This is a summary only, additional information and rules governing each program are found in the UA Faculty Handbook, Employee Handbook, or applicable policy or office.
| Description | Leaves to engage in activities designed for professional growth, development, and renewal that will enhance the professional effectiveness of the faculty member and enrich the academic climate of UA. |
| Financial Consideration | Sabbatical may be for one-semester at full pay or one academic year at half pay. Full year sabbaticals are credited as one-half year of service toward retirement. |
| Approval Process | Authorization required from Department Chair, Dean, and Provost. Applications are routed annually through Faculty Success. |
| Policy | Faculty Handbook, Chapter 4, Section III |
| Other Details | – Limited to tenured faculty. – Granted after six academic years of full-time employment at UA. – Time spent on leaves will not count toward sabbatical eligibility. – Recipients are expected to return to UA service for at least one year after leave. |
| Description | Arrangements by which a UA faculty member either exchanges duties for a stated period of time with a faculty member from another institution of higher education or takes a temporary full-time faculty appointment at another institution of higher education. |
| Financial Consideration | Typically, a faculty member on a faculty exchange or who accepts a visiting faculty appointment remains on the UA payroll and receives benefits as though continuing on assignment at the university. A contract stipulating the terms of the appointment/exchange is prepared by the UA Office of Contract Management with the host or exchange institution. |
| Approval Process | Authorization is required from the Department Chair, Dean, Contract Management (contact Sophie Hoppock) and Provost (contact Lesley Reid). Faculty member must also complete a Notice of Intent for External Activity Form. |
| Policy | Faculty Handbook, Chapter 3, Section X |
| Other Details | If your unit is hosting a visiting or exchange faculty member from another institution, you must request approval via the Visiting Scholar Form (available at https://provost.ua.edu/resources/) per the Faculty Handbook, Chapter 2, Section II. Visiting faculty who are paid by UA do not need to complete this form. |
| Description | Leaves reserved for faculty members who receive a distinguished fellowship, award, or grant that requires them to have time away from their normal responsibilities at UA. |
| Financial Consideration | The faculty member continues to receive their base UA salary and benefits, as well as any monetary award or supplemental compensation provided by the funding agency. |
| Approval Process | Authorization is required from the Department Chair, Dean, and Provost (contact Lesley Reid, to secure Provost’s approval). |
| Policy | Faculty Handbook, Chapter 4, Section II |
| Other Details | – Leaves are typically for one year, a one-year extension may be requested. – Leaves may not extend beyond two years. – Leaves may not be granted more than once every four years. – Faculty members are encouraged to take such awards in conjunction with sabbaticals. – Time spent on leaves will not count toward sabbatical eligibility. – Recipients are expected to return to UA service for at least one year after leave. |
| Description | Voluntary unpaid leaves granted for the purpose of further study, broader experience in the person’s field, or in recognition of the faculty member’s stature in the field. Approval depends on the extent to which planned activities can be expected to enhance the applicant’s professional stature, including the likelihood that research or scholarly publications will result. These can be partial leaves, such as to allow a faculty member to hold a partial joint appointment at another university. Faculty member’s employment status should reflect the appropriate partial FTE. |
| Financial Consideration | Time spent on a leave without pay does not accrue full credit in the Teachers’ Retirement System of Alabama. Faculty incurs the cost of continuation of benefits during unpaid leave. |
| Approval Process | Authorization is required from the Department Chair, Dean, and Provost (contact Lesley Reid, to secure Provost’s approval). |
| Policy | Faculty Handbook, Chapter 4, Section II |
| Other Details | – Leave should be requested three months in advance. – Time spent on leaves will not count toward sabbatical eligibility. |
| Description | Salary charged to grants or contracts representing a percentage of total faculty effort provided for the direct benefit of externally funded projects, not to exceed a total of 100%. This may be used to offset instructional costs and provide course release(s) to faculty, as long as that is consistent with UA and college policies. |
| Financial Consideration | An ePA must be completed to allocate effort to grants or contracts; charges must align with planned effort in accordance with the sponsor-approved budget. Any material changes in actual effort must be communicated and re-allocated in a timely manner. Benefits must also be budgeted and charged to the grant using the approved fringe benefits rate. |
| Approval Process | Authorization required from Dean, ORED, and funding agency. |
| Policy | Consult with the Office for Research & Economic Development – Contract & Grant Accounting. |
| Other Details | None |
Please Note
Approval processes will change. OAA is in the process of setting up any processes in the document that are done via email approvals to an electronic form.
