Based on construction on its Ann Arbor campus and at other higher-education institutions, the University of Michigan has developed guidelines for how much space should be allotted to different types of offices.
The guidelines for academic units call for the university president to have a private office of 400 square feet; vice presidents, 300 square feet; a dean's office, 240 square feet; and associate or assistant deans or department chairs, 160 square feet.
For faculty members on a tenure track, a private office of 100 to 160 square feet is recommended. Non-tenure-track faculty members should be allocated 80 to 100 square feet of space; whether it is a private office, a shared office or a cubicle may vary and should be determined on a case-by-case basis, the guidelines say.
Positions that would in most cases be assigned a shared office, cubicle or open workspace include consulting or visiting faculty members; non-active emeritus faculty; administrative support staff; graduate student instructors and research assistants; and temporary or student staff members.
“The square footage ranges are provided to accommodate the varying programmatic needs of these persons across the university,” the guidelines state. “A unit may assign an office on the smaller end of the square-footage range to a person who is more likely to spend time working in a research lab than in an office. Conversely, a person may be assigned an office on the upper end of the range to accommodate frequent meetings.”
