UNIVERSITY COUNCIL ON GRADUATE EDUCATION
Updated May 2007
In Fall 2004, the University Council on Graduate Education (UCGE) issued two documents entitled “Operational Definitions of Excellence in Graduate Education: University, School, Department, Faculty, Students” and “Responsibilities of Various Entities at Tufts University Relating to Graduate Education” posted on the UCGE website http://provost.tufts.edu/initiatives/gradcouncil/ in Fall 2004. These documents defined excellence in graduate education and laid out the responsibilities of the various entities at the university toward creating an environment where graduate level research and education were valued and encouraged. During 2004, the UCGE thought it was important to follow up these documents with a set of specific recommendations for operational changes that would enable actions to be taken and policies to be established to facilitate the move toward excellence in doctoral education and research. The following document is the result of the Council’s efforts towards this goal. While the Council consulted the Provost and the deans in the preparation of this document, it is written by faculty and directed to the faculty and the administration. Each Tufts school is encouraged to start with the framework provided by this document and develop its own school-specific implementation plan.
Art Donohue-Rolfe (Cummings Veterinary)
Shafiq Islam (Engineering)
Ayesha Jalal (Arts and Sciences)
Laura Liscum/Larry Feig (Sackler)/Larry Feig (Sackler)
William Moomaw (Fletcher)
Beatrice Rogers/Peter Walker (Friedman Nutrition)
David Walt (Chair)
Vincent Manno (ex-officio)
Operational Changes to Build Excellence in Doctoral Education
This document applies to doctoral-granting departments/programs and to core faculty in those departments/programs.
Further enhancement of Tufts University’s reputation will depend on its excellence in doctoral education and research. The generation of new knowledge and the education of graduate students are central to the mission of a research university. Excellence requires strong leadership at all levels. Leadership implies energy and direction to raise the quality of research through enhanced opportunities and support of graduate programs. One of the most effective strategies for enhancing graduate education and research is for Tufts to invest in interdisciplinary areas that hold high promise for innovation, and the creation of new intellectual capital.
To this end, the academic leadership of the University should:
• Articulate a unified vision that supports with actions the importance of graduate programs in the fabric of the university.
• Develop faculty committed to graduate education.
• Allocate resources (financial, space, hires) to match the graduate vision.
• Commit financial resources for new buildings, core facilities, graduate fellowships and endowed chairs to attract and retain top faculty.
• Provide support for recruiting and retaining a diverse graduate student population.
To ensure that this vision is implemented, all schools, departments, and programs should set measurable goals consistent with the university vision.
Faculty expectations and workload
Excellence in graduate education depends critically on the quality and contributions of the faculty who achieve a high level of recognition for their research and professional contributions to the field and who demonstrate a commitment to the education of graduate students.
Specific Recommendations:
• Every full time faculty member must engage in a mix of activities that constitute a full time commitment.
• Every faculty member who is a member of a Ph.D. graduate degree program is expected to contribute significantly to research and scholarship and to graduate education.
• The Dean of each school, in consultation with Department Chairs or Program Directors and appropriate faculty governance bodies, should develop a framework for assessing the contributions of each faculty member, and establish explicit, clear expectations for research/scholarship, teaching, and mentoring/advising.
• Each school, program, or department should establish a regular system of review of faculty performance based on clear, objective criteria, with feedback provided to the faculty member. Fulfillment of performance expectations should be linked to salary and promotion decisions.
Academic Life Cycle—Hiring, Tenure, Promotion, Retirement
Hiring—Hiring must be based on the promise and potential for conducting scholarly work in conjunction with graduate student colleagues. At the time of hire, faculty candidates should be evaluated for their ability to contribute to advances within the discipline, for their flexibility of mind with potential to contribute to interdisciplinary programs, and for their commitment to working with and mentoring graduate students.
Tenure—During the tenure (or pre-promotion period for schools that do not grant tenure), the faculty member should demonstrate strength in the discipline. Achievement in interdisciplinary work should also be recognized.
