Administrator and dean perceptions toward faculty development in academic pharmacy: art. no. 97

Objectives. To investigate pharmacy administrators' and deans' attitudes and experiences with faculty development programs, perceived areas of need in their faculty, and resource allocation. Methods. A sample of 320 pharmacy administrators and 80 deans were surveyed from 80 US pharmacy programs, generating response rates of 57.1% and 63.8%, respectively. Results. The majority of respondents did not perceive that a mentoring relationship was established in their first academic appointments. Top motivating factors for pursing faculty development programming were to improve teaching, research skills, and quality of work. The majority of respondents believed that the appropriate period for faculty development occurs early in a faculty's appointment, though targeted programming should be offered throughout their careers as needs change. Approximately 35% of deans indicated that no individual or group has responsibility and oversight for faculty development within their academic program. Conclusions. While administrators and deans are interested in supporting their faculty in becoming better educators and scholars, an ongoing dialogue and visible commitment to faculty development and mentoring in academic pharmacy is warranted. The use of both live seminars and computer-assisted instruction may be optimal ways of delivering faculty development programming.