ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ

1. Promotion to the rank of full professor is normally considered no earlier than during the sixth year of a faculty member’s service as associate professor at ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ. Exceptions are made only under the following circumstances:
   
   1. A faculty member who has held the rank of associate professor at another institution and was initially appointed to ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ at the rank of associate professor may be considered for promotion to the rank of full professor at the time of the award of tenure.
   2. A faculty member of extraordinary merit may be considered for promotion to the rank of full professor before the sixth year as associate professor at ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ.

Overview

Each faculty committee and administrator considering a promotion case must specifically consider thefactors listed below as they apply to each case in the written recommendations that are submitted up the line to the appropriate executive vice president. In the case of committees, the vote must be recorded in the recommendation. In instances of a non-unanimous vote, the minority opinion must be included in the committee recommendation, and the minority must be given the option to write the minority opinion.

1. The candidate prepares and submits to the department/school chair/director via the secure evaluation system their promotion portfolio.
2. Each committee and administrator making a recommendation concerning promotion considers evidence of the faculty member’s performance over the total time in the previous rank based on the guidelines established by the department/school or college/school.
3. The committees and administrators shall examine the promotion portfolio submitted by the faculty member, department/school chair/director, or any other relevant source. The department/school chair/director and the department/school promotion and tenure committee are responsible for providing an assessment of the quality of the publications and, for creative scholarly activity, the quality and reputation of the venues where creative works are exhibited or performed, when evaluating the faculty member being considered for promotion. The faculty member is responsible for ensuringthat all information submitted by them in support of promotion is factually accurate and valid, and for providing corroborating evidence (e.g., web links, complete citations, grant numbers) for all claimed accomplishments. The evidence should address the quality of the journals and the reputation of booksand other such publishers. For creative scholarship, the faculty member should provide supporting evidence about the quality and reputation of venues in which creative works are exhibited or performed. Fraudulent or invalid claims can lead to faculty sanctions, including denial of promotion. Department/school chairs/directors should work with promotion candidates within their respective departments/schools to ensure the completeness and accuracy of their promotion portfolios. The department/school chair/director and the department/school promotion and tenure committee should verify the accuracy of promotion portfolio elements central to the promotion case. Should concerns be raised by external or internal reviewers about the validity of a candidate’s claims, it is the departments/schools chair/director’s responsibility to verify those claims. The promotion process will be paused while the department/school chair/director verifies those claims.
4. External evaluation of the faculty member’s research and scholarly activity by nationally recognized experts in the field of specialization will be required.
   
