Evaluation Procedure

The interim evaluation procedure is initiated by the department in the final two months before the end of the third year of a junior professorship. It is intended to reveal strengths and weaknesses at an early career stage so that any shortcomings that might prevent a later appointment can be addressed and to allow junior professors to assess their career at a point where pursuing alternative paths is still feasible.  

The evaluation covers all areas of the professor’s academic activity: research, teaching, and academic service, although the latter is generally given lower priority.  

The final evaluation follows more or less the same process as the interim evaluation, but it also includes reports by external evaluators. It is initiated by the department at the latest two months before the end of the fifth year of a junior professorship. The criteria for the final evaluation are made clear to the professor from the very beginning, and are often available to applicants when the position is advertised. The evaluation criteria cannot be changed once the professorship has begun.

If a tenure-track professor becomes a parent, whether by birth or adoption, or takes a leave of absence to care for a family member, they can request a pause in the traditional schedule. The tenure evaluation will then be delayed by the corresponding amount of time the person is away from their position. An early final evaluation may also be conducted, sometimes even prior to an interim evaluation, in order to counter an offer of an appointment elsewhere. But passing the final evaluation does not necessarily entail any right to an early promotion to a W3 professorship.  

The final tenure evaluation process cannot be repeated.