Office of the Provost
The dossier is the candidate’s compilation of his or her professional activities that will form the basis for review. The candidate is responsible for providing a full and accurate accounting of the activities to be evaluated. These guidelines are intended to provide an organizational framework for completing the reappointment, promotion or tenure dossier. The purpose for systematizing the RPT dossier is to provide clear guidance to the faculty member for what needs to be included and what can be left out, so that the faculty member can efficiently compile the material in a reasonable amount of time. In addition, the narrative and its appendices can then be easily read by a reviewer.
The completed dossier will contain the following materials:
- Curriculum Vitae.
- Personal Statement.
If the faculty member has provided significant service and/or teaching to a secondary unit, they have the opportunity to include a letter from the secondary unit head in the file. This letter should be in the file at the start of the review process.
3. Evidence to support contributions for the following:
- A. Research/Creative Activity: all relevant articles, books, book contracts, grant reviews, etc.
- B. Teaching: course evaluations, syllabi, peer reviews, etc.
- C. Leadership/Service: appointment letters, etc. This section will usually contain fewer documents than previous sections.
4. Five-year plan (not required for reappointments)
Section 1: Curriculum Vitae
The curriculum vitae (CV) is a detailed synopsis of the faculty member’s background, skills and contributions to scholarship or discovery, teaching and professional service/leadership. The CV should be dated and paginated.
In addition, please use categories in the CV that help separate different types of material (sometimes called “chunking”). Peer-reviewed and invited publication should be in separate categories. Manuscripts accepted should be separated from manuscripts in progress. Grants awarded should not be mixed in with grant submissions. Disciplinary service should be separated from institutional service (even department service can be profitably separated from College and University service–because they are evidence of different kinds of service contributions). Categorizing and sub-categorizing helps the reviewer comprehend the information much more readily.
The following is a list of the components expected in the CV for the RPT dossier.
A. Name and Contact Information
B. Education and Degrees (with dates)
Please identify the field in which the Ph.D. has been earned (for example, Geology, American Studies, etc.)
C. Academic Positions Held
List each separately with dates.
D. Research, Community Engaged Scholarship, Creative Activity
Articles, book chapters, books/monographs, creative activities, papers at research conferences, research reports/proceedings, and public scholarship should be listed separately. Refereed articles must be identified. Standard citation format must be used, showing all authors in the order in which they appear in publication. It may be helpful to bold your name; also identify student co-authors. The basis for sequencing multiple authors can be explained if needed. Items should be organized in reverse chronological order. List most recent publications first, including page numbers.
For manuscripts that are in press, the acceptance letter must be included as an attachment to the personnel material.
Works in progress. This is an optional section, to note progress toward publication. Identify whether the manuscript is in preparation or under review; if an editor has requested revisions for resubmission, indicate whether the revisions have been completed. If the CV does not include this section, the faculty member should provide a discussion of ongoing and future work in the personal statement (see below).
Evidence of Community Engaged Scholarship. Community-Engaged Scholarship is the pursuit and creation of new knowledge within the context of solving community issues and needs. The intent is not to replace other forms of scholarship but rather to expand the way scholarship is viewed within the college. To qualify as scholarship, the activities should include specific components such as clear goals, appropriate methods, reflective critique, rigor, and peer review.
List of grants obtained. University, national, and other types of grants should be listed separately. Information should include the title of the grant, the funding agency, the time period, the dollar amount, and the role of the candidate (e.g., PI, Co-PI, other).
List of grant submissions. This should be separate from grants obtained. University, national, and other types of grants should again be listed separately. Information should include the title of the grant, the funding agency, the date of submission, the dollar amount, and the role of the candidate (e.g., PI, Co-PI, other).
E. Teaching and Instructional Activities
Information should be formatted in a way that most appropriately reflects the teaching areas and specialties. Common strategies include a listing of courses taught, teaching specialties, workshops attended or conducted, any awards, publications and presentations by students mentored, and students (undergraduate as well as graduate) for whom the faculty member has served as dissertation or thesis advisor (indicate chair or committee member). Include honors theses in the list, and divide the list between those students who have finished and those who are still in progress. Please see the attached appendix for a fuller discussion of how to discuss teaching contributions.
F. Professional Service/Leadership
For major service and leadership contributions, include a short description, the specific role, and the dates of service.
Service should be listed in reverse chronological order, and should be divided into categories based on the following areas:
- Public Service/ Leadership. Information should include name of the organization for whom service was provided and full citations for any written or creative products and where they can be obtained.
- University, College, and Department/School Professional Service/Leadership. This should include a list of committees or task forces on which you have served, your role on the committee, a one-sentence description of the committee’s responsibilities (if this is not evident from the name of the committee), and citations for any major written reports from the committee/task force.
- Professional Service/Leadership (academic and non-academic). Cite speeches given at professional meetings, membership on committees of professional societies, offices in professional organizations during the evaluation period.
Indicate what percent (if any) of the project was paid consulting.
G. Recognition and Awards
Cite awards or recognitions, and include the name of the award, the organization that determines the award, and the date the award was received .
