Compensation Management Human Resources

UCareer is the University of Utah’s updated classification and compensation system for campus staff positions. It is a multi-year reindexing initiative (2025–2030) designed to improve how staff jobs are structured, titled, and compensated across the University — including positions in the Health Sciences and School of Medicine.

Additional Information:
UCareer introduces a market-informed framework that supports consistent job classification, transparent career pathways, and equitable compensation practices. It is being implemented in phases and will gradually replace the University’s legacy classification system with a more modern, flexible model that reflects current job functions, institutional needs, and external labor market data. The system includes clearly defined job families, functions, levels, and career progressions — helping campus staff and supervisors understand how roles relate to one another and how individuals can plan and grow their careers within the University. UCareer does not include faculty or employees within the University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics (UUHC). HR partners, departments, and employees are all engaged in supporting this important transition.

Yes. Employees can move from one track to another when it aligns with departmental needs and the employee’s career goals. Examples include moving from the Professional Track into the Management Track, or vice versa.

Additional Information:
Such changes reflect both the needs of the department and the employee’s vision for their career. Employees considering a transition into the Management Track are encouraged to participate in management training opportunities offered by the HR Training team. These resources provide valuable preparation for supervising staff and managing responsibilities effectively.

No. Employees cannot independently pick which track they belong to. Tracks are part of the overall career progression structure chosen by the department.

Additional Information:

Employees are encouraged to communicate with their supervisor about their career goals and preferences. For example, some may aspire to manage people, while others may prefer to remain as individual contributors. Final placement in a track requires agreement from departmental management, and depends on:

• The needs of the department
• The department’s budget
• The employee’s qualifications and career vision

Only department leadership, working in cooperation with their HR teams, can request activation of a new job code or career progression.

Additional Information:
Individual employees cannot request new job codes or career progressions directly through the HR Compensation team. Requests must come from departmental leadership and HR partners to ensure alignment with institutional needs, budgets, and classification standards.

A Career Progression is a collection of job codes that are similar in nature but differ in required education, skills, level of responsibility, and expertise.

Additional Information:

For example, within the Accounting sub-function there may be multiple career progressions, such as:

• Cost Accounting
• Tax Accounting
• Tax Management

Within a single career progression, job codes and titles reflect increasing levels of responsibility and expertise. For instance, the Cost Accounting career progression might include the following job titles:

• Cost Accountant I
• Cost Accountant II
• Cost Accountant III

This structure helps employees and supervisors see clear advancement pathways within their field.

🔎 What changed

Movement within a career progression is not automatic and depends on three factors working together: department budget, department need, and employee qualifications.

Additional Information:

Departments evaluate advancement opportunities by considering:

• Budget — What can the department afford?
• Need — What level of expertise does the department require?
• Employee qualifications — Does the employee meet the education, skills, and experience needed for the higher level?

Only when all three align can an employee be successfully placed at a higher level within their career progression.

For a visual explanation, see the “How to Select a Job Level” graphic below.

Levels within a career progression represent increasing responsibility, expertise, and qualifications. They create a structured pathway for career growth within each track.

Additional Information:

• The Support Track includes four levels.
• The Management and Professional Tracks each include seven levels.

Departments rarely use every level within a career progression. Instead, they select the levels that best fit their staffing needs and budget. This ensures that career progressions reflect both institutional standards and departmental realities.

For a detailed overview of all tracks and levels, see the UCareer Leveling Guide (PDF) below.

No. Employees do not automatically advance through the levels in a career progression. The levels are designed to provide a clear pathway for career growth, but movement depends on both departmental needs and individual qualifications.

Additional Information:

Career progressions are guides, not guarantees. For some departments, the highest level needed may be Level 3. In those cases, even if an employee is qualified for Level 4 or beyond, the department may not have a business need for that level of expertise.

Employees are encouraged to use the career progression framework to discuss their goals with supervisors and to understand what opportunities exist within their department.

• Departmental needs
• Available resources
• Employee qualifications

This structure provides transparency, but advancement depends on all three factors aligning.

