Skip to main content
- Purpose
The purpose of this policy regarding faculty consulting and other professional activities is to define the scope of consulting work and other professional activities that faculty may participate in. This policy clarifies the limits pertaining to such work and the reasons for those limits. This policy applies only to faculty members, including those faculty members holding an administrative appointment. This policy is to be interpreted in conjunction with the California Health Sciences University (“CHSU”)’s Ethical Code of Conduct and Conflicts of Interest Policy, as those policies may change from time to time.
- Statement
Consulting and other outside professional activities can provide valuable experience for faculty in aspects of their professional fields outside the context of California Health Sciences University (“CHSU”) itself. CHSU encourages faculty to engage in activities that contribute to the faculty member’s profession, to the community, and to the faculty member’s teaching work. However, CHSU also understands that the nature of these activities may conflict with CHSU’s goals and policies and divert faculty from their primary obligations, activities and responsibilities at CHSU.
- Definitions as Used in this Policy Only
Publication/Scholarship: Scholarly communications by the faculty member in all forms including but not limited to: books, articles, papers, speeches and presentations etc.
Consulting: A professional activity related to the faculty member’s field or discipline (e.g., pharmacy or medicine etc.), where a third party pays the faculty member for such activity or in some instances where the faculty member engages in professional practice.
Outside Professional Services: All activities that are a service to the public or CHSU. Activities that serve the public or CHSU are distinguished from consulting in that they are not undertaken for personal financial gain by the faculty member, even if an honorarium is provided to the faculty member for such activities.
Moonlighting: For profit endeavors that are not directly related to the faculty member’s field or discipline.
A faculty member’s acceptance of participation in activities outside of the direct scope of the faculty member’s employment with CHSU including but not limited to: publication/scholarship, outside professional services, moonlighting, and consulting are allsubject to prior CHSU clearance of any conflicts before the faculty member engages in such activities. All of these activities should be managed by the faculty member in such a way that these activities do not interfere with or take precedence over the faculty member’s work at CHSU, including but not limited to: the faculty member’s obligation to meet scheduled classes, lectures or laboratories. Exceptions to these rules may be made in rare instances through the recommendation of the Department Chair or Immediate Supervisor and subsequent approval from the appropriate Dean.
- Publication/Scholarship
Publication and scholarship is encouraged and not limited by CHSU. Faculty should notify their Department Chair or Immediate Supervisor of such projects and must be completed in compliance with all CHSU policies and procedures, including but not limited to those related to intellectual property, record keeping and research. In cases where publication would incur a fee for CHSU, prior written approval must be obtained from the Faculty member’s Department Chair or Immediate Supervisor.
- Approval Process for Outside Professional Services, Moonlighting and Consulting
A faculty member who wants to engage in outside professional services, moonlighting or consulting must first present his or her proposal for the work in writing to the Department Chair or Immediate Supervisor, at least two weeks prior to the intended commencement of such work. The Department Chair or Immediate Supervisor shall then send such proposal to the appropriate Dean with a recommendation. The appropriate Dean may grant or withhold permission and shall inform the Department Chair or Immediate Supervisor and faculty member of the decision. Permission to carry on such work will be granted only when it will not affect the faculty member’s responsibilities to CHSU and when the work does not present any conflicts of interest.
- Consulting Work
In alignment with standard practice in academia, CHSU grants faculty up to a maximum of twentyfive (25) non-teaching days per fiscal year that may be used by the faculty member to engage in consulting activities, subject to prior written approval by CHSU and subject to a review by CHSUto determine wither a conflict of interest exists and, if so, how to address the conflict. This twenty- five (25) day per fiscal year limit applies exclusively to a faculty member’s consulting activities and is not intended to limit the number of days a faculty member may engage in outside professional service, moonlighting, or publication/scholarship. Further, faculty members may engage in additional consulting activities during CHSU holidays or during the faculty member’s vacation days, without limit, subject to there being no conflicts of interest in engaging in such work for the faculty member.
Consulting work must be of a strictly professional nature and must be conducted in accordance with all University policies, and College level policies applicable to the faculty member, including, but not limited to, the Code of Ethics and Intellectual Property policies. This includes, but is not limited to, appropriate use of CHSU resources. CHSU does not set any limits on the amount of compensation a faculty member may receive for performing such consulting work. In no case, however, should the name of the University or College be used in connection with the consultingpractice nor should University or College resources, facilities, or equipment be used without written permission from the appropriate Dean.
- Outside Professional Services and Moonlighting
This policy is not intended to limit the amount of time faculty spends on outside professional services and moonlighting. Faculty are free to engage in scholarship and publication CHSU should be notified of such work so that it can determine whether a conflict of interest exists and, if so, how it should be addressed. Furthermore, these activities should not interfere with the faculty member’s primary obligations, activities and responsibilities as a faculty member at CHSU. The faculty member may retain any compensation earned during these activities so longas the activity was not performed in the course and scope of the faculty member’s CHSU employment.
