Negotiating Faculty Identity in the Transition from Student Affairs Practitioner to Tenure-Track Faculty

Student affairs/higher education graduate preparation programs often hire experienced student affairs practitioners as full-time faculty members to contribute to programs that best serve the future practitioners in student affairs. Shifting from an administrative to a faculty role involves a variety of transition experiences for the new faculty member. This qualitative study explored how six student affairs practitioners navigated the transition from working in the field to full-time, tenure-track teaching roles. Participants identified three key areas related to the transition into the faculty role. These included a shift from the administrative to the faculty mindset, a shift to the faculty identity and a change in self-perception within the higher education setting.