Research Faculty Gateway to Promotion
Career advancement for faculty appointed on the Research Faculty career track recognizes contributions and achievements in creation of new scientific knowledge and in advancing the research enterprise at Northwestern.
Planning Your Journey
Click on your current academic rank to learn how to prepare for your next promotion.
Below are resources to help current Research Assistant Professors navigate their career and plan for promotion to Associate Professor. At Feinberg, we expect that faculty hold the rank of Research Assistant Professor for a minimum of 6 years before promotion to Research 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 6-year mark, but is just as useful for those whose journey is a different length.
Key Focus: Establish yourself as a key contributor within a research group, or research facility/core, at Northwestern. This can represent a role with a substantial level of independence, or through a key collaborative role. Accomplishments should result in regional recognition of your work, whether granted to you individually or to the research program to which you provide critical contributions.
I'm building towards promotion...Years 1-4 (or later) as Research Assistant Professor
- Establish yourself as a key contributor in advancing the work of the lab/program/facility you support
- Build a record of outstanding collaborative work to include a series of peer-reviewed articles in respected journals that presents a coherent body of research accomplishments
- Play the role of Co-Investigator, or in some cases Principal Investigator, on external grants
- For research faculty engaged in research support activities or cores, demonstrate the extent to which your activities contribute to the impact of the facility/core and to research excellence at Northwestern
- Seek out research career development support through Grant Writing Coaching Groups, the NIH Peer Review Program, or Navigating the Research Enterprise.
- Become engaged with research and other professional activities that lead to recognition at the regional level; view the external professional recognition page for guidance
- Become familiar with the Promotion & Tenure Information Program and Information Guide for Appointments, Promotion, and Tenure
- Use the Feinberg Faculty Portal to maintain your faculty profile
- Maintain your Feinberg CV on an ongoing basis; consider using the Feinberg Faculty Portal to track your career activity for this purpose
- Visit the Faculty Career Development Resource Directory to identify career development opportunities
- Begin to identify external referees who hold the ranks at the levels of Associate Professor or Professor and think about how to build relationships. See the Referee List page for guidance.
I'm ready to apply for promotion!Middle of Year 4 (or later) as Research Assistant Professor
Promotions always take effect on September 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 Research Associate Professor
- Will you have held the rank of Research Assistant Professor for at least 6 years on the date your promotion becomes effective? (E.g., if applying for promotion effective 9/1/2025, you should hold the rank of Research Assistant Professor for at least 6 years by that date)
- Have you achieved a series of peer-reviewed articles in respected journals that present a coherent body of research accomplishments?
- Have you contributed to external grants as a Co-Investigator or Principal Investigator?
- Can you demonstrate the essential role you have played in the success of a research group/program/facility at Northwestern?
- Do you have evidence of a regional reputation? View the external professional recognition page for guidance.
- Can you list 6-8 external referees who hold ranks at the levels 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? See the Referee List page for guidance.
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:
- 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.
- 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 Research Associate Professors navigate their career and plan for promotion to Research Professor. At Feinberg, we expect that faculty hold the rank of Research Associate Professor for a minimum of 5 years before promotion to Research 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 5-year mark, but is just as useful for those whose journey is a different length.
Key Focus: Sustain your role as a key contributor within a research group, or research facility/core, at Northwestern, demonstrating increasing independence and/or leadership. Accomplishments should result in national recognition of your work, whether granted to you individually or to the research program to which you provide critical contributions.
I'm building towards promotion...Years 1-3 (or later) as Research Associate Professor
- Sustain your role as a key contributor and grow as a leader in supporting a lab/program/facility at Northwestern; visit the Faculty Career Development Resource Directory to identify career development opportunities
- Position yourself as an established scholar in an area of expertise through your record of publications and grants (as co-investigator or principal investigator)
- Provide mentorship or instruction to trainees in the lab/program/facility you support
- Become familiar with the Promotion & Tenure Information Program and Information Guide for Appointments, Promotion, and Tenure
- Use the Feinberg Faculty Portal to maintain your faculty profile
- Maintain your Feinberg CV on an ongoing basis; consider using the Feinberg Faculty Portal to track your career activity for these purposes
- Begin to identify external referees who hold Professor-level ranks and think about how to build relationships. See the Referee List page for guidance.
- Grow your reputation nationally; view the external professional recognition page for guidance
I'm ready to apply for promotion!Middle of Year 3 (or later) as Research Associate Professor
Promotions always take effect on September 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 Research Professor
- Will you have held the rank of Research Associate Professor for at least 5 years on the date your promotion becomes effective? (E.g., if applying for promotion effective 9/1/2025, you should hold the rank of Research Associate Professor for at least 5 years by that date)
- Have you demonstrated continued productivity since your last promotion so that you are an established scholar in an area of expertise based on your publications and record of grants (as co-investigator or principal investigator)?
- Have you demonstrated continuity and growth in the essential role you have played in the success of a research group/program/facility at Northwestern?
- Do you have evidence of a national reputation? View the external professional recognition page for guidance.
- Can you list 6-8 external referees at Professor-level ranks (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? See the Referee List page for guidance.
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:
- 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.
- View the Annual Promotion Cycle page to understand the timeline, prepare your packet, and access resources for the current promotion cycle.