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Brighton & Sussex Medical School

Honorary Titles and Honorary Contracts 

BSMS > About BSMS > Working here > Honorary status

Honorary Titles and Honorary Contracts

Individuals who are not employed by BSMS but work closely with the school may need honorary contracts in order to undertake certain duties or receive honorary titles recognising their contributions.

We may choose to recognise the contribution made by an individual, not employed by the Universities of Sussex or Brighton as an assigned employee of BSMS, by granting them honorary status.

Honorary Status

Honorary status may be granted to an individual in respect of their contribution to the school’s:

  • academic work (teaching, curriculum development and/or research) — the titles being linked to Lecturer and Senior Lecturer grades, or

  • research — the titles being linked to Research grades.

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Honorary Titles

A photo of Sabina Dizdarevic in front of a scanning machine

The BSMS Honorary Titles Sub Committee (HTSC) is responsible for awarding affiliate status to those providing contributions to the medical school via an ‘Honorary Title’. There are several different titles available that aim to accurately reflect the level of research, teaching and wider contributions to the medical school by individuals not directly employed by the university. 

Honorary titles at BSMS are typically considered most appropriate for individuals based at one of the Sussex partnership foundation trusts who are regularly making contributions to teaching and research activities at the medical school. By awarding an honorary title we aim to show recognition and gratitude towards these contributions. 

The honorary titles we have are as follows: 

  • Honorary Professor
  • Honorary Reader
  • Honorary Senior Lecturer 
  • Honorary Lecturer
  • Honorary Teaching Fellow
  • Honorary Research Fellow 

The honorary titles are awarded for fixed terms dependent on the title awarded. These are renewable upon re-application according to ongoing contributions with BSMS. 

For circumstances involving grants management, PI research roles or primary supervision of PhD students, an honorary title is not suitable. Please refer to the Honorary contracts section for more information. 

How to apply 

Please submit the relevant application pack to BSMSHonoraryTitles@bsms.ac.uk ensuring relevant signatures are obtained. For more information regarding distinction between titles, how to apply and the application process please refer to the ‘BSMS Honorary Titles handbook’. 

Upcoming committee dates

Please refer to the following table for application deadline dates and approximate time to expect application results following the BSMS Academic Board review. 

Upcoming dates
 Committee numberApplication deadline Committee meet Academic Board review 

 HTSC59

  23 April 2025 7 May 2025  27 May 2025

 

Download the honorary titles handbook >

Download the BSMS Honorary Title application (senior titles) >

Download the BSMS Honorary Title application (training or non-clinical) >

 

Visiting Titles 

Visiting titles at BSMS are considered most appropriate for academic staff based at an alternative organisation/institution (employed by another HEI) wishing to obtain an affiliation with the medical school for research/teaching/collaborative purposes. The title granted should be at a level equivalent to the academic’s current post held with their employing HEI. The individual cannot be in receipt of a salary or fee from the University.

For further enquiries regarding the application process for BSMS visiting titles, please visit the website below.

Find out more here >

Honorary Academic (NHS) contract

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Honorary academic NHS contracts are typically issued to NHS employees who undertake teaching or research as part of their substantive employment contract (job plan). Honorary contract holders are able for example to take budgetary responsibility for research grants held at the university.

Information about applying for an honorary contract and the associated forms can be found below:

DOWNLOAD THE REQUEST FORM* >

DOWNLOAD THE HONORARY CONTRACT PROCESS FORM >

*Please save this file to your computer if you wish to complete it electronically.