UC DAVIS , SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
TENTATIVE OFFER LETTER TEMPLATE
Regular (Ladder Rank) Series
Items in red are instructions to be followed as they apply to this specific appointment. All items in red should also be deleted from the final letter.
Items in green are for yo ur information and organization; each should be deleted from the final letter.
Departments are expected to have worked out the details regarding space, start-up funds, etc. with the appropriate administrators in advance-i.e. the Hospital CEO or the Vice Dean. Tentative Offer Letters should not be submitted for approval until the department has prior formal approval in these aspects and must include this written approval with the tentative offer letter that is submitted to Academic Personnel.
Send an electronic copy of the completed template to Annie Caruso (). She will circulate to reviewers for comment and approval. Approval or suggested changes will be conveyed within 48 hours. If you have not heard back in 48 hours, please feel free to check on the status.
Tentative offer letters should include statements that address the following issues:
1. Notification that this offer is tentative and the department has placed their name in nomination with the Chancellor for approval:
I am pleased to inform you that we are recommending your appointment as ___________ (rank) Professor, ___% time, in the Department of ______________, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis. According to the procedures of the University of California, formal review and approval of the recommendation is necessary and may require some weeks. Upon approval you will receive a formal letter of appointment.
2. Specifics on the series and ranks:
We are recommending a tentative effective date of _______ through _______ (Eliminate the end date for ladder-rank appointments at the Associate or Full Professor level). The start date may change based on the timing of the final approval of the appointment.
Please refer to the following website for additional information on the appointment and advancement requirements in your academic series:
§ Regular Series: State funded, 19900 FTE positions. Tenured at Associate and Professor ranks (see p.edu/academic-personnel/_files/apm/apm- 2 20.pdf)
3. Salary is determined according to the department compensation plan:
We are recommending your total faculty salary to be $________, which is based upon three components which make up a University faculty member's salary:
§ Base Salary, which will be determined by your academic rank, step and salary scale following review of your appointment by the appropriate university committees. This part of your base salary is termed “X,” and is derived from a University wide salary standard based on the rank and step of your professorial appointment. As a member of the Health Sciences Compensation Plan, your base salary will be supplemented by a multiplier (termed a “scale”) determined by the Academic Programmatic Unit (APU) to which you will be assigned. APUs are composed of faculty whose training and job responsibilities are fairly similar: i.e. Ph.D.s or M.D.s who conduct research and do not practice clinically, for example. The scale for the APU is set to reflect the usual clinical earnings or research compensation for the members of that group. The combined base salary (“X”) and scale salary is called X1 or X Prime. This is the figure which is used to determine retirement benefits for the UC Retirement Plan.
§ Additional negotiated compensation, termed “Y”, is based on available departmental funds and the quantity and quality of your total contribution to the University. This amount is determined by the department Chair on a year by year basis after you have provided information regarding clinical, research and other funding which can be reliably counted upon. Other factors such as professionalism and compliance may affect your negotiated salary.
§ Optional incentive/bonus compensation may be possible based on your performance and your departmental compensation plan, a copy of which is enclosed.
Your salary will be reviewed and negotiated annually, in accordance with the department’s compensation plan. Your annual salary will be based on your contribution to research, teaching, patient care and service. You will be expected to provide academic and/or clinical justification for all components of your salary.
Approval of your recommended salary is based on and subject to University review and availability of funding. Following approval of your appointment, you will receive a Salary Plan Statement (termed an Appendix II form) which you are asked to sign and return with other employment forms.
If desired, academic enhancement funds can be mentioned in this area; please make it clear that all items purchased with these funds become the property of the University of California. If the candidate leaves the University, these items should be returned to the department.
(Do not put anything in the letter that promises an increase in salary based on obtaining extramural funds. This is a violation of NIH policies).
4. Expectations:
Department should enter a paragraph describing performance expectations in all areas covered by criteria for the applicable series.
Examples include:
? Clinical expectations (if appropriate)-details of practice, specialty, any on call duty or rounding requirements, expectations regarding building of the clinical practice, establishing/developing referrals amongst particular departments/divisions, maintaining good standing with the CA medical board, maintaining board certification, maintaining DEA licensure, or any other applicable certifications, working in EMR, systems based practice, etc.
? Research expectations -details may address types of research (bench, lab, clinical study), research funding expectations, clinical trial participation, grant funding, writing grants, collaborative research with other department or University faculty, authorship of publications in peer reviewed journals, etc (faculty in the regular series are not permitted to be committed to research activities greater than 70% time unless an exception is requested).
? Teaching expectations- details should address that a regular and meaningful contribution to teaching involving medical students, residents, fellows, postdocs, etc is required and can be completed through participation in graduate groups, medical student courses, mentoring, etc. Your assigned percent effort in teaching may vary depending on your grant cost recovery. Additional details could include-exact responsibilities of resident teaching (address the 6 core competencies), mentoring of post docs, etc.
? Service/professional expectations- Faculty are expected to contribute service to the department, the School of Medicine, the University, the profession and the community in some combination. Assistant Professors are expected to provide little service; as one’s rank and step increase, expectations for service rise as well. Additional details may address expectations of appropriate departmental or university committees to serve on, professional membership expectations, following the University’s Principles of Community, etc.
Each new faculty appointee is assigned a mentor to provide collegial advice and references, to answer questions, and to ease the candidate’s way through this new experience. The department has assigned ______________ to be your mentor. Dr. _____ is looking forward to your arrival and will be pleased to be of assistance to you.
