Monthly Action Guide: September 2025
This post contains reminders of key deadlines and administrative tasks related to academic HR. Please share with faculty or staff who would find this information relevant.
Contact vpfal.prof.dev@utoronto.ca to be added to the distribution list or with any questions.
Recruitment: Sample Job Ads
Ask your Dean’s Office for a copy of VPFAL’s updated sample job ads. Basing your faculty ad on VPFAL sample ads will help ensure your ad conforms with immigration, institutional, and best practice requirements, increasing the speed with which your ad can be approved and posted.
Part-Time Faculty Reviews for Continuing Appointment
- “Part-time faculty are considered for a continuing appointment “[d]uring the sixth (6th) year of a period of successive one year and/or two year appointments.” (PtP, 7a)
- “The review to be conducted before December 31” (PtP, 7b)
- See AAPM Section on Continuing Appointment Review: Part-Time
Interim Review (tenure stream faculty, PPAA)
- Tenure stream faculty members should have their performance “reviewed no earlier than May 1 of the third year of [their] contract … Normally no later than 30th June, the appointee should be asked to submit an account of research or creative professional activity which has been completed or undertaken since the time of initial appointment … The appointee will not normally be required to complete the submission prior to August 31” (PPAA, II.8).
- See the AAPM Section on Interim Review
Tenure Review (tenure stream faculty, PPAA)
- In units with faculty members coming forward for tenure review:
- Candidate informed of membership of Tenure Committee: “This notification will normally happen in the fall” (PPAA, Part III, 14 iii). This correspondence and acknowledgement should be included in the tenure file.
- See the AAPM Section on Tenure Review
Promotion to Professor
- “Each year the Department Chairman will place before the Promotions Committee for preliminary consideration the names of all Associate Professors in the Department, together with their curricula vitae. The Committee will advise the Chairman as to which staff member should receive more detailed consideration for promotion”(PPP, 20).
- “Associate Professors may request that they be considered for promotion in any given year. Such requests are to be made in writing to the Chairman of the department on or before October 15 of the calendar year preceding the possible promotion. In this case, the Promotions Committee is obliged to give the faculty member detailed consideration along with any other candidates under consideration” (PPP, 21).
- See the AAPM Section on Promotion to Professor
Promotion to Professor, Teaching Stream
- “Each year the Department Chair will place before the Promotions Committee for preliminary consideration the names of all Associate Professors, Teaching Stream in the Department, together with their curricula vitae. The Committee will advise the Chair as to which faculty members should receive more detailed consideration for promotion” (PPPTS, 18).
- “Associate Professors, Teaching Stream may request that they be considered for promotion in any given year. Such requests are to be made in writing to the Chair of the department on or before October 15 of the calendar year preceding the possible promotion. In this case, the Promotions Committee is obliged to give the faculty member detailed consideration along with any other candidates under consideration” (PPPTS, 18).
- See the AAPM Section on Promotion for Teaching Stream Faculty
Part-Time Faculty Eligibility for Promotion
This is a reminder that part-time faculty in both streams are eligible for promotion.
- For non-tenure stream faculty see the criteria Policy and Procedures Governing Promotions (PPP), sections 7 and 8.
- For teaching stream faculty see the criteria Policy and Procedures Governing Promotions in the Teaching Stream (PPPTS), sections 6 and 7.
- See the AAPM: Part-Time (Non-Tenure Stream) Faculty and Promotion
- See the AAPM: Part-Time, Teaching Stream Faculty and Promotion
U of T Libraries Support for Faculty
Please share with your faculty
Please encourage both new and current faculty members to reach out to their University of Toronto Libraries (UTL) Faculty Liaison Librarian. Each liaison librarian can provide valuable research and teaching assistance. This includes research consultations on a wide variety of topics such as research impact, research data management, digital scholarship, and open access. Additionally, they can collaborate with you on Systematic and Scoping Reviews and provide instructional sessions to your students that are tailored to your course content. With AI tools proliferating, librarians can play a key role supporting students’ AI literacy. UTL also provides a Syllabus Service to support you with the management of course readings and reserves in a manner that respects Canadian copyright law and existing U of T licensing agreements and policies. Library Staff will retrieve, scan, license, and acquire eBooks where necessary to support instruction.
U of T Bookstore Support for Faculty
Please share with your faculty
- As you prepare for the upcoming academic term, we encourage all new faculty members to connect with the University of Toronto Bookstore for support with sourcing course materials. The Bookstore works closely with instructors to identify the most suitable resources for each course, offering both print and digital formats to meet diverse teaching needs.
- For courses that draw on multiple sources, the Bookstore collaborates with a licensed Access Copyright copy shop to help you create and distribute custom course packs tailored to your syllabus.
- To ensure materials are available for students at the start of the Fall term, we kindly ask that all course material orders be submitted as soon as possible. Orders can be placed through Verba Collect, or by contacting your designated textbook buyer directly for assistance.
- If you prefer to email your order or have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to one of our knowledgeable Bookstore buyers. You can find contact information here.
September & October Resources & Programming for Academic Administrators
Highlighted below are the sessions occurring in the next two months. To see the complete list of scheduled workshops, please visit the VPFAL programming page.
Hosting International Collaborators for Academic Administrators, Faculty, Principal Investigators and Staff of Single Department Faculties (Online)
October 6, 1-2:30pm
Hosting international colleagues, researchers, expert knowledge holders, students or visitors to your department, lab, or office requires advance planning and must include immigration considerations. There can be a variety of negative repercussions if there are errors or omissions in the process. This session will guide participants on where to seek assistance. We will provide an overview of the Canadian immigration system, offer information on ways to invite and host international collaborators, and answer general questions about immigration processes and options.
Advancement Process for Sessional Lecturers for AAAs and Staff (Online)
September 18, 1-3pm
This session, offered by Labour Relations, will provide Chairs, Directors, Associate Chairs Vice/Associate Deans, and Administrative Staff responsible for the administration of CUPE 3902 Unit 3 appointments with the necessary information to manage and conduct the processes for advancement to Sessional Lecturer II, and advancement to Sessional Lecturer III.
Managing Teaching Assistants and Sessional Lecturers for AAAs and Staff (Online)
October 20, 1-3pm
This session, offered by Labour Relations, will provide Chairs, Directors, Associate Chairs, Vice/Associate Deans, TA Coordinators, and Administrative Staff responsible for the administration of CUPE 3902 appointments the tools and information necessary for managing employees under the CUPE 3902 Unit 1 and Unit 3 Collective Agreements. Topics will include performance management, accommodation, workload, leaves, and all other relevant processes under the Collective Agreements for the duration of an employee’s contract.
September & October Resources & Programming for Faculty
New Faculty & Librarian Orientation Resources
The “Your Academic Career at U of T: New Faculty and Librarian Orientation” was held on August 11 & 12. Tenure-stream and continuing stream teaching stream faculty members and permanent status stream librarians should contact vpfal.prof.dev@utoronto.ca for access to materials if they were unable to attend.
NCFDD Programming
Please share with your faculty.
NCFDD offers on-demand access to programs and resources designed to help faculty members “achieve extraordinary writing and research productivity while maintaining a full and healthy life off campus”