A Workshop and Toolkit to Support Late-Career Transitions for Faculty

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Academic Faculty Development
• Career Transitions

Background:

• Approximately 20% of medical school faculty are aged 60 or older.
• Senior-career academic faculty often lack adequate support for late-career transition planning.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate an interactive workshop designed to support mid- and late-career faculty in planning career transitions.
• To address the identified professional development gap in late-career faculty transition support.

Main Methods:

• Developed and tested an interactive workshop with individual and small-group activities.
• Included a takeaway toolkit for career transition planning.
• Conducted mixed methods analysis of post-workshop survey data from 207 participants.

Main Results:

• The workshop was delivered six times at various professional gatherings and one institution.
• Participant feedback indicated a median rating of 4 out of 5 for meeting workshop objectives.
• Positive outcomes included dedicated reflection time, identification of planning starting points, and facilitated discussions.

Conclusions:

• The interactive workshop is highly rated and provides valuable support and practical tools for faculty considering late-career transitions.
• Institutions can benefit from incorporating this workshop into faculty development programs.
• Promotes a career lifespan approach to faculty development.