I had a tenure review committee meeting this morning. A tenure review committee is a group of people who are watching my progress and advising me about what to do to get tenure. The group has an evaluatory role (did I just make up that word?), but it's fairly informal. I have to make progress reports and meet with them to show them what I've done lately, and then they judge my work, make suggestions about other things I should be doing, provide advice for getting ready for my tenure bid, etc.
My tenure committee is composed of extremely nice, helpful, supportive people. And yet I was so nervous that I could feel my lower jaw shaking.
So anyway, without any extensions on my clock I would go up next year in the spring. I have two extensions, though, so I can go up as late as 3 years from now if I need to. Waiting means more time to publish more and therefore a better chance of getting tenure. Today my committee surprised me by suggesting that I consider going up next year and not taking either of my extensions. They think I'll get tenure at this point based on what I have already and where I'm going. I was shocked, because I feel like I've been derailed over the past year. We decided to hold off on that decision until the spring, but to keep it in mind.
In reality I doubt I'll go up next year. It still feels too soon and I'd rather wait until perhaps the fall of the following year to go up. But it is really tempting to think about going up sooner. As one member said, "the advantage of going up next spring is that you can just get it over with. You can put all of the stress behind you and just get on with your career." The idea of putting it behind me is very tempting. But being conservative and perhaps a lacking confidence, I'll probably wait another year to be safe. I'd hate to go up early and then not get tenure when I could have waited and made a stronger case.
Getting tenure will be huge. (I've decided to start acting and talking like it's going to happen, instead of being pessimistic). To no longer worry about how I am going to provide for my family, especially in this economy with Jake's chances of ever getting a job being kind of lousy...well, to know that we could count on my job, that would be such a relief.
4 comments:
How does this work? If you 'go up' next year and don't get it is that it? You can't try again?
Yes, that's right. And if I don't get it, I then lose my job. Basically you either get tenure or you get fired.
I think the idea of a tenure review committee is very cool! It's like a very structured mentoring experience, depending on who is on the committee and how it operates, I guess.
So, this is very exciting (and unsurprising to me!) news! I'm thrilled for you that you had this experience of professional validation. Also, it sounds like you feel to some degree that you have options at this point, which is nice, no matter when you decide to go up. Any time that we feel like we have any degree of control in this process is somewhat liberating.
So, yay for a good, supportive meeting! It's always nice to feel like colleagues are supportive and want to keep you around, right? :)
Yes, definitely. I feel lucky to have the job I have in terms of my awesome colleagues and mentors.
I still think I'll wait until the following year to go up, and that will be weird, watching you and all of the other people who started the same year go up before me. Kind of like staying on a 5th year at college when everybody else has graduated!
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