Ranks, Roles & Promotions

GESTAR II Ranks, Roles & Promotions

All GESTAR II employees are provided access to this document to guide them as they plan their career paths in GESTAR II.

Version 2.0, effective September 1, 2026

1. Introduction

The Goddard Earth Sciences Technology and Research II (GESTAR II) Center is a multi-institutional Cooperative Agreement supported by NASA to partner with Goddard Space Flight Center’s (GSFC) Earth Sciences Division (ESD) in advancing Goddard’s national and global leadership in Earth Science. GESTAR II fulfills this responsibility by providing a competitive environment to hire and retain high-quality scientists who are on track to become leaders at NASA or other Science Agencies, in academia, or in the private sector. GESTAR II exemplifies the power of mentorship, embracing a career development strategy that only a university-led cooperative research center can provide. In GESTAR II, early-career researchers and students are actively encouraged to build outstanding resumes that prepare them to become the Earth science leaders of tomorrow.

The University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) serves as the lead institution for the GESTAR II Cooperative Agreement, and Morgan State University (MSU) is one of the key partner institutions. Other members of the GESTAR II Consortium include the Southern Universities Research Association (SURA), Arizona State University (ASU), Colorado State University (CSU), Pennsylvania State University (PSU), and Entarian (formerly ERT), with Northrop Grumman as a Collaborator.

Although structured as a multi-institutional consortium, GESTAR II strives to maintain uniformity in all our operations as seamlessly as possible across our member institutions. Thus, the ranks, roles, and promotion processes described in this document are designed to ensure transparency and fairness across the member institutions, while maintaining the highest standards befitting the important role GESTAR II plays in the NASA Earth Science enterprise. However, although this document offers guidelines for uniformity in GESTAR II promotion, it does not supersede the promotion policies/processes of the member institutions/organizations.

2. Ranks and Roles

The following ranks and roles exist within GESTAR II:

  • Assistant Research Scientist/Engineer – This rank reflects a rank parallel to Assistant Professor. Incumbents have a doctorate degree and are qualified to direct the work of others, including postdocs, graduate students, or technicians. While timing will vary, advancement to this rank within GESTAR II corresponds to a body of accomplishments equivalent to at least two years of productive growth as a scholar beyond that expected for the completion of a PhD.
  • Associate Research Scientist/Engineer – This rank reflects a rank parallel to Associate Professor. Incumbents have extensive successful scholarly experience and accomplishments, and the demonstrated ability to propose, develop, and manage small research projects or key parts of major projects.  While timing will vary, advancement to this rank within GESTAR II corresponds to a body of accomplishments equivalent to at least six years of productive growth as a scholar at the Assistant Research Scientist/Engineer rank.
  • Senior Research Scientist/Engineer – This rank reflects a rank parallel to Full Professor. In addition to the qualifications required for Associate Research Scientist/Engineer, incumbents have demonstrated a degree of proficiency sufficient to have established an excellent reputation among national and international colleagues. They will have demonstrated their ability to contribute to scientific/engineering work through the ability to lead or significantly contribute to the successful proposal of major projects or of several significant complementary smaller projects. While timing will vary, advancement to this rank within GESTAR II corresponds to a body of accomplishments equivalent to at least six years of productive growth as a scholar at the Associate Research Scientist/Engineer rank.
  • Research (Assistant/Associate/Full) Professor – To complement the title of Scientist/Engineer with Professor in any of the ranks described above, the incumbent will have to be actively affiliated with and teaching in an academic department of their employing University. At their discretion, the academic department may recommend the conferment of the title of Research Assistant Professor, Research Associate Professor, or Research Professor, as appropriate.
  • Visiting Ranks – These ranks are analogous to the faculty ranks described above but have shorter-term “visiting” status. Visiting appointees may frequently (not always) have primary affiliations with other institutions.
  • Postdoctoral Research Associate – This rank is intended for early career researchers who have completed a doctorate and who are growing in their independence in preparation for ranks such as Assistant Research Scientist/Engineer, Assistant Professor, or similar ranks in any sector (academia, government, private, or non-profit sector).
  • Research Associate (I/II/III) – This rank is reserved for research faculty who do not currently hold a terminal degree (e.g., PhD) in their respective fields. Incumbents are in potentially permanent roles conducting supervised/unsupervised research and often hold a master’s degree. Depending on their job responsibility and years of experience, incumbents can be promoted through Research Associate I, II, and III at appropriate intervals.
  • Graduate Research Assistant: Postbaccalaureate Research Assistant – Incumbents are in roles intended to last between one and three years and are conducting closely mentored research in anticipation of graduate school or some other position which will benefit from their experience as a research assistant.
  • ESRA Staff – GESTAR II is supported by UMBC’s Earth & Space Research Administration (ESRA) unit, which manages business activities for GESTAR II and UMBC’s other NASA-oriented centers. Ranks within ESRA include the ESRA Director, Executive Administrative Assistant, Business Manager, Business Specialist, Staffing Specialist, and Administrative Assistant. Unlike the research ranks described above, ESRA holds only staff ranks that are following UMBC classification and promotion criteria and are not governed by the faculty handbook or this GESTAR II promotion document.
  • ESRA Director – This position serves as the supervisor of the ESRA staff and reports to the UMBC Vice President for Research & Creative Achievement (VP-RCA). The ESRA Director coordinates with the GESTAR II Director regarding the management of the overall business activities of GESTAR II.
  • GESTAR II Director – This position serves as the supervisor of the GESTAR II faculty (analogous to a department chair), serves as the UMBC lead (PI) of the GESTAR II Cooperative Agreement, and reports to the UMBC Vice President for Research & Creative Achievement (VP-RCA). The GESTAR II Director coordinates with the ESRA Director regarding the management of the overall business activities of GESTAR II.
  • GESTAR II Associate Director – This position serves as the institutional supervisor of GESTAR II faculty and staff at GESTAR II member institutions and reports to the Vice President for Research (VPR) or equivalent at their respective home institutions. The GESTAR II Associate Directors coordinate with the GESTAR II Director on scientific priorities and other executive initiative.

