Table 4 The types of faculty members based on career track.

Teaching faculty

These faculty members are primarily engaged in teaching and contributing to the university’s curricular development. They are responsible for designing course syllabi, preparing teaching materials, implementing diverse teaching methods, and assessing students’ learning. They spend most of their time monitoring students’ learning progress and improving teaching quality through curriculum construction and teaching reform. They usually undertake little research work, which is mainly related to teaching methods and curriculum design.

Research faculty

These faculty members are expected to focus on conducting research, either independently or in collaboration with other faculty members. They are responsible for designing and leading research projects, securing research funds, and publishing academic papers. They usually have relatively few teaching tasks, mainly guiding students’ research or teaching specialized courses related to their research.

Teaching-research balanced faculty

These faculty members need to maintain a relatively balanced development in both research and teaching. They conduct research to a certain level, strive for research projects, and promote the transformation of achievements. Meanwhile, they undertake an appropriate amount of teaching tasks, actively participate in teaching reform, and integrate research results into teaching.