Guidelines for Unpaid, Joint, and Adjunct Appointments

A Courtesy Appointment is used to acknowledge a faculty member who makes contributions to teaching, research and/or service in another department in addition to their tenure home department with no salary obligation from the department in which the courtesy appointment is held. 

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for a courtesy appointment, an individual must have an existing full-time faculty appointment at the University, engage in activities that support the mission of the appointing department, have the recommendation of the Department Head from the courtesy appointment HHD department. and the concurrence of their primary appointment Department Head. 

In order to be eligible for a courtesy appointment credentials of the individual should meet the basic standards for faculty of similar rank in the requested department and consistent with University Policy AC21 Definition of Academic Rank. 

In addition, the individual must be engaged within the appointing department in a manner which contributes to the mission of teaching, research, and/or service within the department. 

Request Process

To obtain approval for a courtesy appointment, the HHD Department Head must submit an email request with all the required courtesy appointment eligibility information and to the college HR Consultant. The email request must include the faculty member’s CV as an attachment. Please see the template below for guidance.

Approval Process

Upon receipt, the HRC will review the request for inclusion of all eligibility requirements, follow-up with additional questions, if necessary, and make a recommendation to the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The OFADEI will render a decision, notify the HRC, who will then notify the Department Head of the result. If the request is denied, the reason for the denial will be included in the notification. 

If approved, the Department Head will notify the faculty member of the courtesy appointment and provide the faculty member with an approval letter. Approval letter templates are provided in the Department Head Resources Folder in SharePoint. 

Administrative Processing

The college HR Consultant will coordinate with the appropriate HR contact within the primary college or unit to update the business title in Workday to reflect the courtesy appointment title. 

Approval Length, Termination, and Renewals

Courtesy appointments may be conferred for a period of up to three years and will terminate if not submitted for renewal. If a Department Head wishes to terminate a courtesy appointment prior to the end date, they must submit a request to terminate to the Associate Dean of Faculty and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for review. Should the Dean or Associate Dean wish to terminate a courtesy appointment prior to the end date, notification will be made to the Department Head with an opportunity for input. If the faculty member is separated from university employment all courtesy appointments will terminate concurrently with the University separation unless otherwise determined by the Dean. 

In accordance with HR06 Types of Appointments, an academic affiliate appointment provides an academic affiliation with the University to an individual who is not employed or paid by the University nor has any eligibility for tenure. 

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for an academic affiliate appointment, academic credentials of the individual should meet the basic standards for faculty of similar rank in the requested department and be consistent with University Policy AC21 Definition of Academic Rank. 

In addition, the individual must be engaged within the appointing department in a manner which contributes to the mission of teaching, research, and/or service within the department. 

Request Process

To obtain approval for an academic affiliate appointment the HHD Department Head must submit an email requesting the appointment with all the required eligibility information to the college HR Consultant, at elj10@psu.edu. The email must include the individual’s CV as an attachment. Please see the template below for guidance.

Approval Process

Upon receipt the HRC will review the request for inclusion of all eligibility requirements, follow-up with additional questions, if necessary, and make a recommendation to the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for review the Associate Dean will render a decision, notify the HRC, who will then notify the Department Head of the result. If the request is denied, the reason for the denial will be included in the notification. 

The assigned title will be based on the academic credentials of the individual and should be consistent with faculty of similar rank under policy AC21 Definition of Academic Ranks and College of Health and Human Development Non-Tenure-Line Faculty Guidelines.

If approved, the Department Head will notify the individual of the academic affiliate appointment and provide the faculty member with an approval letter. Approval letter templates are provided in the Department Head Resources Folder in SharePoint. 

Administrative Processing

Once approved, HHD HR will add the academic affiliate appointment in Workday. 

Approval Length, Termination, and Renewals

Academic affiliate appointments may be conferred for a period of up to three years and will terminate if not submitted for renewal. If a Department Head wishes to terminate an academic affiliate appointment prior to the end date, they must submit a request to terminate to the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for review. Should the Dean or Associate Dean wish to terminate an academic affiliate appointment prior to the end date, notification will be made to the Department Head with an opportunity for input.

Appointment to Graduate Committees 

Full-time faculty transitioning to an academic affiliate appointment should note the following: Ph.D. Committee Members in any role who leave Penn State for reasons other than retiring or becoming emeritus may maintain their committee appointment for up to one year with the approval of the student's Graduate Program Head and the Dean of the Graduate School. Please see Policy GCAC-602 for further information. 

Under University policy AC85 Affiliate Academic Appointments, an affiliate academic appointment can be given to recognize the academic qualifications of certain full-time staff or administrative employees of the University who may on occasion perform educational services, yet whose primary responsibilities do not involve teaching and research.  Titles to be used for those with an approved affiliate academic appointment are outlined in AC85.  The assigned title will be based on the academic credentials of the individual and should be consistent with faculty of similar rank under policy AC21 Definition of Academic Ranks and College of Health and Human Development Non-Tenure-Line Faculty Guidelines. Affiliate Academic Appointments may or may not carry an expectation of remuneration. Paid appointments for staff and administrators are handled in accordance with university policy HR90 Extra Compensation for Exempt Staff Employees. 

