FAQ: Academic Activities for Clinical Re-Appointments

Updated March 2024

Q: I was appointed within the last year; do I still have to provide an Academic Activities form?

A: If you completed an Academic Activities form in the past year, i.e. you were appointed or promoted on or after May 1, 2023 AND your academic activities have not changed, then you do not need to complete a new Academic Activities form. You are still required to complete your Activity Report.

Q: Does my University Division Director need to sign my Academic Activities?

A: Yes, your University Division Director must sign your Academic Activities, but you do not need to reach out individually. Submit your form, signed by yourself and your Chief of Medicine (if based at hospital), to the DoM Appointments email (dom.academicappts@utoronto.ca). We will get the Departmental Division Director signature as part of our departmental review once received. 

Q: Do I need to print the Academic Activities form to sign it?

A: No, you do not need to print the form it to sign. You can add your digital signature to the page.

Q: What are the consequences of not submitting my renewal documents?

A: Both Activity Report and Academic Activities are required for your appointment renewal. You may be in jeopardy of losing your academic appointment if both documents are not submitted. As per University policy, all faculty members are required to hold an academic position description.

If you are unable to complete these documents due to a specific reason - please reach out to dom.academicappts@utoronto.ca as soon as possible. 

Q: I have been appointed in the Department for numerous years and I have not been asked to complete an Academic Activities before.

A: The Faculty of Medicine now requires all faculty appointees (irrespective of appointment type) to hold an Academic Position Description (APD). In order to determine the appropriateness of the requested APD, we are asking all faculty to complete the Academic Activities form.

The Academic Activities will identify which Academic Position Description best fits your area of scholarly activities. For more information regarding DoM’s Academic Position Descriptions, please see here

Please see the first question if you have been appointed or promoted on or after May 1, 2023.

An updated Academic Activities form will be required if a change in APD, appointment type or rank is requested. A change in appointment rank (i.e. to Assistant Professor) is a separate process with additional documentation to be submitted. For information regarding Junior Promotion see here.

Q: Can I be an Academic Clinician?

A: The Academic Position Description of Academic Clinician is only eligible for Clinical Full-Time faculty. Clinical Part Time and Clinical Adjunct faculty are not eligible for Academic Clinician.

We anticipate that most adjunct and part time clinical faculty members will be best suited to the Clinician Teacher or Clinician in Quality and Innovation. Full descriptions of DoM’s Academic Position Descriptions may be found here

Q: My primary clinical site is a private practice. Who should sign my “Chief of Medicine” on my Academic Activities?

A: You can skip this line and send your Academic Activities to the DoM Appointments email who will facilitate the signature from your University Division Director.

Q: When is the deadline?

A: The deadline to submit BOTH your Activity Report and Academic Activities has been extended to May 10, 2024 by 5pm.  

Q: I am unable to save my selections on my Academic Activities. How do I fix this?

A: To save your selections, please ensure you are using the most recent version of the form - found here. If it still not allowing you to save your selections:

  • Save as an "Optimized PDF" or
  • Convert to a Word document and fill in the "Select" fields