Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Faculty Affairs Office
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Lecturers

Lecturers are faculty whose primary responsibility is teaching. Lecturers do not have career tracks and are always non-tenure-eligible.

Types of Lecturer Appointments

  • Adjunct Lecturer
  • Coterminous Lecturer
  • Regular Lecturer
  • Visiting Lecturer

 New Appointment
Use for new hires, rehires, and changing a current faculty member's appointment to lecturer

Complete the OnBase submission form (for help, view this OnBase page) and attach these documents:

  • Upload the Personal Data Form separately to its respective button
    • If an existing faculty member is changing to a lecturer, the personal data form isn't necessary unless the faculty member needs to update information on it
  • Combine the following documents into a single PDF file and upload to the Position / Appointment Form button. When combining documents, use this order:
    1. Lecturer Cover Sheet: New Appointment
    2. Position Data/Appointment Forms
    3. Prior correspondence with FAO regarding special circumstances, if applicable
    4. Candidate's CV

 Reappointment

Lecturers are eligible for reappointment in 1-year terms.  Lecturer appointment terms always end on August 31 of a given year, with reappointments taking effect on September 1.  Faculty whose appointment terms end on August 31 are reappointed together as part of an annual batch process.  

View our Annual Reappointment Process page for details.

 Change Appointment Basis

Complete the OnBase submission form (for help, view this OnBase page) and attach these documents:

  • Combine the following documents into a single PDF file and upload to the Position / Appointment Form button. When combining documents, use this order:
    • Change Appointment Basis Cover Sheet
    • Position Data and Appointment Forms, downloaded from myHR and updated
    • Prior correspondence with FAO regarding special circumstances, if applicable
    • Candidate's CV

 Change Appointment Category

If proposing a change to a current faculty member's category of appointment, please do the following:

  • Navigate to the webpage describing the intended faculty appointment category
  • Follow the New Appointment process/checklist

 Request Approval for an Outside Appointment

Faculty must obtain approval from their Department Chair and the Dean’s Office before accepting an appointment at an another institution.

Request approval to obtain an outside appointment.

 Termination or Appointment Non-renewal
Involuntary departure initiated by the department

Phase 1: Provide Written Notice of Appointment Non-Renewal

Faculty must receive advance written notice from the Department Chair that the appointment will not be renewed; the amount of notice is dependent on the length of the faculty member's current appointment term. If you wish to discuss the case before providing the notification, contact fao@northwestern.edu 

Exception: Most faculty who practice clinically are required to remain in good standing at their clinical employer in order to retain their faculty appointment. If the clinical employer terminates their employment, the faculty appointment can be terminated the same day as the clinical employment, without the same advance notice requirements. If this situation arises, please contact fao@northwestern.edu to discuss the case.

  1. Prepare the letter (template available below) and send to the faculty member:
  2. Submit a copy of the letter to FAO via the online Faculty Appointment Non-renewal form
     

Phase 2: Submit Termination Transaction Via OnBase

To process a termination after providing advance notice to the faculty member, submit via the OnBase submission form (for help, view this OnBase page). Combine the following documents into a single PDF file and upload to the Position / Appointment Form button. When combining documents, use this order:

  1. Position Data/Appointment Forms
    • Download ALL active records (e.g., secondary appointments) and update as needed. If the faculty member has appointments in other departments, notify the other departments of the termination. The position/appointment forms to end all appointments should be submitted by the primary department through its OnBase submission. (If a secondary department wishes to retain an appointment for the faculty member, it would submit an additional OnBase transaction separately to propose an appointment change.)
    • Appointment form action/reason codes: depends on termination reason, so consult action/reason code matrix 
    • Position form action/reason code: POS/INA
  2. Copy of written notification provided to faculty member

 Resignation
Voluntary departure initiated by the faculty member

Complete the OnBase submission form (for help, view this OnBase page) and attach these documents:

  • Upload the faculty member's resignation letter (if available) separately to its respective button
  • Combine the following documents into a single PDF file and upload to the Position / Appointment Form button. When combining documents, use this order:
    1. Position Data/Appointment Forms
      • Download ALL active records (e.g., secondary appointments) and update as needed. If the faculty member has appointments in other departments, notify the other departments of the resignation. The position/appointment forms to end all appointments should be submitted by the primary department through its OnBase submission. (If a secondary department wishes to retain an appointment for the faculty member, it would submit an additional OnBase transaction separately to propose an appointment change.)
      • Common appointment form action/reason codes:
        TER/OTP (resignation for another position)
        TER/PER         (resignation for personal reasons)
      • Position form action/reason code: POS/INA

 Retirement, retaining netID, Wildcard, and email address
For regular lecturers only (adjunct, coterminous, and visiting lecturers are not eligible for retirement)

Regular lecturers are eligible for retirement at 55 years of age (coterminous, visiting, and adjunct lecturers are not eligible for retirement).

Complete the OnBase submission form (for help, view this OnBase page) and attach these documents:

  • Combine the following documents into a single PDF file and upload to the Position / Appointment Form button. When combining documents, use this order:
    1. Position Data/Appointment Forms
      • Download ALL active records (e.g., secondary appointments) and update as needed. If the faculty member has appointments in other departments, notify the other departments of the retirement. The position/appointment forms to end all appointments should be submitted by the primary department through its OnBase submission. 
      • Add this note in the comments: "Retain WildCard and email"
      • Appointment form action/reason code: TER/RTT
    2. Retiree Privileges Form
    3. Faculty member's letter of retirement (optional)

 Retirement, relinquishing netID, Wildcard, and email address
For regular lecturers only (adjunct, coterminous, and visiting lecturers are not eligible for retirement)

Regular lecturers are eligible for retirement at 55 years of age (coterminous, visiting, and adjunct lecturers are not eligible for retirement).

Complete the OnBase submission form (for help, view this OnBase page) and attach these documents:

  • Combine the following documents into a single PDF file and upload to the Position / Appointment Form button. When combining documents, use this order:
    1. Position Data / Appointment Forms
      • Download ALL active records (e.g., secondary appointments) and update as needed. If the faculty member has appointments in other departments, notify the other departments of the retirement. The position/appointment forms to end all appointments should be submitted by the primary department through its OnBase submission. 
      • Appointment form action/reason code: TER/RTT
    2. Faculty member's letter of retirement (optional)

 Death

Complete the OnBase submission form (for help, view this OnBase page) and attach these documents:

  • Combine the following documents into a single PDF file and upload to the Position / Appointment Form button. When combining documents, use this order:
    1. Position Data/Appointment Forms
      • Download ALL active records (e.g., secondary appointments) and update as needed. If the faculty member has appointments in other departments, notify the other departments of the death. The position/appointment forms to end all appointments should be submitted by the primary department through its OnBase submission. 
      • Appointment form action/reason code: TER/DEA
      • Position form action/reason code: POS/INA
    2. Obituary (if available)