   1. The department/school chair/director is responsible for initiating the external review, securing the external reviewers, and uploading the external reviewers’ letters and current curriculum vitae to the secure evaluation system. If the department/school chair/director does not have the rank of full professor, all department/school chair/director responsibilities for promotion to full professor will be delegated by the dean to a full professor in the department/school or from another department/school within the same college/school, who will assume all department/school chair/director’s responsibilities described below. This appointed full professor, acting in the role of department/school chair/director, cannot take part in any deliberations or votes of the departmental/school, college/school, or University promotion and tenure committees while the promotion case is being considered. In the promotion of department/school chair/director, all department/school chair/director responsibilities for the promotion process belong to the dean.
   2. External reviewers with academic positions must hold the same rank or higher than the promotion rank for which the faculty member is being considered. Only one external reviewer per institution may serve as a reviewer on a single promotion case, and external reviewers should not be from the faculty member’s degree-granting institution(s). Any exceptions should be justified by the dean. Full professors who are members of the department/school’s promotion and tenure committee, and the candidate will prepare separate lists of potential external reviewers. The candidate will review both lists and will document personal and professional relationships with all potential reviewers, including potential conflicts of interest. This documentation will become part of the promotion portfolio. The department/school chair/director (or designee, see 1 above) will review the combined list, remove any disqualified proposed external reviewers, and provide the list of external reviewers to the dean. The dean will review the list to confirm that the selection criteria are met and that the candidate has no conflicts of interest with any of the proposed external reviewers, and then submit the list to the appropriate executive vice president for final approval prior to initiating the review process by extending invitations to prospective external reviewers. The final list of external reviewers, together with the documentation of personal and professional relationships by the candidate (as outlined above), should be included as part of the promotion portfolio for all internal reviewers. External reviewers should not be close collaborators or (former) mentors of the candidate. In general, co-authors on publications should also be excluded as external reviewers, except as permissible under the department/schoolstatement on evaluation of research (see the Policy on the Evaluation of Scholarly Activity and Research in the ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ Teaching and Research Faculty Handbook). The selection of potential external reviewers must be completed before submitting credentials for promotion.
   3. External reviews will be confidential; reviewers will be advised accordingly, and breaches of confidentiality by internal reviewers may be subject to a minor sanction. Requests for exception to the confidentiality of external reviews should be made directly to the appropriate executive vice president before the external reviewers are asked to submit evaluations. If an exception is approved, candidates seeking promotion will be allowed access to the substance of external reviews, but the authorship of specific external reviews and other identifying information contained therein will remain confidential. All external reviewers will receive a standard letter sent by the department/school chair/director, but prepared by the appropriate executive vice president in consultation with the deans, and a copy of the policy on external reviews, so their responsibilities will be clear.
   4. A curriculum vitae will be required of each external reviewer, and it is the chair/director’s responsibility to include each reviewer’s curriculum vitae. Each reviewer will be asked to describe any personal or professional relationship with the candidate. For the promotion of chairs/directors, the responsibility belongs to the dean. External reviewers will be asked to evaluate all submitted material sent to them. Candidates for promotion are responsible for preparing the research portfolio and curriculum vitae to be sent to external reviewers. In the case of the arts, external reviewers may be asked to consider works of art or performances. External reviewers will be asked to evaluate (a) the quality of the scholarship or creative work under review; and (b) the scholarly reputation (regional, national, international) of the candidate.
   5. All candidates seeking promotion to full professor must have their scholarship evaluated by at least four external reviewers. If fewer than four external reviews are received, the department/school chair/director will choose additional external reviewers alternately from the lists of the department/school’s promotion and tenure committee and of the candidate.
   6. The University and college/school administration will assist departments/schools where reasonable expenses are necessary to obtain appropriate external reviews.

