This activity covers any work that you undertake as an individual with collaborators outside of the University. Because most faculty roles include some research component, your commitment to your University role means that you have an obligation to bring research work into the University. The Faculty Consulting Offices (FCOs) and Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) strongly encourage faculty to bring research opportunities into the University rather than undertaking these activities as a consultant.  The potential for conflicts of commitment means that requests for this type of work must be clear on why this is an appropriate external activity. 

When undertaking fee-for-service research or report writing, you do so as an individual, acting independently. This work cannot involve the use of University resources (equipment, lab space, etc.). Separation from your University role means that you cannot involve UConn students.  

You are not permitted to undertake any fee-for-service research or report writing in relation to entities you have worked with in your UConn role. E.g., we will deny a request to consult if you have been involved in a project with a company as a UConn faculty member, and this company has then requested that you undertake fee-for-service research as a consultant. Such work must be contracted through the University.

Examples of fee-for-service research activities that may be appropriate for consulting include: 

• Report writing or analysis for a third party, such as a report for a charitable organization analyzing data they have provided, where the report will be published by that organization.  
• Analysis for a for-profit entity to support their business purposes, where there would be no data produced for publication.  
• Providing specialist advice on the methods or analysis used in a wider research project at another institution, including projects supported by federal funding.  

We recommend that if you will be identified as a consultant rather than as a co-investigator on a federally-funded grant you should have a conversation with OVPR Sponsored Program Services (SPS). This is to ensure that the work is appropriate for consulting and should not be brought in through the University.   

If you have a grant activity that has been submitted through UConn SPS and you change your role from a PI or Co-PI to that of a consultant, it is likely that your consulting request will be denied. You cannot begin work in a University role and then change to undertaking this work in an individual capacity; this can create a violation of the State Code of Ethics. If circumstances mean that you will change your role from PI or co-PI to a consultant, you must ensure that this information is clearly shared with appropriate senior staff within SPS (director of pre-or post-award should be included in the discussion), and with the appropriate FCO. If you change your status on a grant without seeking consulting approval prior to the change, you may find that the request is denied.

Make a scholarly presentation of my published work and in which I have control of the content of the presentation.

This type of activity covers standard presentations of academic work that are done outside of your role as a state employee. These types of presentations may have compensation in the form of an honorarium or other payment. If you are receiving any payment for this type of activity, consulting approval is required.

If only travel expenses will be paid with no additional compensation, please see Necessary Expenses.

This activity may qualify for the “low conflict of interest pathway” if it occurs with a domestic entity.

Make an educational (non-promotional) presentation

Presentations to non-commercial entities for educational purposes are usually straightforward. If conducting this type of activity, please make sure that you provide details of the audience and that you make clear the non-commercial nature of the presentation in the information you provide. Greater scrutiny will be given if your presentation is with an entity that may be involved in promoting or selling products, services, or other goods.

Faculty may not participate in promotional presentations. Promotional activities would be those in which the University or the faculty member might be seen to endorse or promote a product, service, or organization.

If material in the presentation could be seen to endorse a product, service, organization, or other marketable entity, you must have control over the content of materials and/or activities, including those bearing the name and/or logo of the contracting entity or other third party.

If a commercial entity is involved, you will not be approved for consulting if the activity for which you are purportedly being paid is only to make you a better speaker. Purely professional development opportunities of this nature will only be approved when supported by nonprofit (non-commercial) organizations, state or federally-funded programs, or similar.

This type of activity may qualify for the “low conflict of interest pathway” if it occurs with a domestic entity.

Teach an educational (non-promotional) course or workshop that does not compete with the University (including continuing education) offerings.

Any request to teach a full course offering at another institution is given particular scrutiny. The request should explain how the teaching does not compete (i.e., draw students who might otherwise enroll at UConn) with the University. Any teaching taking place during contracted regular semester periods should also come with a clear explanation of how the teaching will be balanced with your regular faculty workload.

The request should be clear about the nature of the teaching that will be done, the organization it is with, and may include information such as who the students will likely be (including, if relevant, how these students differ from those who may attend UConn).

Requests for teaching should also include, where possible, how this activity will contribute to your professional development.

Participate in a fine arts/artistic performance (including acting, rehearsal, set design, dancing, singing, playing music, directing, etc)

If your University role and expertise is related to performance fields, any paid work related to performances would normally require consulting approval. For instance, most faculty in the School of Fine Arts will require consulting approval for any artistic performances. However, if your expertise is not in a performance field and you will be paid for performance work that is entirely unrelated to your faculty role, you would not normally require consulting approval. Please reach out to the Faculty Consulting Office to discuss the specifics of your case.

This activity may qualify for the “low conflict of interest pathway” if it is with a domestic entity.

Writing and Reviewing

These types of activities may qualify for the “low conflict of interest pathway” if they occur with a domestic entity.

For all of these activities, if you are only receiving support for travel or other necessary expenses and you will be doing the work within your capacity as a state employee, please see Necessary Expenses.

Write an article, book, book chapter, introduction to a book, pamphlet, educational web/computer module, or examination questions.

