Self-assessment will count for promotions: UGC

To bring about a more transparent and objective system of assessing teacher performance and provide incentives for improving quality, the University Grants Commission has announced that teachers will be evaluated on the basis of self-assessment reports on three major counts – their contribution to teaching, professional development and co-curricular contribution; and publications and research contribution.

Teachers will be eligible for promotion from assistant professor to associate professor after a minimum of 12 years, of which three years would be in the grade pay of Rs. 8,000. In addition to securing the minimum qualifying scores in the three dimensions, an assistant professor should have at least three publications. Although a PhD will no longer be a mandatory requirement for promotion as associate professor, teachers in colleges with M. Phil or PhD will require a minimum of two publications and one publication respectively during their tenure as assistant professor.

Similarly, an associate professor in universities will become eligible for promotion to professor after three years subject to their meeting other criteria and having a minimum of five publications.

For selection in open positions, the minimum requirements of research and publications are more stringent than those for career advancement. But teachers will be eligible to apply for open posts of associate professor and professor with 8 and 10 years of experience.

Teaching performance

Teaching performance will have the maximum weightage — close to 70 per cent for a college teacher seeking promotion as associate professor. It will be assessed on the basis of a transparent system — the Performance Based Assessment System — in which scores are assigned to each sub-dimension or Academic Performance Indicator. Universities and colleges will be expected to set up Internal Quality Assessment Cells which will keep the annual database for individual and institutional performance.