Early tenure or not?

[stilllooking]

I met with my department chair recently to discuss going up for early tenure this August or waiting for my mandatory tenure year a year later. I’m at a public R1 (newly elevated from an R2) without a psych PhD program (large masters program, though). According to my department head, my dossier is strong, but of course, she can’t guarantee anything and says that when to go up is up to me, and that she’ll support me either way. My third year review feedback from the Dean was positive (we only get Dean feedback for third year and tenure reviews).

Pros/cons of going up early or waiting? Thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[calimich]

I also went up "early", although they try not to use that language here. I think they try and make it wizard-like, "There is no early tenure, you go up when the time is right." I'm at a SLAC and very happy with the decision.

Pros: security, relief, $$, prestige?
Cons: a blow to ego if denied? as long as you can apply again during the mandatory year (that is the case here)

 

[stilllooking]

I also went up "early", although they try not to use that language here. I think they try and make it wizard-like, "There is no early tenure, you go up when the time is right." I'm at a SLAC and very happy with the decision.

Pros: security, relief, $$, prestige?
Cons: a blow to ego if denied? as long as you can apply again during the mandatory year (that is the case here)

Thanks. No option to apply again if denied, though we can withdraw and apply again in our mandatory year after the department review if that doesn’t seem favorable.

 

[calimich]

Thanks. No option to apply again if denied, though we can withdraw and apply again in our mandatory year after the department review if that doesn’t seem favorable.

ugh, that is certainly higher stakes than my experience.

 

[erg923]

what does this mean? Raise? Can you work less after this? Do you really have to submit some kind of formal “presentation” to ask or justify all of these things after years of working there? Don’t they have all this in an employment/HR record? Seems like lots of work to tell them you have done lots of work?

 

[calimich]

Good questions. It's complicated. Here are some places to start:

Academic tenure: What it is and why it matters

Academic tenure – a system of job protections for university professors – came about in the early 20th century. Will it survive in the 21st century? A scholar weighs in.

theconversation.com

What is Academic Tenure? - Interfolio

Learn about the benefits and challenges of academic tenure, as well as how Interfolio’s digital system can streamline the tenure review process.

www.interfolio.com

Tenure

The principal purpose of tenure is to safeguard academic freedom, which is a requisite condition for all who teach and conduct research in higher education. When faculty members can lose their positions because of their speech or their publications, they cannot properly fulfill their core...

www.aaup.org

Securing tenure

On the tenure track? Here are four keys to making sure you get the ultimate prize.

www.apa.org

‘Even when it’s successful, the process takes its toll’: How tenure works — and doesn’t — at Yale

‘Even when it’s successful, the process takes its toll’: How tenure works — and doesn’t — at Yale In many ways, Yale’s tenure process — and its problems identified by faculty — resemble that of other universities. But faculty interviewed by the News still felt that Yale can and needs to do more...

features.yaledailynews.com

Opinion | The Fight Over Tenure Is Not Really About Tenure (Published 2021)

It’s a proxy for a larger debate about the meaning of academic freedom and the priorities of higher education.

www.nytimes.com

Debating the Effectiveness and Necessity of Tenure in Pharmacy Education

Academic tenure is a controversial and highly debated topic. Is tenure truly outdated or does it simply need to be reformed? On one hand, the tenure system has shortcomings including deincentivizing productive faculty members, inconsistent application ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[Ollie123]

Can you go up for associate but delay applying for tenure? Very commonplace in med schools and I know some universities offer this option too. I'm intending to go up for associate as soon as possible but delay tenure as long as possible. I'm in a med school environment though, where tenure doesn't have quite the same meaning.

 

[borne_before]

Apply early AND see if you can get a competing offer somewhere else that comes with tenure.