LONDON’S GLOBAL UNIVERSITY
             UCL Academic Careers Framework
             July 2018
       UCL Academic 
       Careers 
       Framework
                         Contents                                   How to use the UCL Academic 
                                                                    Careers Framework
                         How to use the UCL Academic          2     The UCL Academic Careers Framework is 
                         Careers Framework                          designed to support every type of academic 
                                                                    career path at UCL. Whether you deliver research 
                          UCL Academic Careers Framework     3      and education in equal measure, specialise 
                                                                    in public engagement or enterprise or focus 
                          Research                           5      on teaching and institutional citizenship, the 
                                                                    framework makes sure that personal impact is 
                          Grade 7                            6      measured consistently across UCL.
                          Grade 8                            7      To help plan and support career development 
                          Grade 9                            8      and recognise achievements, the UCL Academic 
                          Grade 10                           10     Careers Framework is designed to be used in a 
                                                                    number of ways by staff and managers. 
                                                                    For instance, it can be used for:
                          Education                          12
                                                                      • building a case for promotion
                          Grade 7                            13
                          Grade 8                            14       • assessing cases for promotion
                          Grade 9                            15       • preparing for appraisals 
                          Grade 10                           17       • identifying skill gaps
                                                                      • discussing career trajectories
                          Enterprise & External Engagement   18
                                                                      • identifying development opportunities
                          Grade 7                            19
                          Grade 8                            20       • designing new roles and drawing up job 
                                                                       descriptions
                          Grade 9                            21
                          Grade 10                           22       • succession planning
                                                                      • considering cases for reward and recognition.
                          Institutional Citizenship          23     UCL Human Resources can advise on all the 
                          Grade 7                            24     above and the UCL HR web pages set out more 
                                                                    detailed guidance e.g. on academic promotions.
                          Grade 8                            25
                          Grade 9                            26     www.ucl.ac.uk/hr
                          Grade 10                           27
          2
                                                                                                                            UCL2034
           UCL Academic Careers Framework
           UCL’s long-range strategy, UCL 2034,                       For each grade, the threshold research and 
           acknowledges that reward for staff, and                    education statements articulate the pre-requisite 
           recognition of their achievements, is key to the           qualities expected of all staff on academic 
           university’s wider ambitions for its research,             contracts at that grade, and those seeking 
           education, innovation and enterprise activities.           to make a case for promotion to that grade.  
           In order to facilitate that recognition and reward,        Relevant threshold criteria also apply to staff on 
           we have developed the Academic Careers                     research and teaching fellow contracts.
           Framework. For each of grades 7-10, the                    Core activities under both research and teaching 
           framework brings together typical activities,              will apply frequently to academic staff with a 
           networks and impact indicators. It seeks to                mixed portfolio – i.e. those who are engaged in 
           describe and codify the types of activity that may         research and teaching – as well as to research 
           feature within an academic career, at an individual        and teaching fellow staff. All academic, research 
           grade, and across grades over time.                        and teaching staff are expected to demonstrate at 
           These descriptions can be used as reference                least some core activities under enterprise/external 
           points for staff planning careers, to support              engagement and/or institutional citizenship.  
           appraisal discussions and by those preparing               Relevant specialist activities are likely to be 
           a case for promotion. The framework has been               demonstrated by research or teaching fellow 
           developed to be relevant to staff on academic or           staff or where a member of staff on an academic 
           teaching and research fellow contracts.                    contract is specialising in education or research.  
           The scope of activities and indicators of success          For example, as well as demonstrating threshold 
           listed under each grade are intended to be                 research and education qualities, specialist 
           broad, reflecting the variety of work that can             research might take the place of some core 
           be undertaken by staff across a large, multi-              education attributes and vice-versa for specialist 
           disciplinary university. They include criteria that        education. Equally, a member of staff on an 
           will be appropriate for staff working in ‘lone-            academic contract might specialise in enterprise 
           scholar’ disciplines, as well for those in team            or external engagement, demonstrating specialist 
           science contexts. The descriptions are not                 attributes in that pathway rather than some of the 
           exhaustive and no individual should expect to be           core or specialist research or education ones. 
           able to meet all of the criteria itemised. In making       Given the varied nature of modern academic 
           decisions about which to apply, staff should have          careers, some overlap between the criteria is  
           regard to the context of their discipline(s). Where        likely, and staff should consider both core and 
           evidence of national or intentional collaboration          specialist categories when using the framework, 
           is suggested, staff should again have reference            regardless of their contractual status.  
           to discipline context. There is no assumption that 
           an international collaboration is inherently more          As well as outlining types of threshold, core and 
           significant than one undertaken with national              specialist academic activity, the framework sets 
           partners.                                                  out the typical network and reach at each grade. 
                                                                      It also sets out example indicators of impact. 
           The framework is relevant to all staff on academic, 
           research or teaching contracts.                            For promotion cases more detail is provided in the 
                                                                      relevant guidance notes but the key element of any 
                                                                      case will be a demonstration of your own personal 
                                                                      impact in the context of the framework as a whole. 
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    UCL Academic 
    Careers 
    Framework
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