3.  Promotions

3.1 Promotion to Assistant/Associate/Senior Research Scientist/Engineer

3.1.1 General Guidelines

A.  All members of the GESTAR II faculty are encouraged to discuss their professional development in general, including promotion plans, with the GESTAR II Director or the responsible GESTAR II Associate Director at least on an annual basis. In support of these ongoing conversations, as with all members of faculty at the member institutions, the GESTAR II faculty are required to update their records on an annual basis in the Faculty Annual Report system such as Faculty Success at UMBC.

B.  It will usually take a minimum of two years for a Postdoctoral Associate, six years for an Assistant Research Scientist/Engineer, and six years for an Associate Research Scientist/ Engineer to demonstrate enough accomplishments to successfully apply for a promotion to the next higher rank. Promotion prospects and possible acceleration of this timeline can be discussed informally with the GESTAR II Director or the respective GESTAR II Associate Director at any time.

C.  During each academic fiscal year (July 1st to June 30th), a GESTAR II Promotions Oversight Panel (POP) will be formed to coordinate the promotion process. The POP will consist of the UMBC and MSU Associate Directors and three Senior Research Scientist(s)/Engineer(s)/ Professor(s) appointed by the GESTAR II Director. When a promotion request is submitted by an applicant to the GESTAR II Director or the respective GESTAR II Associate Director, the POP conducts a preliminary review and advises the Director on the Applicant’s dossier suitability for a full promotion review process.

If no concerns are identified or once all identified concerns have been adequately addressed by the Applicant, the POP will appoint an appropriate Promotion Committee to conduct a comprehensive review of the Applicant’s promotion materials. This Committee will solicit letters from external reviewers, carefully review the entire dossier, deliberate and vote on the promotion recommendation, and the Committee Chair prepares and submits a comprehensive written report to the GESTAR II Director for his review.

Promotion Committee members shall be at or above the rank the Applicant is being considered for. When possible, each Promotion Committee shall include:

A.  Three faculty members from within GESTAR II, making sure to have a fair representation across the member institutions.

B.  One or two faculty members of a degree-granting department at UMBC and/or MSU.

C.  Others, as needed, to provide a balance of research perspectives and other creative achievements.

D.  Upon the recommendation of the GESTAR II Director, based on the Committee’s written report and associated materials, the final decision to promote an applicant is made by their employing University’s Provost or President, who draws on recommendation by their respective VP-RCA, VPR, or equivalent.

3.1.2 Process

1)  The Applicant for a promotion provides a detailed CV and a draft Personal Statement to the GESTAR II Director or the respective GESTAR II Associate Director for initial review. Both the Promotion Committee and external reviewers will likely assess the scope and quality of the Applicant’s research strengths, creative contributions, and leadership to determine whether and how strongly to recommend the individual for promotion. Therefore, Applicants are encouraged to carefully prepare their materials to ensure that they include all relevant information.