No. Reaching the top level of a career progression does not automatically stop annual increases. Pay decisions remain within the department’s authority, unless an institutional policy or budget decision impacts how increases are applied.

Additional Information:

All annual increases and pay adjustments are determined by departmental leadership and direct supervisors, based on:

• Available budgets
• Employee qualifications & performance
• Institutional guidelines

Employees should speak directly with their supervisor or department leadership to understand how increases are determined within their area.

🔎 What changed Broke out the budget / performance / guidelines into a real bullet list instead of a run-on sentence.

Yes, it is possible to move into the same level within another career progression in the same track. However, such movements are not automatic and depend on multiple factors.

Additional Information:

These changes are subject to:

• The department’s need
• The department’s budget
• HR approval, if the change occurs through the reclassification process

This ensures that movements between career progressions are consistent with institutional standards, funding availability, and the employee’s qualifications.

UCareer is focused on campus staff positions. Faculty roles are outside the scope of this project. Hospitals and Clinics employees are also not part of UCareer.

Additional Information:
Hospitals and Clinics are advancing a parallel HR initiative to review their classification and compensation structures. While the timing and details are different, both projects share the same overall goal of creating clarity, consistency, and fairness across the University of Utah. Updates will be provided as that work progresses.

All career progressions are available in the UCareer Job Code Library. This resource is a Tableau dashboard that can be accessed by all University employees after Duo authentication.

Additional Information:

The Job Code Library allows employees to:

• Browse all career progressions
• View job codes and descriptions
• Review minimum qualifications
• Check grade assignments

The library is accessible through the HR Compensation website at compensation.utah.edu.

The new grades in UCareer will be narrower and more tailored than the University’s old broad-banded grades. Each track (Support, Professional, Management, and eventually Executive) has its own set of grades, providing better alignment with job responsibilities and market expectations.

Additional Information:

Previously, all staff roles were in a single structure with very broad grade ranges.

Over the next five years, UCareer will gradually taper these ranges, raising the minimum of each grade each year. This transition ensures employees are more closely aligned to market pay while giving departments time to adapt.

The biggest difference is that UCareer introduces separate grade structures for each track. The Management, Professional, and Support Tracks each have their own grading system (with the Executive Track coming in Phase II).

Additional Information:

In the old system, all staff positions shared a single set of very broad grades. With UCareer:

• Each track now has its own grading structure, creating a more tailored approach.
• The Support Track has the narrowest grade ranges, while the Executive Track will have the broadest.
• We are starting with broad-banded grades but will gradually taper them over the next five years to better align with the market.
• The midpoint of the grade is considered full professional capacity for an employee in that role.

Under the new compensation philosophy, the midpoint of the grade reflects the median of the market. This means:

• Most employees will fall within Q1 and Q2.
• Fewer employees will be in Q3.
• Very few employees will be in Q4.

This shift supports a philosophy of being internally equitable and externally competitive, with compensation centered on the market median.

Grades will be reviewed annually. However, the approach will look different during the first five years of UCareer compared to the long-term maintenance stage.

Additional Information:

• First five years (implementation period): The minimum of each grade will increase annually to gradually narrow the ranges and align with UCareer’s tapered structure.
• After five years (maintenance stage): Grades will continue to be reviewed annually and adjusted as needed to reflect market conditions and institutional needs.

This process ensures that UCareer grades remain both market-informed and internally consistent over time.

The UCareer Job Code Library includes a column that clearly shows whether each position is exempt or non-exempt.

Additional Information:

In general:

• Hourly jobs are typically non-exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which means they are overtime-eligible.
• Salaried jobs are typically exempt under the FLSA, which means they are not overtime-eligible.

Supervisors should always rely on the Job Code Library for the official exemption designation.

Education equivalency means that required education can be substituted with directly related work experience, on a one-for-one basis.

Additional Information:

• The University previously used a 2-for-1 standard (two years of experience for one year of education).
• Under UCareer, we now follow a 1-to-1 equivalency standard, aligned with peer institutions.
• For example:
  • A job requiring a Bachelor’s degree (typically four years) may also be filled by someone with four years of directly related work experience.
  • A job requiring a Master’s degree (typically six years total education) may also be filled by someone with six years of directly related work experience.

