External Professional Activities

Instructions for submitting a disclosure for External Professional Activities for Pay can be found in the Step-by-Step Instructions here.

As defined by the Conflict of Interest and Commitment Policy:

External Professional Activities for Pay are activities that are 1) not included within one’s University Employment Responsibilities; 2) performed for any entity, public or private, other than the university; 3) undertaken for compensation; and 4) based upon the professional knowledge, experience and abilities of the employee. Participation of employees in External Professional Activities for Pay, typically in the form of consulting, is an important characteristic of academic employment that often leads to significant societal benefits, including economic development through technology transfer. However, External Professional Activities for Pay are to be undertaken only if they do not:

  1. Create a Conflict of Commitment by interfering with the obligation of the individual to carry out all University Employment Responsibilities in a timely and effective manner;
  2. Create a unmanageable Conflict of Interest because of the individual’s status as a Covered Individual of the University;
  3. Involve any inappropriate use or exploitation of University resources;
  4. Make any use of the name or marks of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro for any purpose other than professional identification; or
  5. Claim, explicitly or implicitly, any institutional responsibility for the conduct or outcome of the External Professional Activities for Pay.

Additional circumstances sometimes associated with External Professional Activities for Pay may require special consideration. These include:

  1. In those instances when State-reimbursed travel, work time, or resources are used or when the activity can be construed as related to the Covered Individual’s University Employment Responsibilities on behalf of the State, the employee shall not receive any financial consideration, including an honorarium. In these instances the employee may request that the honorarium be paid to the university. The honorarium may be retained by the employee only for activities performed outside of working hours, as defined by the university, or while the employee is on earned paid or annual leave, and all expenses are the responsibility of the employee or a third party that is not a State entity. In addition, senior academic and administrative officers may also be subject to special regulations regarding honoraria which require leave to be taken when External Professional Activities for Pay will take place during the regular work week. Please refer to the UNC Policy Manual, 2.2.2[R].
  2. External Professional Activities for Pay performed for another UNC Constituent Institution or agency of the State of North Carolina also must comply with applicable State policies governing dual employment and compensation, unless an exception to those State policies is expressly authorized by the chancellor or the President.
  3. The Board of Governors has also established rules for monitoring and regulating the involvement of University employees in political candidacy and office-holding that could interfere with full-time commitment to University duties. Please refer to UNC Policy Manual, 5.1 et seq. for specific policy details.

The University of North Carolina at Greensboro Regulations on External Professional Activities for Pay by Faculty and EHRA Non-Faculty Employees provides additional details regarding the application of this policy and UNC Policy 300.2.2.1[R]. Specifically, it contains provisions established to monitor possible Conflicts of Commitment, including mandatory pre-approval at appropriate university levels of External Professional Activities for Pay. A faculty or non-faculty EHRA employee who wishes to engage in External Professional Activities for Pay must adhere to these regulations to provide satisfactory assurances that the activity will not interfere with University Employment Responsibilities. The regulations regarding mandatory pre-approval do not apply to faculty and non-faculty EHRA employees serving on academic year (9-month) contracts, if the External Professional Activity for Pay is wholly performed and completed outside of the contract service period (i.e., summer months), the activity does not otherwise conflict with the policies of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro or the UNC Board of Governors, and the activity is not conducted concurrently with a contract service period for teaching, research, or other services to the institution during a summer session.

Activities for pay not involving the professional knowledge, experience and abilities for which the Covered Individual is employed at the university (i.e., non-professional activities that are part of an employee’s private life) are not subject to the advance disclosure and approval requirements of this policy. As with all activities for pay outside of the university, however, consideration should be given to whether they could generate a conflict of interest, or the appearance of such.

I am a faculty member or an EHRA non-faculty staff. I have an opportunity to engage in an activity for pay outside of UNCG. What do I need to do?

Tip for decision tree below: 

  • 1st question: Are you doing something related to your university employment? If NO? No reporting needed.  If Yes? Go to the next question
  • 2nd question: If it is related, is the employee involved in one of the bulleted categories *and* for a payment less than $5,000? If Yes? No EPAP reporting needed – these are activities considered part of your normal employment.
***If it’s related to your work, and doesn’t fall into one of the listed categories (or DOES, but with a payment equal to or greater than $5,ooo) then you need to fulfill your EPAP reporting obligations. 

COI primary contact


Terri L. Shelton, PhD
Interim Director, Office of Research Integrity
Phone: 336.256.0232
tlshelto@uncg.edu