Sample - Draft Offer Letter

(last updated, August 2008)

You may expand upon this sample letter, as needed, but please include the basic, boilerplate language in each letter.

Date

John Doe, M.D.
University Drive
Baltimore, MD 21201

Dear Doctor Doe:

On behalf of my colleagues in the Department of insert full department name, and the Center/Program/Institute... (if applicable), I am pleased to extend to you an offer of employment upon approval of the Dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine and the President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Your initial appointment will be submitted to the School of Medicine at the level of insert academic rank and track. [If rank is Associate Professor or above and on the tenure track or with tenure, include the following sentence:] However, it is important that you understand that rank and tenure status are not guaranteed and require approval by the School’s Appointment, Promotion and Tenure Review Committee, its governing body, the dean and the President. Your start date will be insert anticipated start date, [if anticipated start date is expected to occur prior to the approval of the offered title and tenure status AND offered rank is Assistant Professor or higher, include the following clause:] and if the review process is not complete by that time, you will be granted an interim visiting faculty appointment in order to initiate compensation and until the review process for your final rank and tenure status is complete.

[Licensure statement, if applicable] Please be advised that the requirement of Maryland licensure, including the necessity of timely renewal of expiring licenses, is a condition of employment, and employment cannot occur until such license is obtained. It is your responsibility to notify me immediately upon any non-renewal, suspension or termination of your licensure. If you fail to maintain a required license you will be suspended from patient or client activities. Furthermore, failure to hold and maintain a required license is grounds for termination of employment. To the extent permitted by University policies, compensation will be suspended or reduced if you are unable to perform employment responsibilities as a result of a lack of appropriate licensure or conditions placed upon your license by a licensing body.

If the terms and conditions of this letter are acceptable, the necessary steps will be taken to secure administrative approvals for your appointment. Your formal offer of appointment and terms and conditions of employment will come through an appointment letter issued by the Dean's Office, School of Medicine. I will request that you be appointed as a 12 month faculty member, at an annual total approved salary of $ amount. Of this amount, your initial salary will be derived from [insert general statements about sources of funds]. [If any of the funding will be coming from your department's practice plan funds that have not yet been generated, the following three sentences should be added] As is the case for all faculty/physicians in the School of Medicine, who are paid by department practice plan funds, this salary component is at risk. That is, the funds must be available within the department's practice to support faculty salaries after all costs of practice and institutional assessments are paid. As long as the department's practice, as a whole, remains financially sound, then the risk to any individual practitioner is minimized.

[Include a detailed EXPECTATIONS PARAGRAPH here including expectations for research, teaching, clinical service and institutional service as applicable; if offer is for the tenure track or tenure, expections should include research, teaching and service.]

The University offers a comprehensive benefit package, which will be fully explained to you in an orientation, offered by the University. Please let me know if you accept this offer based on the terms and conditions outlined above or if you have any questions. Following your acceptance, I will process the necessary paperwork for final approval by the School of Medicine and University.

On behalf of the faculty and staff, we look forward to your joining the Department and pursuing our common educational and professional goals.

                                            Sincerely, 
                                            Department Chair

                                            [co-signed by Center/Institute/Program Director as applicable]

Cc:    E. Albert Reece, M.D., Ph.D., M.B.A.
         Adminstrator
         Etc.
Enclosures

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