Promotion and Tenure Workshop Series

2025-26 Academic Year

The Office of Faculty Affairs is pleased to offer a workshop series on preparing for success in the promotion and tenure process. The series will provide an in-depth exploration of the promotion and tenure process for all Penn State faculty, including tenure- and non-tenure-line.

Each session will be offered live via Penn State’s Zoom platform and each session will be recorded for later viewing. Links to recordings will be posted below after each workshop session. Audience questions are highly encouraged. Registration is not required to attend.

If you have questions about the workshop series, contact Associate Vice Provost Ann Clements at acc13@psu.edu.  

ZOOM LINK FOR ALL WORKSHOPS:

Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://psu.zoom.us/j/99945127620?pwd=MljVPwy8zm1eX1NQIymfQwEzUtM4VW.1
Password: 570507

Workshop #1: Administrator and Staff Engagement in the Tenure-line and Non-Tenure-line Promotion Reviews Process

Date: Thursday, September 4, 2025, 1:00-2:30 p.m.
Target audience: Academic Unit Heads, Unit Executives, FAAC, and Staff (who support promotion and tenure) 

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs for a question-and-answer session on promotion and tenure at Penn State. This session will cover any changes to promotion and tenure guidelines that are new for the academic year and is an opportunity to ask any questions you may have about the review process for tenure and non-tenure-line faculty, including review committee structure and the work they do, dossier materials, external reviewers, feedback to pre-tenure faculty, PTORP, Activity Insight, and any other aspect of the promotion and tenure process for tenure-line and non-tenure-line faculty. There will be a short formal presentation during this session focused on recent changes to the promotion and/or tenure process, with the majority of the time dedicated to questions and answers.

Workshop #2: Committee Chair and Committee Member Engagement in the Tenure-line Promotion Review Process

Date: Thursday, September 18, 2025, 10:00-11:30 a.m.
Target audience: College and Unit Committee Chairs and Committee Members (who will oversee P&T committee work this academic year) 

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs for a question-and-answer session on promotion and tenure guidelines and committee work at Penn State. This session will cover any changes to promotion and tenure guidelines that are new for the academic year and is an opportunity to ask any questions you may have about the review process for tenure-line faculty, including review committee procedures, administrative guidelines, dossier materials, external reviewers, Activity Insight, and any other aspect of the promotion and tenure process for tenure-line faculty. There will be a short formal presentation during this session focused on recent changes to the promotion and/or tenure process, with the majority of the time dedicated to questions and answers.

Workshop #3: Preparing for Promotion and Tenure at Penn State for Pre-Tenured Faculty

Date: Tuesday, September 30, 2025, 10:30-12:00 p.m.
Target audience: Pre-tenure tenure-line Faculty 

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to discuss the different stages of the tenure and promotion review process and tips and strategies to successfully navigate the process successfully.  The workshop will cover several topics, including the 2-4-6-year review format, AC 21 and 23, components of a dossier and the path a dossier takes at each stage of review, excellence in teaching, research, and service, and the impact of COVID-19 on research plans.

Workshop #4: Advancement and Promotion for Non-Tenure-Line Faculty

Date: Wednesday, October 15, 2025, 2:00-3:30 p.m.
Target audience: Non-tenure-line faculty at all promotion levels 

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to learn about the promotion process for non-tenure-line faculty and take advantage of the resources and opportunities for growth and advancement. The workshop will cover several topics, including the three-level promotion process, policy AC 21, the variability of unit-based evaluation processes, assessment committee structure, and the impact of COVID-19 on research and teaching.

Workshop #5: Transitioning from Associate to Full in a Tenured Faculty Position

Date: Tuesday, February 3, 2026, 10:30-12:00 p.m.
Target audience: Tenured Associate Professors 

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to discuss how associate professors can prepare for the transition to full professor. This workshop is intended for tenured faculty who are considering applying for full professor. The workshop will cover the nomination process, expectations for the attainment of the rank of full, mid-career decision-making, varied experiences in teaching, research, and service, and the review process, procedures, and documentation.

Workshop #6: Tips for Writing a Narrative Statement

Date: Thursday, February 5, 2026, 2:00-3:30 p.m.
Target audience: Tenure-line and non-tenure-line faculty seeking promotion 

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to discuss the purpose of a narrative statement, policies around the narrative statement, how to create a story about your work in teaching, research/creative accomplishment, and/or service, the various audiences are who will engage with your narrative, suggestions on how to showcase strengths and how to address weaknesses, and potential differences in the narrative depending on your status as tenure-line or non-tenure-line faculty.

Workshop #7: Tips for Creating a Teaching Portfolio

Date: Thursday, February 26, 2026, 9:30-11:00 a.m.
Target audience: Pre-tenure and non-tenure-Line Faculty 

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to discuss the purpose of a teaching portfolio, how to tell a story about your teaching through the evidence selected, the various audiences who may engage with your teaching portfolio, and suggestions on how to showcase strengths and address areas of improvement.

Promotion and Tenure Workshop Series Archive: 2024-2025

Administrator and Staff Engagement in the Tenure-line and Non-tenure-line Promotion Reviews Process

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs for a question-and-answer session on promotion and tenure at Penn State. This session will cover any changes to promotion and tenure guidelines that are new for the academic year and is an opportunity to ask any questions you may have about the review process for tenure and non-tenure-line faculty, including review committee structure and the work they do, dossier materials, external reviewers, feedback to pre-tenure faculty, PTORP, Activity Insight, and any other aspect of the promotion and tenure process for tenure-line and non-tenure-line faculty. There will be a short formal presentation during this session focused on recent changes to the promotion and/or tenure process, with the majority of the time dedicated to questions and answers.

