Graduate Faculty Designation

Morgan State University is committed to recruit, develop, and retain the most qualified faculty to teach and to guide the research of students admitted to the School of Graduate Studies. Such faculty are expected to be actively engaged in research, publication, teaching graduate courses, guiding research for master’s theses and doctoral dissertations, and performing service to the University. Faculty who meet these criteria and other requirements outlined in this policy are eligible to be recognized by the University with the designation of “Graduate Faculty.”

It is incumbent on each school/college to articulate the levels (quality and quantity) of participation needed to qualify for the responsibility necessary for the Graduate Faculty designation. For instance, each school/college should establish the appropriate number of students a graduate faculty must advise, the number of dissertations to be supervised, etc. The School of Graduate Studies will be able to monitor some basic information, such as courses taught, dissertation or thesis committees chaired, and the extent of participation in graduate council activity (active membership on a sub-committee is required).

This form is used by a Graduate Program Director to start the nomination process for individuals seeking Graduate Faculty status within a graduate academic area.  It is further used by the Candidate to provide additional, detailed information regarding the Candidate’s engagement within the Graduate Community.  Use the following link to review the Regulation on the Designation of Graduate Faculty.

A properly approved Graduate Faculty status brings with it various expectations and responsibilities. Participation in the graduate enterprise through continued graduate advising, graduate teaching, and service to the graduate community is expected to maintain the Graduate Faculty status. It is the responsibility of the Graduate Faculty to know the policy and to engage in interaction within the graduate community. Holding the Graduate Faculty status is a privilege and may be revoked for lack of substantive engagement in the graduate enterprise, changes in primary employment, or lack of good standing as deemed by the Academic Dean in the School/College being served.

Each graduate program must carefully consider these criteria and should establish discipline-specific criteria to address the quantity and quality of the advising and scholarship. Graduate Program Directors and Deans are responsible for monitoring the performance of graduate faculty and include this record in the five-year renewal of the designation. The following represent the basic University criteria necessary to achieve Graduate Faculty status:

• Graduate Advising: All graduate faculty are expected to have academic and research advising of students and participate in committee work continuously. In addition, they are expected to chair theses and dissertations no less than 1 per year. For faculty in programs that do not require a thesis, comparable advising must be identified.
• Research/Scholarship/Creative Work: It is expected that graduate faculty maintain an active research program, preferably a funded program in those disciplines with available funding. This research should lead to three juried publications every five years.

If you are a Graduate Program Director and would like to start the process of nominating individuals for the Graduate Faculty designation, please start by completing the Introductory Nomination Form.  Another form will follow after this one seeking information from the Candidate Faculty as well as approvals from the Graduate Program Director, Department Chairperson, the Dean of the School/College, and the School of Graduate Studies.