Grading and progression for staff in the Education and Scholarship job family
Associate Professor (Education and Scholarship) (Grade H)
The expectations of the staff at these levels are summarised in the role profile for Associate
Professor (Education and Scholarship). For new appointments the preferred applicant must satisfy
the requirements of the Education and Scholarship Career Path for Senior Lecturer - including
HEA recognition at the appropriate level –will be evidenced by an application and interview
process as part of the University's agreed recruitment and selection procedure.
Progression to Personal Chair (Education and Scholarship)
When a College is considering whether an Associate Professor (Education and Scholarship) should
be put forward for promotion to Professor/Personal Chair (Education and Scholarship), the College
Pro-Vice-Chancellor should carry out an initial assessment, supported by the Associate Dean of
Education and the HRBP for the College, of whether:
(a)
there is an ongoing need in the College for work at Professor level (as summarised in the
Role Profile for Associate Professor (Education and Scholarship); and
(b)
the member of staff is ready for progression and that their skills and competences can be
evidenced against the appropriate promotion criteria for staff in the Education and
Scholarship Job Family (see attached), including the requirement for HEA recognition at the
relevant level.
Colleges are advised to seek advice from HRBP for the College before making a submission.
If the College Pro-Vice-Chancellor is satisfied that there is a case for considering promotion a
written submission should be made using form PD08 , together with a portfolio of evidence (based
on their Personal Development Reviews) to support the application. The case will be strengthened
if the portfolio contains evidence of external activity including testimonies from people employed
outside of the University. This should be submitted to the HRBP for the College.
If the Pro-Vice-Chancellor is unable to support the application, they should explain their reasons to
the member of staff who has the right to make a personal submission.
The application will be considered by a panel normally comprising of the College Pro-ViceChancellor (Chair of Panel), the College Associate Dean for Education, a Senior Academic from
another College and the Director of HR (or their nominee). The panel will:
(a) conduct an initial assessment of the portfolio against the appropriate promotion criteria;
(b) interview the member of staff, who will also be required to make a presentation in support of
their application and answer questions on the evidence presented.
Human Resources will notify the staff member of the arrangements for interview. The purpose of
the interview is to establish the suitability of the member of staff for promotion to Professor.
The panel will make a recommendation to the Vice-Chancellor’s Executive Group on whether the
promotion criteria have been met. The decision on promotion will be taken by the Vice-Chancellor’s
Executive Group.
If the Vice-Chancellor’s Executive Group is satisfied that the member of staff should progress to
grade H, the employee will be promoted with effect from the 1st of the month following the date on
which the Pro-Vice-Chancellor has submitted the case to the HR Business Partner.
The University’s equality and diversity standards requires that appointment and promotion
decisions be made on merit and free from discrimination, as required by the Equality Act.
Consequently, the agreed assessment criteria should be fully and fairly applied when considering
promotion applications. (The University may be challenged to justify that selection/promotion
decisions were made on objective criteria.)As part of its equality and diversity programme, the
University has committed to a number of employment targets to increase the percentage of women
in senior academic roles and to increase the percentage of Black Minority Ethnic staff in academic
roles. In addition, the University has adopted the Athena Swann commitment to establish excellent
employment practices for women, through appropriate recruitment (at all levels of seniority) and
career development strategies, in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine
and across the entire University.
UNIVERSITY OF EXETER
EDUCATION AND SCHOLARSHIP CAREER PATHWAY
This document sets out the framework for career progression in the Education and
Scholarship job family within the University. The posts in the Education and Scholarship
job family and the Research and Education job family are deemed equivalent in terms of
esteem and contribution within the University.
This document shows the Associate Professor grade in the Education and Scholarship
career pathway and details:
a summary of the activities which a member of staff at that level should be
undertaking, to a successful and effective standard (the top box); and
the evidence which must be demonstrated - over a sustained period (of at least
one academic year at Exeter) by a member of staff – in order to achieve
promotion to the next level/grade (the middle box). Examples of these are shown
in the shaded bottom box.
against each of the following core activities of staff in the Education and Scholarship job
family:
Teaching practice
Management/administration and core/education management
Communications, esteem and scholarship
Student/staff support
External affairs
together with minimum requirements on qualifications/HEA Fellowship.
The examples (shown in the shaded bottom box) of the evidence which must be
demonstrated in each of the core activities in order to achieve promotion to the next
level/grade are not prescriptive. Similarly, the framework does not seek to be
completely exhaustive or definitive, rather it is designed to be indicative of the
level the University would expect.
The examples given are generic and it is recognised that the specific
requirements and opportunities will differ between subject disciplines. The
requirements of the University and College and the opportunities which will be available
to staff will also differ over time as College priorities change. Through the PDR process,
Academic Leads and individual members of staff should align personal aspirations (eg
for career development and promotion) with the needs of the College, set out in the
College Business Plan.
Associate Professor (Education and Scholarship)
Level
Summary of typical
characteristics of role
Teaching Practice
Staff working at this level
must be undertaking the
activities listed to a
successful and effective
standard
Associate Professor (Education & Scholarship)
AP Role: Major responsibility for leadership within the Discipline and College and some University
level responsibilities; will have successfully engaged in most aspects of the previous level and will
continue to demonstrate excellent practice in teaching and learning support.
AP1. Continue to demonstrate considerable depth, breadth and expertise across their discipline and
to stay up to date in recent subject developments.
AP2. Have a sustained and successful track record of a significant impact on teaching practice and on
development and dissemination of resources.
