April 2025
Promotion of Assistant Professor to Associate Professor
Promotion and Tenure
At the University of Pittsburgh, promotion to Associate Professor is accompanied by tenure.
Criteria and Procedures for Tenure
The following criteria adopted by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences on October 28, 1976; amended by FASC on
March 21, 1978; amended by FAS on October 28, 1980, March 24, 1981, February 25, 1982, and October 23,
1984; amended by FASC on January 23, 1985; edited on July 1, 1985; amended by FAS on February 8, 1996, April 1, 1998, April 24, 2001, and April 16, 2003.
Criteria for promotion or appointment to tenured rank have been published in the Faculty Handbook. These criteria are formulated in rather general terms to cover all divisions of the University so that relative importance within the triune of research, teaching and other professional activities cannot be specified. Even within the School of Arts and Sciences, the variety of individual and departmental goals, some of which are specified in departmental statements, presents obstacles to the formulation of specific and detailed guides that would have general applicability. Individuals and departments are concerned with teaching and research or other creative activities, but the emphasis within this broad area of scholarly concern is necessarily and desirably variable.
Within the School of Arts and Sciences, tenure is awarded for demonstrated excellence together with the promise of continued excellence in scholarship, in whatever form that scholarship takes. Teaching and research (or creative activity), the two principal functions of the University, are also the two principal forms of scholarship. The relationship between the two is complex, and no single formula could serve as an adequate guide in every tenure case. All departments in a University School of Arts and Sciences should be concerned with advancing knowledge as well as teaching students, but the balance between research and teaching need not be the same for every department, nor for every faculty member. Although the balance may be shaped over time by the faculty member and the department, it must be justified to the University when the faculty member stands for tenure. Excellence in research should not excuse incompetence in teaching, and teaching that is not founded in scholarship can make no claim to excellence.
In judging excellence, the indispensable ingredient for promotion to tenured rank should be creative or intellectual vitality as reflected in the candidate's teaching, and in the candidate's contribution to the advancement of knowledge or in his or her artistic activity. Vitality is best revealed through the candidate's activities—classroom performance, research, writings, artistic creations. These should be assessed for the evidence they reveal of intellectual power and originality. Quantitative measures of productivity and popularity, however useful, are no substitutes for qualitative judgments. Evaluations of the candidate's record of achievement will be used primarily to judge future promise. Elements of this evaluation shall include the quality and originality of the candidate's contributions to the advancement of knowledge, the candidate's status with respect to the standards of excellence in the discipline, and performance as a teacher. Tenure is not a reward for past services, but a kind of contract, a lifetime of security in exchange for a lifetime of continued creative scholarship.
The determination of excellence is basically a peer judgment, the responsibility of the faculty. The procedures set forth in this document provide a framework wherein all aspects of creative scholarship are to be evaluated, both by the tenured members of the department concerned and by the faculty at large through the Tenure Council.
Overview
A tenure stream faculty member entering at the beginning Assistant Professor level initially has a three-year appointment. After a positive third-year review, the faculty member is appointed for an additional 3 years. By the sixth year of the Tenure Clock, the faculty member must be evaluated for promotion and tenure. If the faculty member would like to be considered at an earlier point, s/he can ask the Department Chair to consider the request, who will take the request to the tenured faculty and then advise the faculty member.
During the summer, the Department will request 12-15 letters to evaluate the candidate’s prospects for tenure. The faculty member will put together a dossier, including an updated CV, research statement, teaching statement, copies of papers, and copies of teaching materials as well as peer and student evaluations. The case will be discussed by the tenured faculty. HPS does not have separate tenure and promotion committees. The case is sent to the Dietrich School Dean’s Office, where an ad hoc committee is formed. The Department Chair, often with another faculty member from the Department with expertise in the area of research, will present the case to the ad hoc committee. The ad hoc committee makes a recommendation to the Dean, and the Dean’s decision is sent to the Provost and the Provost’s Tenure and Promotion Committee.
The Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs holds an annual workshop for tenure; it is highly recommended that the faculty member attend.
Expectations for Promotion
Candidates for promotion with tenure from Assistant Professor to Associate Professor should meet the following minimum criteria:
Research.
