At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, all that's necessary, according to physicist and dean of science Robert Birgeneau, is to have "established yourself among the leaders in your field." At Carleton College in Northfield, Minn., chemistry professor Jerry Mohrig says faculty need to demonstrate "first- rate teaching and continuing intellectual vitality." Princeton University's physics department is merely trying "to find people who are better than we are," says professor David Wilkinson.
No matter how they evaluate candidates, faculty who sit in judgment emphasize the need to guess correctly about a candidate's future, since tenure is lifetime job security. The tenure decision "is an attempt to discern the trajectory that a faculty member is on," says Elizabeth McKinsey, dean of the college at Carleton. "We want someone who is not only vital, creative, and effective, but who will remain so for 30 years."
In theory, science departments across the United States ...
