Faculty, Staff and University Employee Resources

STAFF OR FACULTY DIRECTORY PROFILES

To create or update your directory profile, staff may visit the ECE People page, scroll to the bottom, and click “Create New Profile”.
At this time, faculty will need to email Allyson Crowley with your request to create a profile, and include your NetID. Faculty Profiles should include an ECE headshot, research interests, courses, affiliations and lab website button (if applicable).

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

The College of Engineering has an external relations team who will work with you on media items to announce and promote your research, grants and awards, or other notable events pertaining to your work on campus.  If you have items to share, please send details to both ECE Communications Specialist Allyson Crowley and CoE External Relations Specialist Jason Daley.

DEPARTMENT AND RESEARCH LAB OR FACILITY WEBSITES

If you have questions about the ECE website, please send them to ECE Communications Specialist Allyson Crowley.

To create a website for a research lab or facility, here are some options to get started:

• • WiscWeb allows site managers to focus on their content without keeping up with code and database updates.  To request a new WiscWeb site, visit the DoIT WiscWeb page.
  • DoIT offers a paid option to create more application-centric websites with basic HTML or PHP scripting web hosting.  Visit DoIT’s web hosting page for more information.
  • Another paid option for shared, scalable virtual and physical server hosting, check out DoIT’s Campus Cloud Infrastructure (CCI).

Please contact the CAE Helpdesk with questions.

SOCIAL MEDIA

ECE has accounts on the following platforms: Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.  If you are active on social media, please follow us and tag us in your posts!

ECE faculty members hold a variety of service roles with in the department, the College of Engineering, and the university.  For a complete list of department leadership, committees, and committee members, please visit:

ECE Service Roles and Responsibilities AY 2025-2026

CONFERENCE ROOMS

ECE has two conference rooms in Engineering Hall (EH), Room 4610 and Room 2421. There are other rooms in EH that are also able to be reserved. Reservations are made through the EMS System. Please login with your NetId and password > Select ‘Create a Reservation’ >  Select ‘Request Engr Meeting Space’ > Complete all necessary information (date, time, room, faculty member associated with the request).  A confirmation email will be sent to you upon request approval.  If you have questions regarding booking a conference room, please contact our Department Office Manager.

CLASSROOMS

Curricular Services controls all classrooms.  Reservations for open engineering classrooms can be made here.  For questions please email: classroom@engr.wisc.edu

KEYS & BUILDING CARD ACCESS

Building Keys: All faculty, staff and applicable students can complete the key request form through Key Lime. Once requests are approved, keys can be picked up in EH 2415. If you have additional questions regarding physical keys, please contact the ECE Office (office@ece.wisc.edu). 

Building Access: All faculty, staff and students associated with Engineering will automatically be granted building access via your Wiscard. Students must be actively enrolled in the current semester’s engineering courses to be granted building access. Building access activation may take up to 48 hours after course enrollment or after a new Wiscard has been issued. More information can be found here.

Area Access: Faculty, staff and applicable students seeking card access to a specific area within Engineering Hall can use Key Lime to request access. If you have additional questions regarding area access, please contact the ECE Office (office@ece.wisc.edu).

PHONE LINES AND LAB ASSIGNMENTS – Professors

Professors will be notified regarding phone lines once an office is assigned. This usually occurs approximately one month prior to the professor’s arrival.  Offices will have one phone line, which is paid for by the department.  The Professor will also be notified once a lab has been assigned.  This will occur either just prior to their arrival or shortly after.  In most cases, landlines are not installed in the labs as students commonly use their personal cell phones.  If requested, the department would pay for one phone line to be installed in the lab.

SAFETY

Protocols, service and training are available through UW Environment, Health & Safety. All PIs are responsible for updating lab safety signs outside their labs each year.

Any student, faculty, or staff wishing to have access to the chemical room must first complete the chemical safety training that is offered by the UW Safety Department. If you have any questions regarding safety you can contact Tom Kohn, College of Engineering Director for Safety.

TEACHING SUPPLIES

The department keeps a supply closet (EH 2415) of often-used supplies such as white board markers, paper, etc.  The supply closet will remain unlocked during business hours.  If you are unable to find what you need, please see the Department Office Manager.

