46 · SPEC Kit 293
University of Illinois at Chicago
http://www.uic.edu/depts/oaa/ptdocs/PT0607guidelinespt1polproced.pdf
11
reviewed for promotion to Associate Professor. Our campus has a tenure rollback policy that
is granted on a casebycase basis after review.•
Discuss the candidate’s work in a critical fashion, commenting on the quality and impact of
the candidate’s scholarship.•
Comment on the volume of the candidate ‘s scholarly activities relative to the standards in
the field.•
Remark on the quality of the publishing outlets and the source of funding when such is not
obvious.•
Estimate his/her standing in the field, and compare the candidate with other faculty of roughly
the same cohort.•
Please note that we do not ask you to make a recommendation regarding promotion
itself, since that decision will be based partly on considerations such as teaching and service. Nor
are we asking for a summary of the c.v.. What we seek is a substantive evaluation of the
scholarly component of Dr.__________ ‘s qualifications for promotion to the rank of __________.
However, if you are in a position to comment on his/her teaching or other pertinent aspects of
his/her professional activities, please feel free to do so.
Letters from Collaborators/CoAuthors: As indicated above, letters from coauthors that
document the contributions of the candidate to coauthored work should NOT be included among
the letters of evaluation. They should instead be solicited by the Executive Officer and included
in Part V.C. of the Forms.
Where you cannot adhere to the above guidelines for securing letters of
recommendation, please provide a the reason and an explanation of the process used in the
papers. Cases in which there is evidence of a failure to secure an objective evaluation may
prejudice the case and may lead to a call for future review.
Redacted Letters of Reference: UIC does not have a policy of permitting candidates to
read external letters from referees. Therefore, in the interest of uniformity and fairness,
candidates will NOT be allowed to read letters of reference in any form.
Translation of Letters of Reference: In the event that a translation of letters of reference
is needed, the department should identify two persons to handle the translation; one to provide
the translation and one to ensure the accuracy.
Email: External letters of evaluation must be signed by the writer. Letters sent by e
mail are not acceptable. Original copies with a signature will need to be submitted with the
candidate’s papers.
Confidentiality: The identity of the referees must not be disclosed to the candidate,
nor should comments made in P&T deliberations be attributed to the faculty members who made
them.
Based on the Supreme Court decision in the University of Pennsylvania case, as well as
recent court decisions involving discrimination claims by faculty who have been denied
promotion and/or tenure, letters soliciting external reviews should state that the University shall
maintain confidentiality of the identity of reviewer, subject only to involuntary disclosure in
legal proceedings.
University of Illinois at Chicago
http://www.uic.edu/depts/oaa/ptdocs/PT0607guidelinespt1polproced.pdf
11
reviewed for promotion to Associate Professor. Our campus has a tenure rollback policy that
is granted on a casebycase basis after review.•
Discuss the candidate’s work in a critical fashion, commenting on the quality and impact of
the candidate’s scholarship.•
Comment on the volume of the candidate ‘s scholarly activities relative to the standards in
the field.•
Remark on the quality of the publishing outlets and the source of funding when such is not
obvious.•
Estimate his/her standing in the field, and compare the candidate with other faculty of roughly
the same cohort.•
Please note that we do not ask you to make a recommendation regarding promotion
itself, since that decision will be based partly on considerations such as teaching and service. Nor
are we asking for a summary of the c.v.. What we seek is a substantive evaluation of the
scholarly component of Dr.__________ ‘s qualifications for promotion to the rank of __________.
However, if you are in a position to comment on his/her teaching or other pertinent aspects of
his/her professional activities, please feel free to do so.
Letters from Collaborators/CoAuthors: As indicated above, letters from coauthors that
document the contributions of the candidate to coauthored work should NOT be included among
the letters of evaluation. They should instead be solicited by the Executive Officer and included
in Part V.C. of the Forms.
Where you cannot adhere to the above guidelines for securing letters of
recommendation, please provide a the reason and an explanation of the process used in the
papers. Cases in which there is evidence of a failure to secure an objective evaluation may
prejudice the case and may lead to a call for future review.
Redacted Letters of Reference: UIC does not have a policy of permitting candidates to
read external letters from referees. Therefore, in the interest of uniformity and fairness,
candidates will NOT be allowed to read letters of reference in any form.
Translation of Letters of Reference: In the event that a translation of letters of reference
is needed, the department should identify two persons to handle the translation; one to provide
the translation and one to ensure the accuracy.
Email: External letters of evaluation must be signed by the writer. Letters sent by e
mail are not acceptable. Original copies with a signature will need to be submitted with the
candidate’s papers.
Confidentiality: The identity of the referees must not be disclosed to the candidate,
nor should comments made in P&T deliberations be attributed to the faculty members who made
them.
Based on the Supreme Court decision in the University of Pennsylvania case, as well as
recent court decisions involving discrimination claims by faculty who have been denied
promotion and/or tenure, letters soliciting external reviews should state that the University shall
maintain confidentiality of the identity of reviewer, subject only to involuntary disclosure in
legal proceedings.
