, 8=males, average age=28±3 years) completed one-on-one telephone interviews. Data were analyzed using a general inductive approach, with a peer review and multiple analyst triangulation completed for rigor. Results: Four primary themes emerged from the data: 1) there is a limited understanding of the guidelines and criteria for tenure and promotion, 2) knowledge of guidelines and criteria is perpetuated by mentoring, 3) research/scholarship is perceived as paramount for success, and 4) the belief that skills gained, regardless of the domain of tenure, can facilitate success in others. Conclusions: The findings suggest that doctoral students in athletic training are partially aware of the guidelines for tenure, but could benefit from additional mentoring.

Instructor gender versus student ratings

Diversity Despite evidence suggesting that student evaluations of teaching are unreliable, they are often included in promotion and tenure criteria. How unreliable are student evaluations with respect to gender bias? Wagner et al. analyzed student evaluations of mixed-gender teaching teams at a

Effective faculty evaluation at the teaching-centered university

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine the most fair, authentic, and reliable elements to include in a portfolio of faculty work, specifically at teaching-centered institutions. Design/methodology/approach – This paper examines and evaluates relevant literature pertaining to faculty portfolios of work and recommends portfolio formats for teaching-centered institutions. Findings – The author concludes that the four most essential components of a faculty member’s portfolio at a teaching-centered university are mindful student evaluations, critical peer evaluations, a sample of teaching materials, and evidence of collegial behavior. Originality/value – This paper is valuable for administrators, deans, and department chairs who are evaluating their current rank, tenure, and promotions criteria and processes.

Service Requirements for Promotion and Tenure: What Is the Technical Services Librarian to Do?

This article seeks to determine the definition of service in academic institutions, the service criteria at various academic institutions, the percentage that service is valued, what weight specific service activities are given, and how service criteria has been viewed over the years. The focus is on the service criteria for promotion and tenure (including continuing appointment). Additionally, this article discusses some challenges technical services librarians face in fulfilling their service requirements and provides some suggestions on how technical services librarians can present their service activities in their promotion and tenure dossiers.

The Logic of the Promotion Decision: In Dubio Pro Patientia

ABSTRACTThis essay encourages associate professors to wait to initiate their candidacy for promotion until they have established a clearly sufficient, unchallengeable record of research and publication. To guarantee faculty productivity and intellectual vibrancy, and to provide consistent incentives and rewards, university departments should apply reasonably demanding promotion standards that are equivalent to their tenure criteria. Associate professors have a strong interest in comfortably clearing this promotion hurdle to enhance their professional reputation in the eyes of their departmental colleagues, the university leadership, and external referees. Therefore, they are well advised to bid for the rank of professor only after accumulating a strong record that makes a smooth promotion likely.

Gender and Clarity of Evaluation among Academic Scientists in Research Universities

This article addresses a telling issue in academic science: the clarity of criteria for tenure and promotion reported by women and men faculty in scientific fields. Data from faculty surveyed in nine US research universities point to ways that formal and informal organizational indicators predict the clarity of evaluation reported by women and men. Unexpected patterns occur by gender. Among men, both formal and informal organizational indicators, as well as field, predict their reported clarity of evaluation. Among women, however, only informal organizational indicators, namely, frequency of speaking with faculty about research and departmental climate, are significant predictors. Further, overall, informal indicators are stronger predictors of clarity than are formal indicators, and some field differences occur. These findings have implications for national and regional science policies and for the practices and policies of universities.

Interdisciplinary librarians: self-reported non-LIS scholarship and creative work

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to interpret and discuss survey results of a study of academic librarians’ scholarship and creative work outside of library and information science in order to reveal some librarians’ motivations to perform such work as well as their perceptions of administrators’ attitudes toward it. Design/methodology/approach – The authors published a link to a qualitative survey instrument on COLLIB-L and ULS-L, the e-mail lists for the college libraries section and the university libraries section of American Library Association, asking that only academic librarians engaged in scholarship and creative work outside of library and information science participate. This paper is an exploratory analysis of the survey results. Findings – Librarians reported that they produce such work for many reasons, including personal satisfaction, dynamic and successful liaison work, and ongoing commitment to scholarship and creative work. Academic librarians who produce non-LIS work do so with varying levels of support, and the recognition of such work is inconsistent among institutions. Originality/value – The authors are the first to query American academic librarians specifically about their scholarship or creative work outside of library and information science. Managers and administrators will glean much about academic librarians’ attitudes toward such work and how it adds value to the library operation and institution. Findings could affect criteria for reappointment, promotion, and tenure.