AP3. Be recognised as an excellent teacher not only within discipline/College, but also externally.
AP4. Maintain evidence of excellent outcomes from personal peer review while taking a strategic
role in managing and supporting the peer review of others.
AP5. Demonstrate a consistent record of encouraging good teaching practice at discipline and
College level.
AP6. Lead on initiatives enhancing teaching quality within College/University.
In order to be considered
for promotion to the next
grade, staff should be able
to demonstrate evidence
of excellence in some of
the above activities and be
able to demonstrate over a
sustained period they are
performing the following
to a satisfactory and
effective standard.
Evidence of recognition nationally as a leading educator in your field.
Lead University wide initiatives related to Education and Scholarship.
Evidence may include:
Student/Staff Support
Staff working at this level
must be undertaking the
activities listed to a
successful and effective
standard
Lead on a strategy to develop online learning materials at University level and/or externally.
Lead on an innovative assessment and feedback strategy at University level.
AP7.
AP8.
Demonstrate a commitment to professional values in supporting other people.
Lead effective organisational strategies for supporting and developing others, through
personal tutoring, mentoring, coaching etc.
AP9. Adopt the lead role in a discipline e.g. as DoE, Director of UG studies or similar.
AP10. Lead on most student pastoral/disciplinary matters that do not need to be referred to the
Dean.
AP11. Manage staffing issues including staff disciplinary issues where appropriate (the extent of this
would depend on College role).
In order to be considered
for promotion to the next
grade, staff should be able
to demonstrate evidence
of excellence in some of
the above activities and be
able to demonstrate over a
sustained period they are
performing the following
to a satisfactory and
effective standard.
Lead cross-College activities to enhance the broader student experience.
Collaborate in University wide initiatives to enhance Student Support.
Take a leading role in University procedures relating to student support and disciplinary
processes
Evidence may include:
Lead University level Task and Finish groups.
Engage in significant University and/or wider student experience projects
Management and
course/education
management
Staff working at this level
must be undertaking the
activities listed to a
successful and effective
standard
AP12. Undertake a major leadership role in the discipline and/or College.
AP13. Provide effective strategic leadership and management to enhance student learning
opportunities in the discipline and/or College.
AP14. Lead cross disciplinary programmes of study at all levels within a specific discipline, across the
College or across the University.
AP15. Take direct strategic responsibilities for education provision across the College.
AP16. Be centrally involved in implementing University level strategy across the College(s).
AP17. Organise and coordinate University events.
In order to be considered
for promotion to the next
grade, staff should be able
to demonstrate evidence
of excellence in some of
the above activities and be
able to demonstrate over a
sustained period they are
performing the following
to a satisfactory and
effective standard.
Lead external accreditation by professional bodies.
Take a major role in creating and implementing policy related to quality and standards.
Champion an integrated approach to academic practice at institutional level with regard to
teaching.
Evidence may include:
Internal QA roles e.g. University working groups
Provide high level support for or take responsibility for aspects of the role of AD of Education
Be an active member of boards and committees with a teaching management brief e.g. Faculty
Boar, Senate.
Scholarship, esteem and
communications
Staff working at this level
must be undertaking the
activities listed to a
successful and effective
standard
AP18. Play a major role in designing and leading on educational projects regionally/nationally
AP19. Publish very high quality scholarly learning resources and/or books for wide dissemination.
AP20. Work at a national level to champion selected aspects of disciplinary pedagogy to further
education.
AP21. Take a lead in developing and disseminating original pedagogies in the discipline.
AP22. Engage in scholarly research networks beyond the University.
AP23. Lead, as first author, on successful funding proposals.
In order to be considered
for promotion to the next
grade, staff should be able
to demonstrate evidence
of excellence in some of
the above activities and be
able to demonstrate over a
sustained period they are
performing the following
to a satisfactory and
effective standard.
Be recognised as world leading in aspects of disciplinary pedagogy.
Be the primary author of internationally recognised learning resources.
Evidence may include:
Apply successfully for National Teaching Fellowship or other national awards.
Take role as editor for an educational journal.
External affairs
Staff working at this level
must be undertaking the
activities listed to a
successful and effective
standard
AP24.
AP25.
AP26.
AP27.
Organise and coordinate regional events and major WP initiatives.
Present at national and international conferences.
Organise major UK conferences.
Represent the College/University externally at a strategic level on external
groups/committees/ government bodies.
AP28. Undertake international visits on behalf of College building links to other institutions and
partners.
In order to be considered
for promotion to the next
grade, staff should be able
to demonstrate evidence
of excellence in some of
the above activities and be
able to demonstrate over a
sustained period they are
performing the following
to a satisfactory and
effective standard.
Evidence may include:
Qualifications/recognition
AP29. Take a strategic leadership role in international recruitment.
Develop professional courses with the NHS or other professional bodies.
Take on major and prestigious education leadership roles in external contexts.
Developing regional or national recruitment e.g. in collaboration with professional bodies
Act in a senior advisory or chairing role for government or other educational organisations.
AP30. Staff at this level are expected to achieve Principal Fellow of the HEA within 2 years of
appointment/promotion (pro-rata for part-time staff).
Note: allowance needs to be made for highly qualified professionals e.g. Medical professions, lawyers
, accountants etc
In order to be promoted to
the next grade, staff
should be able to
demonstrate the following
commitment to achieving
qualifications/recognition.
National Teaching Fellow Status (or application for this as evidenced by University selection
process and award of University Teaching Fellowship in recognition of quality of application)