Alternatives to traditional tenure

Adherence to the traditional tenure system in dental schools, including the requirement that faculty produce scholarly work, may well have a negative impact on dental education. However, scholarly activity should continue to be required of full-time faculty; it is the very essence of a university discipline. We should direct our attention to the tenure system itself. We should modify tenure to acknowledge the character of dental faculty and provide alternatives that take into account the differences between what is expected of faculty members in a health science compared to what is expected of faculty members in traditional academic disciplines. At the same time we should do all that is possible to enhance dentistry's status within the university.