Tenure, Promotion, & Review

Guidelines, procedures, and policies regarding tenure, promotion, and third year reviews

Policies and Procedures

Academic freedom is the particular freedom of scholars, teachers, and students within the University to pursue knowledge, speak, write, and follow the life of the mind without unreasonable restriction. It is that freedom to be judged as a scholar, teacher or student when judgment is necessary, on the basis of legitimate intellectual and professional criteria, not personal beliefs, political views, religious or other individual preferences, except as these may demonstrably affect intellectual and professional achievement. Fair consideration in making tenure and promotion decisions is achieved through clear, carefully followed procedures.

Tenure and Promotion Calendar

Tenure and Promotion Process Flowcharts

To see a visual representation of the timelines involved in faculty promotion, please see the flowcharts at the link below.

Process Flowcharts

Tenure Track Dossier Guidelines

Preparation of cases for consideration by the advisory committee on tenure, promotion, and personnel:

The recruitment and retention of an excellent faculty is a top priority for Arts and Sciences at Washington University. The promotion process is an important part of this effort and must be done carefully. What follows below are the guidelines for chairs preparing cases for the Advisory Committee for tenure and for promotion of individuals already tenured, and for appointments to positions with tenure of new faculty. Adherence to these guidelines will make the work easier and expedite the review process. However, they are not meant to restrict the material that the department submits in order to strengthen the case.

Third Year Review Guidelines

A third‐year review is an important process that helps both untenured faculty members on the tenure track and their departments gauge progress and calibrate planning. In some cases, it will provide the opportunity to correct course, and in other cases it may provide the opportunity to acknowledge accelerated progress toward tenure. This is a process intended to provide more opportunities for support and feedback for tenure track professors as they prepare for tenure. Dossiers are due to the Dean's Office on February 2, 2026. Add Erin Lewis and Abdul Ursani as editors on the Box folder to submit.

Teaching Track Dossier Guidelines

What follows below are the guidelines for chairs preparing cases for teaching-track promotions.

Research Track Dossier Guidelines