One of the most common policies adopted by colleges seeking to help their professors who are young parents is allowing them to “stop the clock” so that they get extra time before the tenure review that typically is based on six years of work.
In theory, this benefit lets new parents devote more time to their children without fear that it will hurt tenure reviews. In practice, many academics are afraid to stop the clock and feel that taking advantage of this benefit will stigmatize them and hurt their chances. A series of reports have urged colleges to find ways to take away that stigma, so that more parents — mothers and fathers alike — feel comfortable stopping the clock.
Princeton University may have found such an approach. The university is now giving all new parents an extra year before tenure review — automatically. Many colleges promise to award the year to anyone eligible who asks. But at Princeton, you don’t ask — it now just happens. And it can happen multiple times for people who have more than one child (and those who have twins can get two extra years at that time).
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