Promotion & Tenure Policy: Tenure-Line Faculty Members

Contact Office: Faculty Affairs, PO Box 800793, Charlottesville, VA, 22908; phone: 434-243-4078

Oversight Executive: Senior Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Faculty Development, PO Boc 8007931, Charlottesville, VA, 22908; phone: 434-924-9030

Applies to: Faculty in the School of Medicine assigned to a tenure eligible track.

Reason for Policy: Document the policies and process of academic advancement for tenure-line faculty members.

Policy Statement: The assignment of academic rank and the award of tenure safeguard the University’s intellectual standards, its academic integrity, and its academic freedom. This document concerns faculty that report to the Dean of the School of Medicine and who have been appointed by the Board of Visitors. It applies to faculty on the tenure eligible tracks and addresses the awarding of tenure and promotions up to and including the rank of professor.

Tenure eligible track elections are “with term” if there is a specified number of years for which the appointment extends under the employment agreement between the faculty member and the University entered into at the time of initial hiring or on a “with term” renewal. The phrase “without term” is used to denote the award of “tenure.” Both faculty “with term” and “without term” appointments are subject to annual evaluations, a system of merit pay, and to appropriate sanctions, including suspension or termination of employment, in the event of unacceptable performance of duties.

Faculty on all tracks contribute to the School of Medicine mission of research, medical education, and patient care.  The Dean’s letter of appointment includes detailed performance expectations in the relevant domains.  The three tenure eligible appointment designations are academic investigator (AI), clinician investigator (CI) and clinician educator (CE). Appointment to one of the tenure eligible (te) faculty tracks is made according to the major focus of faculty effort as specified in the initial or modified letter of appointment and a job description with time allocations.  The criteria for assistant, associate, and professor appointments to the three tenure eligible tracks can be found within the detailed descriptions of each track (Faculty Tracks – Faculty Affairs & Development).

Criteria for appointing faculty as tenure-eligible assistant professors can be found within the individual track descriptions ( Faculty Tracks – Faculty Affairs & Development )

Promotion to tenure eligible associate professor requires documentation of excellence in one domain (basic or clinical research, teaching, or patient care), scholarship, and regional reputation.  The award of tenure after promotion to associate professor or coincident with promotion to associate professor requires documented excellence in two domains (basic or clinical research, teaching, or patient care), scholarship and emerging national reputation.  Promotion to professor requires sustained excellence in two domains since promotion to associate professor, scholarship, and an established national, and where applicable, international reputation.  Criteria for demonstrating excellence and descriptions of the types of achievements expected in each criterion to advance can be found within the individual track descriptions (Faculty Tracks – Faculty Affairs & Development)

Faculty on the tenure eligible tracks must achieve promotion to associate professor by the end of six years in rank as an assistant professor.  If the faculty member has been promoted to associate professor by the end of the six-year probationary period for promotion, but is not also awarded tenure, they  will be reappointed for a total of four years of tenure eligibility.  Tenure eligible faculty appointed at the associate professor rank must achieve the award of tenure by the end of four years in rank as an associate professor at the University of Virginia.  Faculty who do not achieve the award of tenure within the specified period become ineligible for tenure.  Faculty may apply for tenure before the end of eligibility.  The application for tenure may occur concurrent with the application for promotion or in any of the three years following promotion.

Demonstration of scholarship requires:  dissemination of original ideas and findings to colleagues who critically evaluate the substance and implications of the scholarly work and its impact on the profession.  In the School of Medicine, concepts of scholarship have been defined as follows [1]:

• Scholarship of Discovery contributes not only to the inventory of human knowledge, but also the intellectual climate of the school.
• Scholarship of Integration seeks to interpret, draw together and bring new insight to bear on original research.  Scholarship of Integration synthesizes facts into new perspective.
• Scholarship of Application is the application of knowledge to deal with consequential problems.  In clinical medicine, application of scholarship is tied directly to one’s special field of knowledge and relates to, and flows directly out of this professional activity.  Scholarship of application is serious, demanding work, requiring the rigor and the accountability associated with research activities.
• Scholarship of Teaching transmits knowledge, transforms and extends knowledge.  Teaching both educates and stimulates future scholarship.
• Scholarship of Engagement connects any of the above dimensions of scholarship to the understanding and solving of pressing social, civic, and ethical problems.

The NIH roadmap for patient-oriented research endorsed team science and established the expectation of expertise for interdisciplinary investigation and collaboration. The national academies have suggested that the evaluation of outcomes of interdisciplinary research and teaching will focus less on the usual number of publications and more on the impact of these publications. A successful interdisciplinary program will affect multiple disciplines and the connections among these fields. The School of Medicine proposes the following criteria for the evaluation of candidates involved in team science:

1. The curriculum vitae contains evidence of research scholarship in peer reviewed journals of significant impact, and sustained successful competition for hypothesis driven, extramural funding (NIH, AHA, NDF). Roles as co-investigator or project investigator on a PPG is like a R01 investigator of other type (with significant time and effort) will be valued. The bibliography may include middle authored publications and non-PI roles on grants should be explained with annotation of the candidates’ specific contribution made to projects.
2. Letters from collaborators speak to the unique and invaluable contribution made by the candidate to the success of the research. External referees acknowledge the candidate’s national reputation and recognition as the “collaborator’s collaborator”, the “researcher’s researcher.”
3. Letters about the candidate should discuss how this particular collaboration generates synergy, creates innovative research networks and/or institutional opportunities beyond the expected product of the individual, independent research, and
4. First author scholarly publications may include application development, instructive descriptions of interdisciplinary methodologies, commentaries or chapters.