Important: Some roles cannot accept an equivalency. Positions that require a PhD, a specific master’s degree, or a licensure/certification must meet those requirements directly. The majority of career progressions do allow 1-to-1 equivalency, but supervisors should confirm requirements in the Job Code Library.

No. Employees cannot use a job title from another career progression as their working title. Departments may assign a working title, but it must be appropriate to the role and cannot duplicate an existing job code title from another career progression.

Additional Information:

• A working title can be selected from within the same career progression (for example, calling multiple positions “Accountant” within the Accountant progression).
• Departments may also create unique working titles, as long as they are professional and directly related to the position’s duties, responsibilities, or level of expertise.
• If a title already exists in another career progression (e.g., “Cost Accountant”), it cannot be used as a working title unless the employee is in that specific progression and job code.

Yes. The University of Utah is updating its compensation philosophy as part of the UCareer project. In the past, compensation decisions were primarily guided by internal equity—aligning similar roles across the institution through internal comparisons.

Additional Information:
With UCareer, the University is adopting a market-based compensation structure. This approach balances internal equity and external competitiveness, with the goal of positioning compensation at the median of relevant labor markets for most roles. This shift enables more transparent, consistent, and competitive practices and helps ensure the University can attract and retain talent in alignment with job expectations, labor market trends, and institutional values.

Departments may request the creation of a new career progression or job code by working with their HR representative or designated departmental administrator, who will coordinate the request with HR Compensation.

Additional Information:

• Submitting a request does not guarantee approval. Each request will be reviewed to ensure it aligns with institutional needs, budget considerations, and the UCareer framework.
• Individual employees cannot submit requests directly to HR Compensation. Requests must come through department leadership in partnership with HR representatives or key administrators.
• HR will provide a request form for departments to use, and the link will be shared once it becomes available.

No. Employees will not receive individual notifications about changes to job grades or job descriptions.

Additional Information:

All official job codes, descriptions, qualifications, and grades will be kept up to date in the UCareer Job Code Library. Employees can review the library at any time to see the most current information about their position. This approach ensures that the Job Code Library serves as the single, consistent source of truth for job and grade information across the University.

UCareer job codes are now six-digit alphanumeric codes that follow a consistent structure identifying the track, category, career progression, and level. This is different from the old four-digit codes, which were purely numeric and assigned sequentially without a defined pattern.

Additional Information:

Each six-digit job code consists of the following elements:

• 1st digit (letter): Track (e.g., Executive, Management, Professional, Support, etc.)
• 2nd digit (number): Category (e.g., Operations, Technology, Patient Sensitive, Academic, Healthcare, etc.)
• 3rd–5th digits: Career Progression Code (identifies the specific career progression)
• 6th digit: Job Level (position level within the progression, such as Supervisor, Senior Supervisor, Manager, etc.)

This new system makes it easier to quickly understand the role, career path, and level of each position at a glance.

See the graphic below for a visual overview of the six-digit job code structure.

Job description briefs (“job briefs”) are shorter, standardized job descriptions that replace the longer, department-specific versions used in the past.

Additional Information:

• Old job descriptions were often written for a single department, which limited their usefulness across campus.
• New job briefs are drawn from standardized industry models and kept more generic and flexible so they can be applied consistently across all departments.
• Departments can still provide additional preferences and specifics in the job posting (e.g., “Bachelor’s in Biology plus two years of lab experience”). This ensures applicants understand department-specific needs, while maintaining consistency in the official job brief.

Job briefs are designed to be clear, concise, and widely applicable, making it easier for employees, supervisors, and applicants to understand roles across the University.

Some UCareer job codes are labeled “For use by Central Function only.” This designation means the position is reserved for the University’s central administrative offices (e.g., Human Resources, Finance, Procurement) because the duties represent institution-wide responsibilities, not department-level work.

