What is the Assistant Professor Coaching Circle?
The Assistant Professor Coaching Circle is a six-session, cohort-based professional development program designed to support tenure-track assistant professors at the University of Maryland. The program provides space for reflection, connection, and strategy-building as participants navigate the early years of their academic careers.
The goals of the program are to:
1) Enhance faculty well-being and strengthen resilience by providing space to reflect, plan, and grow as they move toward tenure;
2) Support faculty in identifying and navigating challenges or barriers that impede their progress toward tenure;
3) Provide structured group coaching to assistant professors that equips them with tools to advance their professional success;
4) Strengthen faculty professional networks through shared learning and support.
How the Coaching Circle Works
How will the program work? What are the commitments?
6-8 participants will engage in six, 90-minute, structured, in-person, coach-facilitated sessions that blend personal exploration with actionable planning, helping to build clarity, confidence, and community. Two certified coaches from the Center for Leadership & Organizational Change (CLOC) and ADVANCE faculty/staff will support the program.
In-person meetings will occur in October, November, December, February, March, and April at a time that matches the convenience of participants. Each session will have a topic of focus, based on both participant-identified needs as well as the social science research on common challenges for women assistant professors. The session will begin with individual and shared reflections, followed by a facilitated coaching conversation with one member of the group. It will close with group discussion and space for everyone to identify personal insights and possible next steps.
What's coaching and how is it different than peer networks, mentoring, or advising?
Coaching is distinct from mentoring or advising. Rather than offering direct instruction or solutions, coaching centers the participant as the expert in their own development, and supports them in exploring possibilities, and taking actions aligned with their values and goals. For example, rather than asking a panel of recently promoted associate professors how THEY got tenure, the coaching circle will ask participants about why achieving tenure is important to THEM, what personal/professional barriers (e.g., conflict with colleagues, work-life integration, stress) they are experiencing, and how strategies they have deployed have helped address those barriers.
How will participants be selected?
We are seeking a cohort of 6-8 assistant professors for this pilot program, ideally those who are at a similar point of the pathway to tenure (e.g., pre or post third year review). Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, with a final deadline of September 1, 2025. All applicants will be notified of their status by September 15, 2025.
Assistant Professor Coaching Circle is a year-long, cohort-based professional development program designed to support tenure-track assistant professors. The Coaching Circle will meet six times across the academic year, in person.
Sponsored by the ADVANCE Program for Inclusive Excellence and the Center for Leadership and Organizational Change (CLOC).