Unit Policy
Title
School of Medicine: Policy on Faculty Workload
Introduction
Purpose
This University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (“University” or UNC-Chapel Hill”) School of Medicine (“UNC SOM”) Faculty Workload Policy (“Policy”) is required by and passed in accordance with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Policy on Faculty Workloads as well as Sections 400.3.4 and 400.3.4[R] of the UNC Policy Manual. The Policy describes the workload of UNC SOM faculty members and identifies the UNC SOM’s expectations and guidelines for the distribution of work among UNC SOM faculty members.
Scope
This Policy applies to all full-time faculty members (1.0 FTE) appointed in the UNC SOM for a term longer than one year, including tenured, tenure-track, and fixed-term faculty members.
Policy
Policy Statement
UNC SOM Faculty Workload Distribution
The mission of the UNC SOM is to improve the health and well-being of North Carolinians and others we serve. We accomplish this by providing leadership and excellence in the interrelated areas of patient care, education, and research. Faculty members are critical to the UNC SOM mission through the clinical care, teaching, research, and service they provide.
Consistent with other research-intensive medical schools, the overall workload of UNC SOM faculty members includes:
- Clinical practice and responsibility for patient care;
- Research, scholarship, and creative activities;
- Teaching (classroom teaching, clinical-based teaching, and research-based teaching);
- Instruction-related activities such as advising, mentoring, course planning, didactics, and workshops;
- Service to the University, the community, and the profession;
- Administration; and
- Related activities required by an individual faculty member’s work plan to support the mission of the UNC SOM.
SOM faculty engage in the categories of teaching, clinical care, research, and service, but the nature, frequency, and percentage of time devoted to each area vary, as explained below. The following areas form the basis for faculty workloads in the UNC SOM:
I. Teaching
The UNC SOM and its faculty teach a wide range of learners, including health science students, medical students, graduate students, residents, fellows, and post-doctoral fellows, in a wide range of settings, including in the classroom, laboratory, and clinic. In addition to classroom teaching, UNC SOM faculty teaching includes supporting learners outside the classroom through advising, research mentoring, practical experience, and other academic activities.
Classroom teaching includes the following activities but is not limited to:
- Developing materials for a new course,
- Updating materials for an existing course,
- Weekly course preparation activities,
- Developing courseware or other materials for technology-based instruction,
- Teaching courses,
- Grading,
- Supervising undergraduate research and masters’ theses and doctoral dissertations,
- Directing students in co-curricular activities such as preparing and equipping new laboratories,
- Supervision of teaching assistants,
- Supervision of internships and independent studies,
- Academic advising,
- Mentoring, and
- Other activities that support student success.
As a general guideline, a 3-credit hour/didactic course taught by UNC SOM faculty in any University department will be assigned a baseline range of 10-20% FTE. With their Department Chair’s (or designee’s) approval, each individual faculty member must identify in their faculty workload plan the specific FTE associated with teaching that the SOM has assigned to them.
In addition, some UNC SOM faculty have a funded educational role, and the FTE in this role will be counted as “classroom teaching.” Examples of funded educational roles include, but are not limited to:
- Residency or Fellowship Program Director,
- Vice Chair for Education,
- Course directors,
- Case-based learning facilitators,
- Director of Simulation,
- OGE roles, and
- Leadership positions in UNC SOM educational units (e.g., the Doctor of Medicine program, BBSP, and Department of Health Sciences).
UNC SOM faculty are also engaged in teaching while providing clinical care (“clinical-based teaching”) and while conducting research (“research-based teaching”).
Clinical-based teaching occurs when clinical faculty teach/precept learners in the clinical setting, such as medical students, physician assistant students, residents, and fellows. Clinical-based teaching is included within the percentage of a faculty member’s FTE devoted to clinical duties.
In general, clinical-based teaching constitutes approximately 20-30% of a faculty member’s clinical FTE to clinical-based teaching. However, the actual percentage FTE for each faculty member in the UNC SOM will vary. Accordingly, with their Department Chair’s (or designee’s) approval, each individual faculty member must identify in their faculty workload plan the specific FTE associated with clinical-based teaching that the SOM has assigned to them (see Appendix A for examples).
Research-based teaching occurs when basic science/research faculty teach learners during their research activities, including undergraduate students, medical students, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows. For example, many basic science/research faculty serve as Principal Investigators of laboratories where they teach and mentor these learners.
In general, research-based teaching constitutes approximately 10-30% of a faculty member’s research FTE to research-based teaching. However, the actual percentage FTE for each faculty member in the UNC SOM will vary. Accordingly, with their Department Chair’s (or designee’s) approval, each individual faculty member must identify in their faculty workload plan the specific FTE associated with research-based teaching that the SOM has assigned to them (see Appendix A for examples).