Candidates are expected to establish and maintain a program of high quality, original research relevant to History and Philosophy of Science.
- the normal expectation at this level is one high-quality article or chapter on average per year in a peer-reviewed journal, collection, or book. These contributions should be significantly distinct from each other in terms of their content.
- A candidate may choose to publish a high-quality peer-reviewed book, instead of only publishing journal articles. If the candidate submits a book for consideration, that book must be accepted for final publication and production by a University Press or equivalent publisher as evidenced by a letter to that effect from the publisher. The faculty reviewing the candidate’s file will determine the book’s value in terms of its journal article equivalents. The overall expectation of at least one journal article per year or its equivalent remains. These publications should be significantly distinct from each other in terms of content.
- Other forms of output for research activity will be accepted, such as book reviews, digital publications, teaching materials, and public-facing materials. However, these materials are supplemental to the expectation for peer-reviewed publications.
- the candidate should possess a strong reputation for research excellence as evidenced in external letters of evaluation solicited for this promotion,
Teaching.
Candidates are expected to establish and maintain a record of accomplishment in teaching at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
teaching accomplishment is indicated in student reviews and peer teaching evaluation, as well as other agreed upon means of evaluation.
Service.
Candidates are expected to establish and maintain a record of service.
- the candidate should demonstrate a record of service at the Departmental level.
Please see the HPS Faculty Policies and Practices for guidelines on the contents of a CV, research statement, teaching dossier, service statement, and diversity statement.
Referees
A central portion of the tenure package is a set of letters from outside referees discussing the candidate’s work. The focus of these letters is the research program, but referees are free to speak to any and all relevant activities, including teaching, mentoring, service and contributions to the professional community. More than half of the letters submitted with the tenure package must be provided by referees that were selected by the Department
The candidate will prepare a list of six (6) referees. This list should include each referee’s name, rank and position, address, email address, and a short description of their expertise and why they were selected. Please disclose which referees are not “at arms’ length”, such as previous mentors or coauthors. The Assistant Professor is free to seek their advice on the referees they choose, but please keep in mind that any referee mentioned to the Department cannot be included on their list of referees, even if the candidate elects not to seek a letter from that person.
The Department will prepare a list of typically eight to ten (8-10) referees. This set of referees must be assembled by them without any input from the candidate.
If the candidate has identified individuals who are believed will not provide an unbiased evaluation of their work, those names should be provided to the Department Chair and to the committee.
Submit this document to the Department Chair via email no later than May 1.
Items Submitted for Promotion
The materials submitted by the candidate, together with materials assembled by the Department Chair, will form the promotion package. All documents must be provided as PDF files. The focus should be the period under review (e.g. grants, publications)
Items Provided by the Candidate (by May 1)
# Item File Name
1. Current Curriculum Vita LastName_CV.pdf
2. Candidate's Research Statement LastName_ResearchStatement.pdf
3. List of supervised graduate students LastName_GraduateStudents.pdf
4. List of supervised undergraduate students LastName_UnderGraduateStudents.pdf
5. List of all published works submitted LastName_Publications.pdf
6. List of grant support LastName_Funding.pdf
7. List of all Course Taught LastName_Courses.pdf
8. Candidate’s Teaching Dossier LastName_TeachingDossier.pdf
9. Candidate’s Service Statement LastName_Service.pdf
9. Candidate’s Diversity Statement LastName_DiversityStatement.pdf
Items Provided by the Department Chair
#. Item File Name
13. Chair’s Letter LastName_Chair’sLetter.pdf
14. Annual performance appraisal letters by the Chair LastName_EvaluationAY##.pdf
15. Letter of solicitation to external referees LastName_SolicitationLetter.pdf
16 Spreadsheet of referees solicited for letters LastName_RefereeList.pdf
17. External letters of reference LastName_Letter_RefereeLastName.pdf
18. Ballots/signature sheet LastName_Ballot.pdf
19. Department Tenure Guidelines Guidelines.pdf
Evaluation of the Dossier by the Department
Cases for tenure and promotion to Associate Professor are due to the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs by the first week of October. Given the time required to navigate the promotion process, candidates for promotion should provide a promotion dossier to the Department Chair no later than May 1. This dossier will be shared with external letter writers and department faculty at rank or above. The candidate may submit an updated CV and any new publications or research materials by September 1 for consideration by the Department Faculty.
