Faculty at the University of California continue to perform at top levels, with significant numbers receiving prestigious awards and honors for their work, according to the biennial accountability sub-report on faculty competitiveness.

At the same time, a range of challenges must be met if UC is going to continue its leadership in the recruitment and retention of high-caliber faculty.

Lagging salaries, a need to increase the number of women and underrepresented minorities, and a demographic shift towards older faculty all present serious issues that the university must address, said Susan Carlson, vice provost for Academic Personnel. She, together with Academic Senate Chairman Daniel Simmons, will present the report's findings to the UC Board of Regents on Jan. 19.

Faculty salaries were a concern two years ago, when the first report on faculty competitiveness was issued. Fiscal pressures at the university have only intensified since then while private institutions have been able to increase faculty salaries. In the aggregate, faculty salaries at UC are now 11.2 percent lower than those of peer institutions, the report found.

Despite media reports to the contrary, cost pressures haven't yet resulted in a big exodus to private universities, but the data, as well as anecdotal reports from campuses, show a persistent and growing retention problem.

The percentage of tenured faculty who remain at UC eight years after being hired, for example, declined from 74 percent to 70 percent between 2005-06 and 2008-09, the last year for which there is data.

"My real fear is that as private institutions and endowments recover from the market collapse, those institutions are going to really gear up their recruiting," Simmons said.

Retention of associate professors — particularly those who have just earned tenure — is of special concern. UC has made a significant investment in the careers of associate professors by the time of tenure, yet their salaries are further behind the market than those of either assistant or full professors, Simmons said.

"They are on the cusp of their research careers — they've published and achieved significant excellence in their work — and they are the folks who are on the cutting edge of their lifetime discoveries," he added. "They are also the group most likely to be recruited away."

In looking ahead, Carlson expressed concern about survey results showing that fewer post-doctoral fellows and graduate students are considering faculty careers. Given that UC recruits its young, rising academic stars from this pool, it is particularly troubling, she said.

In a survey of UC post-docs and Ph.D. students, 45 percent of men in a Ph.D. program began with the goal of seeking a faculty career, but only 34 percent were still considering it. For women, just 25 percent were considering a faculty position, down from an initial 38 percent.

"They didn't find faculty positions particularly desirable," Carlson said. "They wonder whether it's compatible with having children, with having a normal life. There are other ways to use your skills outside the academy."

The study, done by UC researchers, provides the first analysis of the changing views of post-docs and Ph.D students. Now that they've seen the data, departments can use the information to put additional focus on family-friendly policies and do other things to ensure a climate that addresses those concerns, Carlson said.

Other key report findings:

• For the first time in many years, 2010 saw a decrease in UC's hiring of new general campus faculty, a reflection of tight budgets.
• The distribution of faculty by age has shifted, with more faculty members now in older age cohorts.
• Campus efforts to increase the representation of women and underrepresented minorities have resulted in limited progress.

Each of those issues presents specific challenges to the university and deserves focused discussion among members of the Academic Senate and university administrators, Carlson and Simmons said.

Nevertheless, there also are bright spots, most notably in the high achievement levels that UC faculty continue to reach. The report found that UC continues to enjoy an "intangible loyalty" among faculty and offers an academic climate in which the highest level of excellence is expected and achieved.

"The intellectual climate is creative, rigorous and adventurous," the report found.

That culture continues to produce an impressive range of accolades and honors for UC faculty. In 2010, for instance, four of 23 MacArthur Fellow "genius" grants were awarded to UC faculty; 22 UC scientists and engineers were elected to the National Academy of Sciences; and UC San Diego Chancellor Marye Anne Fox and UCSF Nobel laureate Stanley Prusiner were awarded the National Medal of Science.

"The awards and affiliations of UC faculty are unrivaled," Carlson said. "And many of our newest faculty are receiving the kinds of early career awards that show they are on the path to distinction."

Read the full report at www.universityofcalifornia.edu/regents/regmeet/jan11/j1.pdf.

Carolyn McMillan is managing editor, internal communications, at UC Office of the President.