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Affiliate (paid/unpaid) and part-time lecturer appointments

Detailed below is the UW Academic HR process that must be followed for hiring outside instructors, as well as unpaid (courtesy) affiliate faculty.

All paid outside instructors (paid affiliates and part-time lecturers), as well as unpaid (courtesy) affiliate appointments receive an appointment letter and/or hire letter (detailing pay if providing services) from the department.

Please click on the links or scroll below to the section(s) most applicable to you:

according to the faculty code, an affiliate appointment requires qualifications comparable to those required for appointment to the corresponding rank or title. It recognizes the professional contribution of an individual whose principal employment responsibilities lie outside the colleges or schools of the University.

CEE faculty wishing to hire an outside instructor (affiliate or part-time lecturer appointment) to teach in the curriculum and receive pay for their services must contact department chair Bart Nijssen (copying Assistant to the Chair [ATC] Karen Heath) to receive approval for the hire. Typically, outside instructors are identified and included in the teaching plan that is reviewed and approved by the chair during the winter quarter (January) prior to the following academic year. If any changes have occurred, the CEE faculty sponsor must contact the chair for approval with the required hire materials (detailed below) at least four weeks before the beginning of the quarter in which their appointment will begin.

Additionally, outside instructor information must be submitted to Lauren Lanum (ceetimes@uw.edu) at least two weeks prior to the start of the quarter to ensure they are added to the time schedule. This will allow the opportunity for registered students to get any questions answered, as well as give ample time for the instructor and students to get familiar with the canvas page. 

according to the faculty code, an affiliate appointment requires qualifications comparable to those required for appointment to the corresponding rank or title. It recognizes the professional contribution of an individual whose principal employment responsibilities lie outside the colleges or schools of the University.

Paid affiliate faculty (or outside instructors) receive pay for specific services they provide to the department. Typically, the department pays affiliate faculty for teaching or developing a course. When the paid service has ended, the appointment will be converted to unpaid status and they will retain their courtesy unpaid affiliate appointment. If someone outside the department is recruited to teach, but they do not need an annual affiliate appointment, they should be appointed as a part-time lecturer instead. Note: Receiving approval for an outside instructor to teach a course is handled separately, prior to this process. Area leads work with the department Chair to obtain approval for hiring outside instructors.

If a CEE faculty member would like an individual to receive a paid affiliate appointment, they may provide the ATC with the required appointment materials. Once the appointment materials are received, the ATC will provide them to the Chair for review and approval.

  1. Candidate’s most up-to-date CV (with appropriate contact information)
  2. One letter of recommendation from the requesting faculty sponsor providing a brief explanation as to why the affiliate appointment is being requested, particularly if the CEE faculty sponsor is requesting on the basis of research collaboration. 
  3. One letter of recommendation. This letter must be written by someone who is preferably outside of the department. If this is not possible, the letter should at least be written by someone who will not oversee the work of the affiliate faculty. This cannot be the faculty sponsor (the faculty who is recommending the appointment).
    • Letter must be addressed to the department chair
    • Letter must identify the appropriate affiliate title (see titles below)
    • Letter must describe the types of services the candidate will provide to the department, i.e. teaching, course development
    • The academic quarter and year of the service
    • If teaching a course, provide course number and title
    • If Ph.D. was awarded within the last year, proof of conferral is required via one of the following methods: Copy of transcript listing conferral, copy of diploma or letter from awarding university on their letterhead stating date of conferral.
      • This is only applicable for titles above affiliate instructor
  4. In a separate email, provide salary, and a reason for the request to hire (sabbatical, buy out, etc.). Confirm if this teaching replacement has been discussed with your faculty area group.

If the appointment is approved by the Chair, the ATC will contact the candidate to obtain SSN and DOB. Per Washington State law, all new hires (unpaid and paid) must complete the Sexual Misconduct Declaration Form and verify vaccination records. The ATC will send two memos: 1) A courtesy appointment letter 2) Hire letter detailing the pay.

Part-time lecturer appointments

Part-time lecturers are temporary appointments that are active only during the time of service. When the service ends (for example, teaching for a quarter), the appointment will be terminated in Workday and they are no longer considered an employee.

There are typically two scenarios for hiring part-time lecturers to teach courses in the CEE curriculum: 1) if an individual occasionally teaches a course as opposed to a consistent basis (annually) 2) if an individual is a current UW employee with a staff position. UW employees may not receive an affiliate faculty appointment because their principal employment responsibilities lie within the University.

The FTE between the professional staff position and the part-time lecturer position must not exceed 100%, and as such, the ATC will work with the employee and their home department to accommodate this. Professional staff may teach once per year through excess compensation rather than a part-time lecturer appointment.

Part-time lecturer appointments can be on an annual part-time basis or quarterly up to 100%. If appointed and renewed on a quarterly basis to the equivalent of an annual appointment at 50% or greater, reappointment is limited to three consecutive academic years. If appointed on a quarterly basis, they can be appointed at 50% or greater, but the appointment cannot be 50% or greater on an annual basis.

