Many faculty members provide service to students, colleagues, and others at the University that is not officially recognized but often considered part of being a “good citizen”. This implicit or informal service is fundamental to the effective functioning of the University. It may also benefit the local community as well as the faculty member’s field. Thus, implicit or informal service should be included in the candidate’s promotion and tenure dossier, often in the Other section of the Service portion of the Dossier. Below are examples of implicit or informal service.

Research

Providing feedback on manuscripts, grant proposals, conference papers, and other work of colleagues, as well as to graduate students with whom the faculty member does not work 
Mentoring junior colleagues on their research program (e.g., giving feedback on ideas, helping them find appropriate funding sources, and introducing them to potential collaborators) 
Providing feedback on junior faculty’s statements for their promotion and tenure cases 
Recruitment and retention of graduate students and postdoctoral scholars who will not necessarily work with the faculty member

Teaching

Reading and giving feedback on colleagues’ syllabi; helping colleagues prepare a course 
Mentoring junior colleagues on their teaching (e.g., watching them teach and providing feedback) 
Stepping in to teach a course when a colleague becomes ill or has to attend to family issues 
Training and mentoring graduate teaching assistants 
Writing letters of recommendation for students in your classes 

Collegial, Departmental, and University

Writing letters of recommendation for students not in the faculty members’ classes or working with their research group 
Writing letters of nomination or support for colleagues for honors and awards 
Helping prepare graduate students’ application packets and organizing mock interviews; mentoring them through the job placement process, even when they are part of the faculty member’s research group 
Advocating for colleagues to administration with respect to such issues as ensuring salary equity and reducing compression 
Working to retain faculty who have outside offers (e.g., mustering the troops) 
Organizing organizational activities or rituals to encourage connections among faculty, staff, and/or students, especially during times of challenge (e.g., COVID) 
Proofing colleagues’ papers for language issues 
Providing feedback on documents for department or college-level strategic initiatives (e.g., new or revised majors, a new MA program, or revised lab safety protocols) 
Providing mentoring for faculty assuming new positions (e.g., area or department chair) 
Mentoring faculty on diversity, equity, and inclusion issues 
Helping reduce conflict between departmental members