Tenure and career track at the University of Erfurt

Career paths

In recent years, the tenure-track professorship has become established throughout Germany and at the University of Erfurt as an alternative to the habilitation on the path to a lifetime professorship.

With the tenure and career track statutes of the University of Erfurt, which came into force on 01.08.2024 and replace the former appointment and career concept, the university has retained a special feature of the professorships with a track at the University of Erfurt, namely that they are fundamentally geared towards the career goal of a W3 lifetime professorship. At the same time, it has further developed the career paths from an initially fixed-term W1 or W2 professorship to a W3 lifetime professorship by extending the previous career paths and making them more flexible.

One new feature is that initially fixed-term professors with a junior tenure track from W1 to W3 or an advanced tenure track from W2 to W3 (can) reach the W3 lifetime professorship more quickly. Professorships with a tenure track from W1 to W3 (junior tenure track) are still set up for six years. However, junior professors can now successfully complete their interim evaluation ahead of time and thus reach the tenure evaluation for the permanent W3 professorship earlier. The advanced tenure track from W2 to W3 is generally shortened to three years, provides for tenure evaluation in the third year of employment and then directly for tenure in the W3 professorship.

Another new feature is the career track as a career path from a permanent W2 professorship to a W3 lifetime professorship. It is aimed at academics in an early career phase who are more advanced in terms of subject and interdisciplinary knowledge, who have already demonstrated excellent additional academic achievements beyond their doctorate and who may already hold a W2 professorship.

The Tenure Board of the University of Erfurt contributes to the quality assurance of the tenure track procedures.

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Kunst in der Universitätsbibliothek Erfurt

Further information on the career paths

Junior tenure track (W1 with tenure track to W3)

The call for applications for a junior tenure track professorship is aimed at academics in an early career phase who have demonstrated their particular aptitude for academic work through the outstanding quality of their doctorate.
Employment as a W1 junior professor is initially limited to a period of two to four years for the first phase. Following a successful interim evaluation, the junior professorship is continued for a further two years (second phase). The tenure evaluation takes place in the final year of the second phase.
After a successful tenure evaluation, the appointment is made to the permanent W3 professorship. In the event of a negative evaluation, a further fixed-term appointment of up to one year can be granted (on application), provided the legal requirements for this are met.

Advanced tenure track (W2 with tenure track to W3)

The call for applications for an advanced tenure track professorship is aimed at advanced academics in an early career phase who have proven themselves beyond the excellent doctorate in terms of subject and interdisciplinary expertise.
Employment is initially limited to three years. The tenure evaluation takes place in the last, i.e. third, year of the fixed-term employment.
After a successful tenure evaluation, the appointment is made to a permanent W3 professorship.
In the event of a negative evaluation, a further fixed-term appointment of up to one year can be granted (on application), provided the legal requirements for this are met.

Career track (W2 with career track to W3)

The call for applications for a career track professorship is aimed at advanced academics in an early career phase who have made additional academic achievements beyond their excellent doctorate or who may already hold a W2 professorship.
From the outset, employment takes place in a permanent W2 professorship and opens up a career path to a W3 lifetime professorship for a limited period of three to five years.
The career evaluation takes place between the third and fifth year of employment at the professor's request.
If the career evaluation is positive, the appointment is made to the permanent W3 professorship. In the event of a negative career evaluation, the W3 career track ends. They remain a permanent W2 professor. The same applies if the career track is not applied for within the specified period.