Additional Information:

• These job codes ensure that certain institutional functions remain centralized and are not duplicated across departments.
• Examples include roles such as Payroll Specialist (central HR) and Accountant (central Finance).
• Departments needing similar local support should use department-appropriate positions such as Budget Specialist or Finance Specialist.
• Some career progressions reserve only the top levels (e.g., Director, Senior Director) as “For use by Central Function only.”
• If a department believes one of these codes best fits its needs, it must first contact HR Compensation for review and approval before posting or hiring.
• In the future, requests will also be reviewed by the relevant Professional Cohort to confirm appropriate use across the University.
• Departments should not post or hire into a job code labeled “For use by Central Function only.” unless they are part of that central function or have received explicit HR approval.

See the UCareer Job Code Library for the official list of positions marked “For use by Central Function only.”

Executive Track job codes will be developed as part of Phase 2 of UCareer.

Additional Information:

• Phase II of UCareer will focus on higher education–specific and academic-adjacent career progressions.
• Executive Track positions will be created during this phase to ensure the structure reflects the levels and complexity of executive roles.
• Executive Assistant job codes, which are part of the Professional Track, will also be developed during Phase II so they can be aligned with the appropriate C-suite levels.
• Phase II development will begin in spring 2026.

UCareer does not affect faculty positions. Faculty roles are managed through the University’s Faculty Affairs office, and any questions about faculty career progressions should be directed there.

Additional Information:

• Phase I focuses only on Support, Professional, and Management tracks.
• Phase II (beginning in late spring 2026) will review academic-adjacent staff positions, including student job codes and certain other staff roles that directly support academic work.
• Details about which specific positions will be addressed in Phase II will be shared as development progresses.

The new grades are narrower to better align with market pay and to set clear, realistic expectations for career growth.

Additional Information:

• Under the University’s previous structure, job grades were labeled A through I and had very broad ranges from minimum to maximum pay.
• UCareer introduces track-specific grades that start broad but will gradually taper over the next five years to create ranges that are more precise and market-aligned.
• The midpoint of each grade represents full professional capacity for that role.
• Grade widths vary by track: Support has the narrowest ranges, while the Executive Track (to be developed in Phase II) will have the broadest.

Yes. Employees can move between the Management and Professional Tracks, but it is not automatic and must align with the department’s needs, budget, and the employee’s qualifications and career goals.

Additional Information:

• Any movement between tracks requires department leadership and HR approval.
• A transition from the Professional Track to the Management Track is often best approached gradually, giving employees opportunities to gain experience in supervising or leading others before formally moving into a management-level role.
• We encourage employees who are interested in moving into management (from either the Professional or Support Tracks) to take advantage of the management training programs offered by the HR Training team.

Employees are moved into new UCareer job codes during scheduled implementation periods, in coordination with your department administrator or HR liaison.

Additional Information:

• The September 2025 mass upload has already been completed.
• The next upload window opens September 18, 2025 and changes will take effect October 16, 2025.
• The final upload window opens January 19, 2026 and changes will be effective February 16, 2026.
• Departments should work with their HR representative or key administrator to include employees in the mass upload.
• While Electronic Personnel Action Forms (ePAFs) will be available beginning in late September 2025 for individual job code changes, departments are encouraged to complete the mass update process with HR first.
• After the mass update cycles close, individual moves will be made through ePAFs.
• The expectation is that 100% of staff employees will be transitioned to UCareer job codes by the end of the implementation period.

Supervisors can reference the Mass Update Timeline graphic for a full overview of deadlines and effective dates.

🔎 What changed

A market-based compensation approach uses external labor market data to determine the value of jobs. Positions are benchmarked against similar roles in peer institutions and relevant industries to ensure pay ranges reflect current market conditions. This helps organizations remain competitive and better align pay with job expectations and demand. An internal equity-based compensation approach, by contrast, prioritizes consistency and fairness within the organization. Pay is primarily determined by how roles compare to one another internally, regardless of external market trends.

