Michael A. Simmons, dean of the medical school at Chapel Hill, said a financial crisis had led to the change. The new plan applies to both current and new faculty members. There is a grudging general acceptance of the plan. Most medical schools, including the University of Colorado's, seem to be revising their pay plans only for the newly hired. Last September, Colorado's Board of Regents approved a new compensation system for its medical school.
Faculty members can earn a supplement based on merit, as well as additional bonuses.
Some medical schools, such as the College of Medicine at Pennsylvania State University, have created committees to review tenure. The idea was to give them more time before coming up for tenure. They would have to ask to be placed on the tenure track, or their department head could decide when that should happen. Critics of the proposal say it would weaken tenure and make it difficult for them to recruit people in the basic sciences. Other medical schools have opted for more-modest changes, such as requiring tenured faculty members to undergo performance reviews.