Tenure-track (FS11-13) faculty hold positions through which they contribute primarily in teaching, research, and service. Tenure-track faculty are appointed at the rank of assistant professor, associate professor, or professor. Initial probationary appointments are for:  1) three years for colleges having a collegiate norm to make a tenure decision of not more than six years, or 2) four years for any college having a collegiate norm to make a tenure decision of more than six years, at the end of which time the faculty member can be reappointed following a reappointment review. With the approval of the DEO, the dean of the college, and the executive vice president and provost shorter initial appointments can be made. They participate in the faculty governance process as described and as defined by the individual colleges and the faculty senate. For information about tenure-track appointments, refer to the Policy Manual III-10.1a(4). 

For instructions for switching a faculty member from tenure-track to clinical-track, see Transfers.

An Institutional Equity search must be conducted for all tenure-track appointments that are 50% time or more and extend for more than one year.  Following a review of the candidate's qualifications by the hiring department, the College may request permission to extend an offer through the Search and Selection Summary (SSS) process.  A waiver of a search must be requested in writing and approved by the Office of Institutional Equity and the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost.  For a complete description of search/posting requirements, see Search/Posting Guidance document.

Once a candidate is selected and the Search and Selection Summary is approved, an offer may be made.

The appointment form including required attachments is routed in workflow.

Required Workflow Attachments and Offer Letter Elements:

• Attachment Requirements
• Guidance for Faculty Offer Letters

Tenured (FT11-12) Departments/colleges may elect to make an appointment with tenure. The candidate being considered should have considerable experience at a peer institution, national and/or international recognition, and a distinguished publication record. Tenured faculty are appointed through which they contribute primarily in teaching, research, and service. Tenured faculty are appointed at the rank of associate professor or professor. They participate in the faculty governance process as described and as defined by the individual colleges and the faculty senate. For more information about tenured appointments, refer to the Policy Manual III, 10.4 (b) and (c).

An Institutional Equity search must be conducted for all tenured appointments that are 50% time or more and extend for more than one year. Following a review of the candidate's qualifications by the hiring department, the College may request permission to extend an offer through the Search and Selection Summary (SSS) process. A waiver of a search must be requested in writing and approved by the Office of Institutional Equity and the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost. For a complete description of search/posting requirements, see Search/Posting Guidance document.

Once a candidate is selected and the Search and Selection Summary is approved, an offer may be made.  

The appointment form including required attachments is routed in workflow.

Required Workflow Attachments and Offer Letter Elements

• Attachment Requirements
• Guidance for Faculty Offer Letters

Clinical-track (FQ11-13) faculty hold service positions through which they contribute to the service, teaching, and/or outreach missions of the university. All clinical-track faculty must devote a significant portion of their time to providing or overseeing the delivery of professional services to individual patients or clients. Clinical-track faculty are appointed at the rank of assistant professor, associate professor, or professor. Initial appointments for salaried clinical-track faculty are one to three years in duration. Clinical-track faculty are not eligible for tenure. They participate in the faculty governance process as described and as defined by individual colleges and the Faculty Senate. For more information about clinical-track appointments, refer to the Policy Manual, III 10.9.

After a positive review, salaried clinical-track faculty will receive a one- to seven-year appointment commencing at the beginning of the next academic year. Faculty will be reviewed on a schedule commensurate with their appointments according to written standards of competence and performance defined by their unit.

For instructions for switching a faculty member from the clinical-track to the tenure-track, see Transfers.

An Institutional Equity search must be conducted for all clinical-track appointments that are 50% time or more and extend for more than one year. Following a review of the candidate's qualifications by the hiring department, the college may request permission to extend an offer through the Search and Selection Summary (SSS) process.  A waiver of a search must be requested in writing and approved by the Office of Institutional Equity and the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost. For a complete description of search/posting requirements, see Search/Posting Guidance document.

Once a candidate is selected and the Search and Selection Summary is approved, an offer may be made.

The appointment form including required attachments is routed in workflow.

Required Workflow Attachments and Offer Letter Elements

• Attachment Requirements
• Guidance for Faculty Offer Letters

Research-track (FR11-13) faculty hold positions through which they contribute almost all of their time to performing externally supported research and are expected to submit or assist in the submission of research grant applications. Research-track faculty are appointed at the rank of assistant professor, associate professor, or professor. Research-track faculty are not eligible for tenure. Initial appointment for research-track is one to three years in duration. After three years or prior to that if a promotion is contemplated, a full-scale, departmental-collegiate review will be made. Research-track faculty cannot be assigned to teach courses, but they could be assigned, as needed, to provide auxiliary lectures on areas of knowledge relevant to their research or to engage in other teaching as may be required by the terms of their research grant or contract. They participate in the faculty governance process as described and defined by individual colleges and the faculty senate. For more information about research-track appointments, refer to the Policy Manual, III 10.10.