Additional Information:
As part of UCareer, the University is transitioning from an internal equity-based structure to a market-based approach. This does not eliminate internal equity considerations but shifts the emphasis toward aligning roles with the external labor market, particularly around the market median. The result is a system that remains fair internally while being competitive externally.

The UCareer job library will be reviewed annually. Updates may include adjustments to job descriptions, FLSA status, and grade structures to ensure everything remains accurate and market-aligned.

Additional Information:

• Job Descriptions: Reviewed and updated regularly to reflect current duties, requirements, and industry standards.
• FLSA Designation: May change if the Department of Labor issues new rules or if job duties shift. Some jobs could move from exempt to non-exempt (or vice versa).
• Grades: Adjusted as needed to reflect labor market movements, particularly when certain career progressions are growing or changing more quickly than others.
• Reviews are conducted by the Compensation team and central HR on an annual cycle.
• Our goal is to complete reviews before the budget cycle closes so any needed adjustments can be addressed in advance of the next fiscal year.

All new job codes are available in the UCareer Job Library, which can be accessed through the Tableau dashboard after Duo authentication.

Additional Information:

• The Job Library provides information on career progressions, general descriptions, job codes, grades, and job briefs.
• Employees and supervisors are encouraged to use the dashboard to explore the library and understand the updated structures.
• The HR Compensation team will keep the library updated regularly to ensure it reflects the most current information.

The best way to prepare is to stay informed about UCareer and review the UCareer Job Library.

Additional Information:

• The UCareer Job Library is the primary resource for viewing career progressions, job codes, descriptions, qualifications, and grades.
• The UCareer website’s Updates (blog) section will share project news, timelines, and guidance.
• The FAQ section provides answers to common questions.
• Departments can also expect outreach from their UCareer Liaison or Administrator. If your department has a designated HR representative or administrator, you may contact them directly with questions about placements or project details.

Not usually. Supervisors and their direct reports (individual contributors) will not share the same grade, because the Management Track and Professional Track have separate grading structures.

Additional Information:

• In this context, “supervisor” refers broadly to any role with people-management responsibilities (e.g., Supervisor, Manager, Associate Director, Director, Senior Director).
• Supervisory roles and individual contributor roles are housed in different tracks, with their own grade structures, so they will not be assigned the exact same grade level.
• In some cases — particularly in fields such as Information Technology or Project Management — a direct report’s position may be priced higher in the external market. This means a direct report may earn a higher salary than their supervisor, even though they are in different tracks.
• Regardless of pay differences, the supervisor role is distinguished by responsibilities for supervising, developing, and supporting their team members.

No. UCareer is a classification re-indexing project and does not include pay raises. The project does not change employees’ duties or responsibilities, and promotions and demotions are not part of this process.

Additional Information:
UCareer focuses on re-indexing job codes, titles, and grades so they reflect today’s workforce and align with the external market. Employees should not expect to be asked to do more or less work as a result of this change, and this is not the time for promotions or demotions. While UCareer does not bring immediate raises or across-the-board pay adjustments, it sets the foundation for the future. Over the next five years, the University’s goal is to gradually align compensation more closely with the market through regular budget cycles and institutional planning, not as part of this initial re-indexing.

Patient-sensitive job codes can be identified by the letter “Z” in the second position of the six-digit job code.

Additional Information:

• Some roles are designated as Patient Care positions. These jobs involve direct patient care and are automatically considered patient-sensitive.
• Other positions may be a patient-sensitive version of a standard role. These are identified with a “Z” in the second digit of the job code. For example, while a Network Administrator is typically not patient-sensitive, a Network Administrator who works in a clinic and must regularly pass through patient areas would be assigned a “Z” code (e.g., 1Z3456).
• The “Z” stands for “Zone,” indicating that the position is located in a patient-sensitive zone where direct or incidental patient contact is likely.
• Both Patient Care and Patient-Sensitive positions are subject to additional requirements, such as vaccinations and healthcare compliance standards.
• The UCareer Job Library clearly identifies which jobs are Patient Care or Patient-Sensitive.

Employees cannot update their own highest education level in the system. To make a change, the department must submit an Electronic Personnel Action Form (ePAF) through their HR representative or administrator.

