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Ranked CAS

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Ranked Contract Academic Staff (CAS) Classification Table

Rank

Description

Faculty Lecturer

A CAS member appointed to with a primary duty to teach. Appointee shall generally possess the same minimum qualifications as tenure-track academic staff.

Senior Faculty Lecturer

A CAS member appointed to with a primary duty to teach. Appointee has a graduate degree plus six years continuous employment as a Faculty Lecturer at McGill and meets the promotion criteria of their department (normally superior performance in teaching). Exceptionally, may be an entry-level appointment for person who has minimum of six years similar continuous employment at another institution and who meets the other requirements.

Assistant Professor

A CAS member appointed to perform academic duties assigned by their Department Chair or Dean, in alignment with the descriptor in parenthesis to their rank.

Associate Professor

A CAS member who is judged to have met the appropriate criteria for this rank, and is appointed perform the academic duties assigned by their Department Chair or Dean, in alignment with the descriptor in parenthesis to their rank.

Full Professor

A CAS member who is judged to have met the appropriate criteria for this rank, and is appointed perform the academic duties assigned by their Department Chair or Dean, in alignment with the descriptor in parenthesis to their rank.

Descriptors shall be applied to Assistant, Associate and Full Professors and may be applied to Faculty Lecturers and Senior Faculty Lecturers

Clinical

Academic duties primarily related to clinical teaching and training of medical and dentistry students and residents, and related research, in affiliated hospitals and health centres. The terms and conditions of employment are established by the Faculty of Medicine or Dentistry and the affiliated institutions. The appointee will be a duly licensed medical or dental professional who holds and maintains a concurrent appointment in an affiliated hospital.
The clinical designation may also be used for appointees who are members of other professions and whose duties relate to the clinical teaching and training of students.

Professional

Academic duties primarily related to instruction, training, research related, and/or administrative responsibilities to the practice, methods and values of the appointee’s profession, discipline or vocation.

Research

Academic duties primarily involve research, and are typically supported by soft funds.

Teaching

Appointments that are primarily based in teaching or in leading education initiatives within a Faculty or unit.

Academic Administration

Appointments that are primarily based on academic leadership and administration.

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Post-Retirement

Nil-salary, Definite Term Appointments of up to three years that allow newly-retired academic staff to continue, post-retirement, research activities or graduate supervision in accordance with guidelines set by the Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. Ranked appointments with a post-retirement descriptor do not include undergraduate teaching responsibilities.

Recruiting and Hiring

Employment Equity

McGill University is committed to fulfilling its mission within an institutional environment that embraces equity and diversity. The University seeks to be proactive in attracting suitably qualified representatives of designated groups, as identified by federal and provincial legislation, as well as McGill’s Employment Equity Policy. These groups include women, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, ethnic minorities, racialized persons/visible minorities, and persons of minority sexual orientation or gender identity (LGBTT2SQ* persons).

Employment equity recruitment guidelines are to be followed by all units in the course of hiring ranked academic staff (tenure track and contract academic staff). Each academic unit that is recruiting ranked academic staff must take steps to attract applications from suitably qualified members of the designated groups.

For more information or support in employment equity in recruitment, please contact Tynan Jarrett, the tynan.jarrett [at] mcgill.ca (Director, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.)

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Advertising

All ranked contract academic staff positions must be advertised and specify the following information:

  • University
  • Faculty or department
  • Position title
  • Qualifications required
  • Nature of duties
  • Salary (if not indicated, salary will be negotiable and commensurate with qualifications and experience)
  • Person to whom inquiries should be addressed
  • Classification and term of appointment
  • Deadline for receiving applications, with the understanding that is a mandatory 30 day waiting period
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The advertisement must also include the following Equity Statement and immigration statement:

Equity Statement and immigration statement

Commitment to Equity and Diversity

McGill University is committed to equity and diversity within its community and values academic rigour and excellence. We welcome and encourage applications from racialized persons/visible minorities, women, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, ethnic minorities, and persons of minority sexual orientations and gender identities, as well as from all qualified candidates with the skills and knowledge to engage productively with diverse communities.

At McGill, research that reflects diverse intellectual traditions, methodologies, and modes of dissemination and translation is valued and encouraged. Candidates are invited to demonstrate their research impact both within and across academic disciplines and in other sectors, such as government, communities, or industry.

McGill further recognizes and fairly considers the impact of leaves (e.g., family care or health-related) that may contribute to career interruptions or slowdowns. Candidates are encouraged to signal any leave that affected productivity, or that may have had an effect on their career path. This information will be considered to ensure the equitable assessment of the candidate’s record.

