What Is Tenure Track?
Tenure can be described as significant job security, which once granted, almost always guarantees employment for life. Tenure track is how some employees are classified when first hired, or early on in their career with an employer. Most often, this hiring practice occurs in academic community college or university settings. A few other types of businesses may use this hiring and promotion structure, including legal and medical fields.
In the academic field, where this practice is most common, professors may be designated tenure track upon hire. This does not mean they are guaranteed a job for life, but that the university will be overseeing their work and will ultimately review that work in a few years’ time to determine fitness for an offer of tenure. For a new associate professor, behavior and accomplishments over the next few years are important. In the standard university, one of the litmus tests for granting tenure is whether the employee can research and publish findings on a regular basis.
Before a university will grant tenure, the tenure track professor needs to demonstrate that she will add prestige to the college by her actions. The need to publish is usually called publish or perish. Tenure track teachers who don’t publish enough work may not be offered tenure, but may keep their jobs as associate professors and be up for periodic review. Getting published is not the only test, and associate professors may also need to demonstrate strong teaching skills and a certain amount of diplomacy when it comes to working with tenured professors who make hiring decisions. Average time between being hired and being offered tenure is about five to six years, though this may vary.
Definite criticism of tenure as an employment strategy exists. Once this status is achieved, workers are less accountable for their actions and there are many examples of burned out teachers who have extraordinary job security. Typically, it can take a great deal to discharge an employee who has a tenured position which has led to criticism of the system.
Another concern is that many universities are now limiting tenure track positions. Studies of academic hiring practices show a steady decline of those being offered associated professorships, with preference in hiring leaning toward non-tenure track positions like lecturer or adjunct professor. Usually, associates who are hired have access to benefits but more temporary hiring structures eliminate this. Hiring temporary workers may be one means of saving money, but it is changing the way university employment is structured.
What can be said is that the trend today is toward hiring employees who are not tenure track. Since tenured positions are not as prevalent, people hoping to be full professors must work extremely hard to distinguish themselves before beginning a job search. The degree to which professional achievements or publishing is required prior to landing an associated professorship also depends on the school and its reputation.
Written by Tricia Ellis-Christensen
