Faculty Awards

Nomination Deadlines at a Glance

UPCOMING AWARD DEADLINES

DEADLINE EXTENDED:  March 17, 2023

COM Faculty of the Year Award

COM-Chicago Distinguished Faculty Award​

June 9, 2023

COM-Chicago Departmental Faculty of the Year

COM-Chicago Departmental Rising Star

UIC DEADLINES, AY22-23

March 1, 2023

Graduate Mentoring Award

 March 3, 2023

UIC Community Engagement Award

UIC  Faculty Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Award

UIC Piergiorgio L. E. Uslenghi Global Engagement Faculty Award

UIC Distinguished Professorship

April 28, 2023

UIC Interprofessional Teaching in Action Matters (I-TEAM) Award


Nominations of women and under represented minority faculty are strongly encouraged.


University Scholar Award

The prestigious University Scholars Program provides three-year awards to faculty members who have demonstrated superior performance in scholarly activities in both research and teaching and who show great promise for future achievements.

Awards of $15,000 per year will be made on a three-year basis to members of the faculty whose work is clearly superior. Nominees for these awards will be carefully screened to assure that those selected are among the very best in their fields. Eligibility to the University Scholars Program is limited to faculty who are tenured or receiving credit toward tenure.

College guidelines and submission requirements

UIC guidelines for the University Scholars award

All complete submissions will be reviewed by the College Committee on Faculty Awards, who will make recommendations to the Dean of the College of Medicine.  Nominations are due on or before Monday, February 20, 2023. Materials should be submitted electronically to [email protected].  Please see the campus guidelines above for further details.

UIC Distinguished Professor Award

This appointment was created to recruit and recognize persons who have made a significant impact upon their field through scholarship, creativity and leadership. The criteria used for nomination and appointment within a particular academic field must be ones that recognize only the highest level of attainment in the field. The specification of such criteria and verification that the candidate’s work meets or exceeds them is a major responsibility of the person(s) nominating scholars for consideration as this honor.  Individuals selected for the award will receive a one-time $5,000 award payment and a non-salaried non-service appointment as UIC Distinguished Professor effective in the next appointment year

NOTE:  Department heads must discuss consideration of a potential nominee with Dean Rosenblatt prior to developing materials, so that a decision may be made as to which nominations will be put forward by the College.  Such discussions should take place by the end of January in order to allow sufficient time for crafting a nomination packet by the campus deadline.

College guidelines and submission requirements

UIC guidelines for the Distinguished Professor nominations

Award for Excellence in Teaching (AET)

This award recognizes faculty for exceptional teaching, effectiveness in curriculum and instructional material development, and the impact their research and service activities have on the classroom. Awardees receive a salary increase of $5,000 ($3,000 from campus resources, $2,000 from the nominating college).

Faculty must be tenured, tenure-track or non-tenure track faculty in the ranks of instructor, assistant, associate or full professor with a full-time appointment at the University of Illinois.  All candidates must have taught at UIC  for a minimum of ten years in order to be eligible.

UIC guidelines for the Award for Excellence in Teaching

College of Medicine nominators are urged to provide evidence of the following when submitting a dossier: descriptions of educational products (e.g. educational software) developed by the individual and any evidence of its value (e.g. published reviews of the software); articles describing new teaching methods developed and evidence of their effectiveness; and/or concrete documentation of excellent teaching performance that compares the candidate’s performance to that of other UIC faculty or to faculty nationwide.

Please see the campus guidelines above for details on nomination format and required materials. All complete submissions will be reviewed by the ad hoc Award for Excellence in Teaching Committee who will make recommendations to the Dean of the College of Medicine.  Nominations are due on or before Monday, February 20, 2023, and should be submitted electronically to [email protected].


COLLEGE OF MEDICINE NOMINATIONS FOR THE AWARDS LISTED ABOVE  MUST BE REVIEWED AT THE COLLEGE LEVEL AND RECEIVE THE ENDORSEMENT OF THE DEAN BEFORE MOVING TO CAMPUS-LEVEL REVIEW.  PLEASE PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE COLLEGE’S SUBMISSION DEADLINE.

WHEREAS, THE NOMINATIONS FOR THE BELOW AWARDS MAY BE SUBMITTED DIRECTLY TO THE APPROPRIATE UIC OFFICE.  (See link in award heading to view campus instructions.)


UIC Community Engagement Award

This award honors dedicated faculty for their achievements in areas of community-based research, scholarship, service and teaching that address critical community needs, support community advancement, and promote collaboration among UIC and its community partners.  Faculty receiving this honor will receive a one-time $5,000 award payment and will be recognized at the annual Faculty Awards Ceremony and Reception.

UIC Faculty Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Award

This award recognizes extraordinary contributions and commitment to the advancement of diversity, equity, and inclusion on our campus and/or the communities it serves.  Faculty receiving this honor will receive a one-time $5,000 award payment and will be recognized at the annual Faculty Awards Ceremony and Reception.

UIC Global Engagement Faculty Award

The Global Engagement Faculty Award (GEFA), recognizes faculty members who have made outstanding contributions to UIC’s global engagement.  The awardee(s) will receive a a one-time $3,000 award payment and will be recognized at the annual Faculty Awards Ceremony and Reception.

