Hiring Not-Yet-Qualified Tenure Track Faculty (ABD)
(ABD: all but doctorate or other terminal degree). If a candidate for a position does not yet, but is expected to, have the full set of requirements, the hiring unit has these options.
“Acting assistant professor”
- IU has a specific category and code for “not yet” but “will be”: it’s FG3, Acting Assistant Professor.
- These positions can last a maximum of 2 years; they are NOT automatically renewable. Each unit makes the decision on extending an initial end date (e.g. suppose you say “by 12/31/202x” and you decide to keep them at FG3 until 5/31/xx, your HRBP will manage that end date [HRBPs: OAA will not include them in the reappointments dashboard]
- An offer letter ought to make clear the conditions which need to be fulfilled and by when. Most typically, as soon as the degree is conferred, they receive a higher salary (specified in the offer letter), and are moved to an assistant professor/tenure track (FT3) position.
ON THE PLUS SIDE:
- This transfer from FG3 to FT3 does not need any permission. The school decides.
BE CAREFUL:
- Our P&T timing says that anyone hired within a calendar year has a tenure clock that starts as if they were hired July or August 1st. This is a good thing if they change to FT3 in January or February—this gives them a few bonus months. This can be a bad thing if they change in December! They lose a half a year. Anyone who gets their degree completed in December, consider waiting until January to transfer them.
BE CLEAR:
- An ‘acting assistant professor’ is allowed to do research; be clear with them whether accomplishments during this time will count as ‘work in rank.’ [It’s debatable whether it does or not. If you the unit make the expectation clear, then future P&T committees will accept that. If you simply leave that unmentioned, you have no idea what future committees will assume.]
“Visiting Assistant Professor”
- This is really not an option if the person does not have the minimum qualifications for an assistant professor position. “Visiting” refers to their employment status; the person has to be qualified for the rest of the title.
- For them to become non-visiting, they need either a search or a waiver.
“Clinical assistant professor” or “assistant research scientist”
- If your search posting allowed it, you can hire them in some other full time position type.
- Please be aware that technically, someone should ONLY do those types of activities consistent with their position type, e.g. no ‘research’ for clinical (although they can do scholarship), little ‘teaching’ for research scientist.
ON THE PLUS SIDE:
- These appointments are not limited to 2 years as an acting position is.
- Having a position as research scientist* may help someone get started on their research agenda. (*technically they ought to have the doctoral degree to qualify as a research scientist; the position of 'research associate' is for masters level.)
ON THE MINUS SIDE:
- Someone cannot be automatically moved from a research scientist or clinical professor position into a tenure track position. To do that, you need either a search or an OEO waiver. The only ‘automatic’ movement in IU is from ‘acting assistant professor’ to ‘assistant professor.’
- In general, P&T committees do not consider time as clinical or research scientist as being ‘in rank’—primarily because the mix of duties are not the same as for a tenure track faculty member.
FYI, Presidential Diversity Hiring Initiative salary support is only available to tenure-track appointees, not ‘acting assistant professors,’ clinical, or research faculty. For someone hired as ‘acting’ who otherwise qualifies, the funding begins when they are transferred to regular assistant professor.
Questions? Ask ude[dot]ui[at]rhdaca
Reviewed and revised, 7/2023