Research-track faculty will receive terms of appointment consistent with established procedures for non-tenure track university employees; however, appointments cannot be for a period longer than current external support for that faculty member.

An Institutional Equity search must be conducted for all research track appointments that are 50% time or more and extend for more than one year. Following a review of the candidate's qualifications by the hiring department, the college may request permission to extend an offer through the Search and Selection Summary (SSS) process. A waiver of a search must be requested in writing and approved by the Office of Institutional Equity and the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost. For a complete description of search/posting requirements, see Search/Posting Guidance document.

Once a candidate is selected and the Search and Selection Summary is approved, an offer may be made.

The appointment form including required attachments is routed in workflow. 

Required Workflow Attachments and Offer Letter Elements

• Attachment Requirements
• Guidance for Faculty Offer Letters

Instructional Faculty. The University of Iowa implemented the Instructional Faculty track in AY16-17. While tenured and tenure-track faculty, with portfolios of teaching, scholarship, and service, are the foundation of the faculty at the university, colleges will have the option to employ non-tenured Instructional faculty who are primarily engaged in the teaching mission. The policy, developed through a shared governance process under the leadership of the UI Faculty Senate, provides lecturers and other Instructional faculty with strengthened grievance rights, representation on the UI Faculty Senate, a pathway to promotion, and more transparent expectations for workload.

Instructional faculty may be hired to teach courses or to educate and prepare students for various professional roles. Instructional faculty shall devote a substantial amount of their time to providing or overseeing the delivery of instruction to UI students in the classroom or in other settings appropriate to the discipline and may also perform administrative and/or service functions. However, instructional faculty shall not be assigned primarily to perform service or administrative functions with few or no educational obligations. Similarly, research, scholarship, or artistic creation shall not be a requirement for appointment, reappointment, or promotion of instructional faculty, but may be considered as evidence of professional productivity if provided for by collegiate policy.

The policy states that Instructional faculty shall hold rank at Assistant Professor of Instruction, Assistant Professor of Practice, Associate Professor of Instruction, Associate Professor of Practice, Professor of Instruction, or Professor of Practice. For more information about the Instructional Faculty policy, refer to the Operations Manual, III 10.11.

1. Procedures for Instructional Track Faculty Promotion Decision Making (PDF)
2. Instructional Faculty Administrative Review (IFAR) Form (DOCX)
3. Instructional Faculty Transition Language for Hiring and Reappointment (PDF)
4. Instructional Faculty Transition Employment Agreement Template (DOCX)

An Institutional Equity search must be conducted for new Instructional Faculty track appointments. Following a review of the candidate's qualifications by the hiring department, the college may request permission to extend an offer through the Search and Selection Summary (SSS) process. A waiver of a search must be requested in writing and approved by the Office of Institutional Equity and the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost.  For a complete description of search/posting requirements, see Search/Posting Guidance document.

Once a candidate is selected and the Search and Selection Summary is approved, an offer may be made.

The appointment form including required attachments is routed in workflow. 

Required Workflow Attachments and Offer Letter Elements

• Attachment Requirements
• Guidance for Faculty Offer Letters

Fixed-term faculty appointments are made for a specific term length designated at the time of hire and are subject to non-renewal at the end of that term. The appointment percentage can range from 0-100% and the length of the term can range from one week to three years, depending on the type of appointment. Reappointment is possible for many fixed-term positions, subject to positive performance evaluations and educational need. For more information about fixed-term appointments, refer to the Policy Manual, III 10.12. 

Fixed-term faculty appointments include the following faculty status categories:

• Adjunct (FA11-14)
• Visiting (FV11-14)
• Instructor (FH14)

Required Workflow Attachments and Offer Letter Elements

• Attachment Requirements
• Guidance for Faculty Offer Letters

Eligibility

Emeritus status is conferred upon certain faculty members who retire after having served the University under honorable circumstances for a significant period of time, or, in other cases, may be conferred by central administration or the Iowa Board of Regents. Exceptions to the automatic conferral and requests for permissive conferral must be made in writing and approved by the Executive Vice President and Provost. The Emeritus Faculty Council is notified of all faculty members awarded Emeritus status by the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost. For the complete policy see Emeritus Status for Retirees in the UI Operations Manual.