Once the dossier and external letters are received by the Department Chair, the Associate and Full Professors will meet to evaluate the dossier and the letters and then provide a recommendation to the Dean of the Dietrich School; this recommendation will be written and submitted by the Department Chair. If a minority of Full Professors disagree with the recommendation, a minority report will be included. The Department Chair is required to offer an assessment separate from that of the Department.
Promotion of Associate Professor to Professor
Overview of the Promotion Process
In the Dietrich School, a promotion to Full Professor follows a defined path. The Department considers the promotion and forwards a recommendation to the Dean. For cases with a positive recommendation, the Dean convenes an ad hoc committee, and makes a recommendation to the Provost. The promotion is conferred by the Chancellor. However, unlike the promotion of Assistant Professors, the promotion of Associate Professors follows no defined schedule, is not initiated by the Department, and lacks well-defined criteria that distinguish the achievements of an effective Associate Professor from achievements that justify promotion to Full Professor.
Therefore, the roles of the Department in this process are (a) to mentor Associate Professors to guide them to successful promotion, (b) to evaluate their achievements and provide recommendations both to the Dean and to the Associate Professors, (c) to forward strong promotion cases with effective and well-founded positive recommendations, and (d) to implement an effective development plan should the Full Professors conclude that a case is not ready for consideration by the Dean. The following protocol allows this process to be transparent.
The Promotion Dossier
The contents of promotion dossier are outlined explicitly by the Dietrich School Dean’s Office. The materials listed below include both those required to assemble this package as well as materials to allow for an informed committee review and faculty vote.
Expectations for Promotion
Candidates for promotion with tenure from Associate Professor to Full Professor should meet the following minimum criteria:
Research.
Candidates are expected to establish and maintain a program of high quality, original research relevant to History and Philosophy of Science.
- the normal expectation at this level is one high-quality article or chapter on average per year in a peer-reviewed journal, collection, or book. These contributions should be significantly distinct from each other in terms of their content.
- A candidate may choose to publish a high-quality peer-reviewed book, instead of only publishing journal articles. If the candidate submits a book for consideration, that book must be accepted by a University Press or equivalent publisher as evidenced by a letter to that effect from the publisher. The faculty reviewing the candidate’s file will determine the book’s value in terms of its journal article equivalents. The overall expectation of at least one journal article per year or its equivalent remains. These publications should be significantly distinct from each other in terms of content.
- Other forms of output for research activity will be accepted, such as book reviews, digital publications, teaching materials, and public-facing materials. However, these materials are supplemental to the expectation for peer-reviewed publications.
- the candidate should possess a strong reputation for research excellence as evidenced in external letters of evaluation solicited for this promotion,
Teaching.
Candidates are expected to establish and maintain a record of accomplishment in teaching at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
teaching accomplishment is indicated in student reviews and peer teaching evaluation, as well as other agreed upon means of evaluation,
Service.
Candidates are expected to establish and maintain a record of service.
- the candidate should demonstrate a record of service at the Departmental level.
Please see the HPS Faculty Policies and Practices for guidelines on the contents of a CV, research statement, teaching dossier, service statement, and diversity statement.
Referees
A central portion of the promotion package is a set of letters from outside referees discussing the candidate’s work. The focus of these letters is the research program, but referees are free to speak to any and all relevant activities, including teaching, mentoring, service and contributions to the professional community. At least half of the letters submitted with the tenure package must be provided by referees that were selected by the Department
The candidate will prepare a list of six (6) referees. This list should include each referee’s name, rank and position, address, email address, and a short description of their expertise and why they were selected. Please disclose which referees are not “at arms’ length”, such as previous mentors or coauthors. The Associate Professor is free to seek their advice on the referees they choose, but please keep in mind that any referee mentioned to the Department cannot be included on their list of referees, even if the candidate elects not to seek a letter from that person.
