Chapter 9A
Appointment Steps
1. Lecturers, Preceptors, and College Fellows
Step 1: Curricular need assessment and authorization request
The department chair discusses the curricular need for the appointment with the divisional dean and requests authorization.
Lecturers and Preceptors
If the department is requesting a multi-year lecturer appointment, the chair needs to describe and justify the curricular need for such an appointment. After approval is granted, the department begins the search process if a search is required. No search is required for appointments to teach a maximum of one four-credit course in one year (up to 0.25 annual FTE).
College Fellows
If approved, the divisional dean will provide the department with written authorization for the appointment.
Step 2. Advertising and outreach
All advertising copy must be reviewed and approved by the associate dean for the division/SEAS before it is submitted to the appropriate journals and other venues. Advertisements and inquiries should describe the position broadly and should list a date after which the department will stop accepting applications, or the department can encourage candidates to apply by a specific date, while indicating that applications will be reviewed until the position is filled. At least one form of the advertisement should be published in print. Advertisements should clearly state required documents and must indicate that “Harvard University is committed to equal opportunity and non-discrimination. We seek talent from all parts of society and the world, and we strive to ensure everyone at Harvard thrives. Our differences help our community advance Harvard’s academic purposes. Harvard has an equal employment opportunity policy that outlines our commitment to prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, religion, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law or identified in the university’s non-discrimination policy. Harvard’s equal employment opportunity policy and non-discrimination policy help all community members participate fully in work and campus life free from harassment and discrimination.”
Lecturers and Preceptors
For appointments where a search is required, the department advertises the position and makes inquiries at other institutions.
- The dossier for the finalist must include 3-5 letters of recommendation. The advertisement should ask candidates to submit contact information for references with their original application materials. The advertisement should also ask candidates to include in their cover letter a description of teaching/advising experience, including their philosophy and practices as well as their approach to creating a learning environment in which students are encouraged to ask questions and share their ideas.
College Fellows
The Office for Faculty Affairs advertises the position and sends candidates’ application materials to the department for review.
- Note: The Office for Faculty Affairs publishes a print ad for the entire College Fellows program.
- The dossier for the finalist must include 3 letters of recommendation. The advertisement should ask candidates to submit contact information for references with their original application materials.
- Departments are strongly encouraged to advertise the position in field-specific venues.
Step 3. Candidate review
Departments follow their standard procedures to review candidate(s) for appointment, regardless of whether a search is required.
Step 4: Dossier review and approval
The department sends the candidate’s dossier, including a draft offer letter, to the divisional/SEAS associate dean for review and approval.
Notes:
The department should secure from applicants at the short-list stage (or from the finalist, if the department’s process does not include a short-list stage) a draft course title, course description, and syllabus for the course(s) that the candidate(s) intend to teach during their upcoming appointment period, for approval. This information will be included in the finalist’s dossier. (Obtaining this information is not necessary for candidates who would be teaching established courses such as certain language or mathematics courses, etc.)
The divisional/SEAS dean and/or their designee and the Dean for Faculty Affairs and Planning can ask for changes to the dossier at any time.
Please securely send one digital copy of the dossier, including a draft offer letter, to the associate dean. Please follow HUIT’s recommended practices for secure document transfer, which can vary by user platform. For a full checklist of what the dossier should include, please see below.
Lecturers and Preceptors
For those appointments in which a search is required, a case statement, written by the chair, should also be included and should address:
- A description of the search, including procedures for establishing a list of candidates, total number of applicants, a description of the review procedures used in the department, and the reason a multi-year appointment was necessary (if applicable).
- A description of the finalist’s teaching/advising qualifications.
- A comparison of the candidate with all other leading candidates, and reasons why the other leading candidates were not chosen.
- A description of what the candidate will teach.
Note: The finalized case statement should be made available to the faculty in the department involved in the review.
For appointments that do not require a search: The candidate’s draft course title, course description, and syllabus should be solicited by the department before the hire and submitted to the divisional/SEAS associate dean with the candidate’s CV and a draft offer letter, for approval.
College Fellows
Note: The appointment will not be finalized until verification of doctoral completion is received from the candidate’s home institution. The two forms of acceptable documentation include either a certificate of completion from the degree-granting institution or a letter from the institution’s registrar. Such documentation should state that all requirements for the doctorate have been successfully completed and should verify the date the degree has been or will be conferred. If the candidate received his/her/their degree from Harvard, written verification from the chair or director of graduate studies, on department letterhead, may suffice.
