Faculty Handbook – Graduate Faculty Policy

Approved by Graduate Council, May, 2012

Preamble

The existence of a Graduate Faculty at TCU is consistent with the mission and goals of the university, reflects the highest ideals of teaching and scholarship, and has the distinct value of representing to students the high caliber of faculty who sustain the institution’s commitment to excellence throughout its graduate enterprise. It also contributes to the institution’s reputation as assessed by the regional accrediting association and signaled through national categorical descriptors of colleges and universities. The following principles and procedures shall constitute the Graduate Faculty Policy at TCU.

Section I: Principles

The primary role of Graduate Faculty members at TCU is the academic and scholarly instruction of graduate students. Members of the Graduate Faculty are expected to transmit an advanced/specialized body of knowledge effectively and to mentor graduate students in the systematic development of skills of inquiry and creativity that result in a meaningful contribution to the discipline. By engaging in service to the university and the discipline as well as recurring professional development activities, members of the Graduate Faculty also serve as role models for their students. Graduate Faculty membership, therefore, is a distinction that is earned and maintained.

Access the TCU Graduate Faculty Policy here.

The policy was transferred from the 2022 Faculty and Staff Handbook and then reviewed and approved by a special committee of the Faculty Senate in July 2023.