Electronic Annual Faculty Reports (AFRs) and Database System
What is afrWeb? The Provost's Office has devised an online program that will allow faculty to enter their Annual Faculty Report (AFR), research, grants, creative activities, and relevant biographical information in a secure and easily accessible electronic format. This new process will allow faculty members to view and edit their own reports from any internet location (work, home, etc.) and allow members of the Departmental Personnel Committee, department head or chair, or college deans to record their respective comments in the Comments sections of the AFRs, online. We have decided to implement this system to promote ease of use, increase organization, provide an online storage center for reports from all years, and create an online database to view and create reports of faculty contributions.
Below you will find access to the system (please note: a UMass Boston e-mail address and password is required to enter), individual college manuals, a general manual, and answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs). The manuals and FAQs are updated on a regular basis.
College of Science and Mathematics Instruction Manual (PDF) 5.26.09
College of Nursing and Health Sciences Instruction Manual (PDF) 5.26.09
Graduate College of Education Instruction Manual (PDF) 5.26.09
College of Liberal Arts Instruction Manual (PDF) 5.26.09
General Instruction Manual for Faculty (PDF) 5.26.09
Frequently Asked Questions:
3. Intellectual Contributions - Research
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Will afrWeb work regardless of browser (Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, etc.)?
Yes. AfrWeb will also work at any location where there is internet access. More information on how to log-in to afrWeb.
Why do I have to enter “compservdom\” before my name?
By entering this before your name, it allows the system to authenticate the user and grant access.
Why can’t I log-in?
If you get timed out, or if you enter wrong name/password, you will need to close the browser and open a new one. If you have additional problems, make sure that you are entering "compservdom\" before your name and that you are entering it in the correct format.
If you have log-in specific questions, please contact Apurva Mehta.
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Where did my basic information come from?
Your college provided your name, department, rank, office number, telephone, and e-mail; the additonal information included in the "More" section will need to be entered by you (except for the "User Name").
Why do I need to enter my race/gender?
These options are NOT required. At this point, the data you supply in these sections are not used for any additional databases. This information may be useful in the future for individual colleges that may use this information when preparing reports.
Do I need to change my "User Name" so that it is my first and last name?
No. Do NOT change your "User Name" as it is in the system. Doing so will result in log-in problems because the system will not be able to authenticate you. The reason it says "(not e-mail)" is to discourage people from changing their "User Name" to their full e-mail address.
More information about your faculty record.
Is there a place for me to include my middle initial?
There is no place for your middle inital in the basic information section, or when you enter your research, grants and projects, or creative activities. However, you can add your middle initial to your research entries manually and they will appear on your AFR with the middle initial if you click generate them from the database.
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3. Intellectual Contributions - Research
What is the difference between Basic Research and Applied Research?
Basic research
Fundamental, theoretical, or experimental investigation to advance scientific knowledge, immediate practical application not being a direct objective.
Basic research is research carried out to increase understanding of fundamental principles. Many times the end results have no direct or immediate commercial benefits, which is to say that basic research can be thought of as arising out of pure curiosity. However, in the long term it is the basis for many commercial products and applied research.
Applied research
Refers to scientific study and research that seeks to solve practical problems.
Applied research is research accessing and using some part of the research communities’ (the academy's) accumulated theories, knowledge, methods, and techniques, for a specific, often state, commercial, or client driven purpose. Applied research is often opposed to pure research in debates about research ideals, programs, and projects.
What is an online journal classified as?
An online journal is classified as a “journal” in ICs; if there is no hard copy associated with the journal, it could be considered an “electronic publication”; please use your judgment.
What is the difference between ICs - Research in afrWeb and Research Activity in the AFR?
There is no difference. When you enter data in the ICs - Research section of afrWeb, this data will be updated in the appropriate Research sections of the AFR when you click "Add those ICs already on file." Please note that if you choose to add or make changes to Research manually, this data will not appear in the ICs - Research section and will not be available to use in reports.
Does the system automatically save my data when I enter an IC/Grant/Creative Activity?
Yes. When you enter these contributions in the separate tabs, as soon as you click "Insert," the data is saved and available to generate in your AFR.
If I submit my CVs to the Provost's Office to have my previous research contributions entered, will only research that I completed at UMass Boston be entered?
No. Typically we will enter ALL research contributions from the last 5 years, unless you have a preference for us to go back even more years. We will not fill out complete AFRs; just the ICs - Research sections for these years.
If I delete an intellectual contribution, grant or project, or creative activity, is it permanently deleted, or is it cached somewhere?
It will be permanently deleted.
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Why can’t I generate my class schedule information from WISER?
The afrWeb system is not connected to WISER; this may be a possibility in the future.
How do I enter course release information into the Teaching section?
The Teaching section is a free-form box that you can type in to enter this type of information.
If I enter an IC in the Research section of the AFR manually, will it update it in the ICs database?
No. If you need to make changes to an IC, it is best to make the changes in the IC section, and then clear and re-generate the data in the Research section of the AFR. We are currently testing a feature that will make it so that all changes made in the IC section automatically update to the AFR.
Why is there more than one copy of my intellectual contributions after I have clicked "Add those ICs already on file"?
If there is more than one copy of your intellectual contributions in the AFR, you may have clicked the "Add those ICs already on file" button more than once. Each time you click it, it adds on to the document but does not replace the information that is already there. If you are making updates to your sections, select the "Clear" button first before adding ICs already on file again. This will ensure that there aren't any repeats and the information is up-to-date.
Why can’t I add my Teaching and Service sections the same way that I can add Research (drop-down menu, then generate into AFR)?
For the Teaching section, you may not be able to do this because your college may not be using the system to generate forward schedules. For the Service section, this is possible only if your college is using afrWeb to collect committee membership for internal committees only.
Is there a way to copy the entire AFR from one year to another?
Currently, there is no way to do this, except manually copying and pasting sections.
Will staff members have the ability to print or retrieve AFRs of faculty members?
Yes. This is based on college approval and whether the college has established a policy to do so. Staff will be given access based on their need.
If a faculty member belongs to two colleges, can they make their AFR available to the appropriate people from both colleges?
Yes. If you are a faculty member and you belong to two different colleges, please let us know. We will work with the two college administrators to ensure that your AFR is available for both databases.
If I enter the AFR online, can I click a button to submit it?
No. As this is still in its initial stages of development, it is still required to print out a copy of the AFR for signatures and filing purposes.
If I choose to enter the AFR online, is there a different deadline for submitting it online?
No. Regardless of the way that you fill out your AFR, the deadline remains the same.
If I have saved my AFR, can I make changes to it?
Yes. Everytime you open the AFR during for the current year, you can change it up until the deadline for AFRs. When you make changes, click "Save" and this version will replace the old version.
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Will we be able to include Student Evaluations at any point?
This is a possibility in the future, but this is based on the college's preferences and whether they choose to use the system in this way.
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Please note that the afrWeb website (http://afrs.umassb.net) is not accessible to the general public. A person must have both an active UMass Boston e-mail address/password and the appropriate administrative privileges in order to view anything on your record.
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-General questions: Aimee Blaquiere
-Log-in specific questions: Apurva Mehta
-Training questions: Eileen McMahon
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