In our most recent "how can we help you?" thread, Anon writes:
I have a question about moving from a VAP to a TT-job. Is it possible, in your experience, to count the years you have been VAP in the tenure clock when you move to a TT-job? For instance, if you had been VAP for 2 years, then you get a TT-job and you can go for tenure after 4 years. I'm interested in this especially in terms of articles published during the VAP period. Thanks!
A very good question. It's important to know the answer to, and my sense is that a good number of job-marketeers don't know much about it. 'Tenured' answered:
The rules around "prior service credit" as it is sometimes called, vary widely. I was able to get some credit for prior service at other institutions – for 5 years, they gave me three years credit, the maximum the institution would give. It does, though, add pressure to you. You are expected to earn tenure on the publications you do AT the new job (at least at some places). But I have seen people told they cannot count post doc positions, and other temporary positions as prior credit. So some institutions only count years at another tenured positions, or years in full time employment (ie. where your title is Visiting Assistant Professor). So count on nothing. In fact, I was not told how much prior credit I would get until AFTER I started the job!
My experience is that Tenured is right on a variety of counts. Some schools have very strong policies against awarding 'prior credit'. They may have policies not only against cutting the number of years before one can go up to tenure, but also policies against counting anything you have done before being hired toward tenure. Other schools may be willing to shorten time to tenure, but still not count previously published work and the like. In cases like this, it might sound great if a school tells you that you can come up for tenure after four years. But in that case, as Tenured notes, you'll be under even greater pressure to publish a ton during those four years, since your previous publications won't count.
Finally, other schools can be much more open to prior credit, not only shortening time to tenure but also counting prior publications and the like. This, obviously, is the ideal case. I received three years toward tenure at my current institution, and my publications during that period counted. However, my sense is that this was only because my previous six years before being hired were in a non-TT position at my same institution. The important thing is to know these before accepting an offer. Tenured got lucky, being awarded three years of credit after accepting their job. However, other people aren't so lucky, accepting jobs thinking they may get prior credit when they won't. The safe thing to do is to negotiate these matters before signing a contract–and this is crucial: whatever is negotiated, get it in writing in your contract. I've heard horror stories of job-candidates being promised things in negotiations only to have administrators (unethically) change the deal post-hire.
But these are just my thoughts. What are your thoughts and experiences, particularly those of you who have been awarded prior credit?
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