Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Faculty Affairs Office

Clinician-Educator Career Track

Career advancement for faculty appointed on the Clinician-Educator Career Track occurs through demonstrating achievement and earning recognition in two of a possible five domains of specialization: 

  • Clinical impact and recognition
  • Teaching and education
  • Original research
  • Health services management
  • Community engagement

Planning Your Journey

Click on your current academic rank to learn how to prepare for your next promotion.

Below are resources to help current instructors navigate their career and plan for promotion to assistant professor. There is no deadline by which you must be promoted and no minimum time period you must serve as an instructor before promotion. The guidance below establishes milestones for those who aspire to obtain promotion in two to three years, but is just as useful for those whose journey is a different length.

Key Focus: Produce scholarly work products that include authoring peer-reviewed or other scholarly publications

I'm building toward promotion...
Years 1-2 (or later) as instructor

  • Know (or update) your two domains, which establish the criteria used to evaluate you for promotion.
  • Become familiar with the Information Guide for Appointments, Promotion and Tenure.
  • Seek out research career development support.
  • Use the Feinberg Faculty Portal to maintain your faculty profile.
  • Maintain your Feinberg CV and record of teaching on an ongoing basis; consider using the Feinberg Faculty Portal to track your career activity for this purpose.
  • Sign up for teaching opportunities in the medical student curriculum. If teaching and education is one of your domains of specialization, then teaching medical students is a service expectation.
  • Develop scholarly work products (including peer-reviewed publications).
  • Use the annual performance review process to discuss your career plans with your department chair or division chief and obtain feedback on your progress toward promotion.
  • Begin to identify external referees who hold the rank of professor and think about how to build relationships. 
  • Achieve board certification in your specialty (if applicable).

I'm ready to apply for promotion
Year 1.5 (or later) as instructor

Promotions always take effect on Sept. 1 of a given year, and Feinberg has a structured annual review cycle that, in combination with your department's internal review process, may kick off as early as 20 months before the effective date of an approved promotion. In other words, plan to start the formal application process about 1.5 years before you are promoted.

Key Considerations for Promotion to Assistant Professor

  1. Have you developed scholarly work products, including authorship on peer-reviewed or other scholarly publications?

Initiate the Application Process

If you answered yes to all of the questions above, then you may be ready to apply for promotion. Here are the next steps:

  1. Contact your department leadership to make them aware you wish to be considered for promotion.
    • It is a good idea to have a draft of your Feinberg CV and your referee list prepared at this stage for review by department leadership, who can advise you on readiness for promotion and let you know about your department's internal process for nominating promotion candidates.
    • Make sure you and your leadership are in agreement as to the two domains that form the basis for your application. Your leadership will prepare nomination documents that also reference the domains, so you want to make sure documents from all sources are in alignment.
  2. View the Annual Promotion Cycle page to understand the timeline, prepare your packet and access resources for the current promotion cycle.

Below are resources to help current assistant professors navigate their career and plan for promotion to associate professor. At Feinberg, we expect that faculty hold the rank of assistant professor for a minimum of six years before promotion to associate professor, but there is no deadline by which you must be promoted. The guidance below establishes milestones for those who aspire to obtain promotion by the six-year mark, but is just as useful for those whose journey is a different length. 

Key Focus: Pursue activities and produce scholarly work products within your two chosen domains that result in regional recognition.

I'm building toward promotion...
Years 1-4 (or later) as assistant professor

  • Know (or update) your two domains, which establish the criteria used to evaluate you for promotion.
  • Become familiar with the Information Guide for Appointments, Promotion and Tenure.
  • Seek out research career development support.
  • Use the Feinberg Faculty Portal to maintain your faculty profile.
  • Maintain your Feinberg CV and record of teaching on an ongoing basis; consider using the Feinberg Faculty Portal to track your career activity for this purpose.
  • Sign up for teaching opportunities in the medical student curriculum. If teaching and education is one of your domains of specialization, then teaching medical students is a service expectation.
  • Develop scholarly work products within your two domains.
  • Use the annual performance review process to discuss your career plans with your department chair or division chief and obtain feedback on your progress toward promotion.
  • Begin to identify external referees who hold the rank of associate professor or professor and think about how to build relationships. 
  • Grow your reputation regionally.