II. Clinical Care
In medical schools, clinical faculty members are expected to serve as exemplary models of clinical care for both students and patients. This entails demonstrating mastery of medical knowledge, clinical skills, and professionalism while providing compassionate and patient-centered care.
Faculty members are responsible for fostering an environment conducive to learning, where students can observe, learn from, and actively engage in clinical practice under their guidance. Moreover, faculty are expected to uphold ethical standards, adhere to evidence-based practices, and continuously pursue professional development to stay abreast of advancements in medicine. In support of the UNC SOM’s mission to improve the health and well-being of North Carolinians, clinical faculty provide direct patient care in UNC Health inpatient, outpatient, and procedural settings.
III. Research
UNC SOM faculty members engage in research activities that may include, but are not limited to:
- conducting empirical and/or theoretical research in laboratories, studios, clinical or community settings;
- engaging in development or translational work; and/or
- producing creative works.
To that end, faculty write articles, books, monographs, and grant proposals; edit scholarly journals; write patents; develop intellectual property; and/or direct centers and institutes.
These research activities have significant implications for advancing scientific and medical knowledge, which ultimately supports our mission to improve the health and well-being of North Carolinians. These research activities also significantly impact teaching, as the UNC SOM trains more scientists and clinician-scientists who will develop cutting-edge treatments for North Carolina’s patients.
IV. Service
UNC SOM faculty members engage in service activities that may include activities that enhance the scholarly life of UNC-Chapel Hill or the discipline, improve the quality of life of society, or promote the general welfare of UNC-Chapel Hill, professional and academic societies, the state, the nation, the local community, or the global community.
UNC SOM faculty members may also be assigned administrative responsibilities, including but not limited to:
- Department Chair/head,
- program director,
- Center director,
- Dean’s office roles, and
- administrative roles within UNC Hospitals.
For UNC SOM faculty members, the FTE assigned to administrative roles will be captured in the Service category for this Policy.
The chart below summarizes the baseline workload distributions for faculty members in the SOM in each of the categories discussed above. However, with their Department Chair’s (or designee’s approval), each individual faculty member should reflect on their work plan the actual distribution assigned to them by the UNC SOM.
| Category |
Fixed-Term & Tenure-Track/Tenured Faculty (teaching) |
Fixed-Term Faculty (clinical) |
Tenure-Track/Tenured Faculty (clinical) |
Fixed-Term & Tenure-Track/Tenured Faculty (research) |
|
Clinical Care
* Clinical-based teaching
|
0-50%
* 0-15%
|
80-90%
* 24-27%
|
40-60%
* 12-18%
|
0%
|
|
Research
* Research-based teaching
|
0-50%
* 0-15%
|
0-20%
* 0-6%
|
30-50%
* 9-15%
|
70-90%
* 21-27%
|
| Teaching |
40-80% |
0-10% |
0-10% |
0-20% |
| Service |
5-10% |
5-10% |
5-10% |
5-10% |
| Total FTE |
100% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Annual Workload Planning
Creating a Work Plan
No later than June 30 of each year, each full-time faculty member with a UNC SOM appointment longer than one year must work with their Division Chief and/or Department Chair to develop an annual, mutually agreed-upon work plan that meets the requirements of this Policy and UNC-Chapel Hill’s Faculty Workload Policy.
Required Elements of a Work Plan
Each full-time faculty member’s work plan must include the chart attached to this Policy as Appendix A, completed as necessary to reflect the specific responsibilities and workload distribution of their position with the approval of the Division Chief and/or Department Chair.
Approving Work Plans
The work plan must be approved in writing by the Division Chief and/or Department Chair and the Division Chief/Department Chair’s supervisor (or designee).
Annual Faculty Evaluation
No later than December 15 of each year, each SOM Division Chief or Department Chair must meet individually with each faculty member in their department to evaluate the faculty member’s performance based on their mutually agreed-upon and approved work plan. Specific factors used to evaluate faculty performance will be determined at the unit level.
Division Chiefs or Department Chairs must provide any faculty member rated as "Not Meeting" on one or more of their agreed-upon performance goals with a Faculty Success Plan that meets the requirements of and is approved according to UNC-Chapel Hill’s Faculty Workload Policy. The UNC SOM Dean’s Office monitors the completion of each faculty member’s work plan and their annual evaluation.
Related Requirements
External Regulations
Unit Policies, Standards, and Procedures
Contact Information
Primary Contact
Office: UNC SOM Office of Faculty Affairs and Leadership Development
Telephone: 919-966-8622
Email: facultyaffairs@med.unc.edu