MBP Appointment Policy

1. Faculty appointed to the rank of Assistant Professor (status only) or higher are expected to hold an on-going, full-time appointment at a hospital or affiliated research institute. While the faculty would typically hold scientist or senior scientist positions within the affiliated research institute, other types of positions that allow for the conduct of independent scientific research will be considered. The appointment should be renewable and satisfactory academic performance as assessed by our partner research institutes must be a requirement for renewal. The faculty member is expected to have the appropriate academic training and experience to develop a successful independent research program. Applicants with less than 100% protected time for independent research will need to meet the same criteria as other applicants for scientific excellence. Applicants with less than 50% protected research time will not be considered. Evidence that the applicant will develop an independent research program will typically include a commitment by the research institute of research space and start-up funding. The offer letter needs to specifically state that the appointment fulfills the above requirements. Institute-based scientists that are hired on a time-limited non-renewable contract, such as an appointment linked to the duration of a specific grant, do not qualify for an MBP appointment at the level of Assistant Professor or higher.

2. A relevant institutional search should have MBP representation, according to the principle agreed between MBP and its institute partners in November 2013: “The Chair, Vice-Chair, or their delegates will serve as MBP Departmental representatives on all appropriate research institute search committees.”

   1. The MBP Chair should be contacted at the beginning of the search, if an appointment to MBP is deemed relevant for the candidate(s). This will enable the Appointments and Promotions Committee to select an appropriate representative for the search committee.

   2. All potential candidates are required to present a public lecture at their respective research institutes. Members/delegates of the MBP Appointments and Promotions Committee are to be present at this seminar. Candidates will also be asked to meet privately with members of the MBP Appointments and Promotions Committee to discuss their ability to fulfill the functional requirements for an MBP appointment as set out in the Faculty Expectations Policy.

3. Faculty can designate MBP or another department within the University of Toronto as their primary academic appointment. Faculty cross-appointed to MBP with a primary appointment in another department will be held to the same standards with respect to academic excellence and fulfilling the functional requirements for an ongoing appointment in MBP. These cross-appointed faculty will require a letter of support from the Chair of MBP when seeking promotion through their primary department and this letter will be based on the same criteria as faculty with a primary appointment in MBP. Similarly, faculty whose primary appointment is MBP and who are cross appointed to another department will require a letter of support from the other department chair when applying for promotion within MBP. MBP follows the guidelines for promotion through the ranks as defined by the Faculty of Medicine.

4. MBP faculty appointments are subject to annual review. These are generally a short online form that is mandated by the Faculty of Medicine. Research Institutes usually perform more rigorous annual performance reviews which include academic excellence (grants, publications) and contributions to the institute and the University Department. MBP faculty members are expected to actively participate in graduate student teaching/training and MBP events such as the student seminar series, the annual retreat, and MBP Open House as defined in the Faculty Expectations policy. Additional appointments such as cross-appointments in other departments, administrative roles outside MBP, or clinical appointments are not grounds for reduction in MBP responsibilities below the responsibilities of other faculty members without such appointments.

After the first renewal, typically at 3 years, continued renewals will occur at 5-year intervals. All faculty members will be asked to submit documentation of their activities in the previous 3 or 5 year period pertaining to the Faculty Expectations Policy. Specifically, faculty will be asked to report on the graduate students supervised and graduated, participation in teaching within the department, service on student advisory committees, thesis examination committees, and other MBP committees, as well as participation in the annual retreat, JLM symposium, and student seminars. Activity reports will be reviewed by the MBP Appointments and Promotions Committee, who will make a recommendation to the chair that an appointment be renewed, conditionally renewed with a plan for improvement, or terminated. Faculty members whose appointment is terminated will be given the opportunity to appeal the decision in writing or by meeting in person with the MBP Appointments and Promotions Committee.

Promotion through the ranks follow the University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine Appointment and Promotion Guidelines (https://medicine.utoronto.ca/faculty-staff/facultyappointmentsand-promotions). The objective of academic promotions is to acknowledge and reward outstanding scientific and administrative contributions. Promotion from Assistant to Associate Professor and from Associate to Full Professor is rarely at less than five-year intervals. Every promotion includes a number of individual steps, which are highlighted below. These include:

1. Initial pre-review of a detailed CV by the MBP Appointments and Promotion Committee (CVs must be formatted according to the Faculty of Medicine guidelines). The MBP Appointments and Promotion Committee will keep track of individual scientists and proactively contact them at the above timelines to request a CV for pre-review. The committee will then evaluate their academic performance and make a recommendation if this individual should go forward for full review.

