Definition of the Policies Concerning Research Faculty Appointments for the members of the faculties of Tufts University
Voted by the Board of Trustees May 30, 1981
Amended by the Board of Trustees February 24, 1990
Board of Trustees voted November 1, 2003 that full-time research faculty appointments no longer require trustee approval.
Research Faculty appointments are multiple-year full-time appointments based on external funding – appointments designated as “research faculty” are not eligible for tenure. Such faculty members are appointed following existing procedures for renewable fixed terms, with a safety clause if their external support disappears; carry titles which reflect their research orientation; and are evaluated for rank in their respective schools or colleges based on appropriate criteria.
Specific provisions of the full-time non-tenure research faculty appointments:
Research Professor: five-year term |
Associate Research Professor: five-year term |
Assistant Research Professor: three-year term |
Research Professor: recommendation by dean, final approval by Provost and President |
Associate Research Professor: recommended by dean, final approval by Provost |
Assistant Research Professor: recommended by dean, final approval by Provost |
Subject to the availability of funds budgeted for this purpose by the school involved, an unsupported period of up to one year may be provided at the outset of an individual’s first such research appointment, to enable him or her to attract initial support. It is hoped and expected that the majority of such research appointments will be for individuals who will bring grant support with them.
It is anticipated that normal professional development might make a research faculty member eligible for promotion to the Associate Research Professor rank at about the same time that tenure-track faculty members are achieving tenured status. If a research faculty member fails to demonstrate such progress, the department chairman, the faculty evaluating committee and the dean should reevaluate the individual’s status as a faculty member.
A person appointed to the tenure track could not switch to a research track at any time. If a person is considered for tenure and tenure is not granted, he or she will not be eligible for subsequent employment at the University on a research faculty appointment.
Click here to download the Research Faculty Appointments Policy.