(1) Nil. (2) Nil. (3) Nil. (4) The Vice-Chancellor and President will invite applications for promotion annually at least two months in advance of the closing date for applications. This invitation will include a timetable for completion of the promotion process. (5) Applicants and Deans/Directors should meet to discuss applications before they are submitted. Applicants are also strongly encouraged to seek guidance from their Academic Supervisor and an academic mentor. (6) Applications should include a complete list of achievements, publications, etc. Each application will be assessed on an all-of-career basis, taking account of the candidate's career trajectory, with an emphasis on the achievements (grants, supervision, publications, etc.) in the last five years and/or since the last promotion and/or since appointment, whichever is the shorter period. (7) Applicants must clearly state the percentage of their contribution to publications, must include the number of pages in books, the page numbers of articles or chapters in books and must use the referencing system recognised as appropriate in their discipline. Publications in alternative media should include an explanation of their content and significance. (8) Where appropriate, the application should include citation data from the relevant citation index for each publication, excluding self-citations. It is acknowledged that citations will only be supplied where they are routinely available. (9) The applicant must provide evidence of information in the application (e.g. publications, research grants, consultancies etc.) to the Dean or Director, Research Institute, who must verify that the evidence has been sighted. This information must be provided at the time of submitting the application to the Dean or Director. No evidence should be submitted to the Promotions Coordinator with the application, except for the three copies of the five cited works referred to in Clause (11) for Level D and Level E applicants, which must be provided within one week of submitting the application. (10) Applicants who are applying for promotion from Level A to Level B, Level B to level C and Level C to Level D must nominate up to five works in their publications list that they regard as the most significant and explain their significance. (11) Applicants who are applying for promotion from Level D to Level E, for fields of "distinguished" activity, the template includes provision for a short comment about the five best, or most significant, publications, or, where appropriate, to demonstrate and provide evidence of other achievements and impacts in the remaining achievement fields. For applicants who are applying for promotion to Level D or Level E, three copies each of these five cited works must be provided to the Promotions Coordinator within one week of submitting the application. Electronic submission of these works is preferred. (12) Applications must be made on the template provided, which consists of a cover sheet (including personal details, academic qualifications and employment history), the written case for promotion, which should not exceed 4,000 words (including all content such as: tables, pictures and graphs) for Levels B, C and D and 6,000 words (including all content such as: tables, pictures and graphs) for Level E applicants, and evidence of achievements, as included in the application template. (13) To support their case for Achievement in Teaching and Learning, all applicants are required to submit supporting evidence of their teaching excellence including Student Feedback on Teaching (SFT) and Student Feedback on Unit (SFU) results and commentary, as applicable for all units taught at the University in the past five years, or since their appointment at the University, and a summary of action taken in response to the student feedback. (14) Evidence of the initiation, or undertaking, of successful entrepreneurial activities on behalf of the University is admissible to support a case for promotion. While such activities may not fall clearly into any one of the fields of attainment listed above, candidates should include any relevant evidence under the field to which it seems, in the light of the activity involved, most appropriate. (15) The Office of Research Services Researchers Portal data should be utilised by all University researchers for registration of their outcomes and in cases where other sources are utilised in applications for promotion applicants should explain why alternative sources have been selected. The Promotions Committee may, at its discretion, seek validation of claims relating to research achievements from the Office of Research Services. (16) Only engagement projects that have been approved conducted and recorded in Tracking and Improving Community Engagement (TICE) and within University policies are eligible to be considered in support of an application for promotion. (17) Applicants are required to address all the requirements for promotion as outlined in both the Requirements for Promotion and the Criteria for Promotion of the relevant promotion policy, (i.e. all three fields of achievement), except where not applicable, in which case, the requirements for promotion outlined in the relevant policy will apply; paying particular attention to the relevant general standard and descriptors contained in Appendix 1, Appendix 2 and the Expanded Descriptors document (see Associated Information). (18) Although applicants may refer to achievements across the criteria, they must ensure that they do not duplicate their case in more than one