Tenure

Tenure represents a permanent, forward-looking commitment by the School of Medicine. Granting of tenure is based upon the past achievements of the individual and expectations for future programmatic contributions related to the missions and needs of the department and the School of Medicine. Tenure recognizes and rewards faculty of high quality and demonstrates the School's interest in retaining excellent faculty throughout their productive careers.

Tenure is a professional status involving an assurance of continued service appropriate to rank and is recognized and granted formally by Dean of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Tenure is indispensable to the success of an institution in fulfilling its obligations to students, in maintaining academic freedom, and in contributing to knowledge and human health.

Recommendations for tenure are considered separately from appointment and promotion recommendations.

Full-Time Faculty

The financial obligation to all tenured full-time faculty is limited to the minimum base salary for rank established by the School of Medicine.

For a tenured full-time School of Medicine-based faculty member, the obligation of the School to fund the faculty member's salary will be limited to funds in the faculty member's Department unless the Dean has given prior written approval that other institutional funds may be committed.

For a tenured full-time School of Medicine-based faculty member whose Department or Institute is eliminated, resource allocation, including space and salary, will be reviewed in accordance with relevant policies.

For tenured full-time faculty member whose base salary is paid by an affiliated institution, financial support will be limited by the affiliate institution's funds and will be subject to the written policies of the affiliate institution. Such policies of the affiliate must be consistent with the policies for Icahn School of Medicine-based faculty described above.

Voluntary Faculty

Tenure for voluntary faculty members carries no financial obligation for the Department, the affiliate or the School of Medicine.

Faculty members eligible for tenure may be recommended by the respective Department Chair to the Committee on Appointments, Promotions and Tenure. All applications for tenured positions will be reviewed by an Ad Hoc committee and subsequently reviewed by the full Committee on Appointments, Promotions and Tenure. All subsequent procedures for appointment or promotion to a tenured position will follow the guidelines as outlined in Chapter IV, Faculty Appointments and Promotions.

Faculty are accorded tenure with the expectation that they will continue to serve the Institution at a level commensurate to rank. Chairs, Institute Directors, and the Dean are responsible for making resource allocation decisions regarding all faculty as frequently as is necessary.

Once granted, tenure is maintained continuously and can be withdrawn only under one of the following conditions:

1. If a full-time tenured faculty member voluntarily relinquishes full-time status and accepts a part-time position. However, a full-time tenured faculty member who for personal reasons requests and is approved for a temporary part-time role in the School may retain tenure for up to three years; during this temporary part-time period the individual cannot be employed by another entity (see also Temporary Reduction of Full-Time Effort). 
2. Upon retirement or resignation;
3. If a full-time or voluntary faculty member receives his/her entire base salary from an affiliated institution and either:
   1. The affiliated institution terminates the employment of the individual; and/or
   2. The affiliation agreement between Icahn School of Medicine and the affiliated institution is terminated;
4. If the faculty member is to be terminated for cause. For further information on termination of tenured faculty see this Chapter III, Termination of Faculty and Faculty Disciplinary Tribunal.

Updated May, 2021