Pre-Tenure Leave

Eligibility for Pre-Tenure Leave

To support specific scholarly or creative work or other professional development, an assistant professor on the tenure track is eligible for a one-semester leave with pay and full benefits in either semester of a year after three years of full-time teaching at Bates, subject to the conditions stated below.

Prior to application, the colleague must have received the doctoral degree or other appropriate terminal degree.

A colleague granted two or more years’ credit toward the probationary period for tenure is not eligible for this pre-tenure leave.

Scheduling, Relationship to Tenure Clock, and Post-Tenure Sabbatical

When leave schedules within a department conflict with the department/program’s curricular obligations, priority shall be given to the pre-tenure leave. Potential conflicts between pre-tenure leaves and department or program obligations shall be resolved by the department or program chair, in consultation with the division chairs, if necessary, but within the terms of this policy.

The pre-tenure leave counts as service to the College and therefore does not change the date of the tenure decision. If the faculty member elects to take a leave of absence in the remaining semester of the year in which a pre-tenure leave is taken, the tenure decision may be delayed by one year. The Dean of the Faculty, in consultation with the faculty member, decides whether the decision will be delayed. The determination must be acknowledged in writing by the faculty member by the first day of winter semester of the year preceding the first opportunity for tenure review.

A one-semester pre-tenure leave does not change the date of the first sabbatical, which is available following fourteen semesters of full-time teaching, of which the pre-tenure leave counts as one. If the faculty member combines a pre-tenure leave with a leave of absence in the remaining semester of the year in which a pre-tenure leave is taken, and if the faculty member is later granted tenure, the first sabbatical leave with pay and benefits is available following twenty semesters of full-time teaching, which includes the year of the pre-tenure leave.

Teaching Responsibilities

To understand the teaching responsibilities of a year that includes a one-semester pre-tenure leave, please refer to the FAQ page.

Application and Academic Planning

  • Please use this form to apply by submitting a 1-page description of the proposed scholarship or project(s), understandable to colleagues outside your field of expertise. The proposal should be framed around the impact on professional development as an active scholar/artist and highly effective educator, as detailed in the criteria for tenure and promotion in the Faculty Handbook.
  • Please coordinate in advance with your chair, who is expected to include the pre-tenure leave on the 3-year plan that is submitted each year to the Dean of Faculty.  Chairs can refer to the FAQ page for guidance about the likelihood of replacement for faculty on various kinds of leave.

Reporting Obligations

  • Following completion of the leave, the colleague shall submit to the Dean of the Faculty and to the department/program chair a written report of no more than 2 pages summarizing the work accomplished during the leave and how it relates to professional development as a scholar/artist and educator. 
  • This report must be submitted no later than the end of the first semester of teaching following completion of the leave. Upload a PDF of your report here. 
  • Submission of this report is a prerequisite for access to internal sources of scholarly funding, including conference travel funds and the Bates Faculty Development Fund.