H. Professional Memberships
Include academic as well as community memberships.
Section 2: Personal Statement
(The personal statement should be paginated; the name of the faculty member should be on each page.)
The personal statement is the faculty member’s opportunity to put into context his or her scholarly/creative work, teaching and service/leadership contributions. The personal statement thus addresses all three of these areas. Please be aware that the level of achievement reflected in the narrative of each section will depend on the level of RPT review. Therefore, it is expected that there will be variations in the components and documentation, reflecting the different stages of an academic career.
The narrative is a coherent document, with an organizing thesis, much like any scholarly paper. To this end, each section is part of a whole and evidence must be provided for the assertion in the narrative. In order to be useful in the context of RPT review, the narrative should be as concise as possible. In total, the narrative should not be more than eight pages in length. Please use 12 pt. font; the narrative can be single-spaced, with double spaces between paragraphs, but with at least one-inch margins.
A. Scholarship or Discovery Contributions
This section provides a context for the faculty member’s research, community engaged scholarship, or creative work within the discipline. In doing so, the faculty member should explain the significance of his/her/their contribution(s) to the scholarship of the field. It should also explain how individual contributions fit into the faculty member’s overall scholarship plan. It is important also to put this work into the context of future directions. Supporting evidence must be cited in the personal statement and accessible to the reviewers in the dossier materials. Items that do not directly support statements in the narrative itself should not be included on the website. Make sure to identify in the text the corresponding document and label all pieces of evidence with identifiers.
B. Teaching
This section is a reflective narrative that provides the reader with specific examples of the writer’s teaching effectiveness and directs reviewers to the supporting material evidence in your dossier materials. This document is not intended to list everything the faculty member has done but instead to give a holistic and full picture of the faculty member in the role of teacher. The narrative should include each of the following five components, although it is not necessary to divide the discussion into five discrete sections.
1. Teaching Goals or Philosophy Statement of overall teaching goals or philosophy (i.e., guiding principles, rationale, “how I teach / why I teach the way I do,” etc.)
- What core beliefs (i.e. attitudes; concerns; values; principles) about teaching and learning guide the faculty member?
- Has the faculty member’s core beliefs developed from the faculty member’s experiences as a student; the challenges faced as a teacher, an understanding of pedagogical literature; something else?
- How does the faculty member’s teaching reflect these core beliefs?
- What goals does the faculty member have for student learning? How does the faculty member help students from all backgrounds and identities reach those goals?
- Have general statements made about teaching been linked to the specifics of one’s teaching? Have the specific details about one’s teaching been linked to a broader overview?
2. Teaching Strategy/Strengths/Development
The purpose of this component is to describe a specific teaching challenge or approach undertaken by the faculty member during the relevant time period (i.e. from appointment to end of 5th year if up for promotion and tenure) to illustrate the teaching strategy. Discussion should include outcomes of the undertaking.
3. Student and Peer Evaluations
The purpose of this component is to describe and document teaching effectiveness as demonstrated by trends of the evaluations as well as the identified strengths and challenges. This section should be subdivided into two parts:
- A. Student Evaluations
- B. Peer Evaluations
What are the trends in these evaluations?
- What circumstances might help to explain changes or uneven distribution across courses i.e. new teaching techniques; an elective becoming a required course; a “gateway” course that is particularly difficult for students?
- If information about evaluations received by other instructors teaching the same course is made available to faculty: how do your evaluations compare to those received by other instructors teaching the same course?
- What suggestions from students and colleagues have you addressed or not addressed and why?
- Are there important aspects of teaching and learning that haven’t been addressed in formal evaluations? Can you use alternative evaluation instruments to supplement the formal evaluation materials (e.g., midterm evaluations, additional questions posed to students, interviews – by a neutral colleague – of students?)
4. Future Directions / Goals for Teaching
The purpose of this component is to describe short and long-term plans for ongoing development and future directions.
- What specific goals (short and long-term) has the faculty member set for their/his/her teaching?
- On what strengths would the faculty member like to build?
- Where are the faculty member’s “cutting edges” – what would he/they/she hope to explore / refine / expand / improve?
- What steps can does the faculty member envision taking to further develop her/his/their teaching? Courses? Improve student learning?
- Are there new teaching strategies the faculty member would like to explore? New course development or revisions? New assessment methods?
5. Teaching Enrichment and Scholarly Activities
The purpose of this component is to describe activities undertaken to enrich and enhance teaching both personally (professional development) and at the institution or the teaching profession in the academy.
- What teaching enrichment workshops (seminars, conferences, symposia, etc.) has the faculty member attended during the relevant time period and have these activities been applied to the teaching and to what effect?
- Has the faculty member engaged in professional development dedicated to improving teaching and mentoring students from all backgrounds and identities?
- Are there other enrichment activities that have significantly affected the teaching? How?