Required materials for part-time lecturer appointments:

  1. Candidate’s most up-to-date CV (with appropriate contact information)
  2. One letter of recommendation. This letter must be written by someone who is preferably outside of the department. If this is not possible, the letter should at least be written by someone who will not oversee the work of the part-time lecturer. This cannot be the faculty sponsor (the faculty who is recommending the appointment).
    • Letter must be addressed to the department chair
    • Letter must describe the types of services the candidate will provide to the department, i.e. teaching, course development
    • The academic quarter and year of the service
    • If teaching a course, provide course number and title
    • Salary (if above or below the UW standard rate, we will contact you)
    • If Ph.D. was awarded within the last year, proof of conferral is required via one of the following methods: Copy of transcript listing conferral, copy of diploma or letter from awarding university on their letterhead stating date of conferral.
      • This is only applicable for titles above affiliate instructor
  3. In a separate email or in letter of recommendation, provide a reason for the request to hire (sabbatical, buy out, etc.). Confirm if this teaching replacement has been discussed with your faculty area group.

If the appointment is approved by the Chair, the ATC will contact the candidate to obtain SSN and DOB. Per Washington State Law, all new hires must complete the Sexual Misconduct Declaration Form and verify vaccination records. The ATC will send the hire letter detailing the pay.

Note: These materials must be submitted every time an individual is hired as a part-time lecturer.

Unpaid (courtesy) affiliate appointments New

Unpaid affiliate faculty are considered courtesy appointments. Affiliate courtesy appointments are given to individuals with whom the University wishes to cultivate an academic relationship, but do not hold a faculty appointment at the University of Washington.

If a CEE faculty member would like an individual to receive an unpaid affiliate appointment, they may provide the ATC with the appointment materials required by Academic HR. Once the appointment materials are received, the ATC will provide them to the Chair for review and approval.

Required materials for unpaid (courtesy) affiliate faculty appointments:

  1. Candidate’s most up-to-date CV (with appropriate contact information).
  2. One letter of recommendation. This letter must be written by someone who is preferably outside of the department. If this is not possible, the letter should at least be written by someone who will not oversee the work of the affiliate faculty. This cannot be the faculty sponsor (the faculty who is recommending the appointment).
    • Letter must be addressed to the department chair
    • Letter must recommend an appropriate affiliate title (see above)
    • Letter must describe the types of services the candidate will provide to the department, i.e. research collaboration.

If the appointment is approved by the Chair, the ATC will contact the candidate to obtain SSN and DOB. Per Washington State law, all new hires (unpaid and paid) must complete the Sexual Misconduct Declaration Form. The ATC will send the candidate a courtesy appointment letter.

Converting active affiliate faculty from unpaid (courtesy) to paid

Unpaid (courtesy) affiliate faculty appointments can be converted to paid affiliate faculty if they receive compensation for their services. The CEE faculty sponsor shall provide this information to the ATC in an email in order to process the status change and payment in Workday. If the affiliate faculty is teaching a course, the faculty sponsor shall inform the ATC as well as the program coordinator (in order to add the course instructor details in the Master Schedule). Once the ATC receives information from the faculty sponsor, they will send a hire letter to the affiliate faculty detailing their pay. Note: A letter or recommendation and CV are not required for this data change in Workday.

Affiliate faculty titles

An affiliate appointment (paid or unpaid) recognizes the professional contributions of an individual whose principal employment responsibilities lie outside the colleges or schools of the University. Affiliate appointments may hold faculty appointments at other academic institutions or work in industry.

An appointment requires qualifications comparable to those required for appointment to the corresponding rank or title. Affiliate faculty titles include:

  • Affiliate Instructor
  • Affiliate Assistant Professor
  • Affiliate Associate Professor
  • Affiliate Professor

Although affiliate appointments are typically unpaid courtesy appointments, some affiliate faculty are eligible for pay based on the needs of the department, including services like teaching and course development. Individuals who teach in the CEE curriculum on an annual basis typically receive an affiliate appointment as opposed to a part-time lecturer who occasionally teaches in the CEE curriculum (See part-time lecturer below). Once affiliate faculty are entered into Workday, they will have an active UW email address.

Affiliate faculty are not benefits eligible and must have less than .50 FTE.

All current CEE affiliate faculty appointments may be found here.

Affiliate faculty reappointments & non-reappointments

Affiliate appointments are annual with an end date of June 30. Renewals shall be considered by the CEE faculty each fall quarter during the October or November faculty meeting.

Each faculty sponsor is responsible for confirming their affiliate faculty members’ appointment renewal or non-renewal, as well as providing a brief justification. This data is provided at the faculty meeting (October or November) for their review and vote. Per UW Academic HR policy, all affiliates must be notified of their appointment renewal or non-renewal six months in advance (December) of their appointment end date of June 30.

Once the faculty vote has taken place, the ATC will send reappointment memos to all affiliates who received reappointment. The ATC will also send a non-reappointment memo to all affiliates who did not receive a renewed appointment.

Affiliate faculty promotions

If a CEE affiliate faculty member received a promotion in their home academic institution or industry job, and the CEE faculty sponsor requests that they receive a promotion to the next higher affiliate title, a promotion dossier is required. If a CEE faculty member would like to recommend promotion, they may provide the ATC with the required promotion materials. Once the appointment materials are received, the ATC will provide them to the faculty for their review and vote.

Required materials for an affiliate promotion:

  • Up-to-date CV
  • At least one external letter of support (this may be a "Category B" letter as described in the toolkit.)
  • A supporting letter from the faculty sponsor

Please contact Karen Heath (Assistant to the Chair) if you have any questions: 206-543-8883 / karenh3@uw.edu