- (Applicable only for those candidates who have not yet received the doctorate) A letter from the candidate’s advisor confirming that the candidate will receive the doctorate prior to the appointment start date.
- A copy of the department’s request for the search authorization and a copy of the divisional dean’s letter authorizing the search.
Step 5: Approval and offer letter
If approval is granted, the department issues the offer letter to the candidate.
Once approval for the appointment has been granted, the department should ask the individual during the hiring process to confirm the department’s understanding of what the course title, description, and syllabus are.
Lecturers and Preceptors
In addition to basic information, the letter includes information about teaching responsibilities for the year and, except for one-year or one-term appointments where reappointment is not intended, the standard for reappointment (including performance, curricular need, the availability of funds, and the approval of the associate dean for the division/SEAS) and the timing and procedures for review for reappointment, if applicable.
Click on the relevant offer letter template button below.
College Fellows
Step 6: Appointment processing
If the offer is accepted, the department processes the appointment in Aurora.
- The department submits 1 digital PDF copy of the final dossier and signed offer letter to the Appointments Office in the Office for Faculty Affairs via Aurora. Note: This copy is in addition to that submitted to the associate dean for the division/SEAS in Step 4.
- Completion of an I-9 on or before the appointment start date and submission of any other necessary documents is required of all new employees, or after a break in service of one year or more. Questions about I-9 completion should be directed to FAS Central Payroll for faculty appointed through FAS or SEAS Office for Faculty Affairs for faculty appointed through SEAS.
- The department securely sends 1 digital PDF copy of the signed offer letter and 1 digital PDF copy of the candidate’s acceptance letter to the associate dean for the division/SEAS. Please follow HUIT’s recommended practices for secure document transfer, which can vary by user platform.
The department administrator will remind the faculty member to sign digitally the Harvard University Participation Agreement by the start of their appointment.
2. Dependent Lecturers
The department chair ensures that conditions are met to hire a dependent lecturer to teach and discusses the curricular need for the appointment with the associate dean for the division/SEAS. Note: No search is required for dependent lectureships.
The conditions include the following:
- The course must be part of the department or degree committee’s curricular plan.
- The department must approve the appointment through standard departmental procedures.
- The individual must be eligible to hold the title lecturer within the FAS (including holding a doctorate, with the exception, as appropriate, of appointments in the arts).
The associate dean for the division/SEAS must provide authorization for the appointment.
The administrative unit, in consultation with the appropriate human resources office for administrative positions, determines whether it can accommodate the department's desire for the candidate to teach. For research positions, the administrative unit should consult with either the FAS Office for Research Administration (for candidates on grant funds) or the appropriate divisional/SEAS Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs.
Note: In the case of research appointments, the department should secure the approval of the PI and, if appropriate, the funding agency.
The department sends a draft offer letter, the candidate’s curriculum vitae, and course information to the associate dean for the division/SEAS.
Note: For new dependent lecturers who are not 0 FTE and who would be paid for teaching, the department should secure from the candidate before the hire a draft course title, course description, and syllabus for the course(s) that the candidate intends to teach during their upcoming appointment period, for approval. (Obtaining this information is not necessary for candidates who would be teaching established courses such as certain language or mathematics courses, etc.)
The letter outlines the agreement reached between the department and the administrative unit regarding the responsibilities of the position.
Please securely send one digital copy of the draft offer letter, the candidate’s CV, and course information to the associate dean for review and approval. Please follow HUIT’s recommended practices for secure document transfer, which can vary by user platform.
If approval is granted, the department issues the offer letter to the candidate.
Once approval for the appointment has been granted, the department should ask the individual during the hiring process to confirm the department’s understanding of what the course title, description, and syllabus are.
If the offer is accepted, the appointment is processed in the Aurora system by the department.
- The department sends to the Appointments Office in the Office for Faculty Affairs via Aurora:
- 1 digital PDF copy of the signed offer letter.
- 1 digital PDF copy of a letter describing what the candidate will teach; the letter indicates that this position will be dependent on an administrative, research, or curatorial position.
- 1 digital PDF copy of the candidate’s curriculum vitae.
- The department securely sends to the divisional associate dean 1 digital PDF copy of the candidate’s acceptance letter. Please follow HUIT’s recommended practices for secure document transfer, which can vary by user platform.
- The department administrator will remind the faculty member to sign digitally the Harvard University Participation Agreement by the start of their appointment.