Summer Salary
Updated 7-9-15
University Policy
The University policy governing faculty summer salary was updated in April 2009:
Summer Salary Policy Statement for 9 Month Appointments
The University policy leaves some details to the Deans of the individual schools. This webpage addresses the specific application of this policy to faculty in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences.
Weinberg College Policy
Faculty summer salary may be paid for up to 3 summer months. In order to ensure compliance with federal and University effort reporting requirements, a maximum of 2.5 months of summer salary support can be drawn from sponsored research accounts.
The remaining 0.5 summer month may be paid from any of the following sources:
- Released funds generated from academic year salary recovery
- Discretionary funds (excluding startup or retention funds)
- Other restricted funds (e.g., gifts and endowments) may also be used, but are subject to the guidelines and restrictions of the sources as well as prior chair and dean approval.
This 0.5 summer month may be used for research, teaching, and administrative work. A paid 0.5 summer month may not be used for vacation time.
Released funds may be used for summer salary in excess of the 0.5 month if the following conditions are satisfied by the department administration:
- Departmental obligations have been met and there is no anticipated issue with meeting future obligations
- PI has sufficient resources to support their research personnel for the coming year
- PI has justified why sponsored sources are not being used as the first choice for summer salary
- PI is prepared to certify the charges on the summer quarter effort report
Faculty startup or retention funds may not be used for faculty summer salary support unless they were so designated by the Dean of the College.
Summer salary can be drawn from non-sponsored funds only if the faculty member remains employed by Northwestern full-time during the following year.
Faculty with salaries in excess of the NIH salary cap who have committed effort on an NIH grant and who charge summer salary from an NIH sponsored project in the summer months must identify a source of non-sponsored funds to cover the “cap gap”. Back to top