University of Virginia
ER-19: Interdisciplinary Research in Tenure and Promotion

The Commission on the Future of the University, a group charged with proposing strategic directions for the University for the next decade, highlighted the important of interdisciplinary collaboration in the Commission's 2008 report: "Significant and consistent collaboration and interaction across all ten schools of the University are critical to fostering a shared vision, common goals, innovative programs, and bold initiatives. Meaningful collaboration and interaction can differentiate the University in important ways and build a foundation for other strategies to achieve differentiation." The Vice President for Research offers multiple programs to organize and promote interdisciplinary research efforts, including theOpenGrounds initiative. OpenGrounds is a unique combination of interdisciplinary programming, challenges, research fellowships, and a network of physical spaces distributed across Grounds to promote ad hoc collaboration. Tenure and promotion processes are typically initiated at the School and Departmental Levels. The following are selected excerpts from School-level Promotion and Tenure policies that give positive recognition to interdisciplinary research: Promotion and Tenure Policy School of Engineering and Applied Science - Revised May 12, 2011: "Cross-disciplinary research is encouraged and is recognized as a valuable complement and enhancement of the candidate's strength and depth in a central area of expertise." POLICIES FOR FACULTY MANAGEMENT McIntire School of Commerce: Collaborative or joint research among the faculty, both within and across disciplines, is encouraged. Collaboration often enhances the quality and relevance of research. School of Medicine - Criteria for Collaboration: The NIH roadmap for patient-oriented research endorsed team science and established the expectation of expertise for interdisciplinary investigation and collaboration. The national academies have suggested that the evaluation of outcomes of interdisciplinary research and teaching will focus less on the usual number of publications and more on the impact of these publications. A successful interdisciplinary program will affect multiple disciplines and the connections among these fields.