I'm ready to apply for promotion
Middle of year 4 (or later) as assistant professor

Promotions always take effect on Sept. 1 of a given year, and Feinberg has a structured annual review cycle that, in combination with your department's internal review process, may kick off as early as 20 months before the effective date of an approved promotion. In other words, plan to start the formal application process about 1.5 years before you are promoted.

Key Considerations for Promotion to Associate Professor

  1. Will you have held the rank of assistant professor for at least six years on the date your promotion becomes effective? (e.g., if applying for promotion effective Sept 1., 2025, you should hold the rank of assistant professor for at least six years by that date)
  2. Have you developed scholarly work products consistent with your two Clinician-Educator domains?
  3. Do you have evidence of a regional reputation? 
  4. Can you list six to eight external referees at the rank of associate professor or professor (who are not close collaborators and who do not have a training connection to you) who could write letters of reference in support of your promotion? 

Initiate the Application Process

If you answered yes to all of the questions above, then you may be ready to apply for promotion. Here are the next steps:

  1. Contact your department leadership to make them aware you wish to be considered for promotion.
    • It is a good idea to have a draft of your Feinberg CV and your referee list prepared at this stage for review by department leadership, who can advise you on readiness for promotion and let you know about your department's internal process for nominating promotion candidates.
    • Make sure you and your leadership are in agreement as to the two domains that form the basis for your application. Your leadership will prepare nomination documents that also reference the domains, so you want to make sure documents from all sources are in alignment.
  2. View the Annual Promotion Cycle page to understand the timeline, prepare your packet and access resources for the current promotion cycle.

Below are resources to help current associate professors navigate their career and plan for promotion to full professor. At Feinberg, we expect that faculty hold the rank of associate professor for a minimum of five years before promotion to professor, but there is no deadline by which you must be promoted. The guidance below establishes milestones for those who aspire to obtain promotion by the five-year mark, but is just as useful for those whose journey is a different length.

Key Focus: Obtain national recognition based on your activities and scholarly work products in your two chosen domains.

I'm building toward promotion...
Years 1-3 (or later) as associate professor

  • Know (or update) your two domains, which establish the criteria used to evaluate you for promotion.
  • Become familiar with the Information Guide for Appointments, Promotion and Tenure.
  • Seek out research career development support.
  • Use the Feinberg Faculty Portal to maintain your faculty profile.
  • Maintain your Feinberg CV and record of teaching on an ongoing basis; consider using the Feinberg Faculty Portal to track your career activity for this purpose.
  • Sign up for teaching opportunities in the medical student curriculum. If teaching and education is one of your domains of specialization, then teaching medical students is a service expectation.
  • Develop scholarly work products within your two domains.
  • Use the annual performance review process to discuss your career plans with your department chair or division chief and obtain feedback on your progress toward promotion.
  • Begin to identify external referees who hold the rank of professor and think about how to build relationships. 
  • Grow your reputation nationally.

I'm ready to apply for promotion
Middle of year 3 (or later) as associate professor

Promotions always take effect on Sept. 1 of a given year, and Feinberg has a structured annual review cycle that, in combination with your department's internal review process, may kick off as early as 20 months before the effective date of an approved promotion. In other words, plan to start the formal application process about 1.5 years before you are promoted.

Key Considerations for Promotion to Professor

  1. Will you have held the rank of associate professor for at least five years on the date your promotion becomes effective? (e.g., if applying for promotion effective Sept. 1, 2025, you should hold the rank of associate professor for at least five years by that date)
  2. Have you developed scholarly work products consistent with your two clinician-educator domains?
  3. Do you have evidence of a national reputation? 
  4. Can you list six to eight external referees at the rank of professor (who are not close collaborators and who do not have a training connection to you) who could write letters of reference in support of your promotion? 

Initiate the Application Process

If you answered yes to all of the questions above, then you may be ready to apply for promotion. Here are the next steps:

  1. Contact your department leadership to make them aware you wish to be considered for promotion.
    • It is a good idea to have a draft of your Feinberg CV and your referee list prepared at this stage for review by department leadership, who can advise you on readiness for promotion and let you know about your department's internal process for nominating promotion candidates.
    • Make sure you and your leadership are in agreement as to the two domains that form the basis for your application. Your leadership will prepare nomination documents that also reference the domains, so you want to make sure documents from all sources are in alignment.
  2. View the Annual Promotion Cycle page to understand the timeline, prepare your packet and access resources for the current promotion cycle.