These activities are writing that is outside of the peer-review process. This work could also include academic writing for non-peer-reviewed publications in your area of expertise.

Royalties for books are excluded from the faculty consulting policy. If you are writing a book and will receive royalties only (including an advance on royalties) you do not require consulting approval. However, any writing where you will receive a non-royalty payment will require consulting approval.

Review a book chapter or manuscript to be published in a peer-reviewed publication.

Any peer-reviewing requires consulting approval if you will receive any kind of compensation for this work. If you are sure that such work will be uncompensated, you do not need to request consulting approval. If you are not sure whether you will receive payment for such work, you should submit a consulting request in advance of the work as this will allow you to accept such payments.

Review a manuscript to be published in something other than a peer-reviewed publication or serving as an editor of a journal.

Any kind of honorarium or stipend received for editorial work requires consulting approval. If the only financial remuneration is in funds paid directly to a University account to support expenses related to the work, you do not need to request consulting approval.

Review a student thesis, serve as a member on a thesis committee and/or develop a reference or review that supports a promotion-tenure-reappointment decision of another faculty member.

Any standard academic reviews for which you will receive any kind of compensation (i.e., a small stipend or honorarium) require consulting approval.

Review of an external program, department, school, or institution.

Reviews of external programs, departments, schools, or other institutions should be based only on your general expertise and not on any specific knowledge from your University role. Any reviews of this nature where you are using your general expertise require consulting approval.

Review grant proposals and/or serve on a US governmental committee, a panel on research, or on clinical care

If you are receiving any kind of compensation for grant reviews or similar work, you require consulting approval in advance of the work.

Serve on a research safety or scientific advisory committee of an IRB approved clinical trial

If you are receiving any kind of compensation for serving on a research safety or scientific advisory committee of an IRB approved clinical trial, you require consulting approval in advance of the work. If you are only receiving support for travel or other expenses please see Necessary Expenses.

This activity may qualify for the “low conflict of interest pathway” if it occurs with a domestic entity.

Provide advice regarding legal action and/or serve as an expert witness

If you are serving as an expert witness, please provide some information to describe the nature of the case and the type of advice or expertise you are providing.

If you have been involved in any aspect of this case while working as a state employee, you will need to document this involvement and provide information to determine whether there is any conflict of interest inherent to your proposed role.

If you will be serving as an expert witness against the State of Connecticut, please provide further details of this role and your specific expertise.

This activity may qualify for the “low conflict of interest pathway” if it occurs with a domestic entity AND so long as documentation is provided that demonstrates you are not involved in any aspect of the case while working as a state employee.

Complete a survey (questionnaire or interview)

This activity may qualify for the “low conflict of interest pathway” if it occurs with a domestic entity AND does not divulge information restricted to University employees.

Faculty members may be provided compensation for completing surveys that are related to their professional expertise.

It is not considered a consulting activity if a faculty member completes a survey on a topic that is not related to their professional expertise (where one is providing their personal opinion on a non-professionally related subject).

Patient Care

Full-time faculty at the School of Medicine and School of Dental Medicine cannot engage in private practice/patient care per the University bylaws. Faculty members must be 0.95 FTE or less to engage in outside patient care activities.

Private practice is characterized as:

1. Services that require a license to practice
2. Assuming responsibility for the care of a patient
3. Services submitted for reimbursement under health insurance
4. Services that may lead to claims of malpractice

Faculty cannot do work that the University wants to do or should be doing.

When consulting there is no liability coverage from the state.

Assuming that the Bylaws prohibition of full-time faculty engaging in private practice is not at issue, permission for SoDM faculty to engage in consulting involving private practice should only be approved when:

1. The Dean or director of the SoDM faculty practice ensure and verify that such private practice activity will not result in the loss of the patients that the SODM Faculty Practice would like to be recruiting, and
2. The faculty member engaging in consulting agrees not to change his/her pattern for referring patients to other providers, and will consider referring to the SODM Faculty Practice and/or student and resident clinics when appropriate.

Please note that this refers to faculty at the University of Connecticut Health Center. The relevant University of Connecticut Bylaw Language is found in item XIV.M:

“No employee in the service of the University shall devote to private purposes any portion of the time due the University without consent as may be provided in established University policy. Faculty members may take on outside consulting and research activities after the specific project has been approved by the Provost. Nothing herein contained shall be construed as authorizing any private practice by any full-time member of the faculty of either the School of Medicine or the School of Dental Medicine.”

This covers any activity that is not defined in the categories provided by the form. This might include:

• Activities related to a startup company.
• Providing expert advice to a company (or nonprofit organization) for compensation.
• Serving on the board of a professional organization or publication (editorial, advisory, etc.) where you will receive compensation for the work.
• Any other activity where you will receive compensation related in any way to your expertise as a faculty member.

If you have any questions related to the type of activity you are undertaking and how this relates to the faculty consulting program, please contact your Faculty Consulting Office.

Further information related to the nature of different consulting activities can also be found within our FAQs.