Winter Term FAQs

Miami's Winter Term is January 2–January 23, 2026. For on-campus courses, class attendance is expected beginning January 2. A few classes meet at varying dates and times, though, so please consult the course syllabus or the instructor. Refer to the Course List for more information.

The first day of the spring semester will be January 26, 2026.

Full-time Faculty are typically hired under nine (9) month contracts which include all normally assigned classes for fall and spring semesters. Because winter term falls within the contractual time, a teaching assignment for that term is considered above and beyond the normal course load and is therefore considered an overload assignment.

Lock Date

The Lock Date will be the final day to review, approve, and set the course enrollment in regards to the minimum faculty pay for winter term classes.  The lock date is the Friday of Finals Week.  On the lock date, courses with enrollments below the run/cancel threshold of 10 must be canceled, unless an exception has been requested by the Divisional Dean and approved by the Provost.  

Deans will have the discretion to cancel classes they deem as non-essential classes with enrollments on the Lock Date under 25. Deans will make their discretionary threshold known to departments when the schedule is being developed or as soon as reasonably possible, based on financial and staffing constraints. When course cancellation is needed, Chairs will make appropriate efforts to cancel classes as early in the preceding semester as possible to provide students and faculty time to plan for alternatives. Those cancellations will be communicated to the instructor and enrolled students as soon as is practical. 

Compensation

Full-time faculty members who teach during the winter or summer term will be compensated based on their base salary for the current academic year. The rate for teaching is 3% per credit hour when the student-credit-hour threshold is met. However, faculty may be paid an equivalent proportion of that figure if the generated student credit hour threshold is not met and the department chair and dean approve the offering of the course.

Salary for a single course cannot exceed $20,000. If a course with low enrollment is offered, the faculty will be paid a minimum of $1,025 per credit hour for a typical lecture course or the proportional amount as specified below, whichever is higher.

Note: Overload pay in the fall and spring semesters will remain at $1,025 per credit hour for full-time faculty for a typical lecture course.

The key points of the policy:

• Courses below 10 students on the lock date (see below) will be cancelled, unless approved by the provoste based on special circumstances.
• Salary of 3% of base salary per credit hour for fully enrolled classes.
• Salary for under enrolled classes will be based on a proportional percentage of the full enrollment threshold.
  • Maximum payment per course of $20,000
  • Minimum payment per course of $1,025 per credit hour.

Low Enrolled Courses

Scheduled courses below the full enrollment threshold will be identified, and Chairs will send a ‘low-enrollment notice’ to those instructors within three business days after the Lock Date. Those instructors will have 48 hours to accept or decline to teach those low-enrolled courses. Declined courses may be canceled or offered to another instructor at the Chair’s election. 

Instructor pay will be calculated using the enrollment numbers as they appear on the Lock Date, and not less than that calculation, even if enrollment declines. If course enrollment increases after the Lock Date, the faculty member will be compensated based on the enrollment on the day after the online add/drop period ends. To assess whether a pay increase is warranted due to post–Lock Date enrollment growth, an enrollment report will be run the day after the web add/drop period ends. If enrollment increases after the Lock Date, then the department may either: 

• Submit the initial pay action using the highest enrollment number for pay calculation; OR, 
• Submit a supplemental pay action for the increased amount over what was initially submitted. 

If the compensation action (PAP) is initiated by the college and approved by all required levels by January 15, payment will be included on the instructor’s January paycheck. PAPs that are initiated and/or approvals are completed after January 15 will be paid on the instructor’s February paycheck.

As workshops run under the workshop budget model, they fall outside of the policy. Graduate classes are regular classes that fall under the policy; some/many graduate classes will likely need to request exceptions. 

Low Enrollment Pay Schedule-Faculty pay for under enrolled courses will be determined using the following formula:

• (Course enrollment/15) x (3% x faculty base salary) x (# course credit hours)
• Table with examples of enrollments from 15 down to 8
• Course enrollment

Summer and Winter Term teaching is equally available to all full-time non-visiting members of the instructional staff in a department with the approval of the divisional dean. While departmental policy and curricular needs may further specify eligibility, no rank will be systematically discriminated against in the selection of eligible faculty. Winter term teaching should not be used as a recruiting inducement. Part-time faculty may be recommended to teach in the winter term only after all eligible full-time faculty members have been given the opportunity.

No faculty member is required to teach during the winter term.