1. The department/school promotion and tenure committee faculty members in the rank being considered or above may select a subcommittee from their ranks to consider and make recommendations concerning promotion. In that case, the subcommittee is responsible for eliciting opinions from all faculty members holding the rank being considered or above.
2. In departments/schools where fewer than three members hold appointments in the rank being considered or above, the dean, in consultation with the department/school chair/director (or designee; see section II.C.4.a), will appoint enough additional faculty in the rank or above from other disciplines to form a department/school promotion and tenure committee of at least three.
3. Candidates seeking promotion should provide a statement that identifies potential external and/or internal reviewers with whom there is a conflict of interest, e.g., co-authors, co-investigators, etc.
4. The group of faculty members on the department/school promotion and tenure committee elects itscommittee chair. It is the responsibility of the committee chair to direct the committee members to consider and apply the relevant sections in the ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ Teaching and Research Faculty Handbook and the departmental/school statement of criteria for evaluation of scholarly activity and research in their comments and votes.
5. No dean, full- or part-time associate dean or assistant dean, or other full-time administrator or department/school chair/director (or designee; see section II.C.4.a) shall attend or participate in the deliberation of either the department/school, college/school, or University promotion and tenure committee. The deliberations of all three committees are confidential and must not be shared with anyone outside of the committee.
6. The college/school promotion and tenure committees shall consist of one tenured faculty member from each department/school in the college/school. All members of the college/school promotion and tenure committees shall be elected directly by the faculty members they represent for a one-year term,renewable twice for a total of three years. This member shall be chosen by majority vote of all full-time faculty of the department/school, present and voting, by secret ballot before April 15 of each year for the ensuing academic year. For tenure-granting colleges/schools where there are insufficient numbers of tenured faculty, the college/school dean should select tenured faculty members from another college/school to serve on their college/school’s promotion and tenure committee. Every reasonable effort should be made to ensure that there are at least three full professors on the college/school promotion and tenure committee. If the elected representative of a department/schoolwill not be able to attend the college/school promotion and tenure committee meetings for a significant time span, the department/school may elect a temporary replacement for that time span. No person shall serve on a college/school promotion and tenure committee for more than three years consecutively, but is eligible for reelection after an absence of at least one year. Only faculty holding the rank of full professor are eligible to join the deliberations and the vote on candidates for promotion to full professor. If the home department/school of a candidate for promotion to full professor has no full professor representing it on the college/school promotion and tenure committee, a member of the department/school promotion and tenure committee for that candidate (convened as described in section II.D) shall be elected to serve as its representative only during the duration of the deliberations on that specific candidate. In any case, the representative from a promotion candidate’s department/school will participate in deliberations in the candidate’s case but will not cast a vote.
7. The University Promotion and Tenure Committee shall consist of one tenured full professor from each of the tenure-granting academic colleges/schools. This member shall be elected from among the members of the college’s/school’s promotion and tenure committee by September 15. The University Promotion and Tenure Committee shall elect one of its members as chair[1]. No person shall serve on the University Promotion and Tenure Committee for more than three years consecutively, but is eligible for reelection after an absence of at least one year. The representative from a promotion candidate’s college/school will participate in deliberations in the candidate’s case but will not cast a vote.
8. Any committee member who participates in the promotion process votes at most only once on any specific case.
9. To ensure transparency, fairness, and equity in the internal review process, a faculty member or administrator who participates in the promotion process must disclose any potential conflict of interest that might undermine the credibility of the process. The department/school chair/director (or designee, see section II.C.4.a) will work in consultation with the college/school dean to decide whether the person should be excluded from serving on the review committee.
10. At each stage, the candidate shall receive the evaluation and recommendation letter from thecommittee or administrative reviewer via the secure evaluation system and shall be given an opportunity to correct any factual errors. In case of material new accomplishments before the conclusion of the evaluation process, additional documentation may be added to the promotion portfolio with the concurrence of the dean. Such additional material must be clearly marked as such and dated at the time of addition to the promotion file. If such additional documentation is considered, this must be clearly documented in the recommendation letters by the committee or individual (e.g.,dean) who first reviews this new material.

1. If the dean’s determination is negative and is not in accordance with all previous recommendations, the candidate may request a further review by the appropriate executive vice president.
2. If the decision by the executive vice president is positive, the review will continue to the University Promotion and Tenure Committee. If the decision is negative, the candidate’s case will not go forward. The decision of the executive vice president is final. 

Expectations

Teaching faculty members hold full-time positions that require an advanced degree as appropriate to thediscipline and evidence of teaching effectiveness. Documentation of expertise in a specific field may also berequired. Teaching faculty are expected to assume an instructional role, to include teaching and/or mentoring,as appropriate, at undergraduate or graduate levels and participate in other professional service activitiesnormally assigned to or expected of full-time faculty. Refer to the policy on Academic Rank and Criteria for Ranks in the ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ Teaching and Research Faculty Handbook for the expectations specific to each teaching faculty rank.

Overview

Promotion from the rank of teaching assistant professor to the rank of teaching associate professor or from the rank of teaching associate professor to teaching professor shall be initiated by the faculty member and conferred based on the recommendation of the department/school promotion and tenure committee, department/school chair/director, and college/school promotion and tenure committee to the college/school dean. Teaching faculty in the School of Medicine who are expected to be engaged in research will be required to undergo external review as part of their promotion process, according to the procedures outlined in section VII below. A faculty member may apply for early consideration for promotion in rank if the faculty member believes that they have met or exceeded the expectations of quantity and quality of achievements for teaching and service needed to qualify for promotion before the end of the normal five-year period. The criteria for the award of promotion will be the same as for those who apply after the normal five-year period (i.e., the total body of work must be equivalent to that expected after five years at their current rank). Only demonstrably exceptional faculty or faculty with equivalent experience at a commensurate rank at another accredited institution of higher education or national institutions will be awarded early promotion under this clause. Demonstrably exceptional is defined as meeting or exceeding expectations for quantity and quality of achievements for teaching and service needed to qualify for promotion prior to the conclusion of the normal five-year period.

