Courtesy Appointments

Courtesy status guidelines were updated on March 3rd, 2023. Please see the updated guidelines for the procedure to initiate courtesy status.

Email the below form to both [email protected] and [email protected].

Courtesy Appointment Request Form and Personal Demographic

Additional resources and FAQs:

Guide: Convert Existing Affiliates to Courtesy Status

Letter Template

FAQs

OSU uses many terms to describe different parts of the institution – for example, programs, departments, schools, and colleges. The intent of the policy is to allow any part of the institution to initiate a courtesy appointment request, and for the dean, vice president or vice provost (or designee) who leads that part of OSU to approve or extend the courtesy status.

If these individuals meet the criteria for courtesy status, please follow the courtesy status process. If the individuals need access to any FERPA-protected information, please ensure they first complete FERPA training.

Earlier is always better and two months is helpful (when feasible). HR respects that courtesy appointments are important to collaboration and to graduate student committees, but we must also balance these with hiring priorities and other actions that affect OSU employees. If you have an escalated or emergency need, please include that detail in your request when it is sent to [email protected].

Previously, only academic units could initiate courtesy status and only academic faculty could hold courtesy status. This was unnecessarily complicated for research centers and institutes. The broader definition of courtesy status is more flexible in its support of OSU’s mission.

No, this is a common misunderstanding. Please see the Graduate School’s Graduate Faculty site for more information.

Human Resources worked closely with Faculty Affairs, the Graduate School, OSU IT and the College of Agricultural Sciences.

Yes, your faculty can still make recommendations via vote. With approval from your dean, vice provost or vice president, or their designee, your unit can also still choose to use a working title that reflects the person’s achievements.

If the individual wishes to proceed with the promotional process, they are welcome to do so, but it is not required. With approval from your dean, vice provost or vice president, or from their designee, you can assign a working title to reflect the person’s achievements.

All graduate student committee members are required to complete FERPA training because they will have access to protected materials. Without ONID credentials, FERPA completion can’t easily be tracked.

Graduate committee members also typically receive materials from the Graduate School via DocuSign. Secure use of DocuSign requires that the person have ONID credentials. Even if the university one day moves away from DocuSign specifically, any new system will also likely require OSU credentials.

If the retiree will continue collaborating with the university in one or more of the ways described in the updated policy, courtesy status is appropriate.

We do not anticipate any impact to immigration sponsorship for international (non-employee) colleagues. Some departments previously chose to grant international (non-employee) colleagues affiliate status rather than providing them with courtesy appointments. If those collaborations are still underway, please convert the individuals to a courtesy appointment. If you have questions about an international (non-employee) colleague’s immigration sponsorship, contact [email protected].

If an existing affiliate needs ONID credentials (for example, to participate on a graduate student’s committee) and/or will continue their term into FY24, please convert the affiliate to courtesy status no later than the end of FY23. You will not be able to create new affiliates or renew existing affiliates after June 30, 2023.

If the existing affiliate needs ONID credentials (for example, to participate on a graduate student’s committee), please convert the affiliate to courtesy status no later than the end of FY23. If the affiliate does not need ONID credentials, you may wait to convert them until the existing term ends. You will not be able to create new affiliates or renew existing affiliates after June 30, 2023.

The new courtesy policy does not limit courtesy status to academic faculty, eliminates mandatory assignment of academic rank, and eliminates the requirement to stand for formal promotion. In essence, the definition of courtesy status has expanded. You may wish to revise the center’s by-laws to better reflect your intent.

Yes, courtesy status is appropriate until the person begins employment at OSU.

The standard appointment length can be any period up to 3 years. For example, if collaboration will occur for just 3 months, the appointment can be for 3 months. Any length of time up to 3 years is permitted by the policy. If you need a longer appointment, your dean, vice president or vice provost, or their designee, can approve a longer appointment of up to 5 years.

Five years is the maximum and should be carefully considered. Recognize that the standard 3-year appointment can be renewed as necessary up to 3 years per renewal. If you find that this practice doesn’t meet your needs, please contact Carolyn Warfield ([email protected]) in University Human Resources to discuss options.

The courtesy appointment letter now includes instructions to new courtesy appointees about creating ONID credentials and completing their FERPA training. For those who are able to run reports via CORE, UHR recommends that you pull reports BIC2910 and BIC2911.

Please refer to this this step-by-step guide.

Please use the date you wish the courtesy appointment to begin.

Existing courtesy appointees, as well existing affiliates who will not be converted to a courtesy appointment, will experience minimal change, if any. Their existing working titles and informal rank will remain in place, as will their access to OSU resources and privileges. We do not anticipate that these updates will cause much disruption for existing appointments and that units will appreciate the new features and flexibility of courtesy statuses as new appointments are made. Of course, leaders may wish to communicate these changes for the general awareness of their units going forward.

FAQs

What does the term “OSU unit” mean in the policy?

My OSU unit has relationships with people in governmental agencies and industry partners. We used to assign affiliate status to these individuals. What is our best option now?

How far in advance should courtesy appointment requests be sent to HR?

The updated policy refers to “courtesy status” rather than “courtesy faculty.” What’s behind this change?

I’m an academic faculty member and serve on graduate committees for OSU students outside my unit. Do I need a courtesy appointment to serve on those graduate committees?

Who was consulted to inform this policy update?

My OSU unit gathers votes from academic faculty before granting anyone courtesy status. The vote includes a recommended academic rank. Can we still vote and assign a rank?

Some current courtesy faculty in my unit have already submitted promotion materials for AY23. Does our promotion committee need to consider those dossiers, or can we simply assign working title that better reflects the person’s achievements?

My unit used affiliate faculty status for graduate committee members because it was simpler than requesting courtesy status. Why can’t we continue this practice?

One of my unit’s employees retired but still needs access to some OSU materials. Is courtesy status appropriate?

Will the move away from affiliate status toward courtesy appointments affect immigration sponsorship (“visas”) for international (non-employee) collaborating colleagues?

If an OSU unit has someone in an affiliate status that they don’t anticipate renewing at the end of their affiliate term, do they need to convert them to courtesy now?

If an OSU unit has someone in an affiliate status that they do anticipate renewing at the end of their term, can they wait and convert them to courtesy when the current arrangement ends?

I’m part of a research center associated with OSU’s Research Office. Our current by-laws require that certain faculty vote on whether an individual should be extended courtesy status. How do these changes affect us?

My unit hired a new academic faculty member who starts work on September 16, but is contributing to a research proposal over the summer. Is courtesy status appropriate?

The policy says that the standard appointment period is up to 3 years but can be 5 years by exception. What does that mean?

We may need courtesy appointments that are longer than 5 years. Is that possible?

How will new courtesy appointees know if they must complete FERPA training?

We need to convert some former affiliate faculty to courtesy appointments. How do we get started?

We are converting some former affiliates to courtesy status. Should the start date listed on the courtesy form be the date we want the courtesy appointment to begin, or should it be the original affiliate start date?

How should my unit communicate these updates to existing courtesy appointees and affiliates?