III. PROMOTION A. PROMOTION/BAR CROSSING FOR ACADEMIC STAFF 1. Procedures a. In the early part of the year, Deans of Faculties/Schools will be invited to put forward, after due consultation with the respective Heads of Departments, suitable candidates for consideration of promotion by the Promotion Panels for the Academic Staff and Instructors. This includes promotion for Assistant Lecturer to Assistant Professor, Assistant Professor to Associate Professor, Associate Professor B:A Scale Transition, Associate Professor to Professor, as well as for Instructors. b. Deans of Faculties/Schools will also be invited to put forward substantiated staff members to the Promotion Panel for consideration of crossing of salary bar. c. Crossing of salary bars in the following circumstances will, however, be considered by other relevant Panels: i. Crossing of salary bar which synchronizes with the end of the non-substantiated period will be considered by the Appointment Review Panel; and ii. Crossing of salary bar at the end of three years after promotion will be considered by the Faculty/School Review Panel. 2. Panel Composition a. Promotion Panel for Academic Staff i. The Academic Vice-President as Chairman; ii. Deans of Faculties/Schools; iii. One senior academic staff member to be co-opted by the Chairman; iv. One additional member (internal or external) to be co-opted by the Chairman; and v. Director of Personnel. For Associate Professor nominated for B:A Scale transition and for promotion to the Professor rank, at least two independent external assessments will be required. Candidates nominated for promotion to these two ranks on Scale A will also need to forward three representative samples of scholarly/professional publications/works to the Personnel Office for appropriate assessment by the external assessors. The Panel shall advise the President & Vice-Chancellor whose decision shall be final on the recommendations on promotion/transition/bar-crossing. b. Promotion Panel for Instructors i. The Academic Vice-President as Chairman; ii. A Dean of Faculty/School who is not the relevant Dean of cases being recommended for consideration; iii. The relevant Dean of Faculty/School; iv. Two senior academic staff to be co-opted by the Chairman. 3. Criteria for Promotion/Transition for Various Academic Ranks a. As a general guideline, Deans of Faculties/Schools are requested to make reference to the following two general principles governing the University's internal promotion exercise: i. Three years of service at the current rank is normally expected of a staff member before consideration of promotion to the next higher rank, except in the case of Assistant Lecturer. Staff members in this rank could be nominated for consideration of promotion to the Assistant Professor rank during the annual promotion exercise as and when they have fulfilled the entry requirements to this rank. ii. A staff member who is currently remunerated on a scale with a salary bar as part of scale should only be considered for promotion to the next higher rank when his/her salary is above the bar. Specifically, the promotion/transition criteria for various academic ranks are as follows: b. Assistant Lecturer to Assistant Professor The AL rank would continue to be viewed as a transitional (training) grade, usually held by staff who are completing appropriate terminal degrees (PhD, et al). Specific criteria are as follows: i. no specific minimum time in rank necessary; ii. the completion of the appropriate terminal degree or (in the case of certain professional staff) the receipt of recognition from relevant professional bodies; iii. evidence that teaching is undertaken in responsible ways, with feedbacks from students, peers, and Department Heads indicating effectiveness in all teaching/learning commitments, that a compatibility with and enjoyment of his/her personal teaching responsibilities is evident, and that an understanding of quality practices in teaching has emerged as a personal endorsement, rather than as a mechanical and grudging acknowledgement; iv. clear indications that an understanding of and commitment to the scholarly endeavours of an academic career and developing, with evidences of this seen in tangible consequences of personal scholarship (be it journal publications, juried exhibitions, reviewed fil screenings, published and performed music scores, or other appropriate outputs) which is of good peer-reviewed quality, albeit of limited quantity at this stage, and participation in professional activities which are compatible with and enhance the appropriate forms of scholarship for his/her discipline (conference attendance, grant proposals, etc.); and v. contributions to the academic and professional work of the Department, and understanding/support of the educational goals of the Institution. c. Promotion (in title) Assistant Professor to Associate Professor (Scale B) Academics who are serving the non-substantiated period of appointment shall normally be considered for promotion from the Assistant Professor to the Associate Professor rank (Scale B) at the same time when they are being considered for substantiation. It would not be considered appropriate to award this promotion after five or more years at the Assistant Professor rank if the candidate is not deemed substantiable at the same time. For academics who have been substantiated as Assistant Professors, they may be recommended by the respective Dean for consideration of promotion (in title) to the Associate Professor rank in the annual promotion exercises. Specific criteria for this promotion are: i. three years in rank is normally expected, with the attainment of B10 at time of review (exceptionally, B9 for those who entered the Assistant Professor scale at the basic point i.e. B5); ii. well-established and independent teaching performance as evidenced by: the development of quality course materials of all kinds; of student, peer, and Head of Department appraisals of good teaching; of continuous upgrading of approaches to teaching and learning; and of an emerging demonstration of leadership in the individual's teaching specialism; iii. a track record of scholarship which results in the promulgation of the results of these efforts, which should have shown a sustainable independence of action and a level of confidence that reveals a growing scholarly maturity, and a quantity and quality of output that is sufficient to determine this maturity; and iv. continuing contributions to the academic and professional