criterion. (19) Guidelines, tips and various other resources are available at the academic promotion website to assist in completing the application. Applicants are strongly encouraged to use the guidelines and other resources such as Mentors, their Academic Supervisor and Dean or Director, and to provide evidence of their claims when preparing their application for promotion. (20) Applicants for Levels B, C and D are required to specify for each promotion criterion whether their level of achievement is to be considered by the Promotions Committee as outstanding, meritorious or satisfactory. Definitions of these terms can be found in Appendix 1. (21) Applicants for Level E are required to specify for each promotion criterion whether their level of achievement is to be considered by the Promotions Committee as distinguished or meritorious. Definitions of these terms can be found in Appendix 2. (22) Applicants are invited to provide a brief personal statement on any relevant personal considerations of significance and their impact, that have occurred either during the last five years before the application for promotion is being considered or since the last promotion (but no more than five years), that will facilitate an assessment of their achievements relative to opportunity relevant to their application. Relevant personal circumstances or arrangements can include: (23) Works accepted for publication but not published before the closing date for applications may be included in the publications list if they are marked as such. Applicants are required to demonstrate the quality and significance of any such publications and evidence of acceptance by the journal or publisher will need to be provided to the relevant Dean or Director, Research Institute for endorsement and submission to the Promotions Coordinator four weeks before the Promotions Committee meets. (24) Applicants may provide a one-page supplementary statement where relevant information which was not available at the date of the close of applications subsequently becomes available. Supplementary statements must be provided to the Promotions Coordinator (and copied to the Dean/Director) no later than four weeks prior to the scheduled Promotions Committee meeting. (25) All material cited in the application must be available to the Committee if requested. (26) Applicants are required to submit an electronic Microsoft Word version of the application to the Promotions Coordinator (email: promotions@westernsydney.edu.au) by the closing date specified in the notice calling for applications. At the same time, applicants should also submit a copy of his or her application to his or her Dean or Director, Research Institute (if not located in a School) and Academic Supervisor. Applicants must provide evidence of their publications, research grants, SFTs and SFUs and consultancies etc. referred to in the application to the Dean/Director for sighting at the time of submitting their application. This evidence will be verified in the Dean/Director report. (27) All applications for promotion will be acknowledged by the Promotions Coordinator within one week of receipt of the application. (28) The Promotions Coordinator will request a recommendation report from the relevant Dean or Director within seven working days of the closing date for applications. The Report is to be completed by the Dean or Director in consultation with the Academic Supervisor. The recommendation must be co-signed by the Academic Supervisor and submitted to the Promotions Coordinator on the required template within 20 working days of the request. The template contains provision for addition or qualification by the Academic Supervisor. The relevant Dean or Director may not delegate the submission of a recommendation report, unless they are on approved leave or have a conflict of interest. This delegation must be with agreement from the relevant Committee Chair. (29) Prior to submission of the recommendation report, the Dean or Director and Academic Supervisor are required to read the application in full. On completion of the recommendation report, the Dean or Director must submit the report to the Promotions Coordinator, who will in turn send this out to the applicant for their feedback if they wish to provide it. (30) If an applicant disagrees with any aspect of the Dean's or Director's recommendation report, he or she has a right of reply. The applicant must send a response (no more than one page) to the Promotions Coordinator within seven working days of the receipt of the copy of the Dean's or Director's report. The Promotions Coordinator must send a copy of the response to the Dean or Director for their consideration. (31) Once the Promotions Committee has met, an applicant cannot normally withdraw his or her application except in the following circumstances: (32) Applicants are required to provide the names, addresses (email and postal) of three referees who may be consulted about the applicant's suitability in terms of the criteria for promotion. Specifically: (33) All referees' reports will be requested by the Promotions Coordinator immediately following receipt of applications. Applicants should try to avoid nominating members of the Promotions Committee as referees, as well as Academic Supervisors, who are consulted by the Dean/Director for input into their report. There is provision for comments by the Academic Supervisor within this Dean/Director report. (34) While applicants may provide their nominated referees with relevant supporting documentation the University will make the formal request for