VIII. Procedures for Term Appointments (Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Lecturer [3-Years])
D. Procedures for Promotion to Assistant or Associate Professor by Academic Part Time Criteria
1. Candidate must complete her/his curriculum vitae and bibliography using the format described in section XV.
Note: In keeping with Harvard Medical School guidelines, which recommend a maximum number of publications or scholarly communications on which appointments should be judged, the department head, in consultation with the appointee, should circle on a candidatešs bibliography two to five items for assistant professor and five to seven for associate professor. The candidatešs C.V. should be seen as a dossier of the individualšs activity; the items highlighted should be those considered as having a significant impact on the candidatešs field.
2. Department head prepares a letter of recommendation that includes the following items:
a. Description of the position that the individual would occupy if promoted and its relationship to the rest of the department. This description should allow subsequent readers of the recommendation to understand the major responsibilities of the department or division, the role of the candidate in this group, and the professional responsibilities of the group outside the academic setting.
b. Description of the candidate's experience and accomplishments in the following areas (as appropriate)
1) Teaching. Include an account of specific teaching responsibilities (e.g., medical student, graduate student, postgraduate student, or continuing education) along with any evaluation reports available. Indicate the candidatešs specific role (e.g., course organizer, lecturer, section leader).
2) Clinical activities. Comment on the candidate's clinical skills and responsibilities in your department. Cite any evidence for the recognition of clinical excellence inside and outside the Boston medical community, e.g., invitations to participate in clinical activities at other medical schools and health care institutions, membership in professional organizations emphasizing excellence in clinical specialties.
3) Research activities (as appropriate). Describe the candidate's research, with specific attention to contributions to the field. Note membership in organizations emphasizing excellence in research and any awards.
4) Administration. Indicate any leadership role in health care systems or medical school programs and committees. Does the candidate participate in any national organizations, professional societies, study sections, or policy making/advisory groups?
5) Letter from the executive committee of the department is prepared if there are any dissents or abstentions. This letter includes the reasons for either dissents or abstentions. If there are none, signature of the chairperson or the secretary of the executive committee on the Form for Initiation of First Term Appointments and Promotions will be sufficient.
4. Letters of evaluation are requested by the department head, not by the candidate . The department head should comment in her/his letter on any significant issues raised in the letters of evaluation. (Click HERE for sample letter.)
a. Assistant professor. At least two letters of recommendation are required from faculty members inside the department and two from outside the department and discipline (inside or outside HMS). At least one of the letters should be from outside HMS, if possible from someone who is not a former colleague, mentor, co-worker, or co-author of the candidate.
b. Associate professor. Six to eight letters of recommendation are required, two to four letters from senior clinicians in the candidate's clinical areas and/or in adjacent fields (including referring physicians if appropriate), two letters from persons who can address teaching skills (co-teacher, course director, chief resident, etc), and two letters from national figures in her/his clinical area. At least one outside letter should come from someone who is not a former colleague, mentor, collaborator, or co-author of the candidate.
5. Copies of publications/scholarly communications/teaching materials on which the proposed appointment should be judged are provided.
a. Two copies each of two items for appointment to assistant clinical professorb. Two copies each of five items for appointment to associate clinical professor
Attribution of credit on multiauthored papers: In those cases where the candidate has selected (as one of the two best papers to be reviewed for assistant professor or one of the five best papers to be reviewed for associate professor) a paper in which s/he is a middle author, the candidate must describe to the department head her/his contribution in the following terms cited in the "Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals":
- conception, or design, or analysis and interpretation of data
- drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content
- final approval of the version to be published
The candidate's description may be included in the letter of the department head or attached as a separate submission.
If possible, the candidate should also annotate all the selected papers to indicate why the work is important and what impact it has had on the field.
6. Letter from the department head, addressed to the Dean, and accompanying documentation should be sent to: Office for Faculty Services, Gordon Hall, Room 010, Harvard Medical School.
7. Documents are checked in the Dean's Office and distributed to members of the Promotions, Reappointments, and Appointments Committee. Two members of this committee review the documentation for appointment to assistant/associate professor. A departmental representative is present to respond. The committee deliberates and renders a recommendation to the Dean.
8. Dean makes a final recommendation and transmits it to the President and Provost of Harvard University.
9. Recommendation is considered by the President and Provost on behalf of the Governing Boards of Harvard University. Final approval is rendered by the President and Provost.