Probation

UQ is committed to ensuring a robust career and performance development approach exists for all staff, which provides a foundation for the achievement of excellence and shared performance expectations. Staff hired as continuing or fixed-term employees may undergo a probationary period at the beginning of their employment.

Your specific probationary requirements and time frames will be outlined in your offer letter, with further information also available in The University of Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2021 - 2026

Supervisors of professional and fixed term academic staff subject to a probation period will receive a notification within Workday half-way through the probation period. Should there be any performance concerns, please seek HR support and advice.

Continuing academic staff may be subject to a three-year probation period (further details below).

The probation process is aligned with the Annual Performance and Development (APD) process in seeking to support all staff in their development journey in the pursuit of excellence. Many of the APD Resources available may be helpful to staff and supervisors during the probation period, including guides on giving feedback and goal planning.

Continuing Academic Staff

The academic probation processes are underpinned by the Confirmation and Promotions (Academic Staff) Policy and the Probation and Confirmation of Continuing Appointment (Academic Staff) procedure.

The probation process assesses whether academic staff have demonstrated that they meet the expectations of academic excellence for the relevant academic level as detailed in the Criteria for Academic Performance Policy.

To support this, the process is made up of two sub-processes:

Mid-Term Review: A progress review to confirm you’re on track for confirmation and to provide you with helpful recommendations in the lead up to your Final Review.
Final Review: The culmination of the probation process where your contributions during the probation period are assessed against the criteria.

You’ll receive notification in your Workday inbox for each of these sub-processes, with additional advice to be emailed to you by the relevant HR team in the lead up to your Mid-Term Review and Final Review. For the full application process and requirements, please see the Probation and Confirmation of Continuing Appointment (Academic Staff) Procedure.

Probation Timeline

Academic Probation and Annual Performance and Development Processes

Academic staff on probation are still required to complete the Annual Performance and Development (APD) process in line with the relevant timelines and procedures. While the APD process will not form part of your Mid-Term or Final Review submission, it is an opportunity for you and your supervisor to discuss expectations, set goals and for you to receive valuable feedback on your performance.

1. Mid-Term Review

During the second year of your probation period, you will receive notification of your Mid-Term Review via email. This email will provide instructions and due dates for the Mid-Term Review Application Form that will be released to you within Workday.

The Mid-Term Review Application Form consists of:

Reflection on progress to date (600 words maximum)
Performance relative to opportunity considerations (300 words maximum)
Reflection on performance to date against the relevant level of the Criteria for Academic Performance Policy
Additional documentation (optional)

Once submitted, the form will progress to your Head of School/Director to review your submission and provide an evaluation and overall recommendation. Level A - D Mid-Term Reviews will be considered by the Local Confirmation and Promotion Committees, while Level E Mid-Term Reviews wil be considered by the Executive Dean.

As an outcome of this process, you will be provided with a feedback letter which will include recommendations for you in the lead up to Final Review. It is important that you consider the feedback carefully and align your performance to the requirements as laid out in the Criteria for Academic Performance.

Any recommendations provided are expected to be addressed for Final Review.

2. Final Review

In the third year of your probation period, you’ll receive notification of your Final Review via email. This email will provide instructions and due dates for the Final Review Application Form you will receive in Workday.

The Final Review Application Form consists of:

Case for Confirmation (600 words maximum)
Performance relative to opportunity considerations (300 words maximum)
Reflection on performance against the relevant level of the Criteria for Academic Performance Policy
Additional documentation (optional)

Prior to submitting your application, you are required to update your Individual Activity Profile (IAP). Direct access to your IAP will be provided to the relevant Committee to be reviewed as part of your Final Review submission. You should also ensure that you have completed all of your mandatory training prior to the submission of your Final Review documentation.

Once submitted, the form will progress to your Head of School/Director to review your submission and provide an evaluation and overall recommendation. Level E Final Reviews will also be sent to the Executive Dean for an Executive Dean Report to be completed.

As part of the Final Review process, you will be invited to interview with the relevant Committee. At the interview, you’ll be given a chance to provide a precis of your case for confirmation for a maximum of 5 minutes, before the interview commences. Following the interview, you’ll be advised of the outcome, which may be to confirm your continuing appointment, provide you with an extension in extenuating circumstances, or to not confirm your appointment.

Following notification of the outcome, you are welcome to request a feedback meeting with the Chair of the relevant Committee.

FAQs and Resources

Legacy Process

Where staff commenced their three-year probation period prior to 7 October 2021, a transitionary arrangement was adopted. Details can be found in the Probation and Confirmation of Continuing Appointment (Academic Staff) Procedure. All impacted staff were contacted directly following the introduction of the transitionary approach in 2021 to confirm the process to follow. If you have any queries, please contact the Academic Development team at cap@uq.edu.au.