Additional Information:

• Highest education level is an important factor in UCareer, as it is directly tied to the minimum qualifications for many job codes.
• Departments can update an employee’s education record by submitting an ePAF (Electronic Personnel Action Form) through their designated HR representative or administrator.
• Employees who believe their education level on record is out of date should work with their supervisor or department administrator to ensure their information is updated in the system.

A Mass Update is a spreadsheet that departments complete and submit through their UCareer Liaison or Administrator to HR, allowing large groups of employees to be moved from old job codes into new UCareer job codes at one time.

Additional Information:

• Mass Updates help streamline the transition by reducing the need for thousands of individual Electronic Personnel Action Forms (ePAFs).
• This process ensures job placements are handled efficiently, accurately, and consistently across the University.
• Departments should work directly with their UCareer Liaison or Administrators to prepare and submit their spreadsheets.
• There are three scheduled Mass Updates for Phase I:
  • September 2025 (already completed)
  • October 2025
  • February 2026

Only UCareer Liaisons are responsible for completing and submitting Mass Update spreadsheets to HR.

Additional Information:

• All UCareer Liaisons have been trained on how to complete and submit the Mass Update forms.
• A dedicated UCareer Alliance Teams channel provides step-by-step instructions, templates, and video training for liaisons.
• Supervisors and individual employees cannot submit Mass Update forms directly. Instead, supervisors can work with their department’s HR representative or designated administrators to ensure needed updates are captured in the liaison’s submission.

There are three Mass Update opportunities during Phase I. If you miss the September or October window, you may still participate in the February 2026 upload. After that, any remaining moves must be completed through individual ePAFs.

Additional Information:

• The three scheduled Mass Updates for Phase I are:
  • September 2025 (completed)
  • October 2025 (submission window opens September 18, 2025; changes effective October 16, 2025)
  • February 2026 (submission window opens January 19, 2026; changes effective February 16, 2026)
• If a department does not include employees in the final February 2026 Mass Update, those employees must be moved individually through an Electronic Personnel Action Form (ePAF) after that date.

Every Mass Update submission must be signed by the Cognizant Vice President (VP) and the UCareer Liaison. If the submission involves a college, the Dean’s signature is also required.

Additional Information:

• VP signatures ensure that all changes are made with the full knowledge and approval of senior leadership.
• UCareer Liaison signatures confirm the accuracy and readiness of the department’s submission.
• When a college is involved, Dean approval is also mandatory.
• This process ensures that Mass Updates reflect the informed decisions of both administrators and senior leadership, reinforcing accuracy, accountability, and alignment across the University.

UCareer will launch in September 2025 with Phase I, which includes positions in General Administration, Finance, Marketing, Engineering, Research, Information Technology, Healthcare, and other business-like areas. These are positions you might find in organizations outside of higher education.

Additional Information:

• September 2025: Phase I launch — new compensation structures, grades, and the job library are released publicly and go live.
• September–October 2025: Departments reindex employees through mass updates (MUs), submitted by UCareer Alliance liaisons and administrators and processed by HR.
• November 2025: Departments may begin reindexing employees individually using ePAFs (electronic Personnel Action Forms).
• February 2026: Last MU window for Phase I. After this date, all placements must occur via ePAFs.
• February 2026 – February 2027: Development of Phase II, which will include higher-ed-specific and academic-adjacent career progressions and the creation of the Executive Track.
• August 2026: Old job codes with UCareer alternatives will be discontinued.
• March 2027: Implementation of Phase II begins.
• 2025–2030: Calibration period — UCareer structures will be refined, and employees may see positions or placements adjusted to better align with the market.
• December 2030: Old grading systems and job codes for staff will be discontinued. UCareer will transition into its ongoing annual maintenance phase (job codes, descriptions, grading, and FLSA categories).

Yes. Student job codes will be reviewed and included in UCareer, but only in Phase II. They are not part of the initial release of the UCareer library in Phase I.