McGill implements an employment equity program and encourages members of designated equity groups to self-identify. It further seeks to ensure the equitable treatment and full inclusion of persons with disabilities by striving for the implementation of universal design principles transversally, across all facets of the University community, and through accommodation policies and procedures. Persons with disabilities who anticipate needing accommodations for any part of the application process may contact, in confidence, this accessibilityrequest.hr [at] mcgill.ca (email )or phone at 514-398-2477.

All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply; however, in accordance with Canadian immigration requirements, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.

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Advertisements must be publicly posted to the site on Workday, and to theÌýfollowing domains:

  1. One advertisement in University Affairs or the Canadian Association of University Teachers Bulletin;
  2. A letter sent to the department heads of at least ten similar departments in Canada, where possible;
  3. An advertisement in a Canadian professional journal or association website, where possible.

*Note: You must ensure that the posting period on the McGill Careers website is of longer duration than it is for external websites to allow for administration time.

Advertisements that are posted to University Affairs and/or the Canadian Association of University Teachers Bulletin, and that are included in letters to department heads at other universities should be in both official languages. Assistance is available from McGill Translations Services for a fee. The department is required to submit advertisements to the Academic Personnel Office (APO). It is important to retain and submit proof of payments for advertisements and to ensure that the duration of the posting is clearly indicated. Online advertisements that are submitted as PDFs must include the publication date and the URL.ÌýThe McGill Equity and Immigration Statements are automatically included in the postings on the McGill Career website in Workday, but must still be added to external postings. For support in broadening advertisement venues and ensuring a diverse applicant pool, please contact the tynan.jarrett [at] mcgill.ca (Senior Employment Equity Advisor).

Selection & appointment

Each academic unit that is recruiting ranked academic staff must ensure that all members of the Selection Committee have attended training on equitable recruitment practices.

The Selection Committee has access to the candidates' equity data in Workday.

Information from the Applicant equity survey is confidential and may only be used by Selection Committees to ensure adherence to McGill's Employment Equity Policy. Specifically, a Selection Committee Chair may use the information to:

  • Evaluate the diversity of the applicant pool: where the pool is insufficiently diverse, a department may decide to extend the application period or reset the search; If the hiring unit is not satisfied with the response rate of the survey, they may send applicants a reminder to complete it;
  • Select the candidate – where candidates do not differ in merit, search committees are instructed to select the candidate from the group that is most underrepresented in their area. At the selection stage, the Chair may share equity data about short listed candidates with the rest of the search committee, in order to facilitate compliance with equity guidelines.

Procedure

Once a candidate has been selected, the hiring department must assemble the Recruitment Dossier. Dossiers are submitted via Workday to the Academic Personnel Office.Ìý

  1. The department or Faculty submits a complete dossier with the required documents:

    Document name

    Template and/or Description

    ADS - Advertisements

    Advertising rules for CAS are similar but not identical to tenure-track advertising rules. Contact us if in doubt.
    No advertisement is needed for an appointment with the Clinical descriptor, or for an appointment with the Professional descriptor, if the nature of the appointment is similar to a Clinical appointment.

    CV - Curriculum Vitae

    Candidate’s current CV

    LOO - Letter of Offer and Acceptance

    Must include the Letter of OfferÌýgenerated in Workday, approved by the Chair and/or Dean

    ACC – Acceptance Letter

    APO will receive a copy of the signed Acceptance Letter, which is a signed Letter of Offer

    IMM-WP or IMM-PR – Immigration papers

    Immigration documentation, if applicable

  2. APO reviews the documentation in Workday and will prepare the Official Letter of Appointment (OLA), otherwise known as the Board of Governors (BOG) Letter,Ìýfor approval by the Acting Associate Provost (Academic Policies and Faculty Affairs).Ìý
  3. Once signed by the Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic), the BOG Letter is automatically sent to the candidate in Workday. The Department Chair, Dean and Academic Affairs partners can view the BOG Letter in Workday.
  4. The department initiatesÌýthe hire and on-boarding processes in Workday.ÌýÌý

Hiring a CAS Full Professor

The University Tenure Committee on Recruitment (UTCR) reviews CAS Full Professor recruitment dossiers.Ìý

The recruitment of CAS Full Professor candidates must follow the regulations on UTCR and UTCR bypass found in the Regulations Relating to the Employment of Tenure Track and Tenured Academic Staff. In exceptional cases where a CAS Full Professor position is approved for a bypass, sections 7.32.5 and 7.32.6 of the regulations apply.