Evincing the Ratchet: A Thematic Analysis of the Promotion and Tenure Guidelines at a Striving University

Institutional striving can be seen in colleges or universities that seek to gain prestige in the academic hierarchy. This goal includes the desire for faculty to produce more research in order to gain more prestige or increase the institution’s reputation. This study examined the promotion and tenure criteria of 30 academic units at one striving university from 1980 to 2012, finding that the pressures to increase were apparent and were simultaneously guided internally by faculty and externally by the administration. Increased demands for excellence in all areas were also manifested in the criteria examined.

A Comparison of Two Private University Faculties’ Perspectives of Using Collegiality in Tenure and Promotion Decisions

Some faculty members feel that collegiality is a de facto requirement for tenure and promotion. However, collegiality remains a controversial subject in terms of using it as a criterion in tenure and promotion decisions and the ability of faculty members to challenge it in court as an unacceptable criterion appears to be wasted effort. This pilot study of using collegiality in tenure and promotion decisions was launched to discover what features faculty members consider important for collegiality and the proportion who believe it should be considered in the tenure and promotion process. Using the Collegiality Climate Scale as a measure of collegiality, the study compared faculty perspectives at two private Christian universities, one located in the Southwest United States and one in the Southeast. The study revealed a relativity high level of collegiality among faculty at both universities. However, there were some areas of low scores on the scales. The vast majority of faculty at both universities (74.6% Southwest, 77.5% Southeast) favored using collegiality as a criterion for tenure and promotion decisions. Objections to using collegiality as a criterion centered on two elements: (1) that other factors, such as productivity, scholarship, and excellence in teaching, are more appropriate criteria for promotion and tenure, not collegiality, and (2) the difficulty of measuring individual collegiality.

The Evolution and Changing Context of Social Work Education

The nature of social work education has changed dramatically over the course of my academic career: From the degree(s) required for a faculty position to the number of years of practice experience; from expectations for research and publication, to criteria for promotion and tenure; from residential instruction to distance education; from an emphasis on foundation curriculum to practice competencies and outcomes; and, from a commitment to service to a quest to be the highest “ranked” program within the highest ranked institution. Given that change is an ongoing phenomenon, it is difficult to anticipate curriculum direction or plan one’s career path with a high degree of certainty. The future is often determined by external events, fate, where you are at a specific time, the assistance of others, and the opportunities that are presented. These changes and the evolution of social work education as a field of professional practice can best be demonstrated by reflecting on my own experiences in becoming a faculty member and serving in various academic positions over the last 45 years. The contrast between my personal experiences and those of the typical student in 2014 may help demonstrate some of the changes that have occurred in social work education over the intervening years.

Survey of the Philosophic Discipline

The academy is widely reported to be going through a period of transformation: not just changes to what is taught, but threats to tenure and internal funding, perhaps balanced by new possibilities for external funding and interdisciplinary projects. This article discusses a recently conducted survey of US and Canadian Philosophy departments, in an effort to understand one discipline’s perspective on and reaction to these changes. The survey found that, for the majority of departments, Philosophy has largely not changed over the last decade in terms of shifts in subfields, tenure and tenure criteria, internal funding and external grant awards. However, a minority of departments are demonstrating potentially transformative possibilities, especially as related to interdisciplinarity.

2004] The Publishing Crisis and Tenure Criteria: An Issue for Research Universities?

2004] The Publishing Crisis and Tenure Criteria: An Issue for Research Universities?

Improve Teaching or Research? SoTL Method Does Both

Improve Teaching or Research? SoTL Method Does Both