Young Faculty Development Programme (Group of Young Academic Professionals)

STRUCTURE OF THE YOUNG FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

Young faculty support program is an annually renewed group of young academic professionals. It includes young faculty – both lecturers and researchers, and there's a specially devised program aimed at adapting and developing their professional skills. Members of the group get extra opportunities to improve their skills, establish new professional contacts, and adapt to the university's academic life. There is also a system of starting grants.

THE HIGH-POTENTIAL GROUP INCLUDES SEVERAL CATEGORIES OF MEMBERS:

• «Future professoriate». These are young (under 35) and most academically promising lecturers. One of the major features of this group is that each member possesses a candidate of sciences degree or a PhD from a Western university.
• «New lecturers». These are young lecturers (under 30) who are starting their work at HSE and who don't have more than 24 months of full-time teaching experience at university level.
• «Future lecturers». These are the best undergraduate and PhD students who have proven themselves in research and studying (they actively participate in academic events and show good results in class).
• «New researchers». These are the employees who have been doing research at HSE research centers for young scholars and Institutes full-time for no longer than 24 months.

SELECTION FOR THE YOUNG FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

Each year chairs/research centers/research institutes collect applications to the talent pool. Special criteria are taken into consideration when evaluating the candidates for each of the talent pool categories.

«FUTURE PROFESSORIATE»:

• high quality of teaching (high rating by the students, high level of the courses’ syllabi, development of their own lecture notes and teaching materials);
• active research (scientific publications, materials for writing a dissertation in candidacy for a degree, participation in conferences, awards in research contests);
• high language skills.

«NEW RESEARCHERS»:

• successful completion of the individual study plan (for PhD students);
• active research (scientific publications, preparation for entering a PhD program (for students), materials for writing a dissertation in candidacy for a degree (for PhD students), participation in conferences, awards in research contests);
• teaching experience (including grading papers and developing educational materials).

«FUTURE LECTURERS»:

• high academic performance (for students);
• successful completion of the individual study plan (for PhD students);
• active research (scientific publications, materials for writing a dissertation in candidacy for a degree, participation in conferences, awards in research contests);
• teaching experience.

«NEW LECTURERS»:

The main condition for selection is matching the age and work experience criteria. Selection to the «New lecturer» category isn’t competition- based.

HSE employees can be listed in one category of the young faculty support program for two years. An important requirement is that they stay academically active.

At the end of each year, members of the group provide reports about their research achievements, participation in the contests organized within the program, attendance of advanced trainings, etc. Appointment commission of the Senate makes decision on whether this or that candidate can remain with the young faculty support program for another year basing on his/her individual report.

The lineup of each year’s young faculty support program is approved by HSE rector.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

1. Description of the selection process to the young faculty development programme
2. Current lineup of the different categories of the young faculty development programme

YOUNG FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME PROJECTS VISITING WORKSHOPS

Each year members of the program get an opportunity to participate in the visiting workshops that take place in the Moscow region. They get to know each other in an informal atmosphere, establish professional contacts, share experience with their colleagues and university administration. This is how an integral understanding of the university’s development paths and personal career prospects is formed. During the workshops, the members of the program can take part in discussions and masterclasses and learn about the existing professional development tools (grants, internships, mobility program). This helps the members participate in the university life more actively and plan their academic careers.

Proactive educational projects contest was created specifically to help lecturers, PhD and undergraduate students set forward any initiatives aimed at methodological, organizational, informational and educational support of young lecturers. The contest has already brought up educational materials, courses, and interdisciplinary conferences. There are several interesting initiatives among those already developed as a part of the contest: teacher’s manual and a course for lecturers Case-Method in Teaching; teacher’s manual for corporate network capital analysis; a concept for engaging PhD students into research and helping them improve their dissertation level, etc.

Interdisciplinary research seminars contest in the HSE branches is based on the idea that, by joining their efforts, members of the young faculty support program from various departments can develop and organize an interdisciplinary seminar and engage their colleagues into it. Seminars take place at different HSE branches. During such seminars, faculty members, PhD and undergraduate students from Moscow together with their colleagues from HSE branches discuss important research, educational and applied problems in an interdisciplinary perspective.

A group that represents various departments and categories of the young faculty support program and at least one of HSE branches can apply.

BENEFITS OF THE YOUNG FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

What is young faculty support program? It is:

• a way to forward academic activities through various contests and workshops;
• a system of starting grants for young lecturers and researchers;
• a opportunity to reman the faculty with new, promising specialists: young faculty support program projects help reveal those most active and help them develop their potential and secure a stable position at the university;
• a way to nourish already existing professional contacts among representatives of different departments and branches and establish new ones. This is reached through interdisciplinary seminars and other projects aimed at supporting joint work of the faculty from different departments, branches, and categories;

• an opportunity to get to know HSE’s benefits in detail at the very beginning of one’s career: members of the program are young HSE employees, who are actively involved into the university’s academic life, who get acquainted with university administration, and who learn about the development opportunities from the very first career steps;
• a unifying element of corporate culture that eliminates communication barriers between departments;
• «teaching through action»: young specialists acquire project-, contest- and course-development experience.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Academic Development Office: academdevelopment@hse.ru