Denials are rare; nearly everyone nearly everywhere gets tenure.
If ye need a BS excuse to clear the bar, there's sumpin wrong with ye.
Tenure Clock Extensions due to Coronvirus, Covid 19?
-
I'm a father of two. I'm just not too stupid and arrogant to realize what breaks I've benefited from.
Covid extension for everyone will be much like extending parental leaves to fathers -- the disruption is just vastly greater for TT faculty with kids, so it will exacerbate the advantage of the childless.
Maybe you should have thought of that before you went and got yourself knocked up.
-
I have a question about universities that are implementing this extension. Generally, what's their policy regarding faculty who are scheduled to go up for tenure right now and very recently submitted their tenure and promotion files? Does the extension apply to them?
-
What about faculty who were going up for tenure this year and did not get tenure? Technically, the probationary period is still active through the end of this semester.
I notice from the spreadsheet that some schools have specified that their tenure clock extensions only apply to faculty in their first five years of the probationary period. But other schools do not specify that detail. Does anyone have examples of how universities are treating faculty who went up this year but are not receiving tenure? Are there any examples where schools are extending all faculty contracts?
Most universities grant one additional year after the probationary period ends, so that faculty who are denied tenure have a year to figure out their next step. That year functions as a safety net. Will faculty in their final year of the probationary period also be granted an extra year on their clock? If so, that would give them up to two more years of a guaranteed job.
I don't expect universities to let us go up for tenure again. But it would be nice if they recognized that faculty in this situation are having a very difficult time getting research done right now, and some of that is happening in ways that violate our original contract. There is a lot of extra work because of the transition to online learning. Access to campus and offices is blocked. Conferences and other events are all being canceled.
As a junior faculty member who is currently being denied tenure and was about to go on the market in the fall, I feel like this crisis is hitting at the worst possible time. My research productivity is flailing during a critical time when I need to focus on R&Rs and new submissions, my teaching responsibilities have increased unexpectedly, and the upcoming fall market is likely going to be rough. At the same time, I recognize that faculty who were denied tenure are not a top priority for any university. Is there any chance they will throw us a lifeline?