1. The candidate seeking promotion must notify their department/school chair/director by August 1 of their intent to apply for promotion in rank.
2. The candidate prepares and submits to the department/school chair/director via the secure evaluation system their promotion portfolio, to include, at a minimum, the following: 
   
   1. a curriculum vitae prepared in accordance with the guidelines of the appropriate executive vice president,
   2. a list of teaching assignments,
   3. teaching portfolio evaluations, 
   4. quantitative and qualitative student course survey feedback,
   5. annual evaluations by the department/school chair/director and dean for all years at their current rank, and
   6. other relevant materials. 
3. The department/school promotion and tenure committee and teaching faculty at or above the rank being sought review the promotion portfolio, vote, and make a recommendation. The vote and the names of all reviewers who participated in the deliberation of the case should be recorded and submitted, along with the committee’s recommendation, via the secure evaluation system. For all committees, in instances of a non-unanimous vote, the minority opinion must be included in the committee recommendation, and the minority must be given the option to write the minority opinion.
4. The department/school chair/director conducts an independent evaluation and recommendation, posts it to the secure evaluation system for the candidate seeking promotion, and forwards all credentials and recommendations to the college/school promotion and tenure committee.
5. The college/school promotion and tenure committee reviews the promotion portfolio, votes, and makes a recommendation. The promotion portfolio, the college/school promotion and tenure committee votes, and other documents are forwarded to the dean.
   1. If the dean makes a determination in favor of promotion, the promotion becomes effective at the start of the subsequent academic year.
   2. If the dean decides against the promotion, the faculty member may request a review by the appropriate executive vice president, whose decision is final. 

Expectations

Faculty of practice in Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences are eligible for promotion in academic rank based on demonstrated excellence and sustained contributions in their assigned areas of responsibility. Promotion recognizes continued growth in clinical practice, teaching, mentorship, service, leadership, research, and other professional activities consistent with the faculty member’s role and expectations.

1. Candidates for promotion must meet the qualifications and criteria established for the rank sought in accordance with college/school promotion policies and demonstrate a record of achievement commensurate with that rank.
2. The candidate seeking promotion must notify their department/school chair/director by April 1 of their intent to apply for promotion in rank.
3. The candidate prepares and submits to the department/school chair/director via the secure evaluation system their promotion portfolio documenting their professional accomplishments, to include, at a minimum: 
   
   1. a curriculum vitae prepared in accordance with the guidelines of the appropriate executive vice president
   2. a list of accomplishments
   3. other relevant materials
4. If the department/school chair/director supports promotion, the promotion portfolio is sent to the college/school promotion committee.   
5. If the college/school promotion committee recommends promotion, the candidate’s credentials, together with the recommendations from the committee and the department/school chair/director (or designee), will be forwarded to the college/school dean. For research faculty of practice members in research centers within or outside of colleges/schools, their materials are forwarded to the relevant college/school dean or the vice president for research and economic development. 
6. If the college/school dean supports promotion, the executive vice president for health sciences, after examining all submitted documents, makes a decision concerning promotion for the upcoming academic year. 
   
   1. If the decision of the executive vice president for health sciences is for promotion, the candidate will receive the higher rank in the subsequent academic year. 
   2. If the executive vice president for health sciences decides against the promotion, the candidate may request a review by the president, whose decision is final.

Expectations

Research faculty members hold full-time ranks that require an appropriate advanced degree and evidence of research ability. Faculty who are appointed to this rank are expected to assume an active research agenda and individual or team grant activity, supervise undergraduate and graduate students, as appropriate, and participate in other professional service activities normally assigned to or expected of full-time research faculty.

