Important deadlines and actions to take - Fall/Summer Hiring

2026 Summer/Fall ASE/GSR & Lecturer hiring details

In the current landscape, it is important to remember that Berkeley currently experiences earlier-than-usual deadlines - Berkeley continues our efforts to proactively mitigate potential delays in processing these large volumes of time sensitive work during the very busy hiring periods by the UCPath Center. While aggressive, BRS regions are continuing to work on solutions to help speed up processing. They will be successful only if departments identify their hires and approve them as early as possible and new employees complete all their onboarding activities by the deadline.

While many of the processes will remain the same, here are the important dates and details to share. BRS Regions has begun communicating details to their departments. 

Written Notice of Appointment Letter Templates

Appointment Letter Templates for UAW represented ASEs and GSRs  should be used for all new appointments. These templates will continue to be found on People & Culture’s Forms & Letters webpage.

  • Going forward, Smartsheets will contain the updates and reflected in GSR Appointment Letters generated by BRS. As a reminder, Smartsheet does not generate Letters for ASEs, only GSRs, which will continue in Summer/Fall 2025. Departments/units who develop their own Letters should download and use the updated versions available on the People & Culture website.

Requesting new/rehires with Spring '26 appointments

Collect and begin entering your new Summer/Fall 2026 appointment information on these Smartsheets: 

  • ASE/GSR Hiring: AY26-27 - Monday, April 20, 2026, use your NEW Smartsheet. 

    • Note: Access to last year's Smartsheet (AY24-25) closed on April 16, 2026 to to prepare for the cutover.

  • Lecturer Hiring: AY26-27 - Use your EXISTING Lecturer Hiring Smartsheet - We will create new Lecturer Smartsheets next year.

*As a reminder, due to the GSR Union Contract requirement for appointment notification (when practicable, GSRs should be provided an appointment letter at least 30 days in advance), all GSR requests should be submitted a minimum of six (6) weeks prior to the GSR start dates.

Target deadlines (unless otherwise communicated by a region)

Adhere to the following deadlines (to ensure there is sufficient time for entry to UCPath as well as DocuSign completion to ensure on-time pay).

Deadline Action
6/12/2026 Deadline for departments to enter/approve all Summer/Fall 2025 Lecturer Academic-Year and Continuing entries to the existing FY24-27 Lecturer Smartsheet for timely 8/1/25 pay.
7/10/2026 Deadline for departments to enter/approve all Summer/Fall 2025 ASE/GSR & Lecturer Smartsheet semester entries for timely 8/30/25 pay and 8/1/25 systems access.
7/31/2026 Deadline for ASE/GSRs & Lecturers to complete their DocuSign packets in order to receive timely 9/1/25 pay and systems access before the semester starts.
8/19/2026 (first day of the semester) Departments must ensure employees do not begin working until they have completed all onboarding activities* to avoid damage payments.

*This will include the clearance of the new Misconduct Disclosure and Release requirement.

Important DocuSign packet details

For those who need to do so, please encourage new appointees/hires that they should complete their new employee paperwork (DocuSign packet) immediately upon receipt. This will help expedite their UCPath employee record and Employee ID (EID) as well as help to ensure on-time pay. 

  • It is important to know that new employees must complete their DocuSign packet by the first day of the semester at the latest in order to avoid potential damage payments (which cannot be paid with Federal funds).

    • Those who do not complete their DocuSign packet by the deadline may also need teaching day basis recalculations.

    • Also, they must not start work until they have completed their DocuSign packet and work authorization documentation (Form I-9) verification which is required before the first day of work.

ASE/GSR, Lecturer, and Trainees/Fellows hire deadlines and actions for departments to take for Spring 2026 appointments

It is important to keep in mind that Berkeley continues to experience earlier-than-usual deadlines - early deadlines are also impacted by the upcoming winter curtailment timeframes that were announced on 10/13/25 by People & Culture  The key to everyone’s success is if you identify your hires and approve them as early as possible

Many of the processes will remain the same, here are the important dates and details. BRS Regions will begin communicating details to their departments in October 2025.

Written Notice of Appointment Letter Templates

Written Notice of Appointment Letter Templates for UAW represented ASEs and GSRs should be used for all new appointments. The updated templates will continue to be found on People & Culture’s Forms & Letters for Labor Contracts webpage . 

  • Smartsheets will contain the updates and reflected in GSR Appointment Letters generated by BRS. As a reminder, ASE Appointment Letters are NOT automatically generated by Smartsheet. Departments/units who develop their own Letters should download and use the updated versions available soon on the People & Culture website.

Requesting new/rehires with Spring '26 appointments

Collect and begin entering your new Spring ‘26 appointment information on your existing Smartsheets: 

  • ASE/GSR Hiring: AY25-26

  • Student Assistant Hiring: AY25-26 

  • Trainees and Fellows: AY25-26

  • Lecturer Hiring: AY25-27 

Please note that the 10-1-25 range adjustments for ASE/GSR and Trainee/Fellows have been added to the respective Smartsheets. Examples/screenshots of the adjustments are reflected in the ASE/GSR Hiring FY25-26 Smartsheet Changes document.

