Professional Meeting
With approval from the Department Chair, School of Medicine (SOM) faculty and academics may take leaves with pay to attend professional meetings or conferences for up to 10 service (working) days. The SOM Associate Dean of Academic Affairs may approve longer leaves with pay (up to 30 calendar days). Vacation leave must be requested for professional leaves of more than 30 calendar days in length. After all vacation time is expended, any additional extensions, if approved by the Associate Dean, will be granted as a leave without pay (up to one year).
Regular Sabbatical Leave
Only Ladder-Rank faculty are eligible for sabbatical leaves, which enable the faculty member to engage in intensive programs of research and/or study, becoming more effective teachers and scholars and enhancing their services to the University. School of Medicine (SOM) faculty members earn a maximum of 4 sabbatical credits each fiscal year for service at 50% time or more and cannot accrue more than 40 sabbatical credits. Credits are not accrued during periods of leave without pay, leave with pay for 3 or more months, and sabbatical leave. Application for sabbatical leave using the ALAS form is submitted to the Academic Resource Center and includes a detailed description of the proposed project or sabbatical plan. The Department forwards requests to the SOM Academic Affairs Office for processing and approval. A sabbatical leave is approved with the understanding that following the leave, the faculty member will return to service for a period equal to the period of the sabbatical leave or they are obligated to refund the entire salary received for the period of the leave. Upon return from the leave, a sabbatical report MUST be submitted to the Department Chair within 90 days. The report is forwarded from the Department to the SOM Academic Affairs Office. Sabbatical leaves may be taken at various percentages with prorated credits used.
Sabbatical Leave In Residence
An "In Residence" sabbatical differs from a normal sabbatical in that it requires the faculty member to teach at least 3 hours each week or to substitute significant University service for some or all of the teaching requirements; however, substitution of significant service requires Executive Vice Chancellor approval as an exception. This leave requires fewer sabbatical credits, but may only exempt faculty from administrative, university, and/or departmental service. These leaves require the usage of about two-thirds of the number of sabbatical credits required for a full sabbatical.
Leave with Pay in lieu of Sabbatical
Faculty in the In Residence, Clinical X, Salaried Adjunct, and Health Sciences Salaried Clinical series are not eligible for sabbatical leave. However, they are entitled to request a leave with pay in lieu of sabbatical if appropriate funding is available. Eligibility for this type of leave is based on length of service and is patterned after the sabbatical policy, except there are no credits accrued or deferred.
Leave from Professional Duties to Conduct Research
The purpose of this type of leave is to allow a ladder-rank faculty member to take leave from professorial duties to focus exclusively on research while remaining at UCSD. This will require a change to the Professional Research series since the faculty member is generally paid from grant funding under a research title for the duration of the leave. No ALAS form is required when research is conducted at UCSD; however, the department should submit a memo to the Associate Dean, Academic Affairs 3-4 weeks before the effective date outlining the proposal. An ALAS form is only required when the research is conducted at a location other than UCSD or the faculty member leaves UCSD for more than 10 service or 14 calendar days during the course of the leave.