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for an affiliate academic appointment an individual must have an existing full-time staff or administrator appointment at the University, be engaged within the department in a manner which is outside of the scope of their full-time appointment, have the recommendation of the HHD Department Head for affiliate academic appointment, and the concurrence of their full-time staff or administrator appointment manager. 

In order to be eligible for an affiliate academic appointment, the academic credentials of the individual should meet the basic standards for faculty of similar rank in the requested department and consistent with University Policy AC21 Definition of Academic Rank. 

In addition, the individual must be engaged within the department in a manner which contributes to the mission of teaching, research, and/or service within the department. 

Request Process

To obtain approval for an affiliate academic appointment, the HHD Department Head must submit an email request with all the required eligibility information to the college HR Consultant at elj10@psu.edu. The email must include the individual’s CV as an attachment. Please see the template below for guidance.

Approval Process

Upon receipt, the HRC will review the request for inclusion of all eligibility requirements, follow up with additional questions, if necessary, and make a recommendation to the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for review. The Associate Dean will render a decision and notify the HRC who will then notify the Department Head of the result. If the request is denied, the reason for the denial will be included in the notification. 

If approved, the Department Head will notify the individual of the affiliate academic appointment and provide an approval letter.  Approval letter templates are provided in the Department Head Resources Folder in SharePoint. 

Administrative Processing

The college HR Consultant will coordinate with the appropriate HR and Administrative contacts to ensure an appropriate appointment is made. 

Approval Length, Termination, and Renewals

Affiliate academic appointments may be conferred for a period of up to three years and will terminate if not submitted for renewal. If a Department Head wishes to terminate an affiliate academic appointment prior to the end date, they must submit a request to terminate to Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Should the Dean or Associate Dean wish to terminate an affiliate academic appointment prior to the end date, notification will be made to the Department Head with an opportunity for input. 

Eligibility 

A joint appointment is established when a faculty member makes a contribution to teaching, research, and/or service in another department or academic unit in addition to their tenure home department and there is a salary obligation from both departments or units. 

For joint appointments, under Promotion and Tenure Guidelines, the department head of the secondary department should be consulted and submit a letter for the dossier of the  faculty member with a joint appointment with another department in the same college., For faculty members holding a joint appointment in two colleges, the dean of the primary college must consult with the dean of the secondary college prior to the preparation of a letter for the dossier. Additional information can be found in the Administrative Guidelines for Policy AC23 Promotion and Tenure Procedures and Regulations that are updated annually by the Vice Provost of Faculty Affairs.

Request Process

A joint appointment will be specified in the offer letter to the faculty member after agreement between both department heads or deans of the academic units about the salary and other details related to the offer. The department heads and deans of both departments or academic units will sign the offer letter.

As defined in HR103, Employment Conditions for Part-Time Employees, employees in the part-time academic employee type are categorized as either teaching (adjunct) or non-teaching. Teaching (adjunct) employees are exempt and may teach a maximum of nine (9) credits per academic semester (Fall, Spring, and Summer) for each Affordable Care Act (ACA) standard measurement period (October through September). Employees that teach the maximum nine (9) credits per semester shall not have any other part-time appointments at Penn State.  

Non-teaching part-time academic employees may be either exempt from overtime or non-exempt under FLSA. Exempt non-teaching part-time academic employees may work up to 60% full-time equivalency (FTE). Non-exempt part-time academic employees may work up to twenty-four (24) hours per week, year-round, and they may also work forty (40) hours per week for sixteen (16) consecutive weeks in each Affordable Care Act (ACA) standard measurement period (October through September). 

Request Process

All available Adjunct positions must be posted in Workday. Please follow the HHD Procedure for Exceptions to the Hiring Freeze for part-time positions for further instructions on required approvals and posting. 

Administrative Processing

Adjuncts are hired via a part-time job requisition in Workday. Once a hire is processed, the Adjunct will receive a written letter of offer in Workday that outlines the position being offered, appointment salary, and appointment dates.  This will be signed and returned in Workday and will serve as the appointment documentation. 

Approval, Length, Termination, and Renewals

If an Adjunct will be working remotely, outside the state of Pennsylvania, further review of state hiring restrictions may be necessary. Please review the Notice to Out of State Applicants for details about hiring restrictions.

Adjuncts will remain active in Workday, after the associated appointment and compensation has ended, until 1) an initiate separation is submitted to terminate the appointment or 2) the adjunct is in unpaid status for 12 consecutive months. 

Adjunct appointments can be extended, for up to 1 year at a time, via a Reappoint Part-Time Exempt Employee Form in WorkLion Manager Tools. 

The “visiting scholar” designation is a privilege accorded to individuals temporarily in residence at Penn State to conduct research or provide supervised instruction in a university facility; collaborate with university faculty on specific projects; and observe faculty instruction, administration, or research. Visiting scholars are not university employees.

Visit the Visiting Scholars Guideline for further information on appointing someone as a visiting scholar.  

• University Policy AC21 Definition of Academic Rank
• HR06 Types of Appointments
• Policy GCAC-602
• AC85 Affiliate Academic Appointments
• HR90 Extra Compensation for Exempt Staff Employees
• Administrative Guidelines for Policy AC23 Promotion and Tenure Procedures and Regulations
• HR103 Employment Conditions for Part-Time Employees
• HHD Procedure for Exceptions to the Hiring Freeze
• Notice to Out-of-State Applicants