  • *As a reminder, due to the GSR Union Contract requirement for appointment notification (when practicable, GSRs should be provided an appointment letter at least 30 days in advance), all GSR requests should be submitted a minimum of six (6) weeks prior to the GSR start dates.

Target deadlines (unless otherwise communicated by a region)

Adhere to the following deadlines (to ensure there is sufficient time for entry to UCPath as well as DocuSign completion to ensure on-time pay)

 Regional Spring 2026 Deadlines Sheet

Important DocuSign packet details

For those who need to do so, please encourage new appointees/hires that they should complete their new employee paperwork (DocuSign packet) immediately upon receipt. This will help expedite their UCPath employee record and Employee ID (EID) as well as help to ensure on-time pay. 

  • It is important to know that new employees must complete their DocuSign packet by the first day of the semester at the latest in order to avoid potential damage payments (which cannot be paid with Federal funds).

    • Those who do not complete their DocuSign packet by the deadline may also need teaching day basis recalculations.

    • Also, they must not start work until they have completed their DocuSign packet and work authorization documentation (Form I-9) verification which is required before the first day of work

Short Work Break (SWB)

  • Consult with your respective region if they will be utilizing Short Work Breaks (SWBs) for ASE/GSR and/or Lecturer appointments.

Summer Sessions

Summer Session appointments have up to 31 days bridging period to bridge appointments ending in May to the first day of their Summer Session appointment.

  • This typically allows for employees in summer session A, B, C, and 12W to bypass onboarding if there is an appointment approved on the Smartsheet.

  • Summer Session appointment letters for those in sessions D, E, and F (who exceed the 31-day bridging period) need to be sent out to employees in order for them to complete their onboarding/hiring process.

Other important reminders for departments

Here are other details to keep in mind for Spring '26 appointments:

Written Notice of Appointment Letter Templates

These Templates should be used for all new appointments for Spring '26. Smartsheets will contain the updates and reflected in GSR Appointment Letters generated by BRS. As a reminder, ASE Appointment Letters are NOT automatically generated by Smartsheet. Departments/units who develop their own Letters should download and use the updated versions soon available on the People & Culture website going forward.

Late Appointments

  • Work with your applicable HR Generalist for any late hire requests. Remember that Position Number data must be accurate with the appointment data in the Smartsheet -- this will help mitigate process delays.

  • For late ASE/GSR or Lecturer appointee(s) that are added to the Smartsheet and/or new employees complete their onboarding AFTER the applicable deadlines, BRS may not have sufficient time to process these by the UCPath Center deadlines for on-time pay. Please know that BRS regions will work with their respective departments on these.

  • Advise these new hires that their pay may not be issued on their regular pay date (bi-weekly or monthly as outlined on the Controller’s Office website and may need BRS to take action to further process and expedite their pay. Based on when the request is submitted, It can take up to 10-15 business days for (late appointment) hires to see their check. 

    • Also note: this could necessitate a revised Appointment Letter for those applicable title(s) and late appointments may experience delays in their access and pay.

Important Dual FLSA reminder

  • Dual FLSA/pay cycle complications as a result of multiple jobs/concurrent appointments and/or multi-location appointments (MLAs) can cause additional delays. Submitting manual (paper)monthly or bi-weeklytimesheets may be an alternative to use for the first pay period. Save the above and provide it to new hires, in the event of delays to systems access such as CalTime.

  • In order to avoid potential overpayment, departments should respond to their region's request for terminations for those employees that will not be returning in the Spring.

Smartsheet tools and information page

Using Smartsheet to enter new hire/rehire appointments 

Those who initiate ASE/GSR and Lecturer appointments will be given editor access by their Berkeley Regional Services (BRS) HR Generalist to their department’s specific Smartsheet. For some units, this initiator may be another staff member as identified by the Department Manager. If there are others who need Smartsheet access for your department, contact your BRS HR/APS support team (HR Generalist, HR Business Partner, or HR Manager).

Once you receive your email invitation, you will see your department’s ASE/GSR Smartsheet; using your CalNet ID and password.  Find complete instructions on logging into Smartsheet, right here

To review detailed information about updates that occurred in previous semester(s), view this Smartsheet Changes document.

When you need assistance

BRS HR Generalists can provide more guidance and answer questions related to these hiring processes. Unsure of who your respective HR Generalist is? Use this Find your Region tool to point you to your applicable BRS Region. Then, navigate to the HR section to see the regional HR/APS service team for your specific department. (If you don't see the HR Generalist listed, you can contact the HR Partner who can advise further.)

Additional tools and resources

Student Hiring

Contact your respective BRS region for deadlines and details.

Berkeley Graduate Division

A comprehensive website for Graduate Student Academic Appointments