Promotion and Tenure

Who is eligible:

The requirements in years and/or service for promotion and tenure, the procedures followed in the evaluation process, and the calendar of deadlines are given in the "Promotion, Tenure, Renewal, and Professional Assessment Procedures for Faculty" document, available at the Faculty Senate website, or from Diane Mazza , (203) 392-5405, in Human Resources for documents.

Promotion:

To be considered for promotion, a faculty member must meet certain minimum eligibility requirements associated with that rank as listed below. In each case, the degree at issue must be from a college or university regionally accredited at the time of the degree. The member must not be on a final appointment.

a. Assistant Professor, Librarian, or Counselor

• 1) An earned doctorate degree or a terminal degree appropriate to the field, or
• 2) At least three (3) years of full-time service in a college or university, plus

• (a) A master's degree, plus
• (b) An additional full year of study above the master's level, or,

• 3) Ten (10) years of service at the current rank.
• 4) Or credentials and/or experience substantially comparable to the above.

b. Associate Professor, Librarian, or Counselor

• 1) An earned doctorate or a terminal degree appropriate to the field plus at least five (5) years of full-time service in a college or university at a rank above Instructor, or,
• 2) Ten (10) years of service at the current rank.
• 3) Or credentials and/or experience substantially comparable to the above.

c. Professor, Librarian, or Counselor

• 1) Earned doctorate or a terminal degree appropriate to the field, plus; at least eight (8) years of full-time service in a college or university, including at least five (5) years at the rank of Associate Professor, or,
• 2) Ten (10) years of service at the current rank.
• 3) Or credentials and/or experience substantially comparable to the above.

Tenure:

Tenure is not granted either automatically or routinely, but only to those whose superior standards of service and long-term usefulness to the university can be established. Evidence of high quality in teaching, continued growth and professional development, honors, publications, awards, and peer recommendations are all considered before tenure is recommended. To be considered for tenure a candidate must hold an appointment which may be credited towards tenure.

Eligibility for promotion and tenure are also explained in the Collective Bargaining Agreement in Article 4 (tenure), Article 5 (promotion).
 

How to apply:

The University P&T Committee distributes a Guide to Organizing Your Promotion and Tenure File. Files are evaluated according to the categories established in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (please note that the second and fourth categories are reversed for librarians, counselors, and coaches):

• Quality of teaching or professional competence
• Creative activity
• Productive service to the department and university
• Professional attendance and participation
• Years in rank

The guide explains what kinds of materials go into each category, the respective weight given each in evaluating the file, who will evaluate your file, and other crucial information. The guide also contains mandatory information forms. A sample file is available at the reserve desk in Buley Library under Promotion and Tenure (the name on the file is Vera Similitude).

The "Promotion, Tenure, Renewal, and Professional Assessment Procedures for Faculty" document contains a calendar of steps in the process: who you need to notify and when, when to submit your file, and deadlines for each stage of the evaluation process.

When to apply:

In the fall. The dates for notifying your department chair and DEC and for handing in your file are given in the "Promotion, Tenure, Renewal, and Professional Assessment Procedures for Faculty" document. See the Faculty Senate website, or contact Diane Boutaugh, 392-5405, in Human Resources.

For more information:

Gerald Schultz, Chair of the University Promotion and Tenure Committee, or Diane Boutaugh, (203) 392-5405, in Human Resources.