L&S Summer Instructional Appointments: Policy and Guidance

This document outlines common appointment guidelines for instructional appointments in the College of Letters & Science during Summer Term. This page has been updated for Summer 2025.

Important information for Summer 2025

  1. Summer appointment dates/length: In most cases, the appointment should begin one week before the course begins. This is for preparation before the course session. More details and special cases are in the Appointment level sections below.

  2. Summer standard appointment percentages: These were updated effective Summer 2024. Details and standard percentages are in the Appointment level sections below.

Appointment levels - Instructors

The following guidance applies to instructional summer appointments for Faculty, Academic Staff & Lecturer (SA)s.

Appointment dates

Summer instructional appointments typically include one prep week before the instructional session. E.g., an instructor teaching an 8-week course will be appointed for 9 weeks.

Appointment percentages

Standard appointment levels for instructors are listed in the table below.

Standard Instructor Appointment Levels
Session Length Appointment Length Appointment Level
4-week course 5 weeks 90.0%
6-week course 7 weeks 64.5%
8-week course 9 weeks 50.0%

Less common scenarios

Please consult with L&S Teaching & Learning Administration to walk through any less common scenario, especially if the instructor is teaching more than one summer course. We will consider complexities and provide guidance. Some less common scenarios include:

  • When courses begin the first contract week of summer, the additional week will typically be added to the end of the appointment.
  • Instructors teaching two courses back-to-back should have an additional week for each course added to the appointment. Typically this will be a week prior to the appointment (for the first course), and a week after the second course. 
  • Instructors teaching 13 & 14 week courses will not receive an additional week for prep added to their appointment. Instead of getting an extra week, they will receive a higher appointment percentage:
    • 13-week courses: 35.0%
    • 14-week courses: 32.5%
  • Other scenarios not listed will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis by L&S Teaching & Learning Administration in consultation with L&S HR.

Procedure

Need Help? Email Rob Schultz (rob.schultz@wisc.edu) for help finding past appointment levels or calculating an appointment percentage.

Appointment levels - Teaching Assistants

Appointment dates

Departments may add an additional week of prep time, similar to instructors. E.g., the TA appointment for an 8-week course may span nine weeks.

Appointment percentages

Teaching Assistants appointment levels are often similar to instructor appointment levels. Common appointment levels are listed below. The appointment level is ultimately determined by the number of hours needed for the appointment.

Common TA Appointment Levels
Session Length Appointment Length Appointment Level
4-week course 5 weeks 90.0%
6-week course 7 weeks 64.5%
8-week course 9 weeks 50.0%

Less common scenarios

Please consult with L&S Teaching & Learning Administration to walk through any less common scenarios, especially if the TA is teaching more than one summer course. We will consider complexities and provide guidance. Some less common scenarios include:

  • When courses begin the first contract week of summer, the additional week may be added to the end of the appointment.
  • TAs teaching two courses back-to-back should have an additional week for each course added to the appointment. Typically this will be a week prior to the appointment (for the first course), and a week after the second course. 
  • TAs teaching 13 & 14 week courses will not receive an additional week for prep added to their appointment. Instead of getting an extra week, they will receive a higher appointment percentage
  • Other scenarios not listed will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis by L&S Teaching & Learning Administration in consultation with L&S HR.

Procedure

Summer Term Chair compensation

  • Departments are permitted to create paid appointments for a Summer Chair, paid on the Summer 131 funding (131-2 A48##93), as long as the department is projected to have adequate surplus.
  • The details of the Summer Chair appointment are approved at the time of the Summer Budget Proposal.
  • Departments may be asked to obtain Executive Committee approval for chair compensation.
  • See below for appointment letter procedures.

Offer Letter Procedure for Summer Instructors, Chairs and TAs

Faculty and renewable Academic Staff (including Summer Chairs)

  • Letters are drafted by L&S HR Business Partners and emailed to departments for review and distribution.
  • The Expense Details report notes either 'Faculty letter drafted by L&S' or 'Renewable Ac Staff letter drafted by L&S' for these appointments.
  • These letters replace the summer MOAs/'green sheets' distributed in prior years.
  • Offer letters to the summer chair may be signed another member of the Executive Committee, preferably the vice or associate chair if there is one. If not, the department administrator may sign. Please contact Ben Weisse with questions.

Short-term Staff (including Lecturer SAs)

Teaching Assistants:

Contingency language for summer letters

Summer offer letters contain additional contingency language related to sufficient enrollment, limitations on summer appointments, and instructor absences.

Enrollment

  • Summer offer letters are contingent upon sufficient enrollment. Enrollment is reviewed in mid-April, when the College distributes Preliminary Enrollment Financial Reports. See the L&S Summer Budget Model KB for additional information on this process.

Limitations on summer appointments

  • Campus policy places limitations on repeated summer appointments for C-Basis employees: https://policy.wisc.edu/library/UW-5032
  • Faculty should check with the Graduate School about any combination of Summer Graduate School Research Grant funding and summer teaching assignments; departments may need to have back-up plans for covering a course if a faculty member receives such funding and becomes unavailable to teach.

Instructor expectations

  • Given the compressed format of summer courses, it is essential for instructors to be present for all scheduled class sessions. Absences from campus for non-emergency situations will not be approved.
  • Instructors teaching online courses are expected to be available to their students for the entire session in a manner that meets the needs of students at the same level of quality as a course originating from a campus base (quality of network connectivity, response time, etc.). See L&S Foundational Criteria for Online & Hybrid Instruction.

Primary Contacts for L&S Administration

  • Rob Schultz, Instructional Program Manager for Teaching & Learning Administration

    See Also


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    Doc ID:
    85547
    Owned by:
    Cathy Y. in L&S KB
    Created:
    2018-09-10
    Updated:
    2024-08-19
    Sites:
    L&S KB
    Clean URL:
    https://kb.wisc.edu/summer-appointments