written reports from the nominated referees and provide those referees with copies of the application for promotion. (35) Referee reports are confidential and will not be forwarded to the applicant at any stage of the process nor after the outcome of the application is known. (36) The applicant may inform the relevant Dean or Director, via their application, of those people whom the applicant would not wish the University to approach as an Independent Assessor. Applicants electing to exercise this option will be required to provide a written case to justify any such request. (37) The relevant Dean or Director and the Academic Supervisor will confer, without reference to the applicant, to nominate a panel of ten experts, with at least three international, to act as independent assessors. The independent assessors must be experts within the relevant discipline at full professorial level and with a significant publication level, or if this is not appropriate they should be readily identified as distinguished leaders in their field. The list of independent assessors must be completed within one week of receiving the applicant's application and forwarded to the promotions coordinator. The list should be provided in order of preference for contact purposes and note that at least one international assessor will be selected from the listing. (38) The Chair of the Promotions Committee will evaluate those listed to determine their suitability or otherwise and submit the approved list to the Promotions Coordinator who will invite three of the nominees to assess the various works. The selected assessors will review the significant works nominated by the applicant, in addition to providing information on the standing of the applicant in their particular discipline. (39) Independent assessors and their reports are confidential and will not be forwarded to the applicant at any stage of the process nor after the outcome of the application is known. The identity of the nominated independent assessors is to be treated with the utmost confidentiality. (40) Each Committee will make a determination on whether the application is recommended for promotion or not, without being required to interview applicants. Interviews are not normally held for those applying for Levels B to D. The Committee will take into account the application supplied and all associated documentation in making this determination. If the Committee does decide to interview the applicant it will communicate in writing to the applicant those aspects of the application that it wishes to clarify. Interviews are to seek further clarification on certain aspects of the application and new information or material may not be presented. (41) Interviews may be held for those applying for promotion to Level E at the discretion of the Committee. (42) Applicants must not contact a member of a Promotions Committee to discuss their application, except to receive official feedback from the Chair or nominee after results have been notified. (43) Recommendations of the Promotions Committee to the Vice-Chancellor and President to promote must be supported by a minimum of the full complement of the Committee members excluding the Chair, less two members. (44) Having considered the recommendations of the Promotions Committee, the Vice-Chancellor and President will determine which applicants are to be promoted. (45) Each applicant will be notified in writing of the outcome of his or her application within 14 working days of the Vice-Chancellor and President's decision. Written notifications will indicate the Committee's assessment of each of the Fields of Achievement (per the relevant Criteria for Promotion). (46) All successful applicants will be promoted with effect from 1 January of the year following application, unless the Vice-Chancellor and President determines an earlier date for all successful applicants. (47) At the completion of the annual promotions process, the Vice-Chancellor and President will report to the Academic Senate about the following: (48) The composition of the Promotions Committee will have regard to gender balance, in accordance with University policy, and disciplinary balance. While the Committees should be broadly-based, there is no requirement that all disciplines are represented. The Director, Equity and Diversity may provide advice on the composition of the Committee. (49) The Promotions Committee to consider applications for promotion from Level A to Level B and from Level B to Level C will be cluster based. There will be two clusters - Arts and Business, and Health and Science. (refer to Appendix 3) (50) Applicants to Levels B and C from academic staff not located in a School will be considered by the Promotions Committee deemed by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President, Research and Development to be the most appropriate. (51) Membership of each Level B and Level C Promotions Committee will comprise at least: (52) Membership of the Associate Professor (Level D) Promotions Committee will comprise at least: (53) Membership of the Professor (Level E) Promotions Committee will comprise at least: (54) Where a member of the Promotions Committee is also an Academic Supervisor of any of the applicants they must remove themselves from the discussion relating to those candidates' applications. (55) The Director, Equity and Diversity may be invited to be in attendance, as a non-voting observer. If the Director has any concerns regarding procedural matters in a Committee session, it is expected that he or she will normally raise them with the