Des conseils de carrière
Career advice
Pack your bags
Planning an overseas
leave
by Ian MacLachlan
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Ian MacLachlan is a professor
at the University of Lethbridge
who has enjoyed three one-
year leaves – in Mexico City,
Edinburgh and Perth, Australia.
“;Timing;a;year-long;leave
overseas;after;getting
tenure;or;a;promotion;is
ideal;for;many;people.”
aking a sabbatical to do some research
overseas is an enriching experience and a
significant career marker. Ho wever, many
things can go wrong when one ventures
far from home, and planning is important
to avoid obvious pitfalls and to recover from
unexpected ones.
Planning your leave around your family and
home responsibilities is of course a crucial part
of the process, but this short article focuses only
on the academic considerations.
T
Three years out
Three years out is not too early to start planning.
Timing a year-long overseas leave so that it occurs
just after the awarding of tenure or promotion,
or following an exhausting administrative posi-
tion such as department chair, is ideal for many
people. If there are any deficiencies in your scho-
larly output or in the skill set that your leave will
require, three (or more) years out is the time to
address these lacunae.
This is the time to think about career rhythms
and the best year to be away. When will academic
and personal obligations be complete? When will
board appointments or elected positions end? How
will you manage graduate student responsibilities
during your absence? How will a leave fit into your
grant application cycle? Consider what you want
to achieve on your leave and where these academic
ambitions can be met. Write your anticipated leave
plans into research funding applications. Develop
your overseas relationships and plan to attend con-
ferences close to potential leave locations.
Two years out
By this stage you should have narrowed down
your prospective destination to one or two choi-
ces. You should have decided on some specific
goals for your leave and be considering the appli-
cation itself. Visit your preferred destination if
possible, to assess the research facilities and meet
your anticipated colleagues. Meet with the dean
or department head at your host institution to
arrange for a letter of invitation that clearly out-
lines your mutual obligations and whether any
compensation will be paid. Discuss what you will
need to achieve your research objectives and ensure
that the host institution is able to provide them.
One year out
While deadlines vary, a leave application is nor-
mally due about one year before the leave starts.
At minimum, you will need an updated CV, a
letter of invitation and a research proposal. Don’t
put all your eggs in one basket! Write a proposal
with three or more objectives so that if one plan
does not work out, you can turn to the others. Some
elements of the leave application may be predi-
cated on particular people, access to funding or
use of specific research facilities. But people move,
grants may not be renewed and laboratories can
close. Such risks are more difficult to anticipate
at a distance. Build flexibility and alternative
activities into your leave application.
Six months out
You will require final approval for your leave at
least six months prior to departure (notification
in December is typical for leaves starting July 1.)
Make sure that your passport does not expire
until at least six months after your planned return,
and apply for your visa. You may require docu-
mentary proof of home university employment,
income, health insurance, a certified translation
of your academic credentials or a criminal-record
check. You will need a letter from your provost; it
is often easiest to write the letter for their signa-
ture. Decide who will handle your academic mail
and make sure that any royalty checks stay in
Canada for deposit.
