PROMOTION AND TENURE FOR BASIC SCIENTISTS – BOTH PATHWAYS Dana Gaddy, Ph.D. Patricia Wight, Ph.D.

P&T for Basic Scientists  Read the 2011 Guidelines on P&T  Check out the Companion Guide to the P&T Document (  Study the criteria table for your specific academic pathway  Basic Scientist-Tenure Pathway  Basic Scientist-Non-tenure Pathway  Similar criteria - but differ in the extent to which teaching/mentoring and leadership/administrative service are expected

Basic Scientist-TP & Basic Scientist-NTP  Basic Scientists- TP are expected to participate in the full range of academic activities of the College, with emphasis on research and teaching.  Basic Scientists- NTP are expected to develop one major area of focus: either research or teaching.

Basic Scientist – Tenure Pathway  “Full range of activities” means:  Teaching/Mentoring  Research/Scholarly Work  Leadership/Administrative Service  Majority of Basic Scientist-TP faculty will focus strongly on research, and will teach  Minority of Basic Scientist-TP faculty will focus strongly on teaching, and will participate in some research, which could include educational research

Assistant to Associate Professor Basic Scientist-TP

Basic Scientist-TP: Time Allotment DO THE MATH: If your focus is research, you must teach. However, you CANNOT max out teaching and service without going below the research minimum: THIS IS A RESEARCH-INTENSIVE TRACK!!

Research/Scholarly Work  Funding  PI on a major extramural research grant and/or leader of a major project program grant, or alternatively  Substantial and clearly documented contributions as Co-I on multiple extramurally funded research grants NIH is best, but others (e.g. American Heart Association; VA Merit) do count  Institutional General Research Support grants for pilot studies will NOT be counted

Research/Scholarly Work  Publications = scholarly evidence of research productivity  Peer-reviewed scientific articles Quality more important than absolute number The P&T Guidelines speak of 1 – 3 first author or senior author peer reviewed publications per year in rank  Books/book chapters  Participation in national/international meetings Important opportunities to present your work Important opportunities to meet and get to know the experts in your field

Research/Scholarly Work  Publications in your P&T packet:  Copies of your 5 most meritorious publications are required  Must be published or ‘in press’  Middle-author papers count, but must be 1 st or senior author on a significant number of publications  Publication alone does not insure promotion But then, neither does funding if you aren’t being productive

Teaching/Mentoring  Must include  Contact hours in graduate/medical school  List of those you mentor Estimate of contact hours with mentees Evidence of your contributions to their learning and success  Documented evaluation of teaching performance: Your mean scores compared to the department scores, NOT copies of evaluations

Teaching/Mentoring  Can include  Directing graduate seminars/journal clubs  Serving as a major advisor on thesis and dissertation committees  Serving as committee member on thesis and dissertation committees  Evidence of community, local, regional and national education programs  Letters from mentees attesting to time commitment and level of mentoring

Teaching/Mentoring  Can also include:  Service as a graduate or medical school course leader (for those whose major focus is teaching)  Teaching outside one’s own area of interest in other departments within the College in other UAMS Colleges

Teaching/Mentoring  If your major focus is research, while very important, teaching CANNOT compensate for a lack of research productivity. Strike the proper balance.  Form a mentoring committee or, at the very least, consult your chair if you feel like accepting a significant teaching responsibility at this stage of your career will compromise your research  Directing a medical school course at this stage of your career will compromise you research

Leadership/Administrative Service  Expect to have share in “service load” for departmental and university programs – less as an Assistant Prof, more as an Associate Prof and still more as a Professor  Assessed by review of type and complexity of committee and/or administrative work  Document participation and valuable contributions  Document leadership roles and/or other active involvement in administration

Professional Recognition  Should have established a reputation in the national or international medical or scientific community  Participation in appropriate professional organizations and presentations before national and/or international meetings  Note invited presentations  NIH/VA study sections are valued but not required

Professional Recognition Letters of Recommendation  Three letters are required  Authors  Should be recognized national authorities  Should be in your field of interest  Should NOT have employed you or trained you (e.g., not someone who has been your “boss” or a direct teacher/mentor)  Should clearly have reviewed your CV or portfolio and have detailed comments

Obtaining Letters  Provide your Department Chair with a list of names and contact information  Department Chair formally solicits these letters, and sends to those letter-writers:  Letter of request for recommendation  Your CV  COM P&T Guidelines  Solicit more letters than you need to ensure you get three great letters back in time  Additional letters may be a good idea if they add significant information or an importantly different perspective on your contributions.