Teaching Recognition Program

Offered through the Office of the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, the TRP is a self-nominated, faculty-administered teaching award program.  Awardees receive a $1500 increment to their annual base salary.

Graduate Mentoring Award

Sponsored by the Graduate College.  Annual award, designed to encourage and reward excellence and innovation in all aspects of graduate mentoring. Up to four awards of $2,000 each.

Interprofessional Teaching in Action Matters Award (I-TEAM Award)

Recognizes a faculty team who have demonstrated excellence in interprofessional practice and education (IPE) through teaching innovation at UIC.  $2,500 will be awarded to a faculty team based on their development of innovative curriculum, organizational change, and IPE practice opportunities that fosters a culture of interprofessional collaboration.

Inventor of the Year Award

The Office of Technology Management (OTM) sponsors the annual Inventor of the Year award.  Given to one UIC investigator, this award recognizes an outstanding inventor of team of inventors at UIC who have who have made a contribution to the development of intellectual property that significantly impacts their field and society. The award is given based on the criteria of creativity, novelty, and the commercial benefit to society.

Faculty of the Year Award – Chicago, Peoria, and Rockford campuses

This award recognizes outstanding achievements in multiple aspects of the College’s mission and is a distinct honor for the faculty member and his/her home department. All full time and part time faculty of the College of Medicine are eligible for consideration for the Faculty of the Year Award.​

Nomination and Processing Guidelines
Past Recipients


Distinguished Faculty Award – Chicago campus

This Chicago campus award is presented to a senior faculty member in the College of Medicine in recognition of excellence in research, service to the profession, or distinction as an educator. The expectation is that this honor will go to an individual who has fulfilled the highest goals of an academician and is nationally or internationally recognized for his or her achievements.

Nomination and Processing Guidelines
Past Recipients


Departmental Faculty of the Year and Departmental Rising Star Awards – Chicago campus

Annual nominations must be submitted using the online submission form.  This year’s deadline is Friday, June 9th, 2023.    

Award Guidelines

Departmental Faculty of the Year Award

Chicago department heads are invited to nominate one mid-career or senior faculty member from their unit to receive this honor based on outstanding contributions and achievement in at least one of three areas: teaching, research, or service.

Nominees for the Faculty of the Year category should typically be at the rank of Associate Professor or Professor, or if holding the rank of Assistant Professor should have served on the UIC faculty for greater than 10 years.

It is strongly recommended that heads seek the advice of their advisory committee when selecting the departmental faculty of the year.

Past Recipients

Departmental Rising Star AwardChicago campus

Chicago department heads are invited to nominate a junior faculty member who has demonstrated strong potential to be a future leader in their chosen field.

Nominees for the Rising Star category should be at the rank of Assistant Professor or Associate Professor and must have served on the UIC faculty for fewer than 10 years.

Past Recipients



Photos from past Faculty Recognition Ceremonies may be viewed here:


Macy Faculty Scholars Program

The Macy Faculty Scholars Program is designed to identify and nurture the careers of promising educational innovators in medicine and nursing, with the aim of accelerating needed reforms in health professions education to accommodate the dramatic changes occurring in medical practice and health care delivery.  The Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation selects five faculty leaders each year as Macy Faculty Scholars.  Scholars receive salary support up to $100,000 per year over two years, and must have protected time of at least 50% to pursue education reform projects at their institution. ​

The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (OVCR) coordinates the applications process.  As UIC may submit only 1 application from the College of Medicine and 1 application from the College of Nursing, advanced authorization is required from Research Development Services to apply.   Please contact the OVCR  for additional information on deadlines and application requirements.  The selected applicant will be expected to complete and submit the official application by the deadline specified by the Macy Faculty Scholars Program website.

Macy Faculty Scholars Program website

​​Alpha Omega Alpha Robert J Glaser Distinguished Teacher Award

The Alpha Omega Alpha Robert J. Glaser Distinguished Teacher Award recognizes the significant contributions to medical education made by gifted teachers. Special consideration is given to those who have published in medical education and whose educational materials have been adopted by other institutions. Up to four awards will be granted each year. Awardees receive a $10,000 grant. The awardee’s nominating institution will receive $2,500 for teaching activities, and, if the nominating institution has an AOA chapter, the chapter will receive a stipend of $1,000 toward its activities.

Each medical school in the United States and Canada may nominate one faculty member. The nomination is made by the Dean.  The College Committee on Faculty Awards reviews nominations and recommends to the Dean the faculty member who will represent the College in the national competition.

The AAMC encourages a process that provides for broad student input as well as the peer judgement of faculty colleagues.  Students will be invited to endorse candidates they favor and their comments will be forwarded to the Faculty Awards Committee prior to its deliberations.

Nomination packets for the AOA Robert J. Glaser Distinguished Teaching Award must follow the format outlined by the AAMC, and must be submitted to [email protected]  by Friday, March 4, 2022.

AAMC Request for Nominations

If you have any questions, please contact [email protected].