Membership in the Graduate College Faculty

Nomination Form

The Nomination Form for Graduate College Faculty Membership (*see note below) should used to nominate faculty for Graduate College faculty membership.  The form must be submitted by the Executive Officer (typically head or chair) of an academic department or equivalent unit that holds a graduate degree program.

Consult with James Kollenbroich, jkolle1@uic.edu, with questions related to membership.

(* Note: This form is a .pdf file. To ensure that your computer properly opens this file, right-click the link above and save the file locally to a hard-drive or flash drive.)

Graduate College Faculty Membership

Note: The Graduate College Bylaws include minimum requirements and expectations to be a member of the graduate faculty. Departments are free to enumerate additional expectations in alignment with the Graduate College Bylaws.

From Graduate College Bylaws – Article II: Membership.

Section 1. The faculty of the Graduate College shall be prescribed by the University of Illinois Statutes. Ex officio members include the President, the Chancellor, the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs, and the Graduate College Dean. Faculty membership in the Graduate College is granted by the Dean of the Graduate College or their designee on behalf of the Executive Committee of the Graduate College. Standards for admission to membership in the Faculty of the Graduate College shall be determined jointly by the Graduate College Dean and the Executive Committee subject to Graduate Faculty review. Full and associate membership is conditional and may be granted for the term of employment by the University to faculty members at the rank of Assistant Professor and above who meet the standards for admission. The Graduate College and each department and/or program shall articulate and disseminate detailed expectations of graduate faculty mentor responsibilities and behavior. The departmental review process will include an assessment of how an individual meets the mentoring expectations of the department/program and Graduate College. Member status can be reviewed at the discretion of the Dean of the Graduate College.

Section 2. Responsibilities of the Graduate Faculty include (1) establishing and maintaining high quality graduate education and research programs within the academic units of the University, (2) developing and teaching of graduate level courses and curricula, (3) advising, mentoring and providing an environment that supports graduate students to advance their thesis/dissertation/capstone research and scholarship towards the timely completion of their degree, (4) serving on examination committees as a member, director of research, and/or chair, (5) electing members of the Graduate College Executive Committee, (6) serving on Graduate College committees, and (7) providing advice to the Graduate College Dean and the Executive Committee.

Section 3. Nominations for Membership. Nominations for membership will be made by the Executive Officer of the department or other equivalent unit in consultation with the Faculty. If the unit Executive Officer is not a Full member of the Graduate Faculty, they may designate a senior faculty member who is a Full member of the Graduate Faculty to make the nomination.

Section 4. Categories of Membership. There are four categories of faculty membership in the Graduate College:

1) Full Membership: Full membership is granted to faculty who are nominated by a UIC department or equivalent unit.

Full Membership Privileges: Full members are eligible to serve on the Graduate College Executive Committee. Full members are eligible to serve on the Awards Committee and Diversity Awards Committee, serve as a primary advisor for graduate students and be the chair or a member of student committees. Full members hold voting rights, and only full members are eligible to vote in Graduate College elections and at Graduate College
faculty meetings.

2) Associate Membership: Associate members are typically non-tenure system faculty whose program wishes to grant them the right to serve as primary advisors to students in that program. Associate membership is granted upon recommendation to the Graduate College Dean by the Executive Officer of the department or equivalent unit in consultation with the Faculty. Distinguished individuals without a UIC appointment may be proposed for associate membership and approved for a fixed term.

Associate Membership Privileges: Associate members are eligible to serve as a primary advisor for graduate students and be a member, but not chair, of student committees.

3) Adjunct Membership: Adjunct members are typically UIC faculty or other employees who possess expertise that makes it likely and desirable for them to serve repeatedly on graduate student committees. Adjunct members must be UIC employees. They are appointed for three-year (renewable) terms through a recommendation to the Graduate College Dean from the Executive Officer of the department or equivalent unit in consultation with the Faculty.

Adjunct Membership Privileges: Adjunct members are eligible to serve as a member of student committees, but not as advisor or chair.

4) Courtesy Membership: Courtesy members are typically non-UIC employees who possess some expertise that makes them desirable members of a particular graduate student committee. There are two types of courtesy membership: (A) Courtesy members who are appointed to sit on a specific committee and need to be reappointed for each committee; (B) courtesy members who will most likely be recurring members of committees due to an expertise they possess that is useful to the department or program and are appointed to one–year terms. Courtesy members are appointed through a recommendation to the Graduate College Dean from the Executive Officer of the department or equivalent unit in consultation with the Faculty.

Courtesy Member Privileges: Courtesy members are eligible to serve as a member of student committees, but not as an advisor or chair.

5) Retired faculty with full or associate membership automatically retain their memberships at the same level for three years after retirement. Membership can be extended upon request to the Graduate College Dean by the Executive Officer attesting to the fact that the nominated faculty is still active in graduate education. Departments/programs may consider selecting a current faculty member to serve as a proxy dissertation or thesis chair if the student’s advisor/chair is unable to fulfill their responsibilities, described in Article II, Section 2, part 3.

Retired Faculty Privileges: Retired full members are eligible to serve as a member of student committees, and as a chair if they remain active in graduate education and active in advising and
mentoring their students. Retired associate members are eligible to serve as a member of student
committees, but not as advisor or chair.

Section 5. Changes in Graduate College Membership:

  1. A Graduate Faculty member may resign from the Graduate Faculty voluntarily by submitting a letter of resignation to the Dean of the Graduate College.
  2. A faculty member who resigns from the University is automatically terminated from membership in the Graduate Faculty unless the unit asks that the faculty member continue for a specified period of time.
  3. The conditional status of a member may be changed if they have failed to fulfill their responsibilities as a Graduate Faculty as enumerated under Article II section 2. The Dean of the Graduate College will consider whether a matter raised by any member of the UIC community merits further review. A motion for review may be made to the Graduate College Executive Committee by the Dean of the Graduate College who must state reasons for the action. The
    Graduate College Executive Committee (“GCEC”) will consider the merit of the motion. In the event that the case has merit, the faculty member will be offered a hearing. If the GCEC decides that a hearing is warranted, they will select a three-member hearing panel who will present their findings and recommendations to the GCEC. They, in turn, will provide their recommendation concerning consequences for the faculty member to the Dean of the Graduate College who will make a final decision. This decision can be appealed to the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and, for health science faculty, the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs.

Graduate College Faculty: Review of Membership Status

The Graduate College has a process to investigate allegations, and respond accordingly, in situations where a graduate faculty member is alleged to have failed in their responsibilities as outlined in the Graduate College Bylaws. The process is available on Box: https://uofi.box.com/s/d0kanbl69kq3mxs2vz40tllr6qsv52hd.