Faculty Leave Application and Request Processes for AY2026–27 and Full Calendar Year 2027

To: FAS Department and Program Chairs; FAS Lead Administrators, Operations Managers, Chair’s Assistants 
Cc: FAS Dean’s Office; FAS Steering; Office of Faculty Administrative Services 

Dear colleagues, 

As announced last year, the application timeline for ladder and instructional faculty leaves has been moved earlier to aid in academic unit course planning. The deadline for all standard leave requests for AY2026–27 or full calendar year 2027 is September 26, 2025. 

Please see below for other key dates and descriptions of the leave request processes. 

Key Dates 

• September 26, 2025: Deadline for all standard faculty leave requests. Non-tenured ladder and instructional faculty must submit their CV and leave proposal to academic unit (department or program) chair and staff. Tenured faculty must submit a leave request via OnBase.
• October 10, 2025: Deadline for academic unit chairs to review and approve tenured faculty leave requests in OnBase.
• October 31, 2025: Deadline for academic units to complete committee and chair review of proposals for non-tenured ladder and instructional faculty in Interfolio. 

Non-Tenured Ladder Faculty Leave Application Process 

1. By early September: Academic unit chairs appoint a committee of full professors to evaluate proposals for non-tenured ladder faculty.
2. By September 26, 2025: The faculty member submits their current CV and a leave proposal to their academic unit chair and staff (chair’s assistant or equivalent).
3. Upon receipt of the CV and leave proposal, academic unit staff create a case in Interfolio using the template Non-Tenured Faculty Leave Request [Relevant Division] and the Sabbatical case type. Staff add the appointed review committee members to the relevant step of the case and upload the candidate’s leave proposal and CV. Staff must share the Interfolio case with the faculty member so they can complete the Faculty Research Leave Request Form within Interfolio.
4. The review committee reviews the candidate’s materials in Interfolio and assesses the proposal’s strengths, weaknesses, and feasibility. One or more of the committee members meets with the candidate to provide feedback on the proposal. The candidate may revise their proposal if needed. Staff must upload the revised proposal to the Interfolio case. Once the proposal is final, the chair of the review committee prepares a short report (typically less than one page) detailing the committee’s evaluation of the proposal and summarizing the discussion with the candidate and sends it to academic unit staff. Staff upload the report to Interfolio and forward the case to the academic unit chair.  
5. The academic unit chair reviews the materials in Interfolio and sends their recommendation to the staff to upload to Interfolio. Staff forward the case in Interfolio to the relevant divisional dean for review by October 31, 2025. (The FAS Dean’s Office manages the case from this point forward.)  
6. After the leave proposal is reviewed and approved by the relevant divisional dean, the Office of Faculty Administrative Services (OFAS), and the FAS Dean’s Office, a decision notification will be sent via email to the faculty member, academic unit chair, and relevant staff by January 2026. Approved leaves will be automatically entered into Workday. 

Instructional Faculty Professional Development Leave Application Process 

1. By early September: Academic unit chairs appoint a committee of faculty to evaluate proposals for instructional faculty.
2. By September 26, 2025: The faculty member submits their current CV and a leave proposal to their academic unit chair and staff (chair’s assistant or equivalent). Applications must describe the proposed project and how it will advance the applicant’s teaching and professional development and serve the teaching program of the applicant’s department or program. Proposals must also include a well-developed methodology and, if applicable, research plan, including a calendar for the intended semester of leave.    
3. Upon receipt of the CV and leave proposal, academic unit staff create a case in Interfolio using the template Professional Development Leave Request (Instructional Faculty) and the Sabbatical case type. Staff add the appointed review committee members to the relevant step of the case and upload the candidate’s leave proposal and CV. Staff must share the Interfolio case with the faculty member so they can complete the Professional Development Leave Request Form within Interfolio.   
4. The review committee reviews the candidate’s materials in Interfolio and assesses the proposal’s strengths, weaknesses, and feasibility, and requests revisions if necessary. Staff must upload any revised proposal to the Interfolio case. Once the committee decides whether to endorse, the staff member forwards the case to the chair.  
5. If the chair chooses to endorse the proposal, they send a brief statement specifying the feasibility and prospective value of the proposed project to the staff member to upload to Interfolio. The staff member then forwards the case in Interfolio to the Office of Faculty Administrative Services (OFAS) for eligibility review by October 31, 2025. (The FAS Dean’s Office manages the case from this point forward.)    
6. Once endorsed by the academic unit and forwarded to OFAS, applications from Lectors and Senior Lectors will be reviewed for endorsement by the Language Study Committee (LSC).    
7. All endorsed proposals will be forwarded for final review to the Teaching Resource Advisory Committee (TRAC) which will render final decisions in time for 2026–27 course planning. TRAC will judge applications based on quality and feasibility and on the likelihood that the completed project would enhance the teaching program of the academic unit and advance the professional development of the applicant. A limited number of PDLs are available in any given year.
8. After the leave proposal is reviewed by TRAC, a decision notification will be sent via email to the faculty member, academic unit chair, and relevant staff by January 2026. Approved leaves will be automatically entered into Workday. 

Tenured Faculty Leave Request Process 

Please note the memo to tenured faculty regarding leave requests will be sent by the second week of September. 

1. By September 26, 2025: The faculty member submits their leave request using OnBase. Instructions and links to the form are available on the Office of Faculty Administrative Services (OFAS) website. If necessary, academic unit staff can assist by entering leave requests on behalf of faculty members. Upon submission, faculty members will receive a confirmation email.  
2. Chairs will receive a notification email after a submission is made, including a link to access the leave requests in the OnBase system. Detailed instructions for reviewing leave requests are available on the OFAS website and are also provided on each form within the system. Review of all leave requests submitted via OnBase must be completed by October 10, 2025. 

University policies on leaves of absence are described in detail in the Yale Faculty Handbook, sections IV.L and XX. Please contact the FAS Dean’s Office at fas.dean@yale.edu for questions about eligibility. For questions about or support for OnBase, contact OFAS at faculty.admin@yale.edu.  

Best wishes, 

FAS Dean’s Office