The University’s policy on the employment of tenure line faculty (link) governs the probationary period for tenure eligible faculty, including notices of non-renewal and requests to extend the probationary period. In addition, the University’s policy describes the process for appealing the dean’s negative recommendation, grieving a negative decision on tenure or promotion by the provost, and the consequence of the denial if all appeal and grievance process are exhausted. In cases where tenure is not granted, a faculty member is given a terminal year of employment in accordance with the 12-month notice provision.

All faculty within the School of Medicine must have an annual review with their department chair or the chair’s delegate.  For all faculty below the rank of professor, this review should include a discussion of progress toward academic advancement. Tenure-eligible faculty members may hold successive term contracts until the end of their probationary period. They are entitled to consideration for contract renewal based on a dossier review by a faculty committee, often referred to as a “pre-tenure review.” Faculty must submit written documentation of their intent to undergo or opt out of the dossier review no later than six months prior to the date of expected contract renewal. Tenure line faculty members promoted to tenure eligible associate professor are entitled to, but may opt out of, a dossier review by a faculty committee by the end of their second year as a tenure eligible associate professor. Faculty members in the probationary period whose appointments are renewed after a pre-tenure review or who undergo a pre-tenure review as an associate professor must receive written feedback on their progress toward tenure.

Faculty members in the probationary period whose appointments are not renewed should receive notice of non-renewal 12 months in advance of the expiration of the appointment. If notice of non-renewal is received less than 12 months before the expiration of an appointment, the faculty member is entitled to 12 months of employment following the date of that notice.

Faculty who wish to seek advancement in an upcoming promotion and tenure cycle should consult with their department chair and designated promotion and tenure (P&T) administrative contact regarding initiation of the promotion process,  internal and Dean’s Office deadlines, and consult the P&T website for supplemental documents (link). Included in this link is the date by which the official tenure or promotion dossier must be submitted for consideration in each year’s review cycle. Candidates must create a dossier that includes, at a minimum, a curriculum vitae (CV), candidate statement(s), and samples of scholarship. Additional dossier requirements based on faculty track can be found within the individual track descriptions (Faculty Tracks).  The dossier must set forth all accomplishments the candidate wishes to be considered as part of the promotion and/or tenure review.

Contribution in service to the community, department, School of Medicine, Health System, University, and/or to professional boards and organizations are expected of every faculty member and should be documented on the CV and described in the candidate statement.

The Dean’s Office solicits all letters from internal and external referees to maintain confidentiality.  Neither the candidate nor the department should have any contact with selected referees after the list of suggested referees has been submitted to the Dean’s Office.

School of Medicine Promotion and Tenure Committee consideration of academic advancement requires review at the departmental level (first review) with recommendations by the department chair prior to the School of Medicine Promotion and Tenure Committee review (second review).  Departmental P&T committees are advisory to the department chair.  Guidelines for departmental P&T committees are on the P&T website (link). The first review must result in a written analysis of the candidate’s achievements according to the criteria required for promotion and/or tenure. Additional requirements for the first review are found on the P&T website (link).

The School of Medicine Promotion and Tenure Committee may consult with the department chair or first review committee chair to ensure correctness and completeness of the analysis prior to the official vote. The department chair, first review committee chair and members, and candidate may submit new information to the School of Medicine Promotion and Tenure Committee at anytime prior to the completion of the School’s evaluation process.  The timeline for each year’s process with dates of completion is found on the SOM P&T website (P&T Timelines).

The School of Medicine Promotion and Tenure Committee completes their evaluation of all candidates with individual summary reports to the Dean as to whether to support the tenure and/or promotion nomination in January. In February, the Dean will report to the provost in writing on the School of Medicine’s promotion and tenure recommendations.  The report of the Dean must include the Dean’s affirmative or negative recommendation on each candidate.  In addition, the Dean will notify candidates of their recommendation no later than February 1.  All candidates not recommended for tenure or promotion by the dean will receive a written evaluation that summarizes the salient conclusions and judgments from the dean’s analysis, redacted to remove information that would reveal the source of evaluations and individual opinions. Candidates may submit a written appeal to the provost within 30 days of being notified of the dean’s negative recommendation, with a copy to the dean. Appeals should be accompanied by adequate documentation and a statement of reasons as to why the recommendation is believed to be inappropriate. The dean may provide the provost with a written response to the appeal if they wish to do so; such responses should be provided within 15 days of the appeal.

The Provost’s Promotion and Tenure Committee, with representation from experienced School of Medicine Promotion and Tenure Committee members, will review all actions for all candidates.  All positive actions are submitted to the Board of Visitors for final approval.

If a faculty member is denied tenure after exhausting the Provost’s appeal and Faculty Senate grievance processes, they may not reapply for tenure in the position they currently hold or for which they are currently being considered. If tenure is not granted, a faculty member is given a terminal year of employment in accordance with the 12-month notice provision. Faculty members who wish to change to a School of Medicine Academic General Faculty track may be considered for that change based on institutional and department needs.

Faculty members may not vote for or against a candidate’s promotion or tenure at both the school and University level and must avoid or mitigate other real or apparent conflicts as described in PROV-007: Faculty Conflicts of Interest or school-level policy.

For information on the Promotion and Tenure Committee structure, please review the Promotion and Tenure Committee section of the School of Medicine Bylaws – Policies and Guidelines.

Joint Appointments:

Tenure-line faculty members may hold joint appointments that are either tenured or with term. These appointments are governed by the terms of Provost policy 017, section III ( UVA Policy) School of Medicine Promotion and Tenure Committee.