Processing an Emeritus Faculty Appointment in the HR Transaction System

1. Initiate a “Termination” form for the regular faculty appointment.
2. Initiate a new "Complimentary Appointment” form for the Emeritus faculty appointment.

Note: To assure there is no break in service, the effective date on the Complimentary Appointment form must be the following day after the effective date on the Termination form. The end date for academic year appointments should be the last working day according to the Academic Year Working Day Schedule. On the Complimentary Appointment form, enter 4 for the "Faculty Status Option" and leave the Faculty Status End Date blank.

Transactions must be approved by the college and routed to the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost for approval.

Privileges 

Emeritus status affords faculty members the following rights and privileges: 

1. A free parking tag;
2. Listing as an active member of the University of Iowa community for the purposes of off-campus access to online library services;
3. Membership in the Association of Emeritus Faculty, provided they hold Emeritus Faculty status.

Emeritus Faculty and Temporary Employment

Emeritus faculty members may be temporarily employed by a department after achieving emeritus status. An employment agreement must be drawn up by the employing department (see Offer Letter Guidance below).

In all cases, the individual should be appointed as a temporary employee and the department must contact the Benefits Office to ensure that the appointment will not conflict with any retirement agreement already in place.

In general, Emeritus faculty temporary employment agreements are renewable but may only be approved for one year at time. The title used for the reappointment is "(appropriate rank) Emeritus" and the classification code is FE__ (rank of Emeritus status).

Depending on the appointment type the following forms can be used when appointing an emeritus to a temporary position.

• Short Term Non Student 
• Bi Weekly Non Student Hourly
• Temporary First Semester 
• Temporary Second Semester 
• Summer Session 

Required Workflow Attachments and Offer Letter Elements

• Attachment Requirements
• Offer letter template is available on Microsoft Teams. Please contact faculty@uiowa.edu if access is needed.

Prior to and during the search and appointment of DEOs, assistant/associate deans, and directors, departments and colleges should be in close and regular communication with the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost. Plans for the search and hire should be discussed and approved by the provost before any step of the process takes place.

The following principles will be required for any search and hire:

Clarity of Expectations

Expectations regarding the position's administrative duties, as well as the teaching and research expectations for the term of appointment, will form the basis for annual merit reviews for salary increases. They should be clearly set out in a position description or similar document, and reiterated in the offer letter. Both of these should be developed in consultation with the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost.

Transparency

It should be widely known, particularly among the faculty of a department or college, that a DEO or assistant/associate dean's position, respectively, is or will be coming open. Nominations should be solicited and all eligible faculty invited to apply. The timeframe for nominations/applications, the qualifications and expectations for the position, and the progress of the search and appointment process all should be clear and documented.

Consistency

While recognizing that different contexts dictate that "consistent" does not mean identical, the selection/appointment process should be reasonably consistent across time, across departments within a college, and across colleges within the university.

Equity

There should be equity in the resources and benefits offered for--and rights and responsibilities expected of-administrators in similar positions within a college. These include, but may not be limited to, expectations for teaching and research, base salary and administrative differentials, and budgets.

Welcoming and Respectful Environment

Having the ability to foster a welcoming and respectful workplace environment among DEOs and assistant/associate deans within a college is highly desirable. The same principles that guide our efforts to increase a welcoming and respectful environment in other areas of the university apply in the search for faculty administrators.

Administrative Job Codes & Titles

• FM05 Associate Dean (faculty only)
• FM06 Assistant Dean (faculty or P&S)
• FM08 Director
• FM22 Departmental Executive Officer (faculty only)

An Institutional Equity search must be conducted for administrative appointments that are 50% time or greater and extend for more than one year. A waiver of a search must be requested in writing and approved by the Office of Institutional Equity and the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost. Following a review of the candidate's qualifications by the hiring department, the college may request permission to extend an offer through the Search and Selection Summary (SSS) process.

Once a candidate is selected and the Search and Selection Summary is approved, an offer may be made.

The appointment form including required attachments is routed in workflow.

Transfers

A Transfer form must be initiated when a tenured faculty (FT) member is appointed to a full-time administrative (FM) position. In the case where a faculty member is hired in a part-time administrative (FM) position, a new appointment will be created and a change of status will be created to reduce the current faculty appointment.

Required Workflow Attachments and Offer Letter Elements

• Attachment Requirements
• Guidance for Faculty Offer Letters