Faculty Track Transfers: Guidelines, Processes, & Entry in Workday

As of January 1, 2023, the Dean’s office will require a deadline for all faculty track transfer packet submissions. All completed faculty track transfer packages must be submitted no later than November 1, for a January A payroll effective date, and May 1, for a July A payroll effective date.

Below are guidelines to keep in mind when considering a track transfer for a faculty member:

• The individual must request the transfer in writing
• There must be clear evidence of a change in the individual’s duties, activities, or career goals and expectations from those specified in the initial appointment letter
• The executive committee must have reviewed the request and voted in favor of making a recommendation to move forward. The executive committee must base its recommendation on an assessment that the individual’s future activities will conform to the proposed track guidelines and UW-Madison Faculty Policies and Procedures
• The individual must not have been formally recommended by the departmental executive committee for promotion to the rank of associate professor on their initial track
• For transfer from tenure track to CHS track only: In accordance with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Faculty Policies and Procedures, such lateral transfers may not be made for the purpose of circumventing a decision between promotion and non-retention (FPP 7.06.c) and, following the SMPH dean’s approval, must be forwarded to the University Committee and the provost for approval
• SMPH and University policies do not allow for subsequent track transfers

The department will submit the following required documentation for the transfer request to the SMPH Faculty Promotions Team (FPT). Checklists with this information are also located on the SMPH Policies and Resources intranet page.

• Letter from the faculty member to the SMPH dean requesting the track transfer
• Letter of support from the department chair. The letter should include:

• • Reason for the request and rationale for the track transfer (a change in the individual’s duties, activities, or career goals and expectations from those specified in the initial appointment letter).
  • The total tenure and CHS track probationary period remaining when an individual transfers must be clearly stated in the chair’s letter
  • Summary of executive committee vote including:
    • Date of vote
    • The number of eligible voters on the department’s executive committee during the semester of the decision and the exact vote, including absences or abstentions
    • The percentage of votes required for acceptance by the department’s executive committee

• Letter of support for the transfer from the candidate’s mentor/oversight committee
• Curriculum vitae of the candidate
• For transfers from CT to CHS track or from CHS to tenure track, a completed track transfer compensation attestation form must be submitted

• For all track transfers, we are required to know if the candidate is on a visa, as a title change could have visa implications. Please notify the FPT if applicable.
• For transfers from the tenure track to the CHS track, counting prior clock years at this or another institution (up to a maximum of four years) is at the discretion of the department. If the department chooses to forgo applying prior clock years, the faculty will start in clock year zero of their promotion clock/probationary period. 
• For transfer from the CHS track to the tenure track, counting prior service at this or another institution is at the discretion of the department. In the extraordinary event that the transfer occurs more than three years after hire on the CHS track, any length of CHS service in excess of four years must be counted in determining the amount of time remaining on the probationary tenure clock.
  • For situations where applying prior service is at the discretion of the department, a track transfer prior service request form must be submitted for any prior service to count towards the faculty member’s new probationary clock.
• The maximum probationary period in the CHS track is nine years of full-time equivalent service (which includes a twelve-month notice year)
• The maximum probationary period in the tenure track is the equivalent of seven years of full-time service (which includes a twelve-month notice year)
• For faculty transferring to the tenure track who will have clinical responsibilities, SMPH policy allows for a one-year clinical clock extension (when clinical duties are 20% or more of the candidate’s workload), or a two-year clinical clock extension (when clinical duties are 40% of the candidate’s workload). Clinical clock extensions are optional but must be considered and requested at the time of the transfer.
• Final approval of track transfers is within the SMPH Dean’s office, except for transfers from the tenure track. These conversions of a Faculty appointment (tenure track) to an Academic Staff appointment (CHS or CT track) need to be approved by the University Committee.

• Send email to the department chair and cc the departmental faculty promotions specialist and HRBP with the following:
  • Approval memo from the SMPH Dean (or the Provost if the University Committee was involved – see last bullet point above in "Important Notes" section)
  • Faculty members revised probationary clock timeline (if applicable)
  • A link to the appropriate track transfer letter template
  • Confirmation that there is or is not a TWA for the faculty member. If applicable, the HRBP will be instructed to end a TWA prior to processing the Job Change or Direct-Hire Waiver. Once the transfer is fully processed in Workday, the HRBP will re-enter the TWA. (Need to clarify this process with SMPH Comp still. For the 6/29/25 track transfers, it does not appear that those faculty members have TWAs, so we have time to figure this out)
  • If the transfer involves movement between the CHS and tenure tracks, due to the difference of AS and FA, the position number will change.  If there is a pay plan to be uploaded on or near the date of the track transfer, make sure to include in your communication for the HRBP to check – the pay plan increase may need to be added manually after the transfer is done (This is likely no longer applicable once we're in Workday but still something to be mindful of in the future if there is ever a transfer and pay plan around the same time).

