A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education Enhancing academic and Practice

Teaching excellence and careers
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dossiers for tenure and promotion. The unit also works with individuals who
request help in constructing such portfolios. At this point, the policy has become
embedded in university practices.
(Professor Lynne MacAlpine, McGill University, Montreal)
TOWARDS THE FUTURE
In thinking about their future institutional needs, the demands of an internationalised
student market and the evolving nature of academic roles, some universities have recently
undertaken fundamental reviews of their selection and promotion procedures to ensure
continuing fitness for purpose. Progressive human resource policies have seen the
widespread adoption of job evaluation schemes aimed at parity of esteem and reward
between different career routes and greater transparency in grading decisions. As HR
policies and procedures have become more codified, HEIs have also recognised the
imperative of retaining flexibility and responsiveness to both individual cases and their
own circumstances. This is particularly true for senior appointments.
In furtherance of its strategic aim to attract and retain high-quality staff, the University
of Bath (2007) recently instituted a major review of its academic career development and
promotions procedures. Inter alia, the university has created posts with the titles of
Professorial Research Fellow and Professorial Teaching Fellow; it regards each as broadly
equivalent in status and contribution to the institution. Criteria have been identified in
three areas: management and leadership, research and scholarship, and teaching. To
facilitate promotion to Professorial Fellow, applicants need to demonstrate how they meet
the criteria in different combinations for different career routes. Thus, for a Professorial
Teaching Fellow applicants provide evidence of teaching as a major strength with
supplementary evidence of effective performance in one of the supporting areas of
‘Management and Leadership’ and ‘Research and Scholarship’. Appointment to a full
Professorship is possible on the basis of excellent teaching and an effective contribution
to both of the other elements. It is interesting to note that while an ‘excellent’ or ‘major’
teaching contribution can be evidenced in a variety of ways, considerable weight is
attached to data generated from the university’s own online student evaluation system.
Monash University in Melbourne, a member of Australia’s Group of Eight researchintensive
universities, has well-developed career routes for academic staff including
promotion between Senior Lecturer, Reader, Associate Professor and Professor. Teaching
portfolios are not used for promotion purposes, although the university produces clear
guidelines in terms of its requirements. To make a case for promotion, staff have to identify
their academic achievements under the headings ‘Research’, ‘Education’ and ‘Service’.
The distinctive feature of the Monash system is that candidates are able to allocate a
relative weighting to each of the three areas of performance. The total weighting must add
up to 100 per cent, the minimum weighting allowed for each of ‘Research’ and ‘Education’
is 30 per cent and the minimum for ‘Service’ 10 per cent. Candidates are advised that the