The Department will prepare a list of typically eight to ten (8-10) referees. This set of referees must be assembled by them without any input from the candidate.
If the candidate has identified individuals who are believed will not provide an unbiased evaluation of their work, those names should be provided to the Department Chair and to the committee.
Submit this document to the Department Chair via email no later than May 1.
Evaluation of the Dossier by the Department
Cases for promotion to Full Professor are due to the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs by the first week of December. Given the time required to navigate the promotion process, candidates for promotion should provide a promotion dossier to the Department Chair no later than May 1. This dossier will be shared with external letter writers and department faculty at rank or above. The candidate may submit an updated CV by September 1 for consideration by the Department Faculty.
Once the dossier is received by the Department Chair, the Full Professors will meet to consider the promotion case and to recommend whether the Department should solicit letters from referees; the Department Chair will provide a written summary of the meeting to the candidate.
If both the candidate and the Full Professors agree to solicit external letters, the Department Chair will obtain recommendations for the names of arms-length referees both from the candidate and from the faculty. A minimum of six letters must be obtained; typically, 9 to 12 letters are submitted. More than half of the referees must be chosen bythe Department..
If external letters are solicited, the Full Professors will evaluate the dossier and the letters and then provide a recommendation to the Dean of the Dietrich School; this recommendation will be written and submitted by the Department Chair. If a minority of Full Professors disagree with the recommendation, a minority report will be included. The Department Chair is required to offer an assessment separate from that of the Department.
If external letters are not solicited, the Department Chair will convene a mentoring committee to guide the candidate in preparing a more competitive dossier.
Timing of Promotion
Associate Professors are normally, but not exclusively, considered for promotion after they have been at rank for at least five years. The Department Chair should meet biannually with Associate Professors eligible for promotion to assist in the preparation of their dossier. If a promotion has been denied, then the case will normally not be reconsidered for another two years.
Items Submitted for Promotion
The materials submitted by the candidate, together with materials assembled by the Department Chair, will form the promotion package. For guidance, clarity and transparency, the contents of the promotion package are listed in the Guidelines for Promotion of Associate Professors. All documents must be provided as PDF files.
Items Provided by the Candidate (by May 1)
# Item File Name
Current Curriculum Vita LastName_CV.pdf
Candidate's Research Statement LastName_ResearchStatement.pdf
List of supervised graduate students LastName_GraduateStudents.pdf
List of supervised undergraduate students LastName_UndergraduateStudents.pdf
Categorized list of all published works LastName_Publications.pdf
List of grant support LastName_Funding.pdf
Candidate’s Teaching Dossier LastName_TeachingDossier.pdf
Candidate’s Service Statement LastName_Service.pdf
Candidate’s Diversity Statement LastName_DiversityStatement.pdf
List of publications submitted with dossier LastName_SupplementList.pdf
Published works
Items Provided by the Department Chair
Item File Name
Departmental committee report LastName_CommitteeReport.pdf
Annual performance appraisal letters by the Chair LastName_EvaluationAY##.pdf
Letter of solicitation to external referees LastName_SolicitationLetter.pdf
List of referees solicited for letters LastName_RefereeList.pdf
External letters of reference LastName_Letter_RefereeLastName.pdf
Ballots/signature sheet LastName_Ballot.pdf
Cover letter to the Dean LastName_Cover.pdf
Course Enrollment Sheet CourseEnrollment.pdf
Department Promotion Guidelines Guidelines.pdf
Promotion to Distinguished Professor
Faculty members at the rank of Professor who wish to be considered for promotion to Distinguished Professor should discuss the topic with the Department Chair, who will discuss the case with the Dean of the Dietrich School.
Promotion to Teaching Associate Professor or Teaching Professor
Overview
These guidelines and criteria build on the DSAS guidelines. For promotion to Teaching Associate Professor or Teaching Professor, candidates need to have demonstrated excellence in classroom or laboratory teaching, and in other duty areas when applicable such as advising or administration.
Candidates for promotion to Teaching Professor should refer to the DSAS Guidelines.