1. Draft the track transfer approval letter, keeping in mind the following:
   1. These letters mirror our offer letter templates, since the result of a track transfer is a new appointment and contract.
   2. The job description should be updated and accurate to show what they will be doing in the new position/track (don’t copy/paste duties from the original offer letter)
2. Send draft letter to the SMPH FPT who will send to Faculty HR and the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Development for review
3. Once the letter is approved, the SMPH FPT will return the letter to the HRBP for Chair and faculty member signatures
   1. Note: Workday will still ask you to generate a document for the faculty member when processing the Job Change. I do not believe you will have the ability to attach the fully executed letter in Workday for review/acceptance, so instead, you will be instructed in the "Steps for entering a track transfer in Workday" panel below to copy/paste the fully executed track transfer letter into the Workday generated document to send to the faculty member to accept.
4. HRBP will forward the final signed copy of the letter to the SMPH FPT

Note: Finalizing the track transfer approval letter should happen before proceeding with the Workday entry since you will need to copy/paste the letter into the Workday generated memo for the faculty member to review/accept. 

1. Upload the track transfer request packet to ImageNow. The actual track transfer letter that goes to the faculty member will be sent and saved in Workday and does not need to be uploaded to ImageNow.
2. Distribute the track transfer letter to the following:
   1. Secretary of the Faculty (tenure track only)
   2. Faculty HR

1. For dual employed faculty only, forward the letter to UWMF and Med Staff
2. Enter new contract end date in Faculty Tracker

1. Process the track transfer (see "Steps for entering track transfers in Workday" in the next section of the KB). 
   1. If applicable, end the faculty member's current TWA prior to processing the Direct-Hire Waiver or Job Change - New Title Assignment. Once the transfer has been processed/approved, the HRBP will re-enter the faculty member's TWA. (Need to confirm with SMPH Comp if these steps are correct)
   2. For track transfers from CHS to tenure or tenure to CHS (AS to FA/FA to AS), a Direct-Hire Waiver must be processed, followed by a Job Change > Lateral Move/Transfer
   3. For details on what to include within the Direct-Hire entry, see [Link for document 105994 is unavailable at this time]
   4. For track transfers from CHS to CT or CT to CHS (AS to AS), no waiver is needed, just a Job Change using the reason "New Title Assignment" must be processed
2. Once the track transfer has been processed:
   1. If the employee has a partial VA leave and will continue working at the VA after their transfer, the leave will have to be entered on the new position in Workday. For more information, see Faculty: VA Leave Without Pay
   2. If applicable, update faculty member’s new title on departmental org chart

CHS to CT or CT to CHS Track Transfers are completed through the Business Process: Job Change > New Title Assignment

• Note: CHS to CT or CT to CHS track transfers done via Job Change do not require PoRT approval.
• OHR resource for "New Title Assignment" entries, though the steps below provide more detail and should be followed at SMPH.

HRBP - Initiate Track Transfer 

HR Operations Coordinator - CBC (if applicable)

HRBP - Communication and Fiscal Approval

HRBP - Final Approval and Generate Document

Employee - Review Document

HRBP:

Follow the process outlined in the Waiver KB. Instructions specific to Track Transfers when following the steps under the following sections of the Waiver KB:

1. Begin at Phase 2: Build Waiver Job Requisition 
   1. CHS to tenure or tenure to CHS track transfers require PoRT approval
   2. When creating the job requisition, select Create Job Requestion > Recruitment Waiver
      1. For the Reason, select Recruitment Waiver > O - Faculty to Academic Staff/Academic Staff to Faculty (FA to AS/AS to FA)
2. Phase 3: Candidate Management
   1. Follow Create Candidate on Job Requisition Option 2: Create Prospect - Internal Candidate
   2. Work through the Candidate Management tasks that populate 
      1. May or may not need CBC or I-9
   3. Note: after you finish the generate employment agreement task, you will move the candidate to "Ready for Hire"
   4. When prompted to Generate Document, copy and paste the template language into the letter in Workday

Up Next: Employee Review Documents

1. Task will stay in employee's inbox until they click "I agree" and Submit.
2. Send email to employee and attach fully executed track transfer letter to email:
   1. From the Waiver KB, continue to Complete Hire > Change Job - employee will transfer into a new job
      1. Note: since this is a current faculty member, Workday will prompt a Job Change vs. a New Hire
      2. For track transfers from CHS to Tenure or Tenure to CHS, you will use the Job Change reason of Lateral Move/Transfer

Once the Direct-Hire Waiver and Job Change has Been Processed:

• If moving from CHS to Tenure - [Link for document 151754 is unavailable at this time]
• If moving from Tenure to CHS - [Link for document 151757 is unavailable at this time]