Faculty appointments in education, research, and clinical care at NYU Grossman School of Medicine are categorized into seven tenure and nontenure tracks, each in one of four main categories: tenure tracks, scholar tracks, clinical and research tracks, and the librarian nontenure track.

You may transfer from a nontenure track to a tenure track and back, depending on your progress toward tenure. Faculty who are transferred to a nontenure-eligible track are no longer eligible for tenure at NYU Grossman School of Medicine.

Faculty Titles at NYU Grossman School of Medicine

Tenure Tracks

At NYU Grossman School of Medicine, tenure tracks include investigator educator, investigator clinician educator, and librarian tracks.

Investigator Educator Track

Faculty who choose the investigator educator (IE) track become assistant professors, associate professors, or professors in their respective disciplines. They dedicate time to scholarly activities, including teaching and investigator-initiated research. Faculty on this track publish their work in peer-reviewed journals, obtain extramural research funding from national granting agencies, and achieve national and international recognition in their fields.

Clinical activities are not used as the major criterion for promotion on this track, even if a candidate has an outstanding reputation or earned worldwide recognition as a clinician.

Investigator Clinician Educator Track

Faculty on the investigator clinician educator (ICE) track devote a substantial part of their careers to clinical activities. They become assistant professors, associate professors, or professors in their disciplines. They dedicate time to scholarly activities such as teaching and research, publish in peer-reviewed journals, obtain research funding from external sources, and achieve national or international recognition in their fields.

Their work includes original observations, participation in multicenter trials, innovative solutions to healthcare problems, and performance of care-related activities that extend well beyond excellent patient management. Faculty members on this track should exemplify characteristics of the scholarly, creative, and academic clinician.

Librarian Tenure Track

Faculty on the librarian tenure track become assistant curators, associate curators, or curators with full faculty status. Their ranks match those of tenure-track faculty in other NYU Langone departments. Faculty on this track who receive tenure perform at a high professional level in providing medical and health sciences information in an academic environment.

Faculty on this track advance the profession of health sciences librarianship by contributing resources on a national and international level. They undertake scholarly, bibliographical, and information-management projects, such as developing unique resources or technologies beyond those required of their positions. They may publish in peer-reviewed journals, present at scholarly meetings, and obtain extramural funding.

Criteria for Tenure

Although there are no absolute criteria for tenure, candidates may be required to demonstrate independent scholarship through first- or last-authored publications, or both, and sustained extramurally funded research as a principal investigator.

They may be asked to attain significant stature in the field through scholarly publication in prestigious journals, invited lectures to national and international meetings, and strong letters of recommendation from authorities in the field.

They may be required to demonstrate rigorous peer review by attaining significant National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding. Sustained and renewed NIH funding is crucial in the decision for tenure, except in rare cases.

For faculty on the basic science and clinical tracks, tenure must be considered within the first nine years. Library faculty must be awarded tenure within the first six years.

Scholar Tracks

Faculty on the scholar track may follow the clinician investigator educator or research educator track.

Clinician Investigator Educator Track

Faculty members on the clinician investigator educator track (CIE) fulfill critical teaching and service responsibilities at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. They become assistant professors, associate professors, or professors in their clinical disciplines. These faculty are highly productive in patient care and in teaching, scholarship, educational excellence, collaborative science, and our clinical and academic missions. They contribute effectively to service activities.

Research Educator Track

Faculty on the research educator (RE) track fulfill critical teaching, research, and service responsibilities at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. They become assistant professors, associate professors, or professors in their research disciplines. Appointments on this track are reserved for faculty with teaching and service responsibilities who are engaged in full-time research and produce published articles. They may obtain independent research funding, including grants.

Faculty in the basic science departments who advance scholarship, educational excellence, collaborative science, or our academic missions and contribute to its service activities may be considered for promotion.

Clinical and Research Tracks

Faculty who follow clinical and research tracks are responsible for a variety of related activities.

Clinical Track

Faculty members on the clinical track fulfill a variety of teaching, clinical, and service responsibilities that address the needs of NYU Grossman School of Medicine’s departments and divisions. They become clinical assistant professors, clinical associate professors, or clinical professors in their disciplines. These faculty members are expected to demonstrate excellence in patient care and teaching and, when appropriate, contribute to the service activities of NYU Grossman School of Medicine.

Research Track

Appointments on the research track are reserved for faculty who are assigned to time-limited, full-time research programs or part-time research activities with limited expectations in terms of teaching or service. Faculty on this track depend on grants to fund their research, and they become research assistant professors, research associate professors, or research professors in their disciplines. They may contribute to the educational and service activities of NYU Grossman School of Medicine.

Librarian Nontenure Track

Faculty on the librarian nontenure track become assistant curators, associate curators, or curators. Faculty on this track emphasize contributions to practice rather than research, national professional engagement, and scholarship. They are expected to publish less frequently and on topics and in forums that are more practice-based instead of developing original research.

The choice to pursue a tenure or nontenure track reflects a person’s professional focus and career pathway, which are separate from the fundamental functions of a position.