ePAR Frequently Asked Questions
General ePAR Access Questions
Q. I'm new to Volgneau, how do I get an ePAR account?
A.Email Amanda Richburg () and ask to have one set up.
Q. Do I need an ePAR account?
A.If you are asked by your department to submit a PAR, yes.
Q. How do I access ePAR?
A. ePAR is located at For security purposes the system is only available on-campus or when usingthe GMU VPN. You will not be able to view it at all otherwise.
Q. Why isn't my Mason password working?
A. The ePAR system is not connected to the same authentication system as GMU email addresses and PatriotPass logins; it is self-contained. The password you use for ePAR is only for ePAR.
Q. I don't remember my password.
A. Below the login field is a "request new password" link. Enter your GMU email address and it will send you a link to reset your password.
Q. My ePAR account looks "empty," why is there no data?
A. The ePAR data for Research grants, teaching and course evaluations, and student data are only loaded once or twice a year. It is entirely normal for new faculty to have an "empty" ePAR account, and the data for grants and teaching will be filled in when available. Faculty are responsible for filling in their own information on Publications, Service, and other topics that are not available from University databases.
Q. When is the deadline to submit our PAR?
A. It varies, but is typically in October or November. Please monitor your email, the deadline and reminders to update your information will be sent, typically beginning in August.
Q. How do I submit my PAR?
A. Go to Reports > Period Selection, select the current year from the drop down menu, and hit Save. Then, click Submit PAR on the same screen.
Q. Can I resubmit my PAR once it is submitted?
A. No. But, you can continue to update it. Submission means that your PAR becomes visible to your immediate supervisor, but you are not prevented from accessing or editing it further.
Q. Something in ePAR is wrong and I don't have an option to edit it.
A.Please email Amanda Richburg () and describe the