MAINTENANCE

All requests should be sent to the Department Office Manager.  Please describe your maintenance issue and room number.  In the event of an emergency. please call Facilities Planning & Management at 263.3333.

PARKING

Parking is managed by Transportation Services.  To request a parking pass please click here.

BUSINESS CARDS

Please contact the Department Office Manager to place a business card order. Please send the following information: Name, Title, Address, Phone, Email, Office Number, and any additional information you may want to be included such as website, etc.

PROCEDURES FOR PAYROLL ONBOARDING

BACKGROUND CHECKS – COMPLETE PRIOR TO START DATE

Background checks are required for most of our positions, including graduate assistant offers. An appointment will not be entered into the payroll system until the background check has been completed. The CBC (Criminal Background Checks) is initiated by the Dean’s office through HireRight. The CBC begins with the future employee giving electronic consent to HireRight to begin the background check. The payroll coordinator is then notified that the CBC has been completed and enters the appointment into the payroll/HR system.

I-9 (EMPLOYMENT VERIFICATION) – COMPLETE WITHIN 3 DAYS OF HIRE

The I-9 must legally be completed within 3 days of an employee’s start date. This is mandated by the Federal Government-Immigration Services. If the I-9 is not completed within 3 days of the hire, the position must be terminated. In other words, the I-9 is a verification that the employee is who they say they are and that the employee is eligible to work in the USA. I-9’s are initiated by the payroll coordinator through HireRight.

REQUIRED PAYROLL PAPERWORK

The following forms can be filled out online and submitted via self service in MyUW:

1. 1. W4 and Self-identification
   2. Direct Deposit

BENEFITS – 30-DAY DEADLINE TO ENROLL BASED ON START DATE OF APPOINTMENT

You many confirm that you have a benefits eligible appointment with the payroll and benefits coordinator.  If you are eligible, we recommend that you attend a Benefits 101 Workshop through the campus benefits office.

Information on benefits, WRS, payroll forms, and general employee information can be found on the UW Human Resources website.

E-BENEFITS

Enrollment in UW-Madison’s benefit programs is online through eBenefits. It is important that you know what programs you want to enroll in and extremely important to have all of your personal information correct in the system prior to making your selections in the eBenefits system.

PAY SCHEDULE

You can find the latest pay schedule here.

LEAVE REPORTING

Leave reporting is completed online through MyUW.

PARKING/BUS PASSES

Parking Permits: To apply for a parking permit, you will need to register by contacting the COE unit transportation coordinator. Once you are registered in the system, then visit the parking permit website, and apply for the permit.

Bus Passes are available on the Transportation Services website.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• • New Employee Orientation
  • Chancellor’s Welcome for new employees.
  • Welcome from the Dean of the College of Engineering
  • SHIP Insurance is required for all international students, unless they have a waiver.
  • GLACIER helps determine tax residency, withholding rates, and income tax treaty eligibility for non-resident aliens.
  • International Faculty and Staff Services for visa questions.
  • International Student Services for visa questions.
  • The Four Seasons in Madison.

QUESTIONS?

• Questions about benefits: benefits@ece.wisc.edu
• Questions about payroll: payroll@ece.wisc.edu

PROCEDURES FOR HIRING

Contact ECE Payroll before hiring anyone to ensure that University policies and Federal and State law are followed.

ECE Payroll will assist with all appointments, including student hourly workers, graduate assistants (RA, PA, and TA), research assistants (post-doctoral fellows), honorary appointments (zero dollar), academic staff, university staff, and faculty appointments.

Appointments cannot be backdated. We are required to do criminal background checks and I-9 verification BEFORE anyone can be hired.  All students must be enrolled in the UW before their start date.

GRADUATE STUDENT RECRUITMENT

Every year in late February or early March, the department hosts Visit Wisconsin ECE to recruit graduate students. Faculty should work with the ECE Graf Committee to invite potential graduate students to participate. Visit Wisconsin ECE is coordinated by the Department Office Manager.

