All mandatory reviews for promotion/award of tenure must be forwarded to the provost, regardless of the recommendation, for final determination.
Provost action is not required on unfavorable non-mandatory reviews.
Non-mandatory reviews that are not favorable, but to which the candidate has submitted a written response, are to be transmitted to the provost for informational purposes.
There are several possible outcomes of the promotion/tenure review process, with subsequent actions and notifications by the provost, in addition to institutional actions. Possible outcomes include the following:
Mandatory and Non-Mandatory Review – Favorable Promotion/Award of Tenure
When the provost approves a promotion and/or award of tenure, the dean/chancellor will be notified of the decision. Upon this notification, the dean/chancellor may inform the chair/director/campus dean, who may communicate the outcome to the candidate.
In the case of a favorable review, a congratulatory letter will be sent to the candidate from the president and provost. At the time of the candidate’s promotion in rank (effective July 1 for employees with 12-month service periods, and September 16 for employees with 9-month service periods), the faculty member will receive a 10% salary increase in accordance with a promotion in rank Faculty Code Section 24-70 B.2, Faculty Code Section 24-71 A.2, and EO 64. If promotion and merit increases occur in the same year, the increases will be applied in the order of their effective dates.
The award of tenure without an associated promotion in rank does not include a promotion salary increase.
Mandatory Review – Postponement Outcome
Note: For any decision that is not favorable, the provost will share their initial decision and reasons therefor with the candidate, chair/director/campus dean, and dean/chancellor. The leaders have 5 calendar days to respond, with a copy to the candidate, and the candidate has 7 days to respond. The descriptions below relate to the final decision of the provost after reviewing any responses.
Postponement is a possible outcome of the mandatory review. If a mandatory promotion recommendation is postponed for one academic year, the provost will notify the dean/chancellor of the decision. The dean/chancellor must inform the candidate of the outcome and reasons therefor. It is recommended that a postponement plan and expectations be outlined.
The review conducted in the year following a postponement is considered a postponed mandatory review and the promotion outcomes are limited to approval or denial.
The postponed mandatory review requires the initiation of a new review process supported by an updated promotion record (e.g. CV, self-assessment, teaching evaluations) and new external review letters.
Recommendations from the chair/director/campus dean/dean/chancellor must address the candidate’s progress since the postponement decision.
Mandatory Review – Unfavorable Outcome (Denial)
If a recommendation for a mandatory promotion review is denied by the provost, the provost will notify the dean/chancellor of the decision. The dean/chancellor must inform the candidate of the outcome, and the reasons therefor.
The faculty member will be granted a terminal academic year of employment at the current rank (Faculty Code Section 24-41). Except for the terminal year, a faculty member denied mandatory promotion is ineligible for employment at the University of Washington as a faculty member.
Mandatory Review – Unfavorable Outcome (Withdrawal)
In the case of a mandatory promotion review that receives an unfavorable recommendation from the dean/chancellor, a faculty member may choose to withdraw from further promotion consideration prior to referral of the promotion record to the provost. Withdrawal from further consideration must be accompanied by a letter of resignation, effective no later than the last day of appointment in the current academic year (e.g. June 15 or June 30 for employees with 9- and 12-month service periods respectively).
By resigning, the faculty member will no longer be able to hold any clock-managed professorial tracks (i.e., tenure-track or tenured, WOT, research, or clinical dental-pathway) at the University of Washington, but may be eligible for other faculty or other employment opportunities within the UW.
Non-Mandatory Review – Unfavorable Outcome
Non-mandatory reviews with an unfavorable outcome are not transmitted to the provost for review. In the case where a candidate provides a written response to a dean/chancellor, the record is forwarded to the provost for information purposes only. Any subsequent review for the same promotion is independent, and requires the initiation of a new review process.