{"id":146695,"date":"2026-09-17T09:31:38","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T13:31:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/?post_type=bu-article&p=146695"},"modified":"2026-09-17T11:04:54","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T15:04:54","slug":"mentorship-program-helps-junior-faculty-climb-the-academic-ladder","status":"publish","type":"bu-article","link":"https:\/\/www.bumc.bu.edu\/camed\/medicine\/articles\/2026\/mentorship-program-helps-junior-faculty-climb-the-academic-ladder\/","title":{"rendered":"Mentorship Program Helps Junior Faculty Climb the Academic Ladder"},"content":{"rendered":"\t
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Assistant Professor Marisol Lopez, PhD, MS (left), being mentored by Professor Judith Linden, MD.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMentorship Program Helps Junior Faculty Climb the Academic Ladder<\/strong>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Assistant professors paired with senior faculty mentors who understand the path to promotion\u00a0<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n
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September 17, 2026<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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Marisol Lopez, PhD, MS, came to Boston University four years ago as an assistant professor of physiology. In the decade prior to her hiring, she\u2019d worked her way up the academic ladder from public school teacher to teaching physiology to graduate, dental, and medical students after earning both her master\u2019s and doctoral degrees.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Never one to rest on her laurels, Lopez now is working on the next rung\u2014a promotion to associate professor. It\u2019s the biggest step of her career thus far, requiring her to have a national reputation in her field, backed by letters written by fellow experts attesting to her standing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGetting to the associate professor level is going to be hard. It takes a lot of effort and dedication,\u201d said Lopez. Arriving at BU from a faculty position at a small Wisconsin college, she had to learn the language of academic promotion at a large, research-oriented institution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was not familiar with, for example, the ‘arm\u2019s-length letter’ [an impartial evaluation from an external expert with no close personal or professional ties],\u201d she said. \u201cI needed to increase my involvement with professional societies to be able to develop those relationships.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a participant in the Propelling Rise of Faculty (PRoF) program, Lopez gained a partner in that effort when she was paired with mentor Judith Linden, MD, professor of emergency medicine, executive vice chair in the department of emergency medicine, and a teacher at the school for 32 years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Elaine Lee, PhD, director of the Grants Strategy Office.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Initiated in 2022 by Dean Ad Interim and Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs Hee-Young Park, PhD, the program pairs an early career faculty member, with five or fewer years as an assistant professor, with a faculty mentor who supports their professional development, research grant applications, and efforts to become associate professor. The program focuses on publications and scholarly projects, establishing collaborations at the University and around the country, gaining sponsorship from senior faculty, and managing work-life balance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDean Park had noticed that clinicians and clinician educators weren\u2019t getting promoted as frequently. To design PRoF, we looked at what they needed to know, and how could we amplify their record so we could get those promotions to go through,\u201d said Elaine Lee, PhD, director of the Grants Strategy Office and clinical associate professor of medical sciences & education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The academic ladder progresses from assistant professor to associate professor and, finally, to full professor. In its first three years, PRoF had 93 participants, expanding exponentially from its initial 2022 cohort of six participants. Of those, 24 received grant funding and seven attained the rank of associate professor, typically a four-to-five-year process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

David Greer, MD, professor and chair of neurology and a PRoF mentor, said publishing impactful research at a national level is fundamental to promotion. Receiving federally funded grants and presenting at national conferences are also connected to national recognition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cThe most important thing for the University is that the [arm\u2019s-length] letter writers from outside peer institutions speak to your national reputation. Importantly, they need to say not only that you meet the criteria for promotion at BU, but you meet criteria for promotion at their institution,\u201d said Greer. \u201cThat tells BU that you have a national reputation, because you would meet the bar for promotion at any place you could go.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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David Greer, MD<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a really tough road, and it\u2019s good to have someone who understands the process,\u201d said Lopez. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But why climb that ladder?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs you increase your academic status, it enhances your professional satisfaction and career longevity, also opening up additional leadership opportunities,\u201d said Linden. Still it can be difficult to balance the daily demands of teaching, research, and clinical work with the extracurricular effort required for promotion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dean Park had noticed that clinicians and clinician educators weren\u2019t getting promoted as frequently. To design PRoF, we looked at what they needed to know, and how could we amplify their record so we could get those promotions to go through.<\/div>