Course Relief

The “cost” of course relief should be internally consistent with Department or Unit faculty appointments. That is, an individual’s effort distribution – the percent of time assigned to research, teaching, and service, should be clearly conveyed by the department chair or dean.  Ideally this information is presented in the faculty member’s appointment letter and updated annually.

To illustrate

• 40% teaching, 40% research, 20% service = Effort distribution for Academic Year responsibilities = Institutional Base Salary (IBS)
  • Teaching = 2 courses each semester (4 courses per AY)
• One semester = ½ Institutional Base Salary
• One course relieved in one semester:
  • 0.4  (% IBS as teaching) * 0.5 (% AY impacted) * 0.5 (% of teaching load) = 10%

As a condition of obtaining course relief, a department or unit may expect a faculty member to also commit effort to and charge a sponsor for research activities during the academic year. The level of research effort required should be reasonable, be clearly communicated to the individual, and be distinguished from the ‘cost’ of course relief.

To illustrate

• 40% teaching, 40% research, 20% service = Academic Year responsibilities = Institutional Base Salary (IBS)
• One semester = ½ Institutional Base Salary
• Half research of effort in one semester to charge to sponsor:
  • 0.4  (% IBS as research) * 0.5 (% AY impacted) * 0.5 (% of teaching load) = 10%

Reasonable Expectation #1:  10% for single course relief, also require 10% for research activities during applicable semester, total of 20% effort.

Reasonable Expectation #2:  10% for single course relief, also require 20% for research activities during the applicable academic year, total of 30% effort.

To avoid conflicts of commitment, the combination of research effort for all activities and course relief effort may not exceed the proportion available for these functions within a semester or academic year.  If a faculty member’s academic research effort is fully committed to sponsored activities, the ‘cost’ of course relief is limited by the nature of the faculty appointment and the relief provided.