Applicant Review is a tool from the Graduate School that allows electronic communication between departments and the Graduate School Office of Admissions. Applicant Review is a copy of Graduate School applicant data found in the Student Information System (SIS). This is the system you will use to track and update an applicant’s progress in the admission process.  Access to Applicant Review is granted by the Graduate Student Service Coordinator.

RA POLICY

The minimum appointment for a RA is 50%, unless the student will hold a concurrent appointment. The department guidelines for the stipend rate structure are established annually by the Graduate School and College of Engineering. ECE follows a tiered rate structure with level 1 meeting the minimum stipend established by the Graduate School which is also used for PA appointments and standard TA appointments. Levels 2 and 3 are reserved for competitive offers comparable to the campus fellowship rate and peer institutions. The highest level in the rate structure for RAs will be comparable to the NSF fellowship. ECE does not require an automatic salary increase to Level 3 when a student achieves dissertator status.  When offered, it should be consistently offered to all students who achieve dissertator status in the research group. To review these rates, please contact payroll@ece.wisc.edu.

TA POLICY

There are limited openings for TAs each semester.  Students interests in positions may contact John Gubner, Associate Chair for Operations.

USEFUL LINKS

• • Graduate Student Off-campus Internship/Work Form
  • Salary Structure and Ranges
  • Salary and Fringe Benefits Calculations for Unclassified Staff
  • Leaves of Absences and Leave Benefits
  • Sick Leave Policy – UPG 10
  • Vacation, Holiday, and Catastrophic Leave Policy – UPG 9

CANVAS

Canvas is a web-based learning platform for course collaboration, feedback and grading. Faculty and TAs should have access to the system.

COURSE EVALUATIONS

Course Evaluations are done online using a web-based tool called AEFIS. Survey announcements are sent to faculty and staff via email for the final course and instructor evaluations.  All courses use a common survey for end-of-semester evaluations.  If you have questions, contact Katrina Olson, the Department Administrator.  For instructions on how to access AEFIS you can go here.

ADMISSIONS

Admissions questions should be directed to student services.

Applications for graduate admissions is managed through the UW Graduate School. The admissions recommendation is made by the ECE GRAF committee.  The UW Graduate School will make the final decision and notify students. Prospective students with questions about the admissions process can reach out to ecegradadmission@engr.wisc.edu, which is managed by ECE Graduate Student Services.

• Graduate Guide – ECE Graduate Programs
• Student Organizations – KHK, IEEE, SWE, KHN, GSA
• Career Services

OTHER INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCES

Creating and Independent Study Course: questions can be directed to student services or:

• • Undergraduate Independent Study Courses:ECE 399 – Undergraduate Independent StudyECE 489 – Undergraduate Honors in ResearchECE 491 – Undergraduate Senior Design ProjectECE 699 – Advanced Independent StudyWhen ECE undergraduates would like to do research/independent study with a new ECE faculty member, the ECE faculty member can contact the ECE Enrollment manager (ece-enrollment@engr.wisc.edu). The ECE enrollment manager will then assign a section number for the new faculty member for ECE 399, 489, 491, and/or 699 depending on the request and instructor’s ECE-affiliated appointment. Students can then fill out the following form to start the process for requesting permission to enroll in the instructors section:  https://uwmadison.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8ug4CHMPNDO8FCJ.

Graduate Research Courses and Independent Studies:

Research Courses 

• • Research sections and independent study sections are variable-credit courses; students agree upon the number of credits with their research advisor/instructor.
  • For research sections, ECE graduate students may enroll after confirmation with their research advisors, without needing official permission in the system.
  • For independent study sections, all students require administrative permission in the system to enroll. Instructors should email the ECE Graduate Coordinator their confirmation of allowing a student to enroll in their section number. After receiving such an email, the ECE Graduate Coordinator will grant the necessary permission in the system for the student to enroll.
  • New faculty should contact the ECE Graduate Coordinator in order to get sections added for them. With confirmation of the new faculty member’s appointment, the ECE Graduate Coordinator will build the sections and they will be effective immediately.