- Has the faculty member engaged in scholarly activities related to teaching (presenting papers, publishing, leading workshops, etc.)? How do these relate to one’s teaching activities at UNC Charlotte (enhance teaching, the teaching of disciplinary colleagues, interdisciplinary teaching or teaching outside the discipline)
Documentary Evidence for Teaching
The following items must be included as part of the dossier. It is separate from the eight-page self-assessment:
- List of course titles and numbers, credit hours and enrollments with brief elaboration of responsibilities if necessary. Identify new courses taught and or use of new technologies or new methodologies.
- Student evaluations
- Peer review report(s)
- Because course and peer evaluations are only two ways to assess teaching, the faculty member is encouraged to include other items that will help reviewers understand their teaching contributions.
A. List of course materials prepared for students that provide insight into teaching style. These should be a sample of quality materials rather than a complete catalog of your materials.
B. Summary of interactions/research with undergraduate and graduate students outside the classroom that provide context to the individualized instruction in which the faculty member has participated.
C. A selection of student work, i.e. essays, papers, exams, projects, lab reports, publications, etc. from both high and low achieving students with instructor feedback.
D. Evidence of effective supervision of theses i.e. numbers of students supervised and number graduating, publications produced from the theses, career choices.
E. List of participation in seminars, workshops, research-based readings and professional meetings focused on instruction and learning with a short description of how this information was implemented or influenced the faculty’s teaching.
F. Contributions to Scholarship of Teaching, i.e. publications, reviews, textbooks, presentations at local, state or national conferences, grants submitted/pending/funded, etc.
G. Student and alumni achievements
C. Professional Service/Leadership Contributions
The last section of the personal statement should detail the faculty member’s contributions in professional service. This should be written as a narrative that describes the contributions and puts them into the context of the faculty member’s role both in specific arenas (i.e. department/institution/national organization) and more globally. As with previous sections the Other Materials should contain supporting evidence. Items that to do not directly support statements in the narrative itself should not be included. Make sure to identify in the text the corresponding evidence in the faculty dossier and label all files with identifiers.
Section 3: Other Related Material
Evidence to support contributions to Research/Creative Activity; Teaching; Leadership/Service
1. Research/Creative Activity
The faculty member should include, for review, all relevant articles, books, book contracts, grant reviews, etc.
2. Teaching—course evaluations, syllabi, peer reviews, etc.
The following items must be included:
- A. List of course titles and numbers, credit hours and enrollments with brief elaboration of responsibilities if necessary. Identify new courses taught and or use of new technologies or new methodologies.
- B. Student evaluations
- C. Peer review report(s)
Because course and peer evaluations are only two ways to assess teaching, the faculty member is encouraged to include other items that will help reviewers understand their teaching contributions:
- i. List of course materials prepared for students that provide insight into teaching style. These should be a sample of quality materials rather than a complete catalog of your materials.
- ii. Summary of interactions/research with undergraduate and graduate students outside the classroom that provide context to the individualized instruction in which the faculty member has participated.
- iii. A selection of student work, i.e. essays, papers, exams, projects, lab reports, publications, etc. from both high and low achieving students with instructor feedback.
- iv. Evidence of effective supervision of theses i.e. numbers of students supervised and number graduating, publications produced from the theses, career choices.
- v. List of participation in seminars, workshops, research-based readings and professional meetings focused on instruction and learning with a short description of how this information was implemented or influenced the faculty’s teaching.
- vi. Contributions to Scholarship of Teaching, i.e. publications, reviews, textbooks, presentations at local, state or national conferences, grants submitted/pending/funded, etc.
3. Leadership/Service—appointment letters, etc. This section will usually contain fewer documents than previous sections.
Five-year plan (not required for reappointments)
Every faculty member must have a written plan in the three clearly identified areas of teaching, research and service over the five-year period between their Tenured Faculty Performance Review (TFPR) or since their most recent promotion, whichever is most recent. The five-year plan will be prepared by the faculty member. It may vary according to department expectations, but will include at a minimum a description of the faculty member’s plans for the five- year period in the three areas noted above. It may also include specific performance goals during this period, timetables for meeting these goals and anticipated resources (grants, reassignment of duties, library, laboratory or other research resources, etc.) that will assist the faculty member in fulfilling their plans in each of the three areas noted above. The five-year plan may be revised and/or reevaluated by the faculty member and Chair annually at the time of the faculty member’s annual review.
The five-year plan will be reviewed by the departmental committee charged with annual review and the Chair in their annual evaluation of the faculty member. Adjustments to the plan may be made, as necessary, by the faculty member in consultation with the chair of his/her department to complement the professional activities of the faculty member in the areas of teaching, research and public service.
Faculty should think about the plan as a blueprint to their next evaluation, in particular, for newly tenured faculty, a blueprint for their promotion to full professor. The following format is recommended:
- The plan should be a series of bullets, not a narrative.
- The plan should be no longer than one page.
- Each area of review should be divided into goals for the early and later parts of the period, with the early time containing goals that are more specific.
For a sample five-year plan, see: Model Five-year Plans
CLAS RPT Documentation Elements of the Candidate Dossier (Revised April 2020) View