Terms of Appointments

       Faculty are appointed to provide academic service in one or more of the University’s departments of instruction. The only exceptions are University Professors who serve the University as a whole. While faculty may also be members of institutes, centers, and the University’s other multidisciplinary units of academic activity, no instructional appointments are made in those units.

       Full-time officers of instruction in the Faculties of Arts and Sciences; Architecture, Planning and Preservation; Engineering and Applied Science; International and Public Affairs; Journalism; Law; and Social Work; Barnard College; and Teachers College render service over a nine-month period and are paid over a 12-month period. Those in the Graduate School of Business are on an eight-month calendar. In the Faculties of Dental Medicine, Medicine, and Nursing, full-time faculty are compensated for service during a 12-month academic year.

       Full-time faculty in the Mailman School of Public Health may be appointed for either nine or 12 months of service; this distinction is determined before their appointment begins and indicated by their dean and chair in writing. Faculty may be transferred from 12-month to nine-month calendars only in special circumstances. Such transfers must be initiated by a request from the officer, must further the educational priorities of the department and school, and are expected to be permanent. It is the responsibility of the dean and chair to inform the faculty member in writing of such a change before it takes place. In unusual circumstances, a faculty member may be returned to a 12-month appointment to meet compelling academic needs. Transfers to and from a 12- to nine-month appointment require the prior approval of the dean, the Executive Vice President for Health and Biomedical Sciences, and the Provost.

       Except when they are on a sabbatical or an authorized leave of absence without salary, full-time faculty may not hold appointments at other universities or receive salary from another institution without the prior approval of their dean and/or executive vice president and the Provost. Regardless of whether they are on leave, they must obtain prior permission from their dean or executive vice president and the Provost to create courses or teach outside of Columbia for any entity, including other universities, nonprofit organizations, governmental agencies, and for-profit corporations.

       With the exception of those appointed in a visiting rank, faculty may not hold appointments with tenure at other institutions. Exceptions may only occur with the prior approval of the Provost.

       In pursuing their outside interests and activities, faculty should not create a conflict of interest or commitment with their responsibilities to the University (Outside Interests and Employment).

       Every offer of appointment or reappointment to the faculty is confirmed in writing by the chair or dean. The offer letter must include the officer’s rank, salary, and responsibilities, whether the appointment is full- or part-time, the period of the appointment, which should not exceed one year, except when the faculty member is being offered a tenured appointment, and such other terms and conditions of service as the chair or dean deems appropriate. In the case of appointments to tenure, the offer letter contains the further condition that it is contingent upon a favorable review by the Provost and President of the University and approval by the Trustees.

       To fulfill its commitment to a positive and inclusive environment that fosters collaboration, creativity, and career-enhancing opportunities for faculty, staff, students, and the community, and to ensure the highest professional and personal standards of behavior from its faculty, the University conducts a background check for every full-time tenure-track and tenured faculty member and requires the completion of a pre-hire attestation. The attestation should be returned directly to the address on the form itself or, at the Irving Medical Center, to the department, along with the signed offer letter, to maintain confidentiality. The attestation asks whether the faculty member has been investigated and found responsible for, or is currently under investigation for discriminatory, harassing, or retaliatory behavior; scientific misconduct; or other wrongful misconduct. Formal execution of an offer and a faculty appointment will not be completed until Columbia University can assess this information and make a determination of its effect. 

       In the Arts and Sciences, offer letters are approved by the Executive Vice President before they are sent, and in other parts of the University, by the dean of the Faculty within which the nominee will serve. The faculty member should sign and date the offer letter to indicate acceptance of its terms and return the signed letter to the dean, executive vice president, or chair of the department, as appropriate.

       The chairs in the Faculties of Medicine and Public Health and the deans of Dental Medicine and Nursing are responsible for informing incoming tenure-track faculty of whether they will be on an eight- or 11-year tenure clock in writing in the offer letter for their initial appointment. The letter for tenure-track faculty in a clinical department also states that the maximum period of nontenured service may be subject to change following a review of the officer’s clinical responsibilities in the fourth counted year of appointment.

       Full- and part-time faculty within a department or school are generally distinguished by their teaching loads, research and administrative services, and by their salaries. What constitutes full-time and part-time appointments varies across departments and schools.

       Part-time faculty can teach no more than three courses during an academic year and no more than two in a single term. In applying these limits, it is the total number of courses taught throughout the institution that count rather than in an individual school or department. Additionally, any course or course section counts against this limit regardless of whether the officer is its sole instructor or is co-teaching with other faculty. However, courses or course sections taught for a half term are treated as the equivalent of a half course in determining the maximum a part-time faculty member may teach during a term or academic year if the number of credits for the course is half the number of credits for a full course. Part-time faculty should not receive more than half of the salary of the lowest paid full-time faculty member in the department or school. Part-time faculty are appointed only for the terms in which they are offering instruction and for no more than one year at a time. For truly extraordinary cases, exceptions can be made, but require the special, prior permission of the Provost.

       Officers of research and full-time officers of administration must have the approval of their principal investigator/supervisor and the relevant academic administrators before they can be offered a teaching position. Those who are also appointed as adjunct faculty may not teach more than one course per semester and not more than two courses per year. Full-time officers of administration cannot teach courses that are scheduled for a series of consecutive days or for a block week during normal working hours, and cannot use vacation time to teach such courses. Officers of administration cannot teach and work on course development during the same semester. Full-time administrators who are Grade 15 or above (Grade 107 or above at the Irving Medical Center) are not eligible to receive compensation for course development, and need prior approval from their chair, dean and/or executive vice president, and the Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer to receive compensation for teaching. Part-time administrators may not teach or work on course development. Exceptions will only be considered in very rare circumstances and require the prior approval of both the Provost and the Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer.

Updated November 03, 2022