Additional Information:
Phase I (2025–2026): Focuses on campus staff positions in administration, business, operations, research, IT, healthcare, and similar areas.
Phase II (2026–2029): Will expand UCareer to include student job codes, along with higher-ed-specific progressions and the Executive Track.

All official UCareer updates and resources are available on the HR website at compensation.utah.edu. This site is the central hub for the UCareer project.

Additional Information:

The UCareer website includes:

• UCareer Job Library — the official catalog of new job codes, job descriptions, career progressions, and grades
• UCareer Updates — a blog-style resource with announcements, guidance, and timeline reminders
• UCareer FAQs — answers to the most common employee and supervisor questions

Employees and supervisors are encouraged to visit the website regularly for the most current information.

In the UCareer framework, “tracks” are a way to organize and define career paths at the University of Utah. These tracks— Executive, Management, Professional, and Support—are designed to represent varying levels of responsibility, expertise, and career focus. Each track provides a clear structure to help employees understand how their roles fit within the organization and how they can grow professionally based on their aspirations, skill development, and department needs. These tracks are built on a proven compensation model developed by Radford, which provides a reliable and equitable foundation for aligning roles with market standards. Let’s explore what each track offers and how they contribute to career development at the University.

UCareer Tracks FAQ Video

Employees cannot be reassigned through individual ePafs prior to the June mass update window. Units may prepare for these updates by completing the mass update form in advance and submitting it during the designated mass update window. In addition, standard reclassification, hiring, or transfer procedures remain in place to allow entry into the new UCareer job codes.

Employees designated for Phase II will remain in their current job classification until they are reindexed into the appropriate job code during Phase II. Depending on their current placement, this may be a 4-digit legacy job code, or our alphanumeric 6-digit code UCareer job code. No action is required at this time. Additional communication will be provided prior to the Phase II mass update.

The UCareer mass update window will occur after the university’s budget process is fully completed. As in prior years, units will participate in the budget cycle during February and March, submitting their overall budgets and any salary adjustment requests. These requests will be reviewed from April through June, and units will validate final budgets in June. Once the budget process closes, units will then reindex roles into the new UCareer job codes in July. As a reminder, UCareer updates are not tied to pay changes. They simply transition existing roles into updated job codes.

If the position falls within Phase I, the posting should be posted with a new six-digit UCareer job code. For roles included in Phase II—such as student positions, higher education specific progressions, the Executive Track, and remaining clinical/healthcare positions—please continue using the existing four-digit job codes.

The University of Utah is in the process of implementing a coordinated services administrative model designed to enhance finance and HR service delivery across campus. As part of this effort, some employees performing finance or HR work may transition into new roles. Units will receive notice of any changes prior to the July mass updates. Regardless of any potential transitions, all finance and HR positions should be moved into UCareer job codes during the final phase I mass update in July 2026.

Yes, an employee may be placed in the Professional Track while having direct reports. Similarly, an employee may be placed in the Management Track without direct reports. However, it is generally recommended that employees whose primary responsibilities involve managing people be aligned with the Management Track.

Data from the external labor markets is used to determine pay levels:
1. Support track = greater Salt Lake City area
2. Professional and Management tracks = statewide and similar economic areas in the United States
3. Directors and above = national market

Life Sciences Professional Track is dedicated to scientists. A typical employee will have a PhD in one of the Life Sciences disciplines, with some years of experience.

Job Category is the broadest bracket for the classification of related jobs—it contains related Functions and Sub-Functions. Some examples of job Categories include: Operations, Healthcare, Technology.

Job Function is the second broadest category for the classification of related jobs—it contains related Sub-Functions. For example, a Category "Operations" contains Functions like Accounting and Finance, Supply Chain, Administrative Services and Facilities.

Management Track will have primarily people managers, depending on the level, responsible for hiring/firing, development, training and performance evaluations of others. Professional Track will typically host individual contributors. These employees manage projects, rather than people. With the introduction of the UCareer Tracks, departments are now able to develop employees as individual contributors (Professional Track), without placing them into management roles. Employees in the Professional Track may receive compensation more equivalent to the management roles.