APM 025/671 Outside Professional Activities Guidance

UC OATS Guidance

To be completed in the UC Outside Activities Tracking System (UC OATS) 

Recommendation: All academic appointees who engage in outside professional activities should be having documented conversations with their academic leaders, e.g., faculty discussing with their department chairs, chairs discussing with their dean, etc., about the specifics of the outside engagement. This type of discussion can help minimize future concerns about things like inventions being within the scope of permissible consulting.

Category I

Preparations for entering Category I prior approval requests

  • Start the consultation process by gathering all the necessary information as well as gathering any documentation you will need.
  • Documentation may include:
    • Contract
    • MOU
    • Letter of agreement or letter of appointment for the work to be performed
    • Other related documents explaining the nature of involvement in the activity
    • School of Medicine/School of Nursing additional documentation requirements: Documentation Matrix for Prior Approval Requests (PDF)
  • Documentation may be in draft form.
  • Confirm that you are in good standing by ensuring that you are compliant with outstanding Outside Professional Activities (OPA) requirements, compliant with the Sabbatical Report policy, completion of all UC Mandatory Trainings, etc.
  • All new requests submitted after July 1, 2026 will be required to submit the UC OATS Category I Activity Review & Consultation Request and upload the results in the Notes section in UC OATS. In order to prepare you to submit the form, please see the questions in the related section below.
  • Requests submitted prior to July 1, 2026 and renewals of requests submitted prior to July 1, 2026, may still reference prior consultations and the Additional Information Requirements form.

Questions from the UC OATS Category I Activity Review & Consultation Request

About You
  • Which APM policy applies to you? 
  • - APM 025
    - APM 671
    APM 025 applies to general academic faculty. APM 671 applies to faculty in the School of Medicine and School of Nursing Health Sciences Compensation Plan
  • If you are APM 025 faculty, you will have to indicate the following:

  • Appointment type
    - Academic Year (AY)
    - Fiscal Year (FY)

    If you select academic year, you will have to indicate the following:
    I will receive University summer compensation.
    - Yes
    - No
    If yes, I understand and will comply with the policy regarding OPA time limits when receiving summer compensation (see APM 025-8-c).

  • Will you receive a formal appointment (academic or otherwise) at the outside institution or company?
  • - Yes
    - No
    If yes, please upload a copy of the applicable agreement (contract, MOU, letter of agreement, or letter of appointment) as a required part of your submission. 
Description of Proposed Activity
Open Ended Questions:
  • Organization name for proposed outside professional activity:
  • What is your title or role with the outside organization?
  • Please explain how the activity will not cause real or apparent conflict of interest or interference with the fulfillment of your faculty obligations.
  • Please explain how this activity enhances the mission of the University.
The following questions are Yes/No Questions unless they ask you to describe or enter information, then they are open ended. If you answer yes to the initial question, the subsequent lettered questions are required:
  • Will the role be compensated?
  • Is this a paid appointment while you are on unpaid leave from UC Davis?
    Is this a paid role that complies with University of California policy?
    Compensation Amount ($) (APM 671 only)
    Enter the compensation amount and specify whether this is a rate (e.g., hourly, daily) or a total amount.
  • Does this role involve a management position or a financial interest in the organization?
  • Is this management role or financial interest associated with a start-up company that you founded or in which you have an ownership interest?
  • Does this project involve engagement with foreign partners and/or a foreign organization?
  • Please describe your engagement with foreign partners and/or a foreign organization.
  • Does the outside activity involve UC Davis students? 
  • Please describe the activities including UC Davis students.
  • Does the outside activity intersect and/or overlap with any UC Davis sponsored projects or non-monetary research agreements where you are the PI or key personnel? 
  • Please describe how the outside activity intersects and/or overlaps with any UC Davis sponsored projects or non-monetary research agreements where you are the PI or key personnel.
  • Does the outside activity involve any UC Davis intellectual property? 
  • Please describe the UC Davis intellectual property that will be used in the proposed activity.