A. The detailed CV should include:

i.  Full educational and professional background.

ii. An exhaustive list of research outputs, including all publications, external presentations, patents, and other scholarly products.

iii. An exhaustive list of projects, hardware, software, and datasets that the Applicant has developed or played significant roles in their development.

iv. An exhaustive list of programmatic, mission-support, and administrative contributions (e.g., roles supported by NASA tasks; this does not include “professional service,” as described below).

v. An exhaustive list of formal contributions and roles related to research funding (e.g., as PI, Co-PI, Co-I, or Senior Personnel).

vi. An exhaustive list of supervisory, mentoring, teaching, and leadership activities (e.g., supervising projects at Goddard, serving on PhD committees).

vii. An exhaustive list of professional service contributions not falling under the above categories (e.g., serving in a leadership role in a professional society, as a journal editor, organizing a conference).

viii. Any honors (e.g., fellow of a professional society).

ix. Any additional professional accomplishments or products that would provide the Committee a more complete picture of the Applicant’s readiness for promotion (e.g., non-research activities such as writing news releases, outreach activities, etc.).

B. The Personal Statement:

The Personal Statement is generally 3 to 5 pages long and in narrative form. It should highlight relevant accomplishments since the last promotion or original hiring (whichever is the more recent), describing the current state of the Applicant’s research portfolio, and the future directions planned. If a significant volume of programmatic duties has limited the Applicant’s direct involvement in research, this point should be made explicitly, and these programmatic duties should be described in a commensurate level of detail.

2)  The GESTAR II Director and the POP review the CV and draft Personal Statement to ensure compliance with the above specifications and provide feedback as appropriate to the Applicant. At this stage, the GESTAR II Associate Director representing the Applicant’s employing institution will ensure consistency with institution-specific promotion guidelines.

3)  The Applicant provides the GESTAR II Director or their respective institutional Associate Director with the final detailed CV, Personal Statement, and contact information for at least three potential external reviewers who may or may not be asked to review the dossier. Preferably, at least one suggested reviewer should not be a past or current collaborator of the Applicant.

4)  The Applicant’s materials are forwarded to the Chair of the Promotion Committee. The Committee identifies additional external reviewers to constitute a final list of reviewers for the promotion dossier, making sure to have a balance between the recommendations provided by the Applicant and those independently identified by the Committee. The total number of reviewers depends on the requested promotional rank of the Applicant: Assistant (0 – 2), Associate (2 – 4), and Senior (4 – 6). The Committee Chair shares the list of reviewers with the Applicant prior to the reviewers being contacted. The Applicant acknowledges in writing that (s)he has seen the list of potential external reviewers compiled by the Committee. The Applicant may object to any potential reviewer, but the Committee is not required to disqualify a potential reviewer based solely on the Applicant’s feedback.

5)  The Committee Chair solicits evaluation letters by sending the Applicant’s CV and Personal Statement with a cover letter providing a brief overview of GESTAR II to the potential reviewers.

6)  Upon receipt of an appropriate number of reviews for the rank under consideration (e.g., two or more for promotion to Associate, and four or more for Senior), the Committee Chair shares them with the Committee members and schedules a meeting (virtual or in person) to discuss the overall promotion package, vote, and generate a written report.

7)  The Committee Chair submits the written report summarizing the discussion and vote tally by the Committee members to the GESTAR II Director.

8)  The GESTAR II Director provides his commentary to the Committee’s recommendations either concurring or disagreeing and transmits the full package to the Applicant’s employing institution’s Vice President for Research & Creative Achievement (VP-RCA), Vice President for Research (VPR), or equivalent to complete the promotion process in accordance with institutional promotion guidelines.

9)  The VP-RCA, VPR, or equivalent writes a memo concurring/disagreeing with the Director’s recommendation and forwards the entire promotion package to the Provost’s/President’s Office for a final determination.

10) If a promotion is recommended, the employing institution issues an updated appointment letter with the appropriate title, effective date, and associated salary adjustment following institutional policies.

11) The Applicant signs the new appointment letter and celebrates, and the promotion is acknowledged at the next GESTAR II All-Hands meeting.

12) Should a promotion not be recommended at any stage during the process, the GESTAR II Director has the duty of notifying the Applicant and explaining the areas where the Applicant should focus to significantly improve their probability of success when applying for promotion the next time.

3.1.3 Timeline

Requests for promotion may be submitted at any time. The promotion process (from the GESTAR II Director or the respective GESTAR II Associate Director receiving the final CV and Personal Statement to the employing University administration issuing the promotion letter) is expected to take between four and six months, depending on a variety of factors.

3.2 Promotions in other Categories

  • Research Associate I/II/III – Promotions in these categories will be handled internally by the GESTAR II Director and respective GESTAR II Associate Directors, with input from other individuals as needed, to ensure fairness and equity. To be considered for promotion under these categories, the Applicant submits a detailed CV and Personal Statement to the GESTAR II Director or the respective GESTAR II Associate Director.
  • Visiting Ranks – No promotions are anticipated under this category, as these are typically short-term positions.
  • Graduate Research Assistant/ Postbaccalaureate Research Assistant – No promotions are anticipated under this category.