1. Promotion from the rank of research assistant professor to the rank of research associate professor or from the rank of research associate professor to research professor shall be initiated by the faculty member and conferred in accordance with the center policy, or if housed in a college/school, the applicable college/school policy. Research faculty members may apply for promotion early if they have met or exceeded the expectations of quantity and quality of achievements for promotion before the end of the normal five-year period. The criteria for early promotion will be the same as for those who apply after the normal five-year period (i.e., the total body of work must be equivalent to that expected after a normal five-year period). Only demonstrably exceptional faculty or those with equivalent experience at a commensurate rank at another accredited institution of higher education or national institutions will be awarded early promotion under this clause. Demonstrably exceptional is defined as meeting or exceeding expectations for quantity and quality of achievements for research and service needed to qualify for promotion to the next rank prior to the conclusion of the normal five-year period. 
2. Promotion to a higher rank will require external evaluation of the quality of the candidate’s research performance from nationally recognized experts in the faculty member’s field. Research centers will establish a promotion committee to review faculty promotions and make recommendations to the center director. This center promotion committee should include at least one member from the academic departments/schools most closely aligned to the center to ensure promotion considerations are being applied equitably between the faculty assigned to that department/school and those assigned to the center. In centers where fewer than three members hold appointments in the rank being considered or above, the center director will solicit members of the departments/schools most closely aligned to the center, in consultation with the chairs/directors of those departments/schools, to form a committee of at least three.

1. The candidate seeking promotion must notify their center director and, if applicable, department/school chair/director by April 1 of their intent to apply for promotion in rank.
2. The candidate prepares and submits to the center director via the secure evaluation system their promotion portfolio documenting their professional accomplishments, to include, at a minimum, the following: 
   
   1. a curriculum vitae prepared in accordance with the guidelines of the appropriate executive vice president or vice president for research and economic development,
   2. list of accomplishments, 
   3. annual evaluations by the center director and dean for all years at their current rank, and
   4. other relevant materials. 
3. Research faculty with teaching responsibilities must provide evidence of teaching effectiveness, including peer review evaluation reports and qualitative and quantitative feedback from student course surveys. The center promotion committee. See the section below for details related to identifying external reviewers and securing their letters.
4. For candidates in a research center housed within a college/school, the center promotion committee will review the credentials, vote, and make a recommendation. The names of the committee members participating in the review, deliberation, and vote count should be recorded and submitted, along with the committee’s recommendation, via the secure evaluation system for the center director and the candidate seeking promotion. For candidates seeking promotion in an Office of Enterprise Research and Innovation (OERI) center, the review of credentials, voting, and recommendation will be conducted in accordance with the center’s policy.
5. For candidates in research centers housed within a college/school, the center director makes an independent evaluation and recommendation, posts it to the secure evaluation system for the candidate seeking promotion, and forwards all credentials and recommendations to the college/school dean. For candidates with an appointment in an Office of Enterprise Research and Innovation (OERI) center, the center director makes an independent evaluation and recommendations and posts it to the secure evaluation system for the candidate. 
6. The center director will review the promotion portfolio recommendations and will recommend candidates who have met the promotion criteria to the vice president for research and economic development or the relevant college/school dean.
7. The vice president for research and economic development or the relevant college/school dean reviews the promotion portfolio and recommendations and makes a determination regarding promotion.
   
   1. If the decision of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development or the relevant college/school dean is for promotion, the candidate will receive the higher rank in the subsequent academic year.
   2. If the Vice President for Research and Economic Development or the relevant college/school dean decides against the promotion, the candidate may request a review by the appropriate vice president, whose decision is final. 

Expectations

Clinical faculty members hold full-time positions that require an appropriate advanced degree and evidence of clinical experience commensurate with their rank. Expectations for these positions are as defined by their department/school and college/school.

