Elected Combined Service
UT has a process by which newly-hired Assistant Professors and Associate Professors with prior service in an equivalent rank at a prior institution may elect to count up to three of those full years of service immediately preceding time at UT Austin toward the number of effective years of service required for on-time promotion at UT Austin. UT Austin requires faculty members to serve a minimum of two effective years in rank at UT Austin before they may be considered for promotion (i.e., reviewed in the third year at UT Austin). For more information, see the relevant section of the UT Austin General Guidelines for Promotion and Tenure.
Approved External Years of Service (YOS) for tenured and tenure-track faculty are recorded by the Dean’s Office on the COE Tenured/Tenure-Track Faculty Employment Lifecycle List and the number of approved years are factored into the calculations for “Actual Tenure Review” (Assistant Professors) or “Actual Promotion to Professor Review” (Associate Professors).
Should a faculty member elect to apply prior years of service at a previous institution toward total years of required probationary service in rank, they should consult with the department chair about the timing of these course releases, in order to help ensure a robust teaching record in consideration of promotion.
Important: Per UT Austin guidelines, an Assistant Professor who has elected to combine years of service from a prior institution will be evaluated using the same expectations as if the candidate had completed six years of probationary service at UT Austin, and the case is considered a mandatory review (“up-or-out”). Before making this decision, the faculty member should consult with their department chair and the Senior Associate Dean.
Process for requesting consideration of prior service
Steps 1-3 below must be completed by March 15 preceding the fall the faculty member plans to undergo promotion review:
Faculty member emails department chair stating their election to be considered for promotion and tenure during the upcoming cycle using combined service at their prior institution. The request should include the number of prior years’ service to be included (up to a maximum of three).
The department chair responds to the email indicating whether they support the decision, with a cc to the Senior Associate Dean.
The department chair forwards the original request and their response to the Dean and Senior Associate Dean.
The Dean reviews the request, acknowledges receipt, and forwards the request to the Provost's Office.
Department AM submits form "Election to Combine" at Faculty Affairs/APS ServiceNow: Complete Forms. Follow the guidance at COE: ServiceNow Forms.
In the section "Required Approval Routing," add the following:
Faculty Member
Dean's Staff: Sonja Runberg (skr2347)
Dean or Dean Designate: Beth Maloch (malochb)
Please send suggested additions to this page and notifications about broken links to COE-FacultyAffairs@austin.utexas.edu.