Academic staff are expected to contribute to teaching, research, and service. Performance in all of these domains is taken into account in the University promotion system. The School allocates workload in three specific areas: class teaching, research supervision, and administration.

Class teaching

Face to face teaching is determined by the Head of School in consultation with the staff member. The aim is to keep the total number of contact hours approximately the same across staff, with a slightly higher target figure for Levels B and C than for Levels D and E. There is no formal system for quantifying the differential load for lectures, tutorials, seminars etc, but this is taken into account in the final allocation. Staff with more substantial administrative responsibilities (Head, Deputy Head, Psychology 1 Coordinator) typically have some reduction in class teaching and research supervision.

Research supervision

Honours and MPsychol students are allocated to staff members, based on student preferences for research topic and supervisor. Allocation is carried out by the Honours Coordinator in consultation with the Head of School and, in the case of MPsychol students, the relevant Program Coordinator. The aim is to achieve approximately the same total supervision load across staff each year, although the ratio of Honours to MPsychol supervision often differs considerably according to the staff member’s research area.
Participation in higher degree research student (PhD or MSc) supervision is encouraged, but the decision to take on a particular student is up to the staff member. As an incentive for staff to engage in higher degree research supervision, 12 hours are subtracted from the target class teaching load for each full-time, on-time PhD student supervised in the previous year (pro-rata for part-time or MSc). On-time means within 4 full-time equivalent years of first enrolment. There is a ceiling of three students for this scheme.

Administration

Academic staff are expected to contribute to administration on behalf of the School in a number of different ways, including committee membership, marketing and outreach activities, and taking on specific responsibilities. Roles are determined by the Head of School in consultation with the staff member. The aim is to keep the total workload similar across all staff. However, due to the uneven nature of these roles, there are often some differences in workload between staff in a given year. In some cases, a reduced administrative load may be determined for one or more years after a period in a demanding role.

Sabbatical (SSP)

When a staff member takes SSP, it is customary for that staff member to teach approximately 60% of their normal face to face load during the non-SSP session that year, often with “core” courses shifted between sessions to facilitate teaching coverage. PhD student supervision continues during SSP, although the co-supervisor may play a more immediate support role. Honours and MPsychol research supervision is usually allocated only for the non-SSP session.

Teaching buyout

The School considers that lectures should be delivered by academic staff who are also active in research and scholarship. Accordingly, academics cannot buy out of their allocated lecturing load, although the School may choose to make use of suitably qualified external staff to deliver some teaching in specialised domains. Another important principle is that at least one prac/tutorial stream in each course should be taught by a member of academic staff, so as to ensure quality control and integration between lectures and pracs. Subject to these constraints, buyout of allocated prac/tutorial teaching may be possible, subject to approval by the Head of School.

Overall workload

Although the primary strategy is to equalise workload within each domain, occasionally staff will be asked to take a heavier load in one domain and a lighter load in another domain to compensate. Responsibility for regulating total workload rests with the Head of School. Concerns about workload should be taken up with the Head in the first instance. If the staff member is not happy with the response, they may consult the Deputy Head, or pursue a grievance.