Faculty Salary Policy

Issue/Question

How is my annual increase calculated or determined as a faculty member?

Environment

  • Salary Policy

Resolution

The total annual salary policy pool is set by the state legislature and the Bureau of Human Resources (BHR). The salary policy pool applies to all state employees regardless of fund source. Salary policy is broken down into two groupings for faculty, Tenure Track/Tenured and Term faculty. Within these two faculty groupings, the salary policy pool is allocated into distinct salary policy distribution categories. The percentage assigned to each of these distribution categories may fluctuate from year to year based on campus priorities.

  1. Utilizing FY25 to illustrate, the total salary policy pool set by the state was 4% with the distribution categories as follows:
    1. Tenure Track and Tenured Faculty Pools:
      1. Market pool:  20% of the total salary policy pool
      2. Performance pool:  70% of the salary policy pool
      3. Institutional Priority pool:  10% of the total salary policy pool
    2. Term Faculty Pools:
      1. Market pool:  0% of the total salary policy pool
      2. Performance pool:  80% of the salary policy pool
      3. Institutional Priority pool:  20% of the total salary policy pool
  2. An employee’s total annual salary increase is the combined increase from each of these distribution categories plus any promotion increase if applicable. The methodology for increase in each of the distribution categories varies. Market and Performance increases are formula driven, whereas Institutional Priority increases are discretionary.
    1. Market increases are calculated based upon the most recent CUPA-HR salary survey data.  Market comparisons are determined by a faculty member’s CIP code, utilizing the median salary figure of the equivalent rank within the CUPA-HR salary survey. If the employee has salary lag compared to their CUPA comparison, they will get a proportionate market increase relative to their salary lag compared to other employees in their pool. The amount of the increase will depend on the number of employees receiving a market increase and their respective lags from the median salary.
      Note:  Currently, faculty in the term faculty series are not eligible for a Market increase due to the lack of comparable data. CUPA-HR data does not distinguish rank in this series. Instructors, lecturers, senior lecturers, assistant professors of practice, associate professors of practice, and full professors of practice are all compared against each other.
    2. Performance increases are calculated utilizing a faculty member’s weighted three-year average performance rating. The amount of the increase will depend on the number of employees receiving a performance increase and their respective performance ratings.
      1. Weighted Average Calculation:
        1. This takes your performance rating in each area of teaching, research, and service and multiplies it by the percentage of effort for that area.
          • Example – 2023 ratings
            • Teaching – Rating of 2 and 80% Effort
            • Research – Rating of 1 and 10% Effort
            • Service – Rating of 2 and 10% Effort
          • The calculation would be (2 x 0.80) + (1 x 0.10) + (2 x 0.10) and this would equal 1.90. This is only an example, and each person is different.
            • 2021 Overall Weighted Performance Rating = 1.75
            • 2022 Overall Weighted Performance Rating = 1.85
            • 2023 Overall Weighted Performance Rating = 1.90
            • Weighted three-year average rating from above = 1.83
      2. Institutional priority increases are awarded on a discretionary basis, primarily at the recommendation of the college/school Dean and approved through the appropriate Vice President. Institutional Priority recommendations are typically utilized to recognize exceptional performance in advancing of the university’s formally adopted Institutional Priorities or for addressing other university or unit priorities

Eligible faculty may also receive an annual salary increase for a promotion, such as moving from lecturer to senior lecturer. Faculty promotion increases are defined in SD BOR Policy 4.4.5.4

Note: The promotion increase is not part of the total salary policy pool. Promotion increases are calculated based on the current year’s base salary and then combined with the other salary policy distributed increases. Each unit is responsible for funding their promotions.

Note: Salary policy is only available to permanent and regular benefit/leave eligible employees.    Temporary employees are not typically eligible for salary policy. However, they may be approved by the appropriate Vice President for those that are in benefit eligible positions for more than one year.

Note: Faculty hired or appointed on December 22nd or later are not eligible for annual salary policy increases.

Note: Salary policy is not guaranteed every year. There may be years where no monies are pooled by state legislature for salary increases.

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