Promotion—For promotion to the rank of Professor, a faculty member should demonstrate a record of research productivity at least comparable to that achieved during the tenure or pre-promotion period. Decisions about promotion should also take into account a faculty member’s contributions to graduate education. After promotion to Associate Professor, the faculty member is encouraged to explore interdisciplinary scholarship where appropriate for the advancement of his or her career.
Retirement— Rejuvenation of departments and the university is essential to the ongoing well-being of the university. Faculty members should accept personal responsibility for understanding when they can no longer meet the expectations of their positions, and, in those instances, honor their obligation to their colleagues by making the transition toward full retirement.
Specific recommendations:
• At the time of hire, faculty candidates should be evaluated for their ability to contribute to advances within the discipline and for their potential to contribute to interdisciplinary programs.
• Tenure should be based on one’s contributions within the discipline. In addition, any contributions to interdisciplinary work will be taken into consideration.
• Faculty members who have reached the point in their professional lives (due to age, health, enthusiasm) where they can no longer meet professional expectations (see Faculty Expectations and Workload discussion) should retire. To enable transition toward full retirement, positions for retired faculty, such as part time teaching as well as laboratory and/or office space, should be provided. Such positions should be provided at a proportionate salary, rather than on a fee for service basis.
• Chairs should provide candid feedback regarding a faculty member’s performance in meeting expectations (see Faculty Expectations and Workload discussion).
Space / Institutional Support as a Catalyst for Innovation
Space resources are owned by the School. The School leadership has the right and responsibility to review the allocation and reallocation of space according to goals. Faculty members should be provided with adequate space to pursue their scholarly and educational activities. In all departments, space is needed for faculty offices, graduate student study areas, meetings, and classrooms, particularly rooms with audio-visual facilities. In science and engineering departments, space is also required for laboratories and instrumentation rooms, whereas, in the arts, humanities and social sciences, space may be needed for practice rooms or other specialized activities. Each graduate program needs space for its students to gather. Within each school, space should be apportioned to department Chairs by the Dean and to faculty members by the Chair. Rationale for those space allocations should be transparent. Allocations of space along thematic, rather than departmental, lines will promote the professional engagement that leads to scholarship in emerging areas.
Specific Recommendations:
• The leadership of the University should determine goals for each school and provide space and institutional support to achieve and maintain those goals.
• Deans should periodically review the allocation of space and institutional support to each department by coupling it with progress toward fulfillment of departmental goals.
• Chairs should periodically review the allocation of space to each faculty member by coupling it with review of faculty members’ contributions and needs.
• The University should reserve some space for interdisciplinary activities that is allocated along thematic lines.
• Each school or department should provide the necessary administrative support services to maximize the likelihood of faculty achieving excellence.
• Data should be obtained for productivity in benchmark departments in other schools and used to guide discussions about space allocation.
Allocation of Resources
The prudent allocation of finite resources is an effective way to strengthen current and develop new research programs that will enhance not only our graduate education but also the reputation of the University as a first class research institution. The University must find ways to increase the resource base. The University must develop criteria by which both existing and new programs are evaluated in terms of resource allocation.
The University must create a climate where scholarly activity is rewarded. To bring about this climate, University allocation of resources should reward those departments or programs that show scholarly activity. The allocation of University resources must be seen as a dynamic process. Regardless of the initial enthusiasm, continued support of unproductive programs must not happen.
Specific recommendations:
•Department chairs and program directors should develop and implement programs to increase public awareness of the accomplishments of their departments/programs in order to increase donor support and to market Tufts as a place to do research. The University should provide assistance to chairs to formulate public relation strategies.
• The University should derive an overall plan by which the allocation of resources is directly correlated with scholarly activity.
• The University must provide an explicit, well-identified process to identify programs, future and present, worth investing in. The necessary resources for the strengthening and/or establishment of these programs must then be provided.
• The University must provide clear criteria by which new research endeavors are evaluated. Continued University support of these endeavors should be dependent upon meeting these criteria.