2. A faculty member who has been invited to undergo full review will be asked to provide up to three names of individuals that could provide an objective evaluation. These reviewers must be at arm’s length (further information can be found at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine Appointment and Promotion Guidelines). The Chair and the MBP Appointments and Promotion Committee will select additional, independent reviewers.

3. In addition to the CV, every candidate must provide a number of “Data Summary Tables” as part of their application package. These tables will provide a numerical summary of the faculty members performance and include: Research Awards/Grants, Supervision, Publications, Teaching and Citation Metrics (h-index/total citation based on either ISI Web of Science, Scopus or Google Scholar).

4. Once the department receives the letters from the external referees, members of the MBP Appointments and Promotion Committee will review the letters and make a final decision if the application will be forwarded to the Decanal Committee. The Chair then writes a letter of support for the faculty members’ promotion. The entire promotion package is then sent to the Decanal Committee for full review.

5. Candidates that request early promotion (i.e. outside the five-year recommended timeframe) are encouraged to send their CV together with a detailed explanatory cover letter to the MBP Appointments and Promotions Committee. The APC will evaluate each request individually and provide an appropriate recommendation based on publications, grant funding, student supervision/graduation and MBP-related administrative commitment.

INTRODUCTION

The research institute appointments that are held by faculty in MBP are typically as scientists or senior scientists. These positions are granted by the research institutes to individuals with an established scientific track record and filled through a rigorous and highly competitive search process. To be eligible for an MBP appointment, these appointments must meet several criteria including being ongoing and renewable based on academic performance. Several of the research institutes, including Sunnybrook, UHN, and SickKids, also offer appointments aimed at investigators earlier in their career that do not meet these criteria for an appointment in MBP. These positions do not have the full academic autonomy accorded to scientists and are for limited terms. These “junior scientists” (or “affiliate scientists” or similar) are typically seeking promotion to scientist and would benefit from a formal university affiliation to build a track record of teaching experience and to gain access to grant funding opportunities linked to the university. The department also stands to benefit from a relationship with these individuals through their contributions to teaching and academic engagement. This proposal is to create a new type of appointment within the department that addresses these needs.

PROPOSED POLICY

MBP will create a new type of appointment aimed at junior scientists (or similar) where the appointee will hold the rank of a status-only Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto but would have a restricted appointment with the School of Graduate Studies. The holders of this new position, termed “assistant professor with restricted SGS appointment”, will be able participate in the following activities within the department:

• Course coordination and teaching
• Supervisory committee membership
• Co-supervision of M.Sc. students only
• Sit as voting members of exams ONLY for those students for whom they are on the committee or are a co-supervisor

They would NOT be able to participate in the following activities:

• Serving as a primary supervisor of a M.Sc. or Ph.D, OR as a co-supervisor of a Ph.D.
• Chair an exam

An appointment in this role is for 3 years and renewable once. If they are not promoted to scientist at their research institute at this 6-year time point, their MBP appointment will be terminated. The requirements for the appointment are as follows:

• Demonstration of scientific excellence
• 50% or more protected research time
• Evidence at the time of appointment that the applicant will develop an independent research program, typically including commitment by the research institute of salary, research space and start-up funding
• Commitment by the research institute to perform a review at least every three years that meets the following:
• An assessment of academic achievement that is performed by scientists at arms-length from the candidate, some of whom are experts in the area science of the candidate

The requirements for renewal at 3 years include all of the requirements for the initial appointment plus:

• Submission of an activity report and CV for annual review by MBP
• Participation in graduate student teaching/training and MBP events such as the student seminar series, annual retreat, and MBP Open House as defined in the Faculty Expectations policy.
• Positive outcome of research institute review (including provision of continued salary support)
• Demonstrated ability to attract external funding

APC Members - as of Nov, 2023

• Dr. Laurie Ailles
• Dr. Jean Chen
• Dr. Kristen Hope
• Dr. Stanley Liu
• Dr. John Sled (Chair)
• Dr. Giles Santyr
• Dr. Brian Wilson
• Dr. Graham Wright