Funding Your Sabbatical

Most faculty who take their first sabbatical do so right after they receive tenure. At CU, tenured faculty are eligible for a sabbatical after six years of service. Although it makes sense that faculty are given time to refresh right after a herculean effort to earn tenure, because it happens so close to the award of tenure, faculty are often ill-prepared for their sabbatical when it comes to funding.

At CU, faculty applying for sabbatical are eligible for one semester off at full pay or two semesters off at half-pay.  Many who plan to take off one academic year seek funding to help cover salary and other expenses.  Yet, many of the fellowships and funds designed for sabbaticals must have applications submitted at least a year in advance of funding. Thus, if faculty wait to look for and apply for sabbatical funding once they've received tenure, oftentimes they've missed out on some opportunities.

It may feel strange to be planning for your sabbatical when you're still in the throes of going up for tenure. But, considering that those you're competing with for sabbatical funding are likely in the same boat, planning ahead can give you an edge. Another consideration, if you are too pressed in pulling together your dossier for tenure review, is postponing your sabbatical for a semester or two to give you a chance to search and apply for funding to allow for a full sabbatical. Other sabbatical-planning faculty include more seasoned Associate Professors or Professors who are once again eligible, and sabbaticals can sneak up on these folks too.

Sabbatical funding can come in many different forms. Oftentimes, it is in the form of a fellowship or residency, allowing for you to get away from it all to do your work in a new space. Or, it can allow you to develop a new skill. Some sabbatical funding opportunities allow you to work at and/or with federal agency staff on new projects using their data and resources.

While many faculty going on sabbatical think about starting or writing a book, there are a limited number of opportunities that will fund you to do that outright. But, if you can make a case for a fellowship or the need to travel and/or collaborate in conjunction with a book project, there may be greater opportunity.

When it comes to sabbatical funding, the most important thing to remember is to start early, and probably even earlier than you think is early. To get started, use the link below to start digging through our updated e-book on Sabbatical funding!

Resources:
Sabbatical Funding e-book - ORDE
Five Steps to a Successful Sabbatical -  Science Careers