Performance evaluation of the faculty in some universities

Faculty members are the most significant personnel of a university. Evaluation of their performance is an important factor in the organization and the main task of managers in professional development and promotion. Performance evaluation of nursing faculty members is more complex than others, but it is necessary because one of the primary ways to assure mission accomplishment and goal achievement in medical universities is to indicate the role of faculty members in promoting the quality of health system. The purpose of this study was to review evaluation systems of faculty members at some of the major universities and schools around the world. By using available resources, some of the advantages and strengths of the evaluation systems were specifically extracted to be applied for evaluation improvement at Iranian universities. This study showed that in spite of extensive areas of performance, most colleges/universities evaluate three major domains, namely, education, research and services. The quality and quantity of these areas are evaluated by using multiple sources. The effective evaluation is flexible and allows a person to choose their activities in the defined framework. By choosing and weighing criteria along with the missions and strategic goals of universities/colleges, the level of faculty efforts and contributions in accomplishing them is recognized. Using mentoring system for outcome evaluation is an important factor for the promotion of faculty members. The evaluation process can be more feasible if evaluation committee consists of the same disciplinary members.