National Trial of a Workload Estimator for Pharmacy Faculty

The goals of this national, multi-institutional study were to implement a faculty workload estimator across pharmacy programs, determine the appropriateness of content and alignment with equity-minded faculty workload principles, and describe workload norms per rank and discipline.

The Workload Estimator was piloted at participant institutions in 2024. Administrators with supervisory responsibility for faculty workload were trained in its proper use and asked their faculty to complete it. Feedback surveys assessed satisfaction, needed improvements, and alignment with equity-minded faculty workload principles. Deidentified faculty workload data were collected to determine Academy norms.

The Workload Estimator was utilized by 44 programs. Workload data were gathered for 824 faculty members. Actual workload exceeded allocated workload by 4% to 22% across Carnegie Classifications. Faculty at R1 institutions had the lowest actual teaching workload (mean = 31.7% vs 39% overall) and the highest scholarship workload (mean = 58.7% vs 24.7% overall). Surveys were completed by 53 administrators and 560 faculty, with 87% of administrators and 72% of faculty indicating "probable or definite use" again. Among the equity-minded principles, transparency was rated the highest by both administrators and faculty (means of 4.12 and 3.64, respectively, on a 5-point Likert scale), followed by clarity (4.06 and 3.54) and context (4.09 and 3.45).

The Workload Estimator is a viable method for assessing pharmacy faculty workload across different institutions. The study identified a few areas for improvement. With thorough training, the Workload Estimator can be adopted as a method for measuring faculty workload and for establishing nationwide workload norms for pharmacy faculty.