Faculty are expected to teach no more than four formal course credits in the winter term unless approved by the faculty member’s department chair or program director, academic dean, and provost. Exceptions to the four credit maximum teaching load policy for winter workshops are covered by the workshop approval process. Any winter term compensation will be in addition to summer term compensation. Thus winter term compensation will not be considered part of the summer earnings policy in which no more than 33.3% of base salary can be earned for summer term duties. See Academic Personnel Administrators' Resources for additional information.

Exceptions to the four credit hour limit must be approved by the faculty member’s department chair or program director, academic dean, and provost. Exceptions may be made when there is high demand for an additional course or section of a course and no other faculty are available to teach that course other than those already scheduled to teach a single section of a winter course.

Required courses for the major or for liberal education cannot be offered solely during the winter and summer terms. As a result, summer and winter term teaching should be considered as an additional or overload part of the faculty member’s normal teaching responsibilities. Any exceptions to this rule must be approved by the department chair or program director, academic dean, and provost.

Because full-time faculty members are hired on a nine-month contract, they are expected to work during the regular academic year which now includes the fall semester, winter term, and spring semester. Faculty may use the winter term to engage in the following activities: facilitate independent studies; complete or begin a research project or grant; participate in professional development opportunities; design or prepare for an upcoming course; or make progress on committee, service, or other work-related obligations.

Faculty members who do not teach during the winter term will not receive additional pay. (See explanation below for pay related to grants and contracts.)

The regular monthly payroll will be used to pay additional salary earned for winter term teaching. As long as the request for payment is received in Academic Personnel no later than the 15^th day of January, payment will be entered on the January payroll and paid on the last working day of January. Any request for payment that is received on the 16^th day of January or later will be paid on the next monthly payroll.

Miami University adheres to Federal OMB Circular A-21 which prohibits supplemental pay on federally sponsored projects during a faculty or staff member’s regular period of full-time service to the university unless: a) the work is for a project director in a Miami University department other than the individual’s department, and the work is clearly in addition to the individual’s regular workload; or b) the work involves a separate or remote operation, and the work is clearly in addition to the individual’s regular workload.

When any portion of a faculty or staff member's salary is derived from work performed under a grant or contract administered by Miami University, the amount charged to the grant or contract will be based upon the individual's regular rate of compensation under their current appointment.

Time devoted toward earning supplemental pay during a faculty or staff member's regular period of full time service to the university may not exceed an average of one day per week, including any other time committed to outside service for which compensation may be earned as defined in the "Ethics and External Services" policy during the individual's regular period of full time service to the university.

If full-time teaching duties are not assigned to a faculty or staff member during the winter or summer term, the individual may be eligible for supplemental pay on a grant or contract where the supplemental pay:

• Is within the approved budget for the grant or contract and follows the guidelines of the sponsoring agency;
• Is at a rate not to exceed the individual’s base salary on a daily basis, pro-rated for the level of effort devoted to teaching duties during fall and spring semester minus the level of effort devoted to teaching duties during winter term; and
• Does not exceed an average time commitment of one day per week, including any other time committed for supplemental pay as defined in the "Ethics and External Services" policy during the individual’s regular period of full-time service to the university.

See the Office of Enrollment Management's comprehensive table that calculates the instructional minutes needed for winter term courses.

The effective appointment date for graduate students holding assistantships during the spring semester is determined by the duties of the assistantship:

• Instructional duties - Effective date: Jan. 26, 2026
• Research duties - Effective date: Jan. 2, 2026
• Administrative duties - Effective date: Jan. 2, 2026

Work hours are determined by duties. The following are for full assistantships:

• Instructional duties: 20 hours per week - Effective date: Jan. 26, 2026; End date: May 15, 2026
• Research duties: 18 hours per week - Effective date: Jan. 2, 2026; End date: May 15, 2025
• Administrative duties: 18 hours per week - Effective date: Jan. 2, 2026; End date: May 15, 2026

Work hours for partial assistantships are determined by duties and the relative proportion of a full assistantship:

• E.g., if a full assistantship is 20 hours, then a 50% assistantship is 10 hours per week.

If a Graduate Assistant does not have duties during the winter term, he/she may be paid for an overload assignment; no petition is required.

If a Graduate Assistant has duties during the winter term, he/she must petition for approval before accepting an overload assignment.

Graduate Assistants and graduate students are permitted to work during break periods (non-working periods), including summer, up to 40 hours per week if enrolled for less than 6 credit hours if their only work assignment at Miami University is a standard 18 or 20 hours per week during the academic semesters. If a student gains approval from the Graduate School to work extra time (e.g., Howe Writing Center, music lessons, etc.) during the academic semesters, they will not be able to work a full 40 hours per week during break periods. The maximum number of hours per week will be dependent on the number of hours per week worked during the academic semesters.