Special Appointments: Visiting and Honorary Appointments (other than Senior Honorary (Research) Fellows)

Visiting and honorary appointments, other than Senior Honorary (Research) Fellowships, are available to persons not normally employed by the University for whom it is considered advantageous to a school and desirable for the person concerned to recognise a formal association. Such appointments will normally be for periods of up to 12 months and may be renewed.

The criterion for this category of appointment is an established and continuing reputation for teaching or research, and/or continuing research activity and contribution in a field appropriate to the sponsoring University school.

To qualify for appointment as a fellow it will usually be expected that the appointee will be eligible for appointment to a lectureship or above. Appointees for more than three months without a doctorate (other than honorary clinical lecturer) will be granted the title of ‘Honorary Research Associate’. The titles available are:

1. Honorary Fellow
2. Honorary Research Fellow
3. Honorary Visiting Fellow
4. Honorary Visiting Research Fellow
5. Visiting Fellow
6. Visiting Research Fellow
7. Visiting Appointment (not a title)
8. Honorary Research Associate
9. Honorary Clinical Consultant
10. Visiting Professor

The term ‘honorary’ indicates that no remuneration of any kind will be made by this University and, for example, would include persons employed by other bodies who are not necessarily on leave from that employer during the course of the appointment. It would not include persons seconded to this University.

The term ‘visiting’ will be included in the title of those who are on leave from another institution.

The title of ‘fellow’ will imply an emphasis on teaching rather than research and will be granted for appointments of three months or more.

The title of ‘research fellow’ will imply an emphasis on research rather than teaching and will be granted for appointments of three months or more.

A ‘visiting’ appointment will normally be used for appointees on leave from other institutions who spend less than three months on campus whether paid or not and irrespective of the emphasis of their contribution.

The title of ‘Honorary Clinical Consultant’ is restricted to those eminent members of the medical and dental professions who provide unpaid teaching services in the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry.

Appointments to an honorary or visiting fellowship or associateship carry the following privileges:

• access, subject to the head of school’s approval, to school resources;
• the use of the University Library on the same terms as a full-time academic staff member;
• the eligibility for membership of University House.

It is expected that, in return for the privileges, honorary appointees would do some teaching without payment.

School proposals for honorary and visiting appointments should include:

• an up-to-date curriculum vitae of the candidate;
• details of the particular contribution which the appointee is expected to make to the school’s teaching and/or research activities;
• information to show that the proposed fellow has an established research reputation and a continuing research activity in a field appropriate to the sponsoring school including details of research projects on which the nominee has recently been engaged;
• details of any remuneration or expenses to be paid, if any;
• publications over the past five years;
• learned societies of which the nominee is an officer or member;
• potential accommodation arrangements recommended by the school for consideration by the Accommodation Committee;

Proposals for all honorary and visiting appointments may be made either for immediate appointment, or from a specified date no later than 12 months following the application. Proposals may be submitted at any time. Where visas must be obtained for overseas appointees, schools should be aware, and visitors should be advised, that immigration formalities may take up to two months and occasionally longer.

No additional funding will be available from the University to schools for honorary and visiting appointments.

Proposals for honorary and visiting appointments should be forwarded to the Dean for approval.

Offers of honorary and visiting appointments are prepared in Human Resources.