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Committee Chair and Committee Member Engagement in the Tenure-line Promotion Review Process

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs for a question-and-answer session on promotion and tenure guidelines and committee work at Penn State. This session will cover any changes to promotion and tenure guidelines that are new for the academic year and is an opportunity to ask any questions you may have about the review process for tenure-line faculty, including review committee procedures, administrative guidelines, dossier materials, external reviewers, Activity Insight, and any other aspect of the promotion and tenure process for tenure-line faculty. There will be a short formal presentation during this session focused on recent changes to the promotion and/or tenure process, with the majority of the time dedicated to questions and answers. 

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Preparing for Promotion and Tenure at Penn State for Pre-Tenured Faculty

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to discuss the different stages of the tenure and promotion review process and tips and strategies to successfully navigate the process successfully.  The workshop will cover several topics, including the 2-4-6-year review format, AC 21 and 23, components of a dossier and the path a dossier takes at each stage of review, excellence in teaching, research, and service, and the impact of COVID-19 on research plans.   

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Advancement and Promotion for Non-Tenure-Line Faculty

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to learn about the promotion process for non-tenure-line faculty and take advantage of the resources and opportunities for growth and advancement. The workshop will cover several topics, including the three-level promotion process, policy AC 21, the variability of unit-based evaluation processes, assessment committee structure, and the impact of COVID-19 on research and teaching. 

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Transitioning from Associate to Full in a Tenured Faculty Position

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to discuss how associate professors can prepare for the transition to full professor. This workshop is intended for tenured faculty who are considering applying for full professor. The workshop will cover the nomination process, expectations for the attainment of the rank of full, mid-career decision-making, varied experiences in teaching, research, and service, and the review process, procedures, and documentation. 

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Tips for Writing a Narrative Statement

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to discuss the purpose of a narrative statement, policies around the narrative statement, how to create a story about your work in teaching, research/creative accomplishment, and/or service, the various audiences are who will engage with your narrative, suggestions on how to showcase strengths and how to address weaknesses, and potential differences in the narrative depending on your status as tenure-line or non-tenure-line faculty. 

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Tips for Creating a Teaching Portfolio

Join the Office of Faculty Affairs and colleagues to discuss the purpose of a teaching portfolio, how to tell a story about your teaching through the evidence selected, the various audiences who may engage with your teaching portfolio, and suggestions on how to showcase strengths and address areas of improvement. 

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording
Links

Promotion and Tenure Workshop Series Archive: 2023-2024

Administrator and Staff Engagement in the Tenure-line and Non-tenure-line Promotion Reviews Process

The Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs Office provided a question-and-answer session on promotion and tenure at Penn State. This session covered any changes to promotion and tenure guidelines that are new for the academic year and was an opportunity to ask any questions you may have about the review process for tenure and non-tenure-line faculty, including review committee structure and the work they do, dossier materials, external reviewers, feedback to pre-tenure faculty, PTORP, Activity Insight, and other aspects of the promotion and tenure process for tenure-line and non-tenure-line faculty.

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording
Promotion & Tenure Helpful Links

Committee Chair and Committee Member Engagement in the Tenure-line Promotion Review Process

This workshop covered changes to promotion and tenure guidelines that are new for the academic year and is an opportunity to ask questions about the review process for tenure-line faculty, including review committee procedures, administrative guidelines, dossier materials, external reviewers, Activity Insight, and any other aspect of the promotion and tenure process for tenure-line faculty.

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording
Promotion & Tenure Helpful Links

Preparing for Promotion and Tenure at Penn State for Pre-Tenured Faculty

This workshop discussed the different stages of the tenure and promotion review process and tips and strategies to successfully navigate the process successfully.  The workshop covered several topics, including the 2-4-6-year review format, AC 21 and 23, components of a dossier and the path a dossier takes at each stage of review, excellence in teaching, research, and service, and the impact of COVID-19 on research plans.

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Advancement and Promotion for Non-Tenure-Line Faculty

This workshop covered the promotion process for non-tenure-line faculty and ways in which faculty can take advantage of the resources and opportunities for growth and advancement. The workshop’s topics included the three-level promotion process; University Policy AC21 and the variability of unit-based evaluation processes; assessment committee structure; and the impact of COVID-19 on research and teaching.

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Transitioning from Associate to Full in a Tenured Faculty Position

This workshop discussed how associate professors can prepare for the transition to full professor. This workshop was intended for tenured faculty who are considering applying for full professor. The workshop covered topics of the nomination process, expectations for the attainment of the rank of full, mid-career decision-making, varied experiences in teaching, research, and service, and the review process, procedures, and documentation.

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Tips for Writing a Narrative Statement

This workshop covered the purpose of and University policies related to the narrative statement; how to create a story about your work in teaching, research/creative accomplishment, and/or service; the various audiences who will engage with your narrative; suggestions on how to showcase strengths and address weaknesses; and potential differences in the narrative depending on your status as tenure-line or non-tenure-line faculty. 

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording

Tips for Creating a Teaching Portfolio

This workshop discussed the purpose of a teaching portfolio, how to tell a story about your teaching through the evidence selected, the various audiences who may engage with your teaching portfolio, and suggestions on how to showcase strengths and address areas of improvement.

Slide Presentation
Kaltura Recording