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Academic Personnel

Provost’s lecturer appointment guidelines

Effective Sept 1, 2013; revised Sept 4, 2013,  Jan 26, 2015, Sept 1, 2016, Sept 1, 2020, Feb 10, 2022

Lecturer Full-Time Recruitment and Appointment Term

Lecturer Full-Time – Temporary

  • Faculty appointed as Lecturer Full-Time – Temporary do not need to be selected from a competitive recruitment process because they are intended to address short-term instructional needs and unanticipated, short-notice instructional needs.
  • Appointment in this title may not exceed 3 consecutive years.
  • Notice of the appointment limitation should be included in the offer letter and the reappointment letter, if applicable.
  • Faculty appointed as Lecturer Full-Time – Temporary for 3 consecutive years are not eligible for subsequent appointment in an acting title.

Lecturer Part-Time Recruitment and Appointment Term

Lecturer Part-Time

  • Faculty appointed as Lecturer Part-Time, whether on an annual or multiple-year basis, must be hired through a competitive recruitment process.
  • A competitive recruitment requires, at a minimum, a job specific posting through UW’s Interfolio applicant tracking system and an external posting at an appropriate local or regional site, for a minimum of 30 calendar days.
  • Appointments on an annual basis should be reviewed for the potential of multi-year appointments after 3 years.
  • There is no minimum annual appointment percent required for appointment as a Lecturer Part-Time.
  • Best practice would generally include an appointment strategy that provides for a “terminal year” of appointment in the event of non-renewal. For example, a 2-year term with the renewal decision at the end of year one. This allows for planning by both the appointee and the appointing unit.

Lecturer Part-Time – Temporary

  • The employment of lecturers part-time on a temporary basis is available for new hires to fill limited-term instructional needs and unanticipated, short-notice instructional needs.
  • Faculty appointed as Lecturer Part-Time – Temporary may be appointed at 50% or greater on a quarterly basis but they cannot be 50% or greater on an annual basis.
  • Recurring quarterly appointments at 50% or greater that result in academic year-long employment will be limited to a total of 3 consecutive academic years.
  • Notice of appointment limitations should be included in the offer letter and the reappointment letter, if applicable.