PSOM Track Comparisons by Domain Area

The purpose of this table is to explicate general comparisons across tracks, and should be reviewed within the context of the PSOM COAP Guidelines, including Appendix A Demonstrating Impact for Promotion.  

 

  CLINICAL TRACK ACADEMIC CLINICIAN CLINICIAN EDUCATOR TENURE RESEARCH
  Associated Faculty Full Time Faculty Full Time Faculty Full Time Faculty Full Time Faculty
OVERALL TRACK EMPHASIS Clinical professional services, which may include: patient-related activities; leadership roles in the department, hospital or health system; clinical research/trial participation; and education-related activities. Clinical care, quality and safety, and education, including leadership roles in these domains. Clinical duties, conducting or collaborating on clinical/translational research, scholarly activity, and teaching as a clinician or in impactful support of the clinical mission. Novel, independent, investigator-driven research that defines a new field or drives an existing field forward. Collaborative or independent research with a distinctive, original, expert contribution.
CAREER TRACK TIMELINE 
  • N/A
  • The professional careers of the Clinical Faculty are primarily independent of their University affiliations, but may be in University-owned clinical practices
  • Full time faculty track
  • No probationary period
  • Reappointed every three years as Assistant Professor
  • Reappointed every five years as Associate and full Professor
  • Full time faculty track
  • 10-Year Probationary period with mandatory review year
  • Reappointed at years 3 and 6
  • Reappointed every five years as Associate and full Professor
  • Full time faculty track
  • 10-Year Probationary period with mandatory review year (physician scientist)
  • 7-Year Probationary period with mandatory review year (basic scientist)
  • Reappointed at years 3 and 6
  • Reappointed every five years as Associate and full Professor
  • Full time faculty track
  • 10-Year Probationary period with mandatory review year
  • Reappointed at years 3 and 6
  • Reappointed every five years as Associate and full Professor
CLINICAL MISSION Primary Focus Primary Focus Required Required N/A
 
  • Expert clinicians
  • Expert clinicians
  • Effort exceeds 20% (generally)
  • Expert clinicians, usually within an innovative or specific program/niche
  • Essential clinical administrators with an academic orientation who provide essential contributions to the clinical programs of their departments
  • For Tenure, Physician Scientist, a narrow clinical focus (generally)
  • N/A
ANTICIPATED IMPACT IN CLINICAL Clinical Track faculty will generally have an impact on floor, site-specific, or regional programs and processes of distinction. AC faculty will generally have a significant impact in applying high-quality models of clinical care. CE faculty will generally have a significant impact in developing and applying innovations to a variety of clinical and clinically related domains. Tenure Physician Scientist faculty will generally have a significant impact in an area of biomedical research that informs their clinical focus. For Basic Scientists, the clinical domain is N/A. N/A
EXAMPLE
  • Participation in local and regional programs.
  
  • Contribution to the development of innovative approaches to diagnosis, treatment or prevention of disease, applications of technologies and/or models of care delivery that influence care locally such as a community-based program, clinical care model, practice guidelines, an innovative application of an existing technology etc.
  • Service on committees in area of clinical expertise such as developing guidelines and policies for health equity, clinical management, evaluating clinical programs, etc. 
  • Invitations to share expertise through invited talks, book chapters, clinical reviews.
  • N/A
EDUCATION MISSION Clinical Track: Required AC Track: Primary Focus CE Track: Required Tenure Track: Required Research Track: Not Required
 