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT SERVICES

The Undergraduate Student Services provides advising and other services for ECE undergraduate students. It is located in Room 170 of the 1410 Engineering Drive Building. Academic advisors can help students, faculty, and staff with questions about accessing courses, navigating degree requirements, resolving academic issues and more.

GRADUATE STUDENT SERVICES

The Graduate Student Services Center in Room 3180 Mechanical Engineering provides ECE graduate program support for students, faculty, and staff.  Graduate Coordinators can assist with questions about program requirements such as admissions, enrollment, warrants, graduation and more. Additionally, Graduate Coordinators can help with questions about Graduate School policies and UW Campus resources, such as Engineering Career Services or International Student Services.

All purchases should be made in compliance with university guidelines.  If you need to make a purchase, please submit a Purchasing Request.

Purchases under $5,000 can be made by faculty and staff within the department, using the following:

• • Workday is the university’s e-commerce site that allows faculty and employees to easily compare prices, purchase tax-free, and return items available from contracted vendors, including Grainger, Staples, and VWR. Purchases on the site require an account (NetID).  If you would like assistance ordering from Workday, please complete a purchasing request.
  • David Hanke is the Department IT Specialist and may be contacted regarding any IT purchases, to configure your computer, and to assist with data backup.
  • Engineering software may be available to download through Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE).

The UW is tax exempt.  All purchases should not include tax. To view and/or print the tax exempt form click here.

If items are not available from any of the above resources, purchases under $5,000 can be made with the ECE department credit card.  To place an order, please submit a Purchasing Request.

Purchases over $5,000 are made and authorized only by UW purchasing agents and require a purchase requisition.  Please complete the Purchasing Request. Contact Daniel Gaona with any questions.  Please note this process can take multiple weeks to complete the payment, so plan accordingly.

UPS SHIPPING 

The ECE department has a UPS shipping account that provides a great discount for shipping domestically and internationally.  Please contact Kathy Hall if you need an item shipped out of the department.  You will need to provide the following information:

• • Ship To and From addresses (Be sure to include names of people, phone numbers, addresses and email addresses)
  • Weight of shipment – if unknown, visit the ECE Office (2415) for assistance
  • Shipping speed preferred
  • Funding information
  • Packaging requirements
  • Description of items being shipped
  • Value of items being shipped

All proposals, contracts, and agreements need to be routed through appropriate university channels to ensure compliance with Federal, State and UW regulations. The internal system to route proposals, contracts, and agreements within the UW is called RAMP (Research Administration Management Portal).  You should work with your ECE Research Administrator on proposal submissions for assistance with proposal documents, submission process and assistance with electronic routing.

• Complete the Research Administration Proposal Submission Form to notify your Research Administrator as soon as you plan to submit a proposal.  This will start the process and provide basic information for them.
• Log into RAMP using your NetID and password.
• UW Research and Sponsored Programs (RSP) has final signature authority on all extramural support. Contact the ECE Research Administrator for details.
• Prior to project submission, your OAR (Outside Activities Report) and your COI (Conflict of Interest) training should be done. This can be done at the following website OAR and COI.
• The guidelines for ECE proposal submission requires that all proposal documents, except the technical report, are due to your ECE research administrator by 8:00 AM three full business days prior to sponsor deadline.
• All proposals should be finalized and submitted to the Dean’s Office by 8:00 AM two days prior to the sponsor deadline. This allows time to review the full proposal for errors and make any corrections or adjustments that might be needed.  The full COE policy is available for your review.

Other grant submission tools and resources are:

• RAMP: is our web-based system used for electronic grants.gov submissions to federal agencies that require SF-424 documents for the submission process (e.g. NIH, DOD, CDC, USDA, etc.).
• Research.gov:  is the web-based system used for electronic NSF submissions.
• MyNCBI/SciENcv:  is the web-based system used to prepare and certify your biosketch and current and pending documents for proposal submissions.
• WISER:  is our online monitoring tool used to view your project/award balances and spending.