work of the Department, with strong commitments to the educational goals of the Institution. d. Associate Professor B:A Scale Transition Although there is no change of title, this is a very important salary advancement for academics. It not only opens up additional pay points (the A scale points 1-9), it also changes the terms/conditions of service and further promotion prospects. The numbers of staff permitted to advance onto the A scale, in addition to their meeting the criteria given below, will depend on the agreed ratio of A scale and above to B scale and below academic numbers at any given time. In addition to internal review, two external assessments will be required. Criteria applied specifically to this salary advancement are: i. three years in the Associate Professor rank (on the B scale) is normally expected prior to a review being undertaken (however, for serving staff at upper B scale pay points who are just taking up the Associate Professor ranks when it is introduced, this three-year in-rank requirement might be relaxed); ii. substantial teaching experience giving evidence of quality performance and commitment, should be seen, which leads to an increasing recognition within the staff's relevant discipline as a leader both in and outside of the Institution; iii. scholarship which has drawn wider recognition by citations of growing frequency, invitations to contribute to monographs, commissions to create musical works/films/literary works and the like, should be found in the experience of those who are strong candidates for crossing this bar, along with a substantial quantity and quality of scholarly promulgations, and likely with consultancies beginning to be undertaken; and iv. increasing participation in the administrative/ leadership duties at departmental and higher levels, with on-going commitment to the educational goals of the Institution. e. Associate Professor to Professor This promotion is confined within the A scale of pay and terms. In addition to internal review, two external assessments are required. Specific criteria are : i. three years in the Associate Professor rank (on the A scale) is normally expected prior to a review being undertaken; ii. a wide acceptance as an academic/teaching leader, evidenced through a mastery of the corpus of subject teaching within a relevant discipline, the recognition from professional peers and colleagues, and a commitment to the continual improvement of both teaching materials development and the use of new approaches not only at the personal level but for his/her Department as well; iii. a track record of personal scholarship which is widely described or considered as "mature", resulting in a natural leadership role amongst colleagues and receiving professional recognition within his/her discipline, as seen through invitations to participate in high-level scholarly activities (consultancies, key-note addresses, principal investigator designation in research group, etc.) and responsible for significant numbers of the highest quality of publications or other forms of promulgation of scholarly work; and iv. demonstrating solid and mature leadership in administrative matters, participation at senior levels of professional endeavours, and a leading role in defining and communicating the educational goals of the University to others. 4. Criteria for Crossing of Salary Bar a. Reaching the Point immediately below the bar; b. Evidences of effective teaching; c. Identified continuous research activities, and publications in refereed academic/professional journals commensurate with these activities and/or creative/scholarly/recognized and appropriate professional activities or performances, with appropriate evaluations/ critical appraisals being provided; d. Contributions to the professional work of the Department; and e. Understanding and support of the educational goals of the University. 5. Communication of the Result of Review a. A report which summarizes the discussions and recommendations of the Promotion Panel will be prepared by the Secretary, to be endorsed by the Chairman, before it is presented to the President & Vice-Chancellor for consideration. b. Upon receipt of confirmation of approval/disapproval from the President & Vice-Chancellor on the various recommendations, result of the promotion/transition/bar crossing review will be communicated to the staff member concerned in writing. Under normal circumstances, promotion/transition and/or bar crossing will take effect on the next incremental date of the staff member concerned. 6. Crossing of Salary Bar after Promotion Staff members who are promoted to a higher position will need to cross a salary bar at the end of three years after promotion. During this three-year period, the Head of Department shall meet with the staff member concerned annually as part of the regular performance management process. Towards the end of the three years, the relevant Dean/Head of Department will be invited to review the performance of the staff member concerned, and make a recommendation on crossing the salary bar for consideration by the Faculty/School Review Panel. Decision of the Faculty/School Review Panel will then be communicated to the staff member concerned in writing. 7. Appeal Procedures on Bar-crossing A staff member who is not satisfied with the outcome of the review relating to crossing of the salary bar may write to appeal against the result within one month of the date of letter of notification. a. The staff member concerned who wish to appeal against the result of the review relating to crossing of the salary bar can write direct to the President & Vice- Chancellor giving all the reasons and evidences for such an appeal; b. The President & Vice-Chancellor, after examining the reasons for the appeal, could either authorize the appropriate Panel to be re-convened to re-consider the case on ground of any newly submitted evidences, or to convene a different Panel, or to adopt other appropriate measures at his own discretion; c. The President & Vice-Chancellor should have the absolute discretion to interview the staff member concerned and/ or to accept or not to accept the re-considered view of the Panel before communicating the result to the staff; and d. The President & Vice-Chancellor’s decision on the re- considered view of the Panel shall be final. B. PROMOTION/BAR CROSSING BAR FOR NON-TEACHING STAFF This policy is currently under review. The updated policy will be promulgated once it is available via Personnel Office Circular. .