The Graduate Faculty consists of those members of the University faculty who have been designated by the Dean of the Graduate School as actively participating in graduate education. Powers and Duties of the Graduate Faculty are given in Chapter 23; section 23-42 and 23-44 of the Faculty Code.
For purposes of Policy 4.1, “academic unit” refers to department, division, program, school, college, or interdisciplinary group offering a graduate degree or a graduate certificate.
A “graduate program” is one that offers a graduate degree or a graduate certificate.
4.1.1 Graduate Faculty Appointment
Graduate Faculty are granted either continuous appointments or 5-year renewable appointments, as described below under “Eligibility for Graduate Faculty Status.” New Graduate Faculty members are nominated to general membership by a quorum majority vote of Graduate Faculty from the academic unit where the faculty hold the primary faculty appointment. The nominated faculty are subsequently appointed by the Dean of the Graduate School (Faculty Code Section 23-42). In cases where the faculty member’s primary academic unit does not offer a graduate degree or graduate certificate, the faculty member may be nominated to the Graduate Faculty by a graduate degree-offering or graduate certificate-offering unit where that faculty member holds an adjunct appointment.
The academic unit is responsible for assessing whether a faculty member meets the following required qualifications for a Graduate Faculty appointment based on the faculty member’s academic background and the nature of scholarship and research in that unit.
- Active involvement in (or, for an initial appointment, qualification for) graduate student teaching, mentoring, and/or research supervision.
- Research-based scholarship as demonstrated by peer-reviewed publications, equivalent creative work, or equivalent teaching-based scholarship, as defined by the academic unit.
4.1.2 Doctoral Endorsement
Graduate Faculty members who substantively engage in doctoral education must also have a specific “doctoral endorsement.” A doctoral endorsement is required to chair a doctoral supervisory committee or to serve as a Graduate School Representative (GSR) to doctoral supervisory committees.
The academic unit is responsible for assessing whether a faculty member meets the following required qualifications for doctoral endorsement based on the faculty member’s academic background and the nature of scholarship and research in that unit.
- Recent evidence of the ability to (or, for an initial appointment, qualification to) chair a doctoral supervisory committee, including supervising doctoral research and overseeing the doctoral dissertation or final project/capstone.
- The ability to serve as the Graduate School Representative (GSR) for doctoral supervisory committees.
4.1.3 Eligibility for Graduate Faculty status
Graduate Faculty status can either be continuous or for a 5-year renewable term. The requirement for each category of Graduate Faculty status follows. The accompanying document contains a complete list of faculty appointments by eligibility.
4.1.3.1 Continuous status
- Faculty must hold a title of assistant professor, associate professor, or professor (tenure-track, tenured, or WOT).
4.1.3.2 5-year renewable term
- Faculty with the title of assistant professor, associate professor, or professor who are appointed with emeritus, retired, affiliate, research, or clinical status may be nominated for a 5-year, renewable term and may be endorsed to chair doctoral supervisory committees if deemed appropriate by the academic unit.
- Faculty with the following titles and ranks (including those with emeritus, retired, affiliate, research, or clinical status) may be nominated for a 5-year, renewable term and may be endorsed to chair doctoral supervisory committees if deemed appropriate by the academic unit and hired through a nationally competitive search for a faculty position:
- Professor of Practice
- Artist in Residence
- Senior Artist in Residence
- Lecturer
- Assistant Teaching Professor
- Associate Teaching Professor
- Teaching Professor
- Instructors and those in temporary, acting, or visiting appointments are not eligible for Graduate Faculty status.
- Graduate Faculty status is automatically continued for the first five years of an otherwise eligible emeritus or retired faculty appointment. After that, retired and emeritus faculty are treated as all other renewable 5-year appointments.
4.1.4 Procedures for Graduate Faculty Membership
It is the responsibility of each graduate program-offering academic unit across all three university of Washington campuses to create a written policy for Graduate Faculty membership and for the doctoral endorsement. This policy and the specific criteria must be articulated to the faculty in the unit.
Faculty are nominated by vote to either general membership or to membership with doctoral endorsement. An individual first appointed as a general member can subsequently receive doctoral endorsement.
4.1.4.1 Voting Requirements:
- All members of the Graduate Faculty with a primary appointment in the academic unit vote on proposed nominations to the Graduate Faculty.
- For the doctoral endorsement, voting is restricted to Graduate Faculty members within the academic unit who hold that endorsement.
- Faculty with joint appointments may vote in multiple units.
- Renewal of a Graduate Faculty 5-year term requires a vote of the academic unit’s Graduate Faculty.
4.1.4.2 Nomination Requirements
Eligible faculty members from all three campuses of the university may be nominated for graduate faculty membership, including membership with doctoral endorsement. Nominations for Graduate Faculty status across all three University of Washington campuses should be made by a faculty member’s primary graduate degree-offering or graduate certificate-offering academic unit.
- If a faculty member holds a joint appointment either academic unit can make the nomination.
- If a faculty member holds an adjunct appointment, only the primary academic unit can nominate, unless the primary academic unit does not offer a graduate program.
- If the faculty member’s primary appointment is in a unit that does not offer a graduate program, the Graduate School will accept a nomination to appoint the faculty member to the Graduate Faculty from (1) a unit where the faculty member holds an adjunct appointment or (2) the faculty of a Graduate School Interdisciplinary Group where the nominated faculty is active in the interdisciplinary field.
4.1.4.3 Process Requirements
- Authorized administrative personnel in each academic unit will have access to process new Graduate Faculty nominations and renewals through the online MyGradProgram.
- E-mail notification to the newly nominated or renewed faculty member and the chair/director of the faculty’s academic unit is automatically sent from MyGradProgram.
- It is suggested that members of the faculty who are not members of the Graduate Faculty be considered annually for possible nomination.
4.1.5 Expectations of Graduate Faculty Members
The academic unit is responsible for assuring members of the Graduate Faculty show ongoing evidence of the following, based on the faculty member’s academic background and the nature of scholarship and research in that unit:
- Active involvement in graduate student teaching, mentoring, and/or research supervision.
- Continued research-based scholarship as demonstrated by peer-reviewed publications, equivalent creative work, or equivalent teaching-based scholarship, as defined by the academic unit.
Also see Faculty Code Chapter 23, Sections 23-42, 23-44. Executive Orders IV and VII.
4.1.6 Terminating Graduate Faculty Status
A vote of the Graduate Faculty of a faculty member’s appointing academic unit is required to terminate Graduate Faculty status. The unit informs the Graduate School of the decision and the Graduate School then updates faculty status online through MyGradProgram.
Policy 4.1 revised: October 2021, November 2024