Resource 09 · Faculty Resources

Faculty Advisor Guide: Promotion & Tenure

How Aequitas advising fits into promotion criteria. Sample language for promotion narratives and letters of service.

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Where Aequitas Fits in Promotion Criteria

Faculty advising for an Aequitas Health chapter counts as Service and Community Engagement in most promotion frameworks — and often overlaps with Education (mentoring students) and Scholarship (overseeing published work).

Most medical schools use a mission-based promotion framework with three or four pillars: Clinical Care, Education, Research/Scholarship, and Service/Administration. Aequitas advising contributes to at least two, and often three, of these pillars.

Quantifying Your Impact

Promotion committees want numbers. Here's what to track:

Fellows mentored: [Number] fellows mentored across [X] academic years
Projects supervised: [Number] community health projects supervised
Publications overseen: [Number] fellow publications in the Aequitas Health Journal
Grant-funded projects: [Number] projects that received Aequitas grants
Conference presentations: [Number] fellow presentations at the National Aequitas Health Conference
Community partners engaged: [Number] community organizations partnered through chapter projects
Students impacted: [Number] students engaged through chapter activities beyond inducted fellows

Sample Promotion Narrative Language

"I serve as Faculty Advisor to the [Region] Chapter of Aequitas Health, a national medical honor society recognizing medical students for demonstrated commitment to improving health outcomes in their communities. In this role, I mentor [X] fellows annually, overseeing their community health projects from needs assessment through publication in the Aequitas Health Journal. To date, I have supervised [X] projects resulting in [X] editorially reviewed publications, [X] conference presentations, and sustained partnerships with [X] community organizations. This work advances the school's mission of community engagement and trains the next generation of physicians to practice in and for underserved communities."

Letter of Service Verification

Aequitas Health national can provide a formal letter of service verifying your role as Faculty Advisor, the scope of your chapter's activities, and the national context of the organization. To request a letter for your promotion file, contact:

Benson Hsu, MD, MBA, FAAP, FCCM
President & Chair, Aequitas Health
health.equity@aequitashealth.org

Include: Your name, title, institution, chapter name, years of service, and the specific context for the letter (promotion, tenure, annual review).

Additional Promotion Evidence

National recognition: If your chapter has received a project award or grant, include this in your promotion materials. It demonstrates competitive excellence in service.

Invited presentations: If you've presented about your chapter's work at regional or national meetings, this counts as scholarship or dissemination of service innovation.

Curriculum development: If you've integrated health equity project mentorship into a formal course or clerkship, this strengthens the Education pillar of your promotion case.

External validation: The McNulty Catalyst Award (2023, John P. McNulty Prize) and the Aspen Health Innovators fellowship of Aequitas's founder provide third-party validation that this is a recognized national organization — useful context for promotion reviewers unfamiliar with Aequitas.

More resources for fellows

Return to the full resource library, conference presentations, and grant information.

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