Special Sessions Approved Policies

25% Net Tuition Reimbursement Policy

SSPC monitors the tuition reimbursement policy, which provides academic departments with up to 25% of the net tuition income generated by that department during the fiscal year.
Twenty-five percent of the net tuition generated by special sessions courses each fiscal year will be made available to the Provost's Office for distribution among participating academic departments. The Provost's Office shall distribute these funds through the offices of the Dean of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences,  the Dean of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, and the Dean of the College of Engineering and Information Technology. To be eligible to receive a portion of these funds, an academic department's combined tuition revenues for all contracted summer and winter courses must exceed their total calculated expenses. Such departments may receive up to 25% of the net tuition generated by their courses. The Provost, in conjunction with the respective deans, shall determine and approve the final distribution of funds.

Appointment and Expense Policies

The Special Sessions Policy Committee has adopted the following policies for the allocation of funds for summer and winter session courses. In all cases, course enrollment, understood according to our usual practices, must support costs associated with a course.

  1. 1. Instructional Expenses: Instructional expenses are those costs directly related to instruction and course content. Instructional appointments for faculty and graduate assistants must be included on the Office of Summer and Winter Session's Course Proposal Form. The Special Sessions Policy Committee must approve the course proposal and related instructional expenses. Faculty salaries are determined based on academic rank and credit hours associated with the course. Graduate Assistant salaries are established based on Step Level and length of the course. There must be an obvious pedagogical need to substantiate the hiring of additional personnel for a course. Prior to the appointment, the pedagogical need must be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Special Sessions Policy Committee.

  2. 2. Non-instructional Expenses: The cost of equipment, maintenance, instructional materials, copying/ reproduction, non-instructional personnel i.e. graders, lab technicians, secretarial support, etc. are to be provided by the academic department offering the course. The primary purpose of the Rebated Income policy (see above) is to compensate departments for expenses incurred in teaching summer and winter courses. The Office of Summer and Winter Programs will not provide additional reimbursement for such items.

  3. 3. Faculty Compensation and Academic Rank:
  • Faculty Salary Scale: Faculty contracted to teach during summer and/or winter session(s) are compensated according to the salary scale approved for the contract period. Faculty compensation varies according to the number of course credits and the academic rank of the instructor.

  • Academic Rank: Academic rank for summer and winter teaching assignments is determined by the faculty member's academic rank in effect for the preceding fall and/or spring semester. This applies to all faculty including full-time, part-time, adjunct, affiliate, etc. In those instances where a determination of rank has not been established in a preceding semester, the department chairperson should make a recommendation on rank according to the established University policies. (Refer to the UMBC Faculty Handbook, Sections 4 and 5.) The Office of Summer and Winter Programs requires written documentation of academic rank for all appointments. Full-time faculty with an academic promotion in progress at the time a summer/winter course is proposed should provide supporting documentation to this effect to the Office of Summer and Winter Programs. Where such documentation is provided and a promotion becomes effective during a special session, compensation will be based on the higher rank. Faculty will not be compensated at the higher rate if the supporting documentation is not provided at the time a course is formally proposed.

  • Compensation Eligibility: Faculty should refer to the UMBC Faculty Handbook, Section 13.6 for policies governing summer and winter compensation and overload. A summary of earnings for summer and winter is reported annually to the appropriate Office of the Dean or Provost.

4. Graduate Assistants (Summer Only):

  • Step Level: Graduate Assistants appointed to a summer course are paid according to Step Level and length of course. Step Level is determined by the level in effect for the preceding spring semester.

  • Hours Per Week: Graduate Assistants may be appointed for full- or half-time during the summer. Full-time graduate assistants are responsible for 20 hours of work per week, half-time graduate assistants for 10 hours per week.

  • Tuition Remission: Graduate Assistants are eligible for remission of tuition for a maximum of three credits per summer.  The three credits must be a UMBC offered course in order to receive remission.  Inter-institution courses (INTR) taken at other campuses are not eligible for tuition remission. Academic departments are responsible for initiating the tuition remission process. Completed remission forms are to be forwarded to the Office of Summer and Winter Programs for approval and account verification.

NOTE: Graduate Assistants who are employed as "the instructor of record" during special sessions are NOT eligible for tuition remission benefits in that session.

Approved: March 1995 Revised: September 1997; February 1998; September 1998; October 2000; January 2007; February 2011