Mid-career faculty comprise the largest component of the academic workforce. But what do people really know about them? What do they experience? What are their needs? In contrast to the large and growing body of empirical research on their early-career colleagues, the research on them is far from robust, offering relatively few suggestions for how…

"Gender Differences at Critical Transitions in the Careers of Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Faculty" presents new and surprising findings about career differences between female and male full-time, tenure-track, and tenured faculty in science, engineering, and mathematics at the nation's top research universities. Much of this…

A survey of 314 male and female faculty in criminology and sociology found that faculty women are more likely than men to leave academic positions, and women who interrupt careers commonly do so for a job-seeking spouse. Women experience significant losses in tenure and earnings as a result of career disruptions. (MSE)

A new, validated survey instrument, SPEAR (Superintendents' Professional Expectations and Advancement Review), asked top executives about their opinions, skills, perceptions on a range of career concerns, and future interests. Of the nation's 13,500 school superintendents, a random sample of 2,979 was selected, segmented by district size. The…

Two Oakland University (Michigan) peer support programs have helped improve faculty performance in scholarship, teaching, and service by helping faculty cope with professional demands. One group orients the faculty member to the campus community and department and aids him/her in progress toward tenure and promotion. The second promotes…