The appointment of a faculty member represents three commitments: 1) on the part of the department to the mentorship and career support of the new faculty member; 2) on the part of Harvard Medical School to provide faculty development programs, including orientation, to the new faculty member; and 3) on the part of the appointee to contribute to the academic mission of the school through teaching Harvard learners a minimum of fifty (50) hours per year and participation in the scholarly enterprise.
Criteria for Appointment:
All candidates for appointment will:
- Hold a doctoral degree in a discipline within the scope of the academic mission for the Faculty of Medicine.
- If clinically active, will hold a professional degree within the scope of a medical and dental school, which will be ordinarily represented by an MD, DMD, or physician-equivalent degree, PsyD or equivalent degree for practicing psychologists, or a PhD for radiation or medical physicists. Additionally, the candidate will possess the appropriate license to practice and be approved by the hospital credentialing committee or under review for credentialing at the primary affiliate.
- Have completed at least one (1) postdoctoral training program or have a documented exception for postdoctoral training. In rare instances, postdoctoral training would not be the norm prior to a faculty appointment, such as in the case of some social scientists. The nominating letter should address this exception.
- Hold an active hospital appointment at a primary affiliate of HMS, be appointed at HSDM, or be appointed in a Basic or Social Science department (HMS Quad).
- Not concurrently be serving primarily in a training role or an Associate appointment. (Some faculty will seek additional, part-time training through a fellowship program while still primarily functioning as a faculty member. Departments will be asked to explain the percent effort dedicated to this additional training role in determining whether an Instructor or Fellow title is appropriate.)
- Have evidence of teaching at Harvard for a minimum of fifty (50) hours annually documented in the CV or, for a first appointment, intended teaching responsibilities documented in Department Head nominating letter.
- Agree to comply with all Harvard University and HMS policies and procedures
- Meet criteria for a full-time or part-time academic appointment.
Search documentation must be provided at the time of first appointment unless the candidate meets criteria for exception to a search. If the latter case applies, documentation of the exception should be included in the letter requesting appointment.
Last updated June 2023