The Post-promotion Academic Career Exploration, designed to support faculty as they meet new career opportunities and challenges after promotion, is being expanded this fall to include more faculty who have been newly promoted to associate professor with tenure.
The program’s pilot began last year with faculty who were promoted to associate professor with tenure at U-M in fall 2023, and who did not already have coaching resources in their home units. It is being expanded to those promoted in the fall of 2022 and 2024.
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Approximately 45% of the eligible faculty registered for coaching through the program over the past year, and the response has been quite positive. Applications going forward are being accepted on a rolling basis.
“PACE represents a targeted and individualized approach to faculty needs, with the goals of improving their quality of life on campus, supporting their ongoing academic and professional success, and retaining valuable colleagues at a time when career challenges tend to amplify,” said Sara Blair, vice provost for faculty and academic affairs, arts and humanities.
Consistent with the first year of the pilot, this resource is offered at no cost to individuals or their units. It is limited to those schools or colleges that do not already offer coaching services.
An email invitation to eligible faculty from Provost Laurie McCauley said the program is designed to help faculty members address the opportunities and challenges that come with the transition to senior faculty status.
Core goals include assisting newly tenured faculty with planning to take on new roles in research, scholarship or creative engagement, as well as maintaining work-life balance as their responsibilities expand.
Faculty members may participate in up to eight sessions with an independent coach, focusing on topics that are tailored to meet the specific needs and interests of the faculty member.
“Building out from existing leadership and career development opportunities, the PACE program employs coaching to center the individual needs and challenges of faculty at a key moment in their academic lives and experience,” Blair said. “We anticipate that this will be welcome support for many faculty at this moment of expansion for their work and their careers.”
The PACE program’s design reflects the importance of addressing the needs of senior faculty, as demonstrated in an evidence-based research summary report from ADVANCE. Additionally, ADVANCE brings a depth of experience to this program from more than 20 years of providing faculty programming and support.
“ADVANCE’s long commitment to supporting faculty excellence is reflected in PACE,” said ADVANCE Director Denise Sekaquaptewa. “Building on ADVANCE’s experience in offering coaching programs, PACE addresses the need for career coaching, voiced by faculty at this career stage in ADVANCE studies and nationally. We are pleased that the benefits of career coaching will be more widely available across campus.”
