Sabbatical/Professional Development Leave




Professoriate: Sabbatical

The purpose of the sabbatical leave program is to free faculty members from their normal University duties, enabling them to pursue their scholarly interests full-time and maintain their professional standing so that they may return to their posts with renewed vigor, perspective, and insight. (University Faculty Handbook, Ch. 3 - Sabbaticals and Other Leaves of Absence)

Accrual and Use

Faculty members accrue sabbatical at 2.5 days per month for full time effort (see the University Handbook for further information), and use sabbatical at 30 days per month at 100% FTE.  Faculty may take sabbatical at a reduced FTE, which will cause them to receive salary and to use sabbatical at a similarly reduced rate (for example, "50% sabbatical" = 50% base + variable pay, and uses 15 days per month).  However, no matter the rate of pay, faculty are always expected to be completely relieved from all clinical, teaching, and administrative duties for the part of their FTE that is committed to sabbatical.

Sabbatical eligibility stops during a period of leave -- time spent on leave without salary, a leave for short term disability, family and medical leave, long term disability, periods of pure research, and full-time non-teaching service are normally excluded in calculating sabbatical eligibility.  

Sabbaticals must be at least one month (30 days) in duration and can normally be no longer than one year (360 days) in duration and at a minimum of 50% FTE.

The Office of Academic Affairs maintains a record of sabbatical accrual and use for all Professoriate members. 

Administrative Supplement

Administrative duties, and any corresponding administrative supplement, are automatically discontinued during sabbatical unless an exception to policy is requested by the department.  If the exception is granted by the Vice Dean, the administrative supplement must be paid by the department; it may not be charged to the sabbatical account.

 

Clinician Educators: Professional Development Leave (PDL)

The Clinician Educator Professional Development Leave (PDL) Program was established in 2004 to free Clinician Educators from their normal duties--clinical care, teaching, administrative and/or scholarly (as applicable)--enabling them to pursue training and/or education-related projects or opportunities that will enhance their patient care and teaching activities at Stanford. PDL should not be used for maternity-related leave.

Accrual and Use

Clinical Assistant Professors, Clinical Associate Professors and Clinical Professors who are benefits eligible (that is, appointed at 50% FTE or more and for an appointment of six months or longer) are eligible for PDL.  

Clinician Educators in those categories begin accruing PDL at the start of their (eligible) appointment, and accrue 14 days or two weeks per year.  Five years of active service are required before becoming eligible to take PDL, and the normal maximum accrual is 98 days. Accrual stops during a period of no service (a leave for short term disability, family and medical leave, long term disability, professional development leave, for example). For further details, please see the Program Statement below.

Please note that PDL is different than Paid Conference Leave, which is covered in the Time off with Pay section below.


Applying for Sabbatical or Professional Development Leave (PDL)

 

  1. Discuss with your division chief or department chair.
  2. If necessary, consult the University Handbook for policies and information on sabbaticals and other leaves for Professoriate, or the Professional Development Leave Program Statement (PDF) for policies and information on professional development leaves.
  3. Determine how much leave eligibility you have accrued by visiting MedLeave and clicking the "Check Accrual" button.
  4. As part of the submission to OAA, please complete the request form in MedLeave. The MedLeave application will route the request to faculty affairs staff within your department and to department leadership.

Note: Your leave request form must be submitted to OAA by the departmental FAA. Requests will be reviewed within 60 days of receipt. Late submissions will typically be denied.  Please get in touch with your departmental FAA to understand the processing time needed internally prior to submission to OAA.

 

Requesting Changes to Leave:

 

Any changes to dates, FTE, or purpose of the leave must be reviewed and approved by OAA in a timely manner. 

  1. Discuss changes with your division chief, if applicable, and department chair. Inform your Faculty Affairs Administrator.
  2. If necessary, consult the University Handbook for policies and information on sabbaticals and other leaves for Professoriate or the Professional Development Leave Program Statement (PDF) for policy guidelines and information on professional development leaves. 
  3. Submit the requested change to your Faculty Affairs Administrator, for processing.

Note: Processing times will vary based on the change(s) needed.

For Faculty Affairs Administrators

Faculty Affairs administrators should submit the change request as a memo to the som-leaves@stanford.edu. Please ensure that all faculty leadership is aware of the proposed change and that they approve the requested change. In addition, confirm the leave start date, end date, and return to work date and that all coverage arrangements will remain the same. Memos should be submitted as soon as possible for processing.

Note: Processing times will vary based on the change(s) needed.


Clinician Educators and Instructors: Other Paid Leaves

Time Off with Pay

Clinician Educators and Instructors are eligible for time off with pay from regularly scheduled service (not including time off due to holiday closure) that can be scheduled throughout the year with departmental approval based on clinical needs, clinical and/or teaching commitment and responsibilities.  Time off with pay may be granted up to 22 days per year, pro-rated for the individual’s percent time of appointment and start date. Time off with pay is available at the beginning of the calendar year and may not be carried forward from year to year. Pay in lieu of time off is not possible, nor can unused time off be carried over to the next calendar year, except in unusual circumstances justified by clinical needs of the department.  The department chair must approve such exceptions, in advance. Time off with pay has no cash value, and is not paid out in any fashion at the time that employment ends.


Paid Conference Leave

Benefits-eligible Clinician Educators and Instructors are eligible for paid conference leave that may be taken for the purpose of attending professional development conferences or for participating in similar professional development opportunities.  This program is not available to those holding Clinician Educator (Affiliated) titles.

Paid conference leave is not automatic and must be applied for and approved by the department in advance.  Clinician Educators and Instructors should work with their service chiefs and department chairs to assure adequate coverage of their clinical services while they are on paid conference leave.

For disability and family leaves, see Family + Medical Leaves.


Paid Sick Leave

Each calendar year, Clinician Educators and Instructors who are regular employees (employed at 50% or more FTE for at least six consecutive months) receive a lump sum of 24 hours of paid sick time that they may use pursuant to the Paid Sick Leave Law.   They may use this sick time for themselves or a family member for absences due to illness; for preventive care or diagnoses, care, or treatment of an existing health condition; or for specified purposes related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.  This sick time does not carry over from one calendar year to the next. In addition to notifying the department chair or supervisor of the need to take sick leave, the employee should notify Payroll through a HelpSU request. If the need for sick time use is unforeseeable, the employee should provide notice of the need for sick time use as soon as practicable.   

Casual and temporary Clinician Educators and Instructors accrue sick time at the rate of .03334 hours per hour of straight time. This equates to one hour for every 30 hours worked. Casual and temporary Clinician Educators and Instructors may begin using sick time on the 90th calendar day after the start of employment with the University. Sick time must be accrued before it can be used. The use of sick days is limited to 24 hours or three scheduled work days each year of employment, whichever is greater. They may use this sick time for themselves or a family member for absences due to illness; for preventive care or diagnoses, care, or treatment of an existing health condition; or for specified purposes related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.  In addition to notifying the department chair or supervisor of the need to take sick leave, the employee should notify Payroll through a HelpSU request.  If the need for sick time use is unforeseeable, the employee should provide notice of the need for sick time use as soon as practicable.