Promotion and Tenure Resources

Overview

Decisions to promote faculty members and award tenure are among the most important made by the university, for they determine the quality of faculty for decades to come. USU Policy 4004 must be followed to ensure protection of faculty rights and the university during the promotion and tenure process. As defined in the USU Policy Manual, "Tenure is that provision of employment attained after completion of a probationary period during which the probationer's performance is found to be such as to make him or her an asset to the institution because of his or her abilities as a scholar, a teacher, a researcher, a librarian, or an Extension worker. It is the policy of the University to reward such outstanding performance of tenure-eligible faculty members by tenure and/or promotion."

Review Process

Consistent with peer institutions, the internal promotion and tenure process at Utah State University involves several levels of review by a wide range of university colleagues before a final decision is made by the Board of Trustees. Five internal levels of review are completed and while the reviews are completed independently, they are interconnected in that the recommendation of each level is added to the materials reviewed by subsequent levels. The materials reviewed by these administrators and committees comprise a dossier compiled by the candidate and, if applicable, a series of external reviews solicited by the department head.

Electronic Dossier System

Utah State University uses an electronic dossier (“e-dossier” accessible at https://dossier.usu.edu) process for promotion and tenure review as well as the third-year review of probationary tenure-track faculty. The e-dossier is housed on the Interfolio platform which is a cloud based system that has high security, flexibility, and longevity.

Interfolio Guides

For help using interfolio, please see the CIDI's tutorials on using interfolio as a candidate, case reviewer, or admin.

College Dossiers Administrators

Each academic unit has designated college dossier administrators (CDAs) who help with the process and serve as the primary contacts for e-dossier users and reviewers. Faculty should contact their CDA to request an e-dossier account. Faculty and e-dossier reviewers should contact their designated CDA for assistance. Note that all regional and USU Eastern faculty should contact the CDA of their academic college. Other questions about e-dossiers should be directed to Neal Legler, Center of Innovative Design and Instruction (neal.legler@usu.edu; (435) 797-1903). Below is a list of the CDAs by unit.

2025-26 Review Deadlines

P&T Deadlines

Central Promotion and Tenure Committee

Section 4004.7.2 (5) of the USU Policy Manual states the following about the composition of the central promotion and tenure committee:

"The provost shall convene a committee including the vice president for research and dean of the school of graduate studies, the vice president for Extension, and others of his or her choosing. The president may attend and participate in committee meetings. All members must hold the rank of professor with tenure."

2025-2026 Central Committee

Questions

The Provost & Executive Vice President, Laurens H. Smith, works closely with individual colleges, departments, and faculty on issues related to promotion and tenure, such as eligibility, prior service, leaves of absence, development of role statements, and post tenure review. Further, the Office of the Provost & Executive Vice President has published a Frequently Asked Questions: Promotion to the Rank of Associate Professor with Tenure booklet to address common questions about the process.

 

For more information on promotion and tenure, please contact:

Paul J. Barr
Executive Vice Provost
Phone: (435) 797-0718
Email: paul.barr@usu.edu