Consensus Guidelines for Digital Scholarship in Academic Promotion.

Area of Science:

• Academic Medicine
• Digital Scholarship
• Scholarly Communication

Background:

• Traditional promotion and tenure (P&T) processes lack guidance for evaluating digital scholarship.
• The increasing prevalence of digital scholarship necessitates adapting P&T criteria.
• Scholarly impact assessment requires updated methods for the digital era.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop consensus guidelines for the evaluation and promotion of digital scholarship.
• To provide evidence-supported recommendations for P&T committees and applicants.
• To address the evolving landscape of academic recognition.

Main Methods:

• A blended, expert consensus procedure was employed.
• A nominal group process was utilized.
• A consensus document was created at the Council of Emergency Medicine Residency Directors Academic Assembly.

Main Results:

• Key recommendations include demonstrating scholarship criteria, providing external evidence of impact, and including digital peer-review roles.
• The study emphasizes the need for academic medicine to adapt evaluation methods for digital scholarship.
• P&T committees are central to supporting this paradigm shift.

Conclusions:

• P&T committees can use validated tools to assess digital scholarship quality and impact.
• Applicants should prepare digital scholarship to highlight quality, impact, breadth, and relevance.
• The guidance aims to help stakeholders recognize the value of digital scholarship.