Review and Select Your Benefits

Benefits eligible employees have a limited amount of time to make selections:

For State Benefits

You must refuse coverage or elect your health plan and make your life insurance decisions within 31 days of your date of hire.

Decisions about retirement plans or non-membership selection, if applicable, must be completed within 30 days of your date of hire using the link in PEBA's retirement enrollment notification sent to either your work or personal email.

IMPORTANT: For retirement, if election of non-membership is not exercised within 30 days or if no retirement program is selected within the 30 days, you will be automatically enrolled into the SCRS or PORS retirement system (whichever is applicable), which is irrevocable.

For Supplemental Benefits

You must enroll within 30 days of your date of hire to receive guaranteed issue benefits (with no health or medical questions, up to certain age and benefit limits).

Review our New Employee Benefits Guide to learn more about eligibility and your options.

Complete Your First Week Onboarding Tasks

Login to Employee Self Service using your Network Username and password to complete any First Week Tasks you did not complete on your First Day.

Click on the “Onboarding” tile and use the left navigation to select “First Week Tasks” to complete tasks such as your mailing address, contact information, ethnicity, veteran status, and emergency contact information. You can also provide voluntary self-identification of a disability.

Click the "Mark Complete" button for each reviewed and completed task or the task will report as incomplete in the system and could trigger reminders.

Understand Your Expectations

Learn why your role is important to your team and the university and how it aligns with departmental and university goals.

Schedule your on-the-job training and any environmental safety, professional development and faculty training you need to learn how to perform your new role.  New supervisors are expected to complete the LEAD Supervisory Essentials program within 18 months of being hired into a supervisory role.

Review your planning documents and the employee evaluation process with your supervisor to clarify your expectations and understand how your manager measures success.

Staff employees should review the guide to performance evaluations.

The Office of the Provost provides information about tenure and promotion for faculty members.

Learn the formal and informal ways your team works together.  Topics to discuss with your supervisor include communication styles, decision making, problem solving, dealing with conflict and frequency of standing meetings.

For Faculty concerns and conflicts, the Office of the Faculty Ombuds serves as a confidential, neutral, informal and independent resource.

Participate in New Employee Orientation

New Employee Orientation helps you become familiar with offices and services around campus. Orientation is currently offered in a virtual format.

New Faculty Orientation is provided by the Center for Teaching Excellence.

Download Safety Alerts and Apps

The University of South Carolina is deeply committed to the health and well-being of our campus community. If you are experiencing a hurtful or harmful situation, use the Campus Safety Guide to take immediate action. As an employee you also have access to the Employee Assistance Program which offers a broad range of services to support your well-being.

Download the Rave Guardian Safety App to connect with university police in an emergency and have access to key information in an instant.

Register to receive Carolina Alerts for up-to-the-moment campus safety news.

Review university policy HR 1.18,  Hazardous Weather and Emergency Leave and the related Hazardous Weather FAQ. Any closings or delayed openings of state government offices are posted on the South Carolina Emergency Management Division's website and the university will send a Carolina Alert notification.

Follow COVID Guidelines and Update Your Vaccine Record

Review the university's COVID-19 guidelines for information regarding required testing, vaccinations, face coverings and other requirements.

If you have been vaccinated, upload your vaccine record into the MyHealthSpace portal. The portal is compliant with federal health privacy law and your records will not be shared. For instructions on how to upload a copy of your completed vaccine card to MyHealthSpace visit our COVID-19 Vaccine Information page. If you received your vaccine on campus through University Health Services, your vaccine status will be updated automatically.

Attend Faculty Orientation

Faculty orientation programs provide critical resources and guidance to help new faculty make a smooth, enjoyable transition to the university.

Full-time faculty attend New Faculty Orientation. 

 Adjunct faculty attend Adjunct Faculty Orientation.

Register for the New Faculty Academy

The New Faculty Academy establishes a positive and productive trajectory for new faculty by providing a series of professional development, networking and mentoring activities.

Download a Copy of the Faculty Manual

The Faculty Manual contains university guidelines for tenure and promotion.  Unit Criteria and procedures for tenure and promotion are available online.