The procedure for hiring with tenure isÌýthe same as that of aÌýstandard recruitment, however the dossier requires two additionalÌýdocuments for consideration by theÌýUTCR.ÌýThese documents should be added in Workday during the normal hire process.

Complete dossiers are submitted via Workday to the Academic Personnel Office (APO).

Procedure

The candidate will accept and return the signed Acceptance letter in Workday.Ìý

Once the Offer Letter is accepted by the candidate in Workday, the dossier can be put forward for review and voted on by the UTCR. E-votes last for one full week (seven days), and will occur approximately two weeks prior to the next occurring Board of Governor’s meeting.

The Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic) chairs the UTCR, and recommends the appointment of the candidate (with tenure) to the President. The President then in turn recommends the appointment to the Board of Governors.

  1. The department or Faculty submits a complete dossier as outlined in the procedureÌýfor a standard recruitment above, with the addition of the following required documents:

    Additional Documentation for Recruitment with TenureÌý

    Document name

    Template and/or Description

    DRL (Dean’s Recruitment Letter)

    Ìý

    This can be exactly the same as the standard Dean’s Letter, without any financial information included.

    RS (Summary Report on Referees)

    A brief (one or two sentences) bio of each referee, explaining their credentials, and relationship to the candidate.

  2. Once approved by the Acting Associate Provost (Academic Policies and Faculty Affairs), the Letter of Offer will be sent directly to the candidate via Workday. For hires who are neither Canadian citizens nor permanent residents, the offer must be made conditional upon obtaining the requisite work permit and immigration clearance. The start date for all new hires is ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½app or January 1, unless an exception is approved by the Acting Associate Provost (Academic Policies and Faculty Affairs)

  3. APO will prepare the Official Letter of Appointment (OLA), otherwise known as the Board of Governors (BOG) Letter in Workday. Once signed by the Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic), the BOG Letter is automatically sent to the candidate in Workday. The Department Chair, Dean and Academic Affairs partners can view the BOG Letter in Workday.

  4. UTCR e-vote and recommendation to President

    Once the Offer Letter is accepted by the candidate in Workday, the dossier can be put forward for review and voted on by the UTCR. E-votes last for one full week (seven days), and will occur approximately two weeks prior to the next occurring Board of Governor’s meeting.

    The Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic) chairs the UTCR, and recommends the appointment of the candidate (with tenure) to the President. The President then in turn recommends the appointment to the Board of Governors.

    E-vote timing is dependent on the date the Offer Letter is accepted by the candidate in Workday. Deadlines for the current academic year can be found below.

  5. APO will prepare the Official Letter of Appointment (OLA), otherwise known as the Board of Governors (BOG) Letter in Workday. Once signed by the Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic), the BOG Letter is automatically sent to the candidate in Workday. The Department Chair, Dean and Academic Affairs partners can view the BOG Letter in Workday.

  6. The department initiates the hire and on-boarding processes in Workday.

Deadlines for Submitting UTCR Dossiers in Workday

The following table will be updated each academic year, as the Board of Governors’ meeting dates are released. Note that the UTCR will review and recommend the candidate’s dossier once the Offer Letter has been accepted by the candidate in Workday.

UTCR Docs in WD

UTCR E-vote

UTCR Meetings*

BOG/Executive Committee Meetings

31 Aug 2023

14 - 22 Sept 2023

19 Sept 2023

Ìý5 Oct 2023
Ìý3 OctÌý 2023 17 - 27 Oct 2023

24 Oct 2023

Ìý8 Nov 2023
Ìý9 Nov 2023 23 Nov - 1 Dec 2023

28 Nov 2023

14 Dec 2023
Ìý20 Dec 2023 11 - 19 JanÌý2024

16 Jan 2024

26 Jan 2024
Ìý 8 Jan 2024 22 Jan -Ìý 2 Feb

24 Jan 2024

Ìý8 Feb 2024
22 Feb 2024 Ìý7 - 15 MarÌý2024

12 MarÌý2024

21 MarÌý2024
21 Mar 2024 Ìý4 - 12 AprÌý2024

Ìý9 AprÌý2024

23 Apr 2024
11 Apr 2024 25 Apr - 3 MayÌý2024

30 Apr 2024

16 May 2024
Ìý9 May 2024 23-31 May 2024

28 May 2024

12 JunÌý2024
13 Jun 2024 27 Jun - 5 JulÌý2024

3 Jul 2024

16 JulÌý2024
25 Jul 2024 Ìý8 - 16 AugÌý2024

13 AugÌý2024

17 AugÌý2024

*The UTCR meets only when necessary.

Please visit the page on the Senate's website for a list of current UTCR Committee Members.

