Abstract
This study investigates the criteria and institutional expectations shaping tenure, promotion, and merit decisions in research-oriented universities, with particular attention to the communication discipline. Drawing on a pilot survey of twenty-one graduate programs, the analysis compares faculty workload distribution with evaluative weighting, revealing significant discrepancies between assigned duties and assessment standards. While assistant professors devote roughly sixty percent of their time to teaching, tenure and promotion decisions prioritize research productivity, which receives over half of evaluative weight. Quantitative expectations typically include approximately seven refereed journal articles before tenure consideration, with textbooks and conference papers valued substantially lower. The discussion contextualizes these findings within broader critiques of academic culture, noting the growing dominance of publication counts and the devaluation of teaching and service. The author argues that institutional one-upmanship and vague evaluation policies contribute to untenable demands on junior faculty. Recommendations emphasize aligning evaluation criteria with assigned responsibilities, clarifying feedback procedures, and rebalancing the teaching–research–service triad to sustain equitable academic advancement in an era of fiscal retrenchment and escalating performance expectations.
Recommended Citation
Emmert, Philip
(1986)
"Surviving in a Research University,"
Association for Communication Administration Bulletin: Vol. 57, Article 15.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/aca/vol57/iss1/15
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