Nomination process
The nomination process will be open, with requests for nominations coming from all members of the University community. A candidate may not apply on his or her own behalf. Members of the Selection Committee may not submit nominations.
A nominee will have demonstrated:
- remarkable scholarly achievement at the University,
- pre-eminence in a particular field or fields of knowledge, and
- a solid teaching record. Nominees must also have well represented and acted as ambassadors of the University’s mission, vision and values in the various aspects of their career at the University of Ottawa.
Nomination
Nominations (one unbound original) will be addressed to the Provost and Vice-President, Academic Affairs, chair of the Selection Committee, and must include:
- a nomination proposal of no more than three pages, signed by six professors from at least two academic units of the University, justifying the nomination and their choice and specifically addressing those three points outlined in 2 above. The proposal will also be signed by the community members who nominated the candidate, if they are not professors;
- four external letters of recommendation addressed directly to the attention of the Provost and Vice-President, Academic Affairs and signed by scholars of international standing in the nominee’s field, preferably scholars who have never collaborated with the nominee;
- a condensed and up-to-date curriculum vitae (max 5 pages) outlining the nominee’s body of work and highlighting his/her ten most significant scholarly publications;
- a short (max 1 page) non-technical description of the nominee’s contribution to his or her field of expertise and teaching.
Selection Committee
The Selection Committee will comprise six internal University of Ottawa members and two members from other universities. The membership of the committee will be made up of distinguished scholars and will be as broadly based as possible.
The Selection Committee will be appointed by the Joint Committee of the Senate and the Board of Governors, on the recommendation of the President.
The Selection Committee will narrow down the initial applications. It may request reports on each nominee from such additional outside referees as it believes are warranted. The final selection will be made by consensus after all documentation has been considered.
The Provost and Vice-President, Academic Affairs, on behalf of the Selection Committee, will present the recommendations for the title of Distinguished University Professor to the President and to the Joint Committee of Board and Senate for consideration.
Nominations may be held active for up to three years. Nominators are responsible for providing an updated dossier in each year that the application is under consideration.
No candidate may be nominated a second time until at least two years have elapsed since the last consideration by the committee.
The number of full-time permanent Distinguished University Professors will be no more than 25.
Recognition
A modest fund for research will be provided to each Distinguished University Professor for the first five years of the designation.
A Distinguished University Professor will retain the title on retirement.
Distinguished University Professors will receive special recognition at convocation and, given their status as role models within the institution, should play a visible role in the formal affairs of the University.