Leave without Salary/Unpaid Leave of Absence



Professoriate: Leave without Salary

Appointments at Other Institutions

A faculty member on leave without salary may not take a regular faculty or administrative position at another institution of higher education. However, faculty on leave without salary may accept a visiting professor appointment at another educational institution.

Effect on an Appointment for a Term of Years

A leave without salary extends a term appointment held by a member of the Professoriate, irrespective of faculty line, by a period equal to the duration of the leave, unless there is advanced written agreement to the contrary. This extension is not automatic; it must be requested by the department and school. Check with your departmental Faculty Affairs Administrator for more details.

Effect on the Tenure Clock and Appointment Clock Deadlines

A leave without salary taken by an untenured Tenure Line faculty member also extends their seven year tenure clock. It does not extend the ten year appointment clock deadline.


Clinician Educators, Instructors, and Clinical Scholars: Unpaid Leave of Absence

During an unpaid absence a Clinician Educator, Instructor, or Clinical Scholar does not receive pay from the University.  Administrative Guide Section 2.1.8, Miscellaneous Authorized Absences covers various types of leave from the University.  Section 2.1.8.2 describes several types of leave of absence without salary and addresses benefits continuation during an unpaid leave of absence.  

A Clinician Educator may be placed on personal leave without pay at a department's discretion and with advance approval from the Office of Academic Affairs.  Consideration will be given to the type of absence, the impact on programmatic need, and whether the absence is to be partial or complete, and the duration of the absence; approval of an absence exceeding 12 months should be rare.  

An unpaid leave of absence must be for a definite period with specific starting and ending dates and cannot extend beyond the end of a fixed-term appointment.  General policies for Leaves of Absence appear in Administrative Guide Section 2.1.8.3.


Applying for Leave Without Salary (Professoriate) or Unpaid Leave of Absence (Clinician Educators, Instructors, and Clinical Scholars)

  1. Discuss with your division chief or department chair. If your leave does not strictly follow School guidelines, discuss whether the department will request an exception to policy for you.
  2. If necessary, consult the University Faculty Handbook (Professoriate) or the University Admin Guide (Clinician Educators, Instructors, and Clinical Scholars) for policies and information.
  3. 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 30 days of receipt. Please contact your departmental FAA to understand the process needed internally prior to submission to OAA.