The 2025-27 biennial budget (2025 Act 15) provides $27.0 million annually and creates an annual appropriation for the Universities of Wisconsin (UWs) for compensation to attract and retain tenure-line (tenured or tenure-track) faculty in high-demand fields of study. UWM’s total Faculty Market fund allocation is $3,348,722, adjusted to $2,417,152 to include a 38.54% fringe rate. Faculty members must be in a high demand field of study identified by the Universities of Wisconsin or in an approved discretionary high demand field (up to 15%) identified by UWM and approved by the Universities of Wisconsin, to be eligible for Faculty Market fund increases.
Key Requirements and UWM Program Criteria
- Each UW institution determines high demand of fields of study using the information supplied by UWSA.
- Universities may identify additional ‘high demand’ fields using alternative guidelines for up to 15% of their allocation (i.e. discretionary funds).
- To be eligible, Faculty must:
- Hold a tenure-line appointment (tenured or tenure-track) in a high-demand field of study identified by UWSA or an approved discretionary high-demand field.
- Not be receiving VSIP or have given notice of resignation or retirement by December 1, 2025.
- Have been eligible for the 2025 Pay Plan increase.
- Not hold a full-time associate dean or Limited appointment; individuals with a partial faculty appointment are eligible only in proportion to their faculty appointment.
- Individual increases cannot exceed 20% of base salary or $20,000 whichever is lower.
- Salary adjustments are intended to supplement current payments and funding.
- Faculty Market Fund increases are a base compensation change. Lump sum payments are only considered and approved with proper justification for each request.
- Market Funds may be used for recruitment of new faculty in approved high demand fields. Colleges may propose allocations to support competitive offers for new hires with the understanding that any new faculty must be hired and actively working by June 30, 2026.
Overall Timeframe
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Nov 13, 2025 | UW System Administration (UWSA) sends the data request with instructions to CHROs, CBOs, and Provosts. |
| Dec 12, 2025 | Institution deadline to submit any discretionary high demand fields and support documentation to UWSA for approval. |
| Dec 19, 2025 | UWSA completes review of discretionary high demand field information and notifies institutions of approval. |
| Jan 9, 2026 | Institution deadline to complete the Faculty High Demand Fields data request and submit to UWSA. |
| Jan 30, 2026 | UWSA completes review and approval of Faculty-High Demand Fields submitted data. |
| Late February – Early March, 2026 | UW Shared Services coordinates payment processing for eligible faculty members for each institution. |
UWM FAQs
In addition to the requirements and criteria listed on the website, the following process steps were followed:
- Confirmed eligible High-Demand programs and faculty.
- Established market salary benchmarks using the College and University Professional Association (CUPA) data, which is the primary salary benchmark used by UWSA supplemented by Oklahoma State University salary survey data (at 90%) when CUPA data was unavailable. Identified other compensation issues such as compression and parity.
- Established UWM eligibility and program criteria.
- Determined and submitted UWM “Discretionary” High-Demand Fields to UW Administration.
- Identified college level fund allocations based on each College’s total share of market gap magnitude (severity of market-based compensation needs).
- Colleges reviewed and recommended individual increases using a justification of market, compression, parity, or high productivity with a broad, high-level goal of faculty retention.
- All recommended increases were reviewed and approved by the Office of the Provost and the Department of Human Resources before being submitted to UWSA for final approval.
High-demand fields are identified by UWSA guidance and do not reflect the value or importance of other disciplines to UWM’s mission. These fields can be viewed here.
- Architecture
Eligibility for Faculty Market Fund increases was determined based on assignment to an approved high-demand field and the application of the UWM and UWSA eligibility criteria. However, assignment to an approved high-demand field is necessary, but not sufficient, for receiving a Faculty Market Fund increase. Act 15 funds cannot be distributed across the board; universities must identify individual faculty members in high-demand fields and make salary adjustments based on specific program criteria.
At UWM, salary adjustments were made only when there was a documented justification based on one or more of the following factors: market, compression, parity, and high productivity. College deans reviewed and verified which faculty were assigned to high demand fields of study and were eligible for consideration. Faculty in eligible fields did not receive adjustments if these factors did not support a change from their current salary. Market comparisons were based on established salary benchmarks using CUPA, supplemented with Oklahoma State University salary data as needed.
- Market: Salary adjustment recommended based on the employee’s compensation in relationship to the market.
- Compression: Salary adjustment recommended based on a lower ranked employee within the department and the same CIP code earning more.
- Parity: Salary adjustment recommended for similarly situated employees with consideration to title and years of service.
- High Productivity: Salary adjustment recommended based on an employee’s high productivity and nationally competitive skills and/or reputation that advance UWM’s mission, including its research mission.
No, the legislation specified that only tenure-line faculty positions are eligible for increases related to ACT 15 faculty market funds.
With a goal of retention, the increases for eligible UWM faculty are base building. Faculty will also receive a lump sum payment for the amount they would have earned if the increase was effective at the beginning of the 2025-26 academic or contract year.
Questions about the overall Faculty Market Fund process may be directed to the Department of Human Resources. Questions related to individual eligibility or allocations within a college may be directed to your college dean’s office.