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Change of status

Any change of status for ranked CAS appointments are done via the Change Job business process in Workday. The changesÌýlisted belowÌýrequireÌýapproval from the Academic Personnel Office.

Salary and Stipend Changes

  • If base salary or stipend amount(s) fluctuate by 5% or more
  • If appointment changes from nil-salary to salaried, or vice-versa
  • If appointment changes from Hospital/affiliated institution-based to campus-based, or vice-versa

Procedure

Document name

Template and/or Description

Justification memo

Memo from Department Chair, outlining the reasons for the change of status. Must be approved by Dean.

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  1. The Faculty submits theÌýrequired documentation via Workday for approval;
  2. The Acting Associate Provost (Academic Policies and Faculty Affairs) approves the request.

Change to FTE

Procedure

  1. The Faculty submits the required documentation via Workday for approval:

    Document name

    Template and/or Description

    Signed Letter of Offer (LOO), noting the change in hours per pay

    The LOO must come from the Department Chair and outline the change of status. Must be approved by Dean.

  2. The Acting Associate Provost (Academic Policies and Faculty Affairs) approves the request;

  3. A new BOG letter is issued if an appointment changes from full-time to part-time, or vice-versa.

Reappointment and promotion

Ranked CAS member reappointment and promotion is considered at three levels:

  • an appropriate departmental committee chaired by the Department Chair or delegate (units are free to determine the membership of these committees so long as all members of the search committee have attended training on equitable recruitment practices);
  • the Dean, who may consult a faculty-level committee, and
  • the Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic)


In the case of CAS members who hold joint appointments, the departmental committees shall have equal representation from all relevant departments; all Deans shall be involved in the decision in the case of cross-Faculty reappointments.

If the departmental committee, the Dean, or the Provost is tending towards a negative recommendation, the CAS member shall be so advised, with reasons, and provided with an opportunity to address the concerns, accompanied by an advisor.

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Reappointments

Ranked CAS members who have an initial appointment of three years are considered for reappointment in their third year. Appointments of less than three years shall be considered in the final year of appointment.

Criteria

Each Faculty must establish written criteria for reappointment and promotion that are to be submitted by the Dean and approved by the Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic) or delegate, specifically include:

  • Academic duties expected for Faculty Lecturers, Assistant Professors and Associate Professors;
  • Performance expectations for each academic duty by rank, using standardized terminology within each unit (e.g., ‘superior’, ‘reasonable’, ‘less than reasonable’); and
  • Indicators of performance.

Units may use the established criteria for tenure-track staff, with appropriate modifications.

Academic duties

It is recommended that CAS members be provided the criteria within two months of their initial appointment to mirror the timeline for tenure-track academic staff.

Recommendations for reappointment are based on the CAS member’s performance of academic duties. Academic duties for CAS members fall into the same three categories as those for tenure-stream academic staff:

  • Teaching, assessment and supervision of graduate and undergraduate students, the evaluation and marking of student work, and supervision of individual graduate and undergraduate programs;
  • Research and other original scholarly activities, and professional activities; and
  • Other contributions to the University and external scholarly communities.

CAS are expected to demonstrate superior performance in at most two of the three academic duties used to assess suitability for reappointment. For example, Faculty Lecturers and Senior Faculty Lecturers will most often be assigned teaching as their primary academic duty. Other CAS ranks have descriptors to indicate the primary academic duty of that position.

Timing of Reappointment Consideration

CAS shall be considered for reappointment in the final year of their initial appointment and again in the 6th year. CAS who have been continuously employed in the same Faculty for six years shall be appointed for an indefinite term, after which reappointment consideration does not apply. The reappointment process, including the communication of the Provost’s decision to the CAS member must be completed at least 37 weeks prior to the end date of the appointment. Consequently, Department Chairs should initiate the reappointment process approximately one year in advance of the appointment end date.

Dossier

CAS must provide their Department Chair with the necessary documentation to support a case for reappointment sufficiently in advance of the end date of their appointment. The reappointment dossier shall include, at minimum, a recent CV and a record of achievements related to relevant academic duties. Departments and Faculties can specify other requirements for the dossier.

Indefinite Appointments

After six years of continuous service within the same Faculty, a CAS shall be appointed indefinitely. Such appointments must be processed via the Change Job business process in WorkdayÌýwith no end-date on the position. Refer to the job aidÌý. The only instance where an end-date is allowed on indefinite appointments is for non-Canadians who are obligated to hold a work permit, and where Canadian law obliges us to have an end-date on the appointment matching the date on the work permit.

