Sabbatical leave provides opportunities for study, research, creative effort, improvement of teaching and related travel, all to enhance the quality of the recipient's service to the university.  

Applications for sabbatical leave may be submitted for:
APPLICATION FORM: (PDF) (Word.doc)

1. Two semesters at sixty-six percent salary after six years of continuous eligible service,
2. One semester at full salary after six years of continuous eligible service,
3. One semester at fifty percent salary after three years of continuous eligible service (i.e. “mini-sabbatical”).

The two-thirds option for a full-year sabbatical puts the college in line with the more progressive of our benchmark institutions.  Leaves may be for either a fall or spring semester.  Full-year leaves may begin in fall or in spring.

There exists an additional option by which the college offers three-quarters salary during a full-year sabbatical in exchange for teaching either a single overload course in the Discovery Seminar Program or an overload course plus two additional in-load courses in the Honors Program.  As an overload course, the Honors course or Discovery seminar must exceed the faculty member’s normal course load. It must also be taught preceding the sabbatical and during the four-year pilot period that began on July 1, 2006 and ends on June 30, 2010.  Those faculty members who are seeking a full-year sabbatical in 2010-11 at three-quarters pay by teaching an overload course in the Discovery Seminar Program or Honors Program during the 2009-10 academic year should already have completed the necessary scheduling arrangements. If this has not been done, and you are still interested in a three-quarters option in 2010-11, please speak to your chair immediately.The college can provide no guarantee that the overload option will be available for every applicant.  Prior written approval for the overload course must be provided by the Director of the Discovery Seminar or Honors Program and the department chair, and authorized by the Associate Dean of Faculty. 

College Support for Sabbatical Research Programs 

The college has established a recurring fund to support the research efforts of faculty members on sabbatical. All Associate Professors in fields with limited external funding opportunities receive $5,000 in research support for their first sabbatical.  Other faculty members, upon notification that their sabbatical applications for the 2010-11 academic year have been accepted, may apply for funds in support of their sabbatical research programs.  Awards may not exceed $3,000, and usually average $2,500. Eligible faculty members must provide a brief budget and description of how they intend to use the requested funds via email or memo to Prof. Elizabeth Lorch, Interim Associate Dean for Research and Programs (asresearch@uky.edu; 257-6689).  All funds granted must be used for the direct support of sabbatical research projects, and cannot be used to support research activities that are routinely supported through departmental funds (such as travel to conferences, for instance).  All funds allocated for the support of 2010-11 sabbaticals must be spent during the 2011 fiscal year (July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2011). 

General Criteria for Evaluating Requests for Sabbatical Leaves 

Proposals for sabbatical leave will be evaluated by an advisory committee appointed by the dean.  In the case of joint appointments, both department chairs, and if necessary both deans, should receive the application for sabbatical.  The dean will carefully consider the committee’s recommendation when making the decision to recommend approval to the provost.  The evaluation will focus on the quality and potential of the proposal and on the past productivity and achievements of the applicant.  Proposals will be evaluated against the criteria listed below. Therefore, faculty should consider these criteria when developing proposals and preparing applications for sabbaticals.

1. Scholarly or creative merit of the activities proposed. Value of the project, including its originality and potential contribution to scholarship. Adequacy and feasibility of the project in relation to the length of the sabbatical requested. Clarity and completeness of the proposal.  While the substance of the proposal may prove to be technical, the scope and significance of the project should be understood by a scholarly layperson.  Please include references to relevant scholarship. Project's potential for contributing to the faculty member's professional development.  Potential for disseminating and/or applying anticipated achievements through publications, grant proposals, presentations, and development of curricular and instructional activities. Likelihood the project will contribute to the quality of the University and to the implementation of departmental, collegiate, and University strategic plans. 
2. Scholarly or creative productivity of the applicant. Quality and quantity of professional products, in relation to field and years of academic service. Substantive evidence of scholarly results since the last sabbatical.  In disciplines in which scholarship generally takes the form of articles, it is reasonable to expect that several rticle-length projects will have been brought to completion since the last sabbatical, in accordance with the distribution of effort.  In disciplines that emphasize the publication of scholarly monographs, it may not be reasonable to expect that a book-length project will have been brought to completion during the interval between sabbaticals.  However, it is reasonable to expect to see evidence of scholarly progress during that interval, in the form of published articles, conference papers, and the like. Consistency of professional productivity, in relation to years of academic service.  Quality and quantity of work supported by previous UK sabbatical awards. Other academic achievements and contributions, appropriate to the applicant’s discipline (e.g., awards, national offices, editorial assignments).  In evaluating proposals and applicants, the evaluation committee will also (1) consider the professional practices and traditions of each applicant's field, and (2) recognize that the relative value of a smaller number of comprehensive and lengthy publications compared to a larger number of relatively brief, narrowly focused publications is a matter determined in part by the traditions of the field of study.
3. In evaluating proposals for improving instruction, the College will recognize the following as major components: Instructional content, materials, and procedures. Procedures for evaluating student learning. Departmental support of and expressed need for curriculum development. Relationship between proposed project and courses currently or formerly taught.