All academic appointments are expected to abide by the faculty code of conduct as outlined in APM 015 and the UC Davis Principles of Community. Failure to meet the expectations of these policies can result in disciplinary action, reductions in salary, and/or termination. Both of these policies are accessible via the following internet links: p.edu/academic-personnel/_files/apm/ a pm-015.pdf
avis.edu/
5 . For Faculty with VA Appointments:
(Do not include this paragraph if the candidate will not have an appointment with the VA.) You will hold a separate VA appointment. Your UC appointment will be ___% and your VA appointment will be ____%; however, you are to be fully committed to fulfilling the responsibilities of your UC appointment as required for merit and/or promotion. You will be compensated directly by the VA for their portion of your appointment. Your UC percent of appointment is determined by the amount of compensation you receive from the VA. This percentage may be adjusted in the future based on your VA compensation. You will be required to complete a VA Memorandum of Understanding describing your responsibilities and percentage of appointment on an annual basis.
6 . Start-up Funds (NOTE: preapproval is required if Hospital or Dean’s office is funding the start-up – P lease eliminate this area if no start up funding is to be provided ) :
If your recommended appointment is approved, the department (School, Hospital-adjust as applicable) is prepared to provide start-up funds up to $__________ for space renovations and/or technical support. In addition, up to $___________ may be spent for purchase, installation and maintenance agreements for new equipment. The start-up funds will be provided to you over the next (eliminate number if you are filling in one year) __ year(s). Any unexpended fund may be used for future development of your program (please remove/edit this sentence in accordance with departmental practice on carryover funding).
7 . Space:
If your recommended appointment is approved, the department is prepared to allocate approximately ___________ square feet of research space in ________ (state building). This includes shared core departmental space. Based upon your faculty series, you will be assigned a _________ (private or shared) office.
8. Partner Opportunities Program:
(Include this paragraph if the spouse or domestic partner of the candidate is a POP referral.) Your (spouse/partner) has been (or will be) nominated for a position as _________ in the Department of ______________ through the Partner Opportunities Program (POP); approval of this appointment is dependent upon approval of the appropriate academic personnel committees.
(Include this paragraph if the candidate is the offer is for a POP candidate.) Your appointment within the Department is through the Partners Opportunity Program (POP, avis.edu). In accordance with the POP guidelines, your salary is funded for ____ years. At the end of the ____-year period, you will be expected to generate sufficient income to support your salary through grants, contracts, or clinical work.
9. Moving Expenses:
The Department will reimburse 50% of your personal moving costs and 100% of the costs for moving your professional library. Additionally, the department will request an exception to standard policy and reimburse you for the additional 50% of your moving costs (Do not include this statement if you are not requesting this exception). Please note that receipts are required and all reimbursement payments are subject to IRS regulations, the California Franchise Tax Board, and university policy.
10. Housing:
The Department will provide you with $_____ housing allowance to assist your establishment in the Sacramento/Davis area. These funds are subject to full taxation by the Internal Revenue Service and the California Franchise Tax Board. This allowance may be disbursed in a single payment or in equal or unequal amounts over a period not to exceed ten years. Given this substantial commitment, you agree that you will repay the amount remitted to you should you choose to leave UC Davis in less than five years. Please note that the repayment structure will be reviewed and prorated based on the amount (number of month/years) of service provided at the time of separation. (Do not include this statement if you are not providing a housing allowance.)
If you are interested, once your appointment has received final approval, we will nominate you for the Mortgage Origination Program. This program enables new appointees to the faculty to apply for home loans at interest rates below current market values. These loans have a variable interest rate that floats just below market rates. Please let us know as soon as possible if you are interested in this program. Details change from year to year. More information regarding the Mortgage Origination Program can be found at d avis.edu/ and p.edu/loan-programs/loan-programs/index.html; additional details of housing are at htt p ://dcm.u c davis.edu/res/index.html. (Do not include this statement if the proposed title series is not eligible for a MOP loan).
11. Benefits:
The University provides benefit and retirement coverage in proportion to the University-derived wages eligible for covered compensation. Please refer to the following website for additional information on benefits and services for faculty: p.edu. These will be outlined in your letter of appointment. (Eliminate the following sentence if the candidate will not have a VA appointment.) If you also have a VA appointment, you are eligible for VA benefits. Please contact the VA for information on their benefits.
12. Work Authorization:
Offers of employment, including this tentative offer, are contingent upon your ability to prove that you are authorized to work in the United States as required by the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. Documents required by the Act must be provided on or before the effective date of your appointment. If you are not a U.S. Citizen or permanent resident, the UC Davis Services for International Students and Scholars can provide information and assistance with U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service procedures required to secure employment eligibility and legal status in the U.S. You may contact that office by phone at (530) 752-0864 or e-mail ().
13. Medical Staff Privileges, EMR Training, and Professional Billing Packet:
(Remove this section if offer is not for MD with clinical responsibilities.) This employment offer is also contingent on your ability to obtain an active medical license in the state of California in addition to your ability to meet the requirements for medical staff privileges. California medical licensure must be obtained by your start date. You may visit the California Medical Board website at bd.ca.gov/. We will be forwarding to you an application for medical privileges and appreciate your cooperation in completing it as soon as possible. In addition, you will be expected to obtain specialty board certification or its equivalent within two years of your appointment date. As a faculty member with clinical responsibilities, school and/or campus committees will also view Board certification as an important element for promotion to the Associate rank within your series.
All clinicians must complete Electronic Medical Record (EMR) training prior to seeing patients. EMR training can be completed before your start date and should be coordinated through your home department.
The completion of a billing packet is also required prior to providing patient care. The packet will be forwarded to you immediately for completion. After your arrival, you will be required to take the billing compliance training and complete the attestation statement and evaluation.
14. Conditions of Employment:
Your appointment is contingent upon proof of resignation from your former position, documentation of appropriate degrees, results of your criminal background check, and an employee physical (please check with your department for details) prior to your first day of work at UC Davis.