  • Clinical teaching
  • Annual Qty Req: 50 Credits
  • Clinical teaching (generally)
  • Annual Qty Req: 100 Credits
  • Teaching in a variety of domains
  • Annual Qty Req: 100 Credits
  • Teaching in the basic sciences (generally)
  • Mentoring and supervising student/trainee research
  • Annual Qty Req: 100 Credits
  • No more than 10% effort may be assigned to faculty on the Research Track
ANTICIPATED IMPACT IN EDUCATION Clinical track faculty impact on the education mission will generally include supervision and mentoring of trainees in a clinical setting. AC track faculty impact on the education mission will generally include participating in innovations in curriculum and teaching methods, developing and potentially leading formal training programs, as well as supervision and mentoring of trainees in a clinical setting. CE track faculty impact on the education mission, per the diversity of the track, may take a variety of forms, from excellence in teaching courses and mentoring learners to major innovations in academic medicine. Tenure track faculty impact on the education mission will generally include significant effort toward mentoring trainees and supervising scholarship at a variety of levels. N/A
EXAMPLE
  • Supervising a clinical research project with a trainee in a formal program
  • Teaching in clinical skills programs, professional development programs, and via seminars, tutorials, grand rounds, etc
  • Leading or substantive participation in committees related to education policy
  • Chairing or participating on mentoring committees for trainees
  • N/A

RESEARCH & SCHOLARSHIP MISSION [FUNDING]

 Clinical Track: Optional with Restrictions AC Track: Optional with Restrictions CE Track: Required Tenure Track: Primary Focus Research track: Primary Focus
 
  • Applied research extending existing observations in a field, leading clinical trials, clinical research, recruitment of clinical trial patients
  • Applied research extending existing observations in a field, recruitment of clinical trial patients
  • Often collaborative research that results in new discoveries/knowledge or extend/advances understanding of knowledge ultimately important to human health/disease
  • Funding not required but may have diverse portfolio of grants/funding inc PI and Co-PI roles
  • Independent or innovative collaborative research that results in new discoveries/knowledge or extend/advances understanding of knowledge ultimately important to human health/disease*
  • Research effort will be funded by highly competitive peer reviewed government and foundation based awards
  • Extends existing observations in a field/drives field in new direction
  • Funding often in form of Co-I on extramural grants
ANTICIPATED IMPACT IN RESEARCH & SCHOLARSHIP N/A N/A The CE impact on the research mission, per the diversity of the track, may take a variety of forms, with most CE faculty demonstrating continuous scholarly productivity in prestigious peer-reviewed publications for their field. Depending upon field, scholarship media may include chapters, reviews, alternative media. Research impact may also be reflected in invited lectures, patents/commercialization aligned with primary research program, and awards. Tenure track faculty impact on the research mission is significant, with high-impact original papers that clearly highlight a critical role in advancing the field, and with faculty demonstrating continuous scholarly productivity in prestigious peer-reviewed publications in their fields.** Research impact will also be reflected in grant funding, participation in study sections/editorial boards, invited lectures, patents/commercialization aligned with primary research program, and awards. Research track faculty impact on the research mission is significant, with leader/collaborator roles in high-impact original papers and record of continuous scholarly productivity. Research impact will also be reflected in grant funding, invited lectures, patents/commercialization aligned with primary research program, and awards.
EXAMPLE
  • Enrolling patients in clinical trials
  • Enrolling patients in clinical trials
  • Original peer reviewed papers with identifiable focus as either collaborator or lead author
  • Independent or innovative collaborative research that results in new discoveries/knowledge or extend/advances understanding of knowledge
  • Innovative, collaborative research, which develops into independent research, that results in new discoveries/knowledge or extend/advances understanding of knowledge
REPUTATION AT PROMOTION
  • For promotion to Associate: Local/regional
  • For promotion to Professor: regional or national
  • For promotion to Associate: PM community
  • For promotion to Professor: regional or national
  • For promotion to Associate: national
  • For promotion to Professor: national or international
  • For promotion to Associate: national
  • For promotion to Professor: international
  • For promotion to Associate: national
  • For promotion to Professor: international

 

*Any type of research can qualify; e.g., laboratory-based, clinical, public health, community based, bioethics research, or educational research. The branch or type of science (e.g., clinical vs basic research) represented by a faculty member's research program is not related to a specific track. What is important is the role they play in novel work that has a defined impact.
**An upward trajectory of an individual’s achievements and impact is required for each promotion step.