Professional development for educators in higher education is a field with a growing international awareness (Irby & O'Sullivan, 2017; Vanderlinde et al., 2016). However, organizational initiatives for such development in higher education are complex when the intention is to involve all faculty members, covering various aspects such as technology, organizational development and teaching (Camblin & Steger, 2000). In general, the term 'onboarding' is used for initiatives focusing on new employees (Bauer, 2015). The onboarding is important for the assimilation of new staff and their well-being (Ellis et. al., 2015).

The focus of this study is the onboarding and the further process for new assistant professors at a large university college. The framework conditions have changed due to a new strategic initiative (2022) establishing a central organizational unit, the Educational Academy, tasked with leading and hosting professional development for all educators across the college's campuses in seven cities. The college, with approximately 2000 employees and 40,000 students, offers professional bachelor programs in fields such as nursing, teacher education, business administration, engineering, and computer graphics.

Due to stakeholder-interests, e.g. among those who previously managed the mandatory program on teaching skills for assistant professors, the initiative introduces both potentials and tensions within the organization (Duch & Nielsen, 2023). In 2023 the Educational Academy among other things initiated a completely redesigned program for assistant professors. This paper focuses on the initial development as professional educator from the perspective of the assistant professors within this program. The aim is to track the professional development of assistant professors transitioning towards being associate professors, exploring the shift from their previous identity, and understanding of teaching, which is influenced by diverse educational backgrounds and job experiences. The research seeks to answer the following questions: 1) How do new assistant professors perceive their role as an educator at a university college? 2) How do assistant professors with diverse educational backgrounds and work experiences understand the profession they are educating for? 3) How do they perceive to be supported in their development in the program for assistant professors at the Educational Academy?

Theoretical inspiration is drawn from Wenger-Trayner & Wenger-Trayner (2015), who utilize the metaphor of learning in a landscape and the concept of boundary crossing. Wenger (1999) previously introduced the term 'broker' to comprehend the relationship between different contexts, each hosting distinct communities of practice. He discusses 'boundary objects' as "artifacts, documents, terms, concepts, and other forms of reification around which communities of practice can organize their interconnections" (Wenger, 1999, p. 105). The process of becoming a professional educator in higher education can be viewed as a journey from legitimate peripheral participation to achieving full membership. This journey unfolds in a new landscape with multiple boundaries to traverse. By observing assistant professors throughout the transition period, we can witness the development of meaningfulness, identity, and collaboration with colleagues within the program where they are teaching  and in the context of the activities designed by the Educational Academy.

Research indicates that content focus, active learning, coherence, duration, and collective participation are crucial elements in professional development (Desimone, 2009). However, for a program designed for diverse educators in higher education and not limited to teacher educators, where we know most from previous research (MacPhail et al., 2018; Vanderlinde et al., 2016), the transition from being social worker, engineer, nurse, etc., based on varied educational backgrounds, is equally significant. Additionally, the ongoing changes in vocational education (Smeby, 2013) play a crucial role. These changes may influence identity development on micro and macro levels, encompassing personal identity, professional identity, and identity within the profession (Wackerhausen, 2009; Heggen, 2013; Nielsen et al., 2023).

The research is part of a large-scale mixed method study (Creswell & Clark, 2018) initiated in 2022 within the context of the newly established Educational Academy. Initially, document analyses were performed to grasp the strategic perspective, followed by a range of interviews with the unit manager and stakeholders representing various perspectives within the unit (Duch & Nielsen, 2023). Subsequently, newly designed short courses for associate professors, where professional inquiry is a central part, have been monitored using a primarily qualitative questionnaire (Braun et al., 2021), e.g. to understand the associate professors’ needs and experiences, and to broadly comprehend the pedagogical thinking guiding the Educational Academy. This presentation is based on the subsequent phase of the research involving repeated individual interviews (Kvale & Brinkmann, 2008) with eleven assistant professors participating in the new program designed for this group. These interviews will be conducted every six months throughout the four-year program. The informants represent nine different higher education institutions located on four different campuses. Thus, the interviews aim to capture the diversity among educators at the University College, representing various professions and geographic locations. In the first phase of this longitudinal research our interest lies in understanding the assistant professors' perspectives on teaching and educating for a profession. The interview themes encompass: 1) the decision to become an educator, 2) initial experiences as an educator 3) collaboration with colleagues, and 4) the experiences from the first part of the new program for assistant professors in the Educational Academy. Sampling included inviting the 56 participants in the program to participate in the research. Following an initial email, where the majority of the eleven associate professors responded, selected participants were contacted again to ensure an adequate number of participants and a broad representation of professional educations. The interviews, conducted in January 2023, lasted approximately 60 minutes each and were subsequently transcribed. Subsequent interviews will delve into research competencies, further development of identity as an educator and the written assignments required to attain associate professor status. These future interviews will be complemented by observations (Gold, 1958) and focus group interviews on different settings of the program for assistant professors. Thus, the long-term development will be tracked.

The findings reveal a diversity of understandings regarding being an educator. Some of the variation is due to the culture and pedagogical thinking in the educational program they are transitioning into, e.g. an engineering educator argues referring to the principles of problem-based learning used in the unit. Another element is their educational background and work experiences. Some of them have a close connection to the professions, while others have an academic background in a specific discipline, e.g. one teacher educator has a degree in Nordic languages while another is transitioning from being a Mathematics teacher with a subsequent degree in pedagogical sociology. However, even when the connection to the profession is close, pedagogical perspectives vary, and while some educators have prior teaching experience and possess a broad understanding of pedagogy others are relatively new to teaching. Some of them find preparation, structuring, and interaction with students challenging. The landscape appears distinct across the various programs. Some assistant professors engage in close cooperation with colleagues, receiving feedback and support. Others find themselves in a more solitary position. Nevertheless, all of them mention at least some of the activities in the program at the Educational Academy as affecting their pedagogical thinking and practice. In particular there are high expectations for the newly established learning groups where they collaborate around professional inquiry with other assistant professors. Despite this, their evaluations of the program differ, with some emphasizing the significance of talks from experts, while others stress the importance of meetings and discussions with assistant professors from different parts of the college. Summing up, the results suggest a highly diverse landscape where assistant professors navigate through a variety of boundaries. The complexity of onboarding new educators at a large university college must account for this diversity and be designed to differentiate and facilitate accordingly.

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