Soft Funding for Indefinite AppointmentsÌý

An appointment that is funded, in part or in entirety, through soft funds must follow these additional procedures:

  • Ensure that the end-date on the soft-fund in the Costing Allocation in Workday is one day prior to theÌýend-date on the grant/soft-fund;
  • Assign a new, valid Departmental fund to begin the day after the initial grant/soft-fund expires; and
  • Select one of the following:
    • Continue to fund the indefinite term appointment using the Department fund
    • If new soft funding is available, proceed with aÌýCosting Allocation change and repeat the steps above; or
    • Terminate the appointment with the required notice (per the CAS Regulations), and fund the indefinite term appointment using the Department fund until the termination date.

Procedure

  1. The Faculty submits the following required documentation for APO approval via Workday using the Job Change > Transfer, Promote or Change Job business process :

    Document name

    Template and/or Description

    Recommendation memo

    Memo from Department Chair, outlining length of term, salary, source of salary, and established criteria for promotion. The memo must be approved by the Dean.

    Reappointment Committee's Report

    Based on unit’s established criteria

    AL – Acceptance Letter

    Signed Letter of Offer

    Curriculum Vitae

    Must be current

    Ìý

  2. The APO reviews the documentation, and prepares a draft BOG letter for approval by the Acting Associate Provost (Academic Policies and Faculty Affairs).

  3. Once the dossier is approved and the BOG letter is signed, APO sends the signed BOG Letter to the staff member via Workday.

Promotions

These guidelines cover promotion at the following ranks:

  • Faculty Lecturer to Senior Faculty Lecturer;
  • Assistant Professor to Associate Professor; and
  • Associate Professor to Professor.

Timing of Promotion Consideration

Rank

Promotion to

Timeline

Faculty Lecturer*

Senior Faculty Lecturer*

Minimum of six continuous years in the same Faculty as Faculty lecturer, or sooner, on the recommendation of the Department Chair

CAS Assistant Professor

CAS Associate Professor

Minimum of 6 continuous years in the same Faculty as Assistant Professor, or sooner, on the recommendation of the Department Chair

CAS Associate Professor

CAS Full Professor

Minimum of 10 continuous years in the same Faculty as Associate Professor, or sooner, on the recommendation of the Department Chair

*Faculty and Senior Faculty Lecturers may exceptionally be promoted to Assistant Professor according to guidelines set at Faculty-level

If a CAS member’s performance is outstanding, the Department Chair may, with the consent of the CAS member, recommend a promotion at any point.

Criteria

Departments must prepare written criteria that provide guidance on the requirements and expectations for promotion.

For promotion to Senior Faculty Lecturer or Associate Professor, units need to clarify:

  • The performance expectations for each academic duty by rank. Superior performance (or equivalent) should be expected for at least one of the two academic duties; and indicators of performance.

For promotion of CAS Associate Professors to Professor, the requirements are similar to those for promotion of tenure track professors. In particular, very strong performance is expected in all three areas of academic duties. The professor must establish:

  • A record of highly significant contributions in one or more of the areas of:
    • research and/or other original scholarly activities as evidenced by international recognition by peers;
    • professional and/or clinical innovation that has an influence on the practice of the profession, and that is published, publicized or otherwise recognized in a way that makes possible its evaluation by external peers; and/or
    • sustained creative activity as exemplified by external peer and public recognition, appropriate awards and prizes, invited performances, stagings and exhibitions;
    • a record of superior teaching; and
    • Superior contributions to the University and scholarly communities.

Units may use the established criteria for tenure-track staff, with appropriate modifications.

Dossier

CAS who are being considered for promotion must provide the Department Chair with the necessary documentation to support the case for promotion. This dossier shall, minimally, include the candidate’s CV and a record of achievements related to the relevant academic duties. Faculties can specify other requirements for the dossier. Candidates for promotion to Professor must also include a personal statement covering contributions and achievements in all three areas of academic duties.

Procedure

  1. The Faculty submits the following required documentation for APO approval via the Change Job business process in Workday:

    Required documents

    Template and/or Description

    Recommendation memo

    Memo from Department Chair, outlining length of term, salary, source of salary, established criteria for promotion. Must be approved/seconded by the Dean.

    Promotion Committee report

    Reappointment or Promotion Committee's report, or other requirements as outlined in the CAS Regulations.

    Curriculum Vitae

    Must be current.

    The APO reviews the documentation, and prepares a draft BOG letter for approval by the Acting Associate Provost (Academic Policies and Faculty Affairs).

  2. Once the dossier is approved and the BOG letter is signed, APO sends the signed BOG Letter to the staff member via Workday.

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