Appointment to the "at CUMC" Faculty Title

Appointments to the "at the Columbia University Medical Center" faculty title may be based upon academic activities in one or more of the three scholarly areas of focus: Applied Health Care & Public Health Interventions, Educational Scholarship & Leadership and Investigation.  

The areas of focus align valuable faculty work with a career path, and provide clear criteria for academic advancement in all four of the health sciences schools.

Each school may have specific parameters for these areas of focus, so faculty should also review school-specific resources.

Scholarly Areas of Focus

Applied Health Care & Public Health Interventions

The scholarship of applied health care is the interaction between knowledge and its practical application. This area of focus covers activities related to: 

  • Clinical care in medicine, dentistry and nursing, as well as direct public health interventions in public health disciplines
  • The development or implementation of novel or newly developed clinical or public health programs
  • Work in quality assurance, patient safety, applied epidemiology, etc.

More information

Educational Scholarship & Leadership

Educational scholarship and leadership may occur in many different settings and may take various forms. This area of focus covers:

  • Direct involvement in the process of promoting learning (e.g. lecturing, mentoring, facilitating small groups)
  • Support of infrastructure needed for learning (e.g. leading a course, program directorship)
  • Development of educational products used for learning (e.g. textbooks, slides, videos, websites, applications)

More information

Investigation

Individuals with a focus in Investigation may engage in a broad range of investigational activities. This area of focus covers research efforts in any discipline related to health sciences such as laboratory, clinical/translational and population-based science; health services, policy and economics; outcomes, biostatistics, bioinformatics and pedagogical research, and includes: 

  • Discovery
  • Analysis or synthesis of existing knowledge
  • Novel application of existing knowledge

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Promotion Process

The promotion process has clearly delineated steps and includes roles for the faculty member, their department and their school’s Committee on Appointments and Promotions. No time limits exist for promotion from one academic rank to another in the "at CUMC" Track. Data relevant to promotion decisions may be added at any time prior to a decision by the school's COAP.

While faculty are encouraged to develop one area of focus, it is understood that faculty may make substantive contributions to more than one area of focus, or shift their area of focus over time. However, it is expected that contributions, irrespective of magnitude, will be of high quality. For the "at CUMC" Track, it is common, though not required, for faculty to make contributions in more than one area of focus. By contrast, Tenured/Tenure-Track faculty are expected to focus on research programs.

At the time of promotion, all faculty contributions are considered. A faculty work profile might be thought of as the area under a curve, with some faculty filling the area with a single type of work and others filling the area with more than one type of activity. For example, academic productivity could include all three areas of focus with investigation as the predominant area. In contrast, other faculty will have much more focus on clinical care and/or on education. All faculty must contribute to the educational mission.

Evidence of Scholarly Accomplishments

Although research publications, funding and presentations are standard scholarly products for investigators, educational products such as course syllabi, teaching demonstration materials, curricula development, educational assessment tools and presentations at educational forums are acceptable for those with an education focus. Similarly, for those with a focus in applied clinical and public health interventions, recognition based upon activities that impact practice paradigms, clinical programs, and patient or population outcomes are appropriate.

A faculty member need not have examples of every type of scholarly product in their academic portfolio, but examples selected should be of sufficient quality to support an evaluation of excellence in the academic focus and should be quantitatively appropriate to the academic rank and distribution of overall effort. Educational contributions are required of all faculty, though the type and quantity will vary with the academic focus.

Individual schools and departments within CUIMC may have additional guidelines for faculty advancement and promotion. Departments and schools may also offer individual support programs. Contact your department or school administrator for more information.

Resources

  • Please visit the Resources page for materials and resources relevant to the "at CUMC" Track, including:
    • CUIMC CV Format
    • Guidance on Writing the Personal Statement 
    • Guide for Promotion on the "at CUMC" Track
    • Criteria for Advancement 

For more information, please email: Office_Acad_Affairs@cumc.columbia.edu.