1. The candidate seeking promotion must notify their department/school chair/director by April 1 of their intent to apply for promotion in rank.
2. The candidate prepares and submits to the department/school chair/director via the secure evaluation system their promotion portfolio documenting their professional accomplishments, to include, at a minimum: 
   
   1. a curriculum vitae prepared in accordance with the guidelines of the appropriate executive vice president,
   2. a list of accomplishments,
   3. annual evaluations by the department/school chair/director and dean during time at current rank, and
   4. other relevant materials.
3. The department/school chair/director forwards the candidate’s credentials, external review letters, and curriculum vitae to the department/school promotion and tenure committee. See the section below for details related to identifying and securing external review letters. 
4. The department/school promotion and tenure committee and clinical faculty at or above the rank being sought review the promotion portfolio, vote, and make a recommendation. The vote and the names of all reviewers who participated in the deliberation of the case should be recorded and submitted, along with the committee’s recommendation, via the secure evaluation system. For all committees, in instances of a non-unanimous vote, the minority opinion must be included in the committee recommendation, and the minority must be given the option to write the minority opinion.
5. The department/school chair/director conducts an independent evaluation and recommendation, posts it to the secure evaluation system for the candidate seeking promotion, and forwards all credentials and recommendations to the college/school promotion and tenure committee.
6. The college/school promotion and tenure committee reviews the promotion portfolio, votes, and makes a recommendation. The promotion portfolio, the college/school promotion and tenure committee votes, and other documents are forwarded to the dean.
7. The dean reviews the promotion portfolio and recommendations and makes a determination regarding promotion. 
   
   1. If the decision of the dean is for promotion, the candidate will receive the higher rank in the subsequent academic year. 
   2. If the dean decides against the promotion, the candidate may request a review by the appropriate executive vice president, whose decision is final. 

1. The department/school or center promotion committee makes its recommendation concerning promotion to the department/school chair or school/center director, together with reasons for the recommendation (including a minority statement in the case of a non-unanimous vote). All eligible committee members shall vote yes or no through a secret ballot after participating (either in person or remotely) in the deliberations of the committee. Proxy votes or votes submitted by non-secure means (e.g., email or communication accessible to a third party) are not permitted. 
2. The committee chair shall record the names of all members participating in the discussion and voting in the recommendation letter, as well as the total number of votes in favor and against. Only those faculty present during the deliberations can participate in drafting or approving the letter. In instances of a non-unanimous vote, the minority opinion must be included in the committee’s recommendation, and the minority must be given the option to write it.
3. The committee chair will post a copy of the recommendation letter to the secure evaluation system for the candidate seeking promotion.  

1. The department/school chair or school/center director (or designee) conducts an independent evaluation of the candidate’s credentials, the rank structure of the department/school, and any additional evidence presented, either by the candidate or from any other source, and makes a recommendation concerning promotion. 
2. The department/school chair or school/center director (or designee) will provide a copy of that review and recommendation letter to the candidate and the dean. 

1. If either the department/school promotion committee, the department/school chair/director (or designee), or both recommend promotion, the candidate’s credentials, together with the recommendations from the committee and the department/school chair/director (or designee), will be forwarded to a college/school promotion committee for consideration. For research faculty members in research centers within or outside of colleges/schools, their materials are forwarded to the relevant college/school dean or the vice president for research and economic development. 
2. The college/school promotion committee will make an independent evaluation and make a recommendation regarding promotion with reasons (including reasons for the minority) to the dean. The recommendations will indicate the vote of the committee. All eligible committee members shall vote yes or no through a secret ballot after participating (either in person or remotely) in the deliberations of the committee. Proxy votes or votes submitted by non-secure means (e.g., email or communication accessible to a third party) are not permitted. In instances of a non-unanimous vote of all eligible voting members, the minority opinion must be included in the committee’s recommendation, and the minority must be given the option to write the minority opinion.
   
   1. If neither the department/school committee nor the department/school chair/director recommends promotion, the candidate will not be considered for promotion in the coming year unless a review by the college/school promotion committee and the dean is requested by the candidate. 
   2. If a review is requested, the department/school committee and the department/school chair/director forward all documents to the college/school promotion committee, which examines them and makes a recommendation concerning promotion to the dean. 

1. The dean examines all documents, including the college/school committee’s recommendation, and decides on promotion.  
2. If the dean’s determination is negative and is in accordance with the recommendations of the department/school committee, the department/school chair/director, and the college/school committee, then the faculty member is not promoted for the coming year. 
3. If the dean’s determination is negative and is not in accordance with all previous recommendations, the faculty member may request a further review by the appropriate executive vice president, whose decision is final in such cases.