Chair of the Committee either during the session or, in a written report, immediately afterwards. (56) Members of the academic staff appointed or elected to a Promotions Committee, will normally serve as members of the Committee for a period of two years and are eligible for re-appointment or re-election. (57) All members are expected to be present for meetings of the Promotions Committees. The Vice-Chancellor and President will nominate an appropriate replacement if a committee member is unable to attend or continue to serve once the consideration of applications has commenced (e.g., owing to illness or other unforeseen and unavoidable circumstances). (58) The Promotions Coordinator will ensure that the Committee members have received appropriate orientation in the procedures and practices of the promotions process. (59) Each Promotions Committee will provide a written report to the Vice-Chancellor and President, clearly recommending for promotion applicants who are successful in meeting the promotion criteria and identifying applicants who do not meet the criteria. (60) Unsuccessful applicants for promotion who believe that they have been treated unfairly owing to a defect in the process followed during the promotion round, and who consider that defect has materially affected the decision of the Promotions Committee, may lodge a formal appeal. The grounds of any such appeal are limited to: (61) Any such appeal must be submitted in writing to the Executive Director, Human Resources within 20 working days of receiving the outcome notification, specifying the procedural grounds on which the appeal is made per the above clause. (62) Appeals by applicants rejecting the decision of the Academic Promotion Committee are not permitted. (63) Appeals must refer to the Promotions process and cannot be based on advice received after notification of the result. (64) A Promotions Appeals Committee will be established as needed to consider appeals from all levels. (65) The Promotions Appeals Committee will consist of three members, approved by the Vice-Chancellor and President, being: (66) Any person, including staff, involved in any part of the decision-making process regarding an appellant's application should not be a member of the Promotions Appeals Committee. (67) In the case of the staff members of the Promotions Appeals Committee, the nominees will be University staff members, classified as full-time (being half-time or greater), who have accepted and entered upon duty in a position with a duration of one year or more. (68) Each appellant is to be notified of the membership of the Committee and be given the opportunity to present a case for the consideration of the Vice-Chancellor and President, where there is any perceived conflict of interest. Any case claiming perceived conflict of interest is to be made to the Vice-Chancellor and President via the Promotion Coordinator within five working days of notification of the committee composition. (69) Members of the Committee are entitled to examine all documents relevant to the appeal under consideration, including referees' reports and independent assessor reports that have been submitted in confidence to the University. The deliberations of the Committee are confidential. Control of documents available to the Committee is the responsibility of the Committee Secretary. (70) The Chair of the Promotions Committee may be required to present an oral statement to the Promotions Appeals Committee. (71) The Chair of a Promotions Committee shall not receive or consider the Report of any Appeals Committee unless the appeal is upheld. All proceedings of the Promotions Appeals Committee shall be conducted in the strictest confidence. (72) The Promotions Appeals Committee will then advise the Vice-Chancellor and President via a formal written report of their recommendation to uphold or reject the appeal. The appellant will be notified of the decision of the Vice-Chancellor and President to uphold or reject the appeal within five working days of the decision being made. (73) In the event of a successful appeal, the Chair of the Appeals Committee will furnish an account of the reasons for upholding the appeal to the Chair of the original Promotions Committee. The original Promotions Committee will then reconvene (as far as practicable) to reassess the application for promotion while taking every care to avoid the procedural issue that led to the successful appeal. The outcome will be forwarded to the Vice-Chancellor and President for approval. The applicant will be advised of the outcome of the reconsideration of their application within five working days of the Vice-Chancellor and President's decision. Following this decision, there is no further avenue for appeal open. (74) Refer to the following documents attached as associated information:Promotions - Academic Promotion Procedures
Section 1 - Purpose and Context
Section 2 - Definitions
Section 3 - Policy Statement
Section 4 - Procedures
Part A - Application Method
Part B - Submission of Applications
Part C - Referees
Part D - Independent Assessors - for Associate Professor and Professor Applicants Only
Part E - Determination and Notification
Part F - Promotion Committees
Part G - Appeals
Section 5 - Guidelines
View Current
This is not a current document. It has been repealed and is no longer in force.
Candidates are not required to describe specific details about sensitive issues such as a medical illness; however to assist the Committee it is recommended that candidates indicate the impact that this has had on their career trajectory.