Teaching Assistant Professors are typically considered for promotion to Teaching Associate Professor after 5 years at rank (during year 6), although exceptional candidates may be considered at an earlier me. Candidates for promotion to Teaching Professor are typically considered after 5 years at Teaching Associate Professor.
Timetable
Promotion packages are similar in content to reappointment packages and include all materials necessary to evaluate – both within the Department and at the Dietrich School Dean’s Office – the quality of the candidate’s teaching (and, if applicable, non-teaching duties, research, and service). Packages are sent to the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs in the middle of January. Candidates for promotion should follow the timetable below to ensure timely submission of the package:
Meet with the Department Chair in April to declare the intention to pursue promotion, and to review both the promotion process and the materials needed. At this time, the Department Chair will consult the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs regarding the review process and the necessary documentation.
Any peer evaluations of teaching taking place in the current Fall semester should be scheduled early (for example, in September) to allow for timely assembly of the promotion materials. Peer letters are most effective when solicited from faculty with significant experience in teaching.
Packages of candidate-provided materials are reviewed by the Faculty. The Faculty
will meet in late October to discuss AS promotions, so all candidate-provided materials should be submitted, in their final form, by 15 October to allow time for review.
The Faculty will review the promotion case and vote on promotion. The faculty meeting will be held in the November, and this vote is included in the promotion package. Members of the tenured faculty and Teaching Professors will vote on promotions to Teaching Professor; tenured faculty, Teaching Professors, and Teaching Associate Professors will vote on promotion to Teaching Associate Professor.
The faculty vote should be completed and returned by early December. Promotion packages, including materials provided by the Department Chair, are assembled in December.
Promotion packages are submitted to the Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs by the end of January.
Promotion Package Materials
The contents of promotion packages are outlined explicitly by the Dietrich School Dean’s Office. The materials listed below include both those required to assemble this package as well as materials to allow for an informed committee review and faculty vote. Please the HPS Faculty Policies and Practices for guidelines on the contents of a CV, research statement, teaching dossier, service statement, and diversity statement.
Materials should be prepared as follows:
For promotion to Teaching Professor or Teaching Associate Professor, four peer letters of evaluation should be solicited from within the department. Letter writers may be any faculty member – either tenured or in the appointment stream at the rank of Teaching Associate Professor or Teaching Professor – with sufficient teaching experience to speak authoritatively on teaching. Letters should not be requested from faculty at the rank of Teaching Assistant Professor, Assistant Professor, or any Visitor.
For promotion to Teaching Professor, at least three letters of support must be provided from sources outside the department which directly address the impact made by the candidate outside this department. Only one of these letter writeers is chosen by the candidate These letters will be solicited by the Department Chair.
Required Items Provided by the Candidate
# Item File Name
Current CV (with date) Lastname_CV_DDMMYYYY.pdf
Candidate's Teaching Dossier Lastname_Teaching_Dossier.pdf
Candidate’s Service Statement Lastname_Service.pdf
Candidate’s Diversity Statement Lastname_Diversity_Statement.pdf
Peer evaluation letters (at least 4) Lastname_Peer Letters.pdf
List of referees (for Teaching Professor) Lastname_Referees.pdf
Optional Items Provided by the Candidate
# Item File Name
List of grant support Lastname_Grants.pdf
List of publications submitted with the dossier Lastname_Publications.pdf
Materials supporting major activities outside of teaching Lastname_OutsideMaterials.pdf
Items Provided by the Department Chair
# Item File Name
Outside letters (required for promotion to Teaching Professor) LastName_Letter_RefereeName.pdf
Departmental Committee Report Lastname_Report.pdf
Employee Record Form Lastname_EmployeeRecord.pdf
Annual Performance Appraisal letters by the Department Chair Lastname_EvaluationAY##.pdf
Ballots/signature sheet Lastname_Ballot.pdf
Cover letter to the Dean Lastname_Cover.pdf
Course Enrollment Sheets CourseEnrollments.pdf
Promotion to Research Associate Professor or Research Professor
Candidates should refer to the DSAS Guidelines for promotion.
Information adapted from the tenure and promotion guidelines offered by the Pitt Biology Department