This guide consolidates essential administrative guidance from the March 4, 2026 Promotion & Tenure Cycle Refresh Training.
Important Reminders
- New standing committees may be required. If a standing committee’s membership is changing from the 2025–26 cycle, you must create a new committee. Any changes to an existing committee will update all associated cases, including 2025–26 cases. Update your template to ensure all cases are created with the correct committees.
- Use the Replace functionality for committees to retain step instructions and requirements.
- SCCs should coordinate with their department administrators to ensure template updates are complete prior to initiating cases.
- Notify the candidate when their case is ready.
- Assign a Committee Manager to steps with required forms.
- Follow the instructions for putting student and peer reviews in reverse chronological order.
- Do not move the case to the APF Check step until the 5/7 days have passed for sharing documents. Everyone in the unit loses access when it moves to the first APF step and they will not be able to view or respond to the documents shared unless you wait.
- Download the case materials prior to sending to APF, if you desire.
Template Updates
- Removing the External Reviewer Nominee form for candidates (remove from required candidate documents).
- Replacing your standing committees for 2026–2027.
Case Management
- How to notify candidates of their case.
- Case navigation.
- Case Materials vs. Case Details tabs.
- Internal Sections.
- Step instructions and requirements.
- Fulfilling the data sheet requirement from a case document.
- Creating a standing committee.
- Replacing a committee.
- Designating a Committee Manager on a step.
Website Navigation
- Promotion and Tenure landing page: Links to Getting Started and Annual Template content.
- Getting Started: Step-by-step instructions with link to template update information and case initiation. Changed the format of links on this page to accordion style at the bottom.
- Templates & Forms: Clarifies RPT templates vs APF templates. New information about updating templates annually.
- FAQ page: Frequently asked questions about process, set up and case management.
- Unit Materials page: Updated to include information from the P&T Guidelines page, consolidating resources.
- Interfolio’s candidate view: Preview the faculty‑facing, candidate view of Interfolio.
Updates for 2026–2027
RPT Updates (only minor changes):
- The External Reviewer Nominee form can be removed from the candidate’s required documents.
- External Reviewer Grid has had minor tweaks to make it easier to use and so it will display better as a PDF for reviewers.
- The external reviewer letter templates will be updated in March.
- Close cases using only the Error or Candidate Withdrew options so we can report on closed cases.
Promotion & Tenure Policy/Guidance Updates
2026–27 Promotion and Tenure Clock Waiver: One Year Extension
- Automatic Eligibility for Promotion/Tenure Clock Waiver – 2026–27 through 2030–31 Faculty Cohorts.
- We continue to receive feedback that faculty are concerned about the impact of federal policy changes on career progression. In response, new provisions are being implemented for the 2026–27 academic year.
- Meritorious clock managed cohorts with a hire date on or before September 16, 2025 (mandatory reviews taking place between AY 2026–27 through AY 2030–31), who have no more than three previously approved clock waivers, are automatically eligible for a waiver of the 2026–27 academic year.
- Mandatory review deferred for one year unless they choose to opt out. Those faculty who choose to opt out will keep their current end date in effect and go up for mandatory promotion in the last year of their appointment as currently held.
- We are working on the update to our clock waiver pages but please start gathering opt out information for those in your clock managed cohorts hired on or before January 1, 2026.
External Reviewer Request Guidance
Updated templates will include this context language:
Beginning in January 2025, faculty across the University of Washington experienced significant disruption to their federally funded research activities. Although the impacts of these disruptions are still evolving – and new disruptions to research are emerging – we ask that you consider this unprecedented time when evaluating research contributions since 2025, including the written components of this promotion packet.
Student Teaching Evaluation Guidance
New language regarding interpretation of student evaluations of teaching is in progress. The committee hopes to reach its goal of April 1, 2026 for guidance to be posted.
P&T Due Dates
- Dec 15, 2026 — Submit Mandatory Faculty Promotion/Tenure Records.
- Jan 15, 2027 — Submit Early Non-mandatory Faculty Promotion/Tenure Records.
- Feb 1, 2027 — Submit Non-mandatory Faculty Promotion/Tenure Records.
- Apr 9, 2027 — Submit Librarian Promotion Records.
P&T Notification Dates
- Faculty who went through a review for promotion and/or tenure can expect to be notified of a successful outcome by the Office of Academic Personnel.
- March 31, 2027 — Mandatory.
- April 30, 2027 — Early Non-Mandatory.
- June 1, 2027 — Non-Mandatory and Librarians.
Resources
- Getting Started
- Glossary
- Interfolio Review, Promotion & Tenure help
- Be careful using Interfolio’s AI Chat (bottom right corner of their web pages).