Other useful resources include:

• Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Education Research Policy and Compliance
• COE Research Services
• Conflict of Interest and Outside Activities Reporting
• ECC (Employee Compensation Compliance)
• Research Ethics
• Export Control
• Human Subjects
• Animal Protocols
• Cost Share
• Monetary Gifts and Gifts in Kind guidelines
• Bayh-Dole Act and Compliance Agreement
• Material Transfer Agreements (MTAs)
• UW-Madison Policy Library

For additional questions regarding Research Administration, please contact Research Administration: researchadmin@ece.wisc.edu.

As a PI you have primary responsibility of award management.  This includes:

• • Agreeing to all terms and conditions for all projects.
  • Assuring appropriateness and allowability of invoices and expenditures.
  • Managing expenditures to not exceed available balance.
  • Reviewing and signing effort reports.
  • Preparing technical reports and providing deliverables as required.
  • Reviewing Interim Financial reports.

The UW tool used to monitor spending and balances on your funded projects and accounts is called WISER (University of Wisconsin System Enterprise Reporting).

• • Log into WISER, using your NetID and password.
  • Under the Main Menu in the Projects there is the “Find Awards/Projects” search feature.
  • It is generally best to search by the “PI/Co-Inv Name” field. This will give you a complete list of all accounts on which you are named as PI or Co-PI.  Once you start typing your name, a drop-down list of names will appear, and you can then select the correct name.
  • You can also search for a specific award using the Award ID, Project ID or the Quick Search at the top.
  • The first three numbers are the fund numbers, this will indicate where the funding comes from; 144 (Federal research), 133 (other sponsored research), 135 (Graduate School) and 233 (discretionary/donation). These are the most common.
  • The UW fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30.
  • Additional training on how to use WISER can be found at the SFS Reporting site  or at the RSP WISER User Reference site.
  • For all staff and students, ensure completion of the on-line Compliance Agreement to ensure compliance of the Bayh-Dole Act.

More specific details regarding award management, award closeout, and links to electronic tools can be found on the Research and Sponsored Programs website.

For additional questions regarding Grant Management, please contact Research Administration: researchadmin@ece.wisc.edu.

The ECE Seminars Committee encourages ECE faculty to nominate candidates to present for the ECE Distinguished Seminar Series or ECE Research Area Seminars.  Traditionally, these events feature academics from outside UW–Madison who present high-level seminars on a specific technical topic.  The ECE Seminars Committee will review nominations to curate a list of seminar presenters and coordinate seminars across the department.

Nominate a Seminar Speaker

The university has important regulations that must be followed in order to purchase or be reimbursed for travel. It is the traveler’s responsibility to understand and comply with UW travel and reimbursement policies and procedures.  If you have specific questions about policies or procedures contact the ECE Finance Office or Kathy Hall.

• • Travelers must be an authorized driver to claim mileage or parking, rent a car, or drive a university fleet car.  The process of becoming an authorized driver can be found here.  Note: When asked for “Supervisor” on the application, please list the Department Administrator, Katrina Olson.
  • All UW employees’ and visitors’ airfare must be booked through Fox World Travel.
  • All lodging must be reserved through:
    • The Concur online system
    • An agent at Fox World Travel
    • The lodging facility, directly
    • AirBnB.
    • Use of other third-party booking sites (e.g. VRBO, Hotels.com, Travelocity) is prohibited.
  • The University follows the federal meal and lodging per diems. A lodging and meal allowance calculator is available for travelers to determine per diems by location.  This may be used before travel to plan or after travel for reimbursement.

• Reimbursement – ***Please note, there is a 90 Day submission deadline for all reimbursement reports. The 90 Day mark starts from the last date of travel on the expense report.  A one time exception may be granted if over the 90 days and you will be charged a 30% tax.***
  • Travel and expense reimbursement is submitted by employees through the Workday.
  • All receipts should be uploaded into the Expense Reimbursement system.
  • If traveler is a student, the PI for the funding to be charged will be sent a copy of the reimbursement report for final approval, before the department approves, to verify the amount charged and the funding.
  • Hosting meals for others requires an itemized receipt, attendee list and business purpose. There are additional forms required for paying for or reimbursing hosted meal expenses.  See the UW policy and/or contact the ECE Finance Office BEFORE you host a meal to learn about reimbursement requests.