Associate to Full Professor Basic Scientist-TP

Professorship  Reserved for those members of the faculty who have demonstrated outstanding ability  Not based on length of service alone  Should also have:  Considerable time and experience in rank  Additional publications  Other evidence of scholarly activity and professional recognition

Basic Scientist – TP Associate Professor to Professor  Same “full range of activities”  “Outstanding record in at least two of the following three mission areas”:  Research/Scholarly Activities  Teaching/Mentoring  Leadership/Academic Service  Most will have excelled in the first two areas  Study the criteria table carefully

Assistant to Associate Professor Basic Scientist-NTP

 Basic Scientists- NTP are expected to develop one major area of focus: either research or teaching.  Majority of Basic Scientist-NTP faculty will focus strongly on research  Minority of Basic Scientist-NTP faculty will focus strongly on teaching, and will participate in some research, which could include educational research

Basic Scientist-NTP: Time Allotment

Research/Scholarly Work If your focus is research:  Funding  PI on a major extramural research grant and/or leader of a major project program grant, or alternatively  Substantial and clearly documented contributions as Co-I on multiple extramurally funded research grants NIH is best, but others (e.g. American Heart Association; VA Merit) do count  Institutional General Research Support grants for pilot studies will NOT be counted

Research/Scholarly Work If your focus is research:  Publications = scholarly evidence of research productivity  Peer-reviewed scientific articles Quality more important than absolute number The P&T Guidelines speak of 1 – 3 first author or senior author peer reviewed publications per year in rank  Books/book chapters  Participation in national/international meetings Important opportunities to present your work Important opportunities to meet and get to know the experts in your field

Teaching/Mentoring If your focus is teaching:  Must include  Contact hours in graduate/medical school  List of those you mentor Estimate of contact hours with mentees Evidence of your contributions to their learning and success  Documented evaluation of teaching performance: Your mean scores compared to the department scores, NOT copies of evaluations

Teaching/Mentoring If your focus is on teaching:  Can include  Directing graduate seminars/journal clubs  Serving as a major advisor on thesis and dissertation committees  Serving as committee member on thesis and dissertation committees  Evidence of community, local, regional and national education programs  Letters from mentees attesting to time commitment and level of mentoring

Teaching/Mentoring If your focus is on teaching:  Can also include :  Service as a graduate or medical school course leader (for those whose major focus is teaching)  Teaching outside one’s own area of interest in other departments within the College in other UAMS Colleges

Leadership/Administrative Service  Leadership/Administrative Service is largely the responsibility of the Basic Science-TP faculty.  Assistant Professors on the Basic Science-NTP may have small leadership/administrative service roles.  Associate Professors on the Basic Science-NTP may have larger leadership/administrative service roles, and Professors on the Basic Science-NTP may devote as much as 10% of their time allotment to leadership/ administrative service.  Typically, the most successful candidates align their committee work with their research and/or teaching interests.

Professional Recognition  Should have established a reputation in the national or international medical or scientific community  Participation in appropriate professional organizations and presentations before national and/or international meetings  Note invited presentations  NIH/VA study sections are valued but not required

Professional Recognition Letters of Recommendation  Three letters are required  Authors  Should be recognized national authorities  Should be in your field of interest  Should NOT have employed you or trained you  Should clearly have reviewed your portfolio and have detailed comments

Obtaining Letters  Provide your Department Chair with a list of names and contact information  Department Chair formally solicits the letters, and sends to those letter-writers:  Letter of request for recommendation  Your CV  COM P&T guidelines  Solicit more letters than you need to ensure you get three great letters back in time

Associate to Full Professor Basic Scientist-NTP

Professorship  Reserved for those members of the faculty who have demonstrated outstanding ability  Not based on length of service alone  Should also have:  Considerable time and experience in rank  Additional publications  Other evidence of scholarly activity and professional recognition

Basic Scientist – NTP Associate Professor to Professor  Having made the decision to focus on either Research or Teaching, candidates for promotion to Professor will have made outstanding contributions in Research or Teaching.  Study the criteria table carefully

Both Tracks  If your department has a Promotion and Tenure committee, the results of their vote should be included in your binder.  When possible, have your packet reviewed by someone in your department who has been on the P&T Committee.

How can you help to assure your own success?  Know the rules!  Study the companion guide (  Talk to P&T committee chair in department or faculty affairs representative before finalizing your initial appointment or if you have unresolved concerns.  Get a mentor.  Attend P&T workshops.  Prepare a concise, neat, well-organized packet that makes it easy for the reviewer to find support that you have met criteria.

COM Deadline  Two paper packets are still required and are due to the Office of Faculty Affairs, Central Building (old hospital) 4D40, by 4:30pm on Monday, October 1,  Deadline for submission of your electronic packet and 2 paper copies of your packet is Monday October 1,  The electronic system is available at:

Questions?