Entering Category I prior approval requests

For additional guidance, see the following webpages:
Enter an Activity
Submit Category I Form
Activity Type Descriptions

  • Be sure to submit the request ahead of when the activity is scheduled to begin. 
  • Recommendation is to submit the request at least eight (8) weeks before the activity will commence.
  • Choose the correct fiscal year.
  • This is based on the expected start/begin date of the activity For example: activity start date of 9/25/2025 = fiscal year 2025-2026.
  • Select the most appropriate activity type(s).
  • Policy indicates that, “When an activity falls into more than one category, it should be assigned to the category that requires more stringent reporting and prior approval, as applicable.” (APM 025-10; APM 671-10) UC OATS allows you to select multiple activity types, so please select all that apply. If you are unsure of the type, please contact your AP staff member.
  • Answer intellectual property (IP) questions (if applicable).
  • The following are the IP questions that appear when you select some of the activity types.
    IP Question
    Does this activity use or propose to use intellectual property (IP) developed at the University of California (using University resources)?
       If yes
           - Have you consulted with your campus technology management office?
       If yes
           - A license agreement is under review or in place.
           - UC has released the intellectual property.

    Did you or do you plan to create any IP in your outside activity (and assign your rights to the entity)?

    Did you make any invention and/or create any non-scholarly/non-aesthetic copyright material (e.g. software) in the course of your outside activity?   
       If yes
           Disclaimer: Please provide documentation of communication with your campus technology management/licensing staff in the NOTES section OR if you have not yet contacted your campus technology management/licensing staff, please disclose immediately such intellectual property to that office.
  • Provide full details in the Description of the nature of your participation.
  • Please include enough detail to help a reviewer understand your role in this activity; more information can be included in the UC OATS Category I Activity Review & Consultation Request when it is submitted.
  • Start date
  • Enter the date you are requesting approval to start engaging in the activity. Ensure that the activity is being entered in the correct fiscal year.
  • End date
  • Enter the date the activity will conclude (generally granted for 1 year, but may be up to 3 years); confirm that the end date is entered as intended. Note, if date range does not match the number of estimated hours the request may be delayed until clarification or the request is corrected.
  • Estimated hours

  • APM 025: The number of hours cannot exceed the system-wide annual time limits (academic-year appointees = 312 hours; fiscal-year appointees = 384 hours). If engaging in an activity that will exceed allowable time limits, a leave without pay may be required. Please consult with your department and/or dean’s office for guidance.

    APM 671: The Schools of Health (SOH) have a stricter time limit (168 hours); however, with prior approval, time limits can exceed up to the system-wide limit (384 hours). If engaging in an activity that will exceed system-wide time limits, please consult with the SOH Academic Personnel Office for guidance.

  • Leave question
  • Answering this question does not constitute an approved leave request. If you will be away from campus, you might also need to submit a leave request in compliance with the “Delegation of Authority for Leaves of Absence”.
  • Permission question

  • Submitting a prior approval request after the start date means "YES” will need to be marked to indicate the engagement occurred prior to receiving permission because the request was not approved prior to the start date of the activity.

    Note: The Provost has the final approval authority which is required before engaging in a Category I activity per APM 025 and APM 671. UC OATS will generate and send an approval notification once the activity has been approved.

  • Complete UC OATS Category I Activity Review & Consultation Request and attach the required documents to the Notes section.

  • Make sure there are no discrepancies or conflicting details between the form and the information provided in the UC OATS prior approval request.

    The PDF generated by the UC OATS Category I Activity Review & Consultation Request will be sent via email from Kuali Notifications. The email will contain instructions on what should be uploaded into the Notes section of your Category I request.

    School of Medicine/School of Nursing additional documentation requirements: Documentation Matrix for Prior Approval Requests (PDF)
           Attach documentation from the outside entity detailing the scope of activity, the estimated hours to be committed to the activity, the estimated earnings to be received from the activity, and the name, phone number, and email address for the outside entity’s primary point of contact.

Student Involvement

Details required when involving Students

Do you plan to involve students whom you have or expect to have academic responsibility (instructional, evaluative, and/or supervisory) for in any substantive way (whether the students are compensated or uncompensated)?

If yes, then provide the following details for each student:

  • student’s full name
  • category of student (e.g., undergraduate, graduate, professional degree student)
  • description of work the student(s) will be doing
  • educational benefit to the student
  • possible beneficial outcomes to research, industry, and the public
  • the number of hours anticipated the student will work at the outside activity
  • any potential conflicts of commitment for the student with respect to the student’s university
  • employment/funding
  • and, if appropriate, what arrangements will be put in place to ensure that the student continues to make adequate progress on their degree work

Best Practices

Categories

  • if you are unsure which is the correct category, turn help text ON to get additional background information on each category
    • don’t forget to turn help text OFF when not needed

Attachments

  • confirm they are uploaded and are viewable
  • any that are in a foreign language must be translated and provided in English

Renewals

  • If no significant changes, include a statement in the notes section of the renewal request confirming you reviewed the list of significant changes, and that none apply to your activity renewal request. (*Note, a staff member cannot make this statement for you, though it can be uploaded to the form if the attestation is sent via email.) For example, significant changes may include:
    • The activity involves a foreign country, 
    • Compensation changed from uncompensated to compensated,
    • Your role has changed with the company,
    • Private investors have been obtained and/or Series A funding has been secured for the company,
    • Student involvement changes (e.g., students were not involved previously but will be involved with the renewal), or 
    • Previously reported as not having grants in the same scope as the initial Category I request.
  • Include a note indicating which fiscal year your consultation(s), document(s), and additional information form are uploaded to if not included in the renewal request.
  • If there are significant changes, include your updated consultation(s).
  • If consultation is over 5 years old, a new consultation will need to be done.

Completing Annual Certification Report for the Preceding Fiscal Year

  • All faculty must complete this document whether they engaged in outside activities or not.
  • Add information to UC OATS as the activities occur throughout the year instead of waiting to complete it all when the call comes out each fall quarter.

Important Reminders:

  • Policy information

  • Category I activities most likely to create a conflict of commitment because:
    1) They are activities related to the training and expertise which is an individual’s qualification for University appointment, but performance for a third party, and/or
    2) They require significant professional commitment.

    Outside Professional Activities must not interfere with obligations to the University and “it is expected that the use of days will be allocated evenly across service periods” and “if …receives summer compensation…the limit on compensated outside professional activities is the equivalent to one day per week, during the period such compensation is received.” (See APM 025-8-b-(1) and APM 025-8.c)

    APM 025-2-a states, “Faculty members who are employed by the University of California owe their primary professional allegiance to the University and accept as their own the University’s responsibilities to advance and communicate knowledge. Teaching, research or other creative activities, and the cultivation of scholarly or creative competence, are their primary activities and should receive the largest commitment of time and energy; the same expectation exists for part-time faculty to the extent of their faculty appointment….”

    Outside Professional Activities must not interfere with obligations to the University. (See APM 671-4-a)

    APM 671-2-a states, “Faculty members who are employed by the University of California owe their primary professional allegiance to the University and accept as their own the University’s responsibilities to advance and communicate knowledge. Teaching, research or other creative activities, clinical care, and the cultivation of scholarly or creative competence, are their primary activities and should receive the largest commitment of time and energy; the same expectation exists for part-time faculty to the extent of their faculty appointment.”

    APM 600-4-c states, “An academic-year appointment… refers to the period in which an academic appointee renders services, i.e., the academic year, from the beginning of the fall term through the end of the spring term, including periods of intersession.”

  • Time Limits

  • Time Limits allowed for Outside Professional Activities are converted from days to hours in UC OATS:

    APM 025
    AY appointees: 39 days = 312 hours
    FY appointees: 48 days = 384 hours

    APM 671
    FY appointees: 21 days = 168 hours

  • Leaves

  • Leaves (Refer to the Academic Affairs “Leaves” webpage and the Delegation of Authority for Leaves of Absences):

    A leave should be requested for activities that require time away from the campus, per the specified leave requirements, e.g., 7 days or less approval required by Chair, 7-30 days’ approval required by the Dean, and greater than 30 days’, approval required by Vice Provost. Leave requests shall be submitted through the normal leave process.

  • UC Davis Health Academic Personnel Office Additional Resources
  • Conflict of Commitment
    Conflict of Commitment Toolkit
  • UC OATS Technical Issues
  • Please send an email describing the UC OATS technical issue(s) you are experiencing to: [email protected] 
  • Policy Questions

  • For questions regarding APM 025 or APM 671 policies, please begin by contacting the individuals listed for the department. If they are unable to assist, they are encouraged to reach out to the dean’s office for guidance. If a dean’s office reviewer or approver is unable to provide guidance, they are encouraged to reach out to the Academic Affairs Principal Analyst. Contacts are identified by school/college on the UC Davis College and School Contacts for UC OATS webpage.

    For questions about Conflicts of Interest (COI), please contact Research Compliance and Integrity: Denise Ehlen, [email protected]

    For questions about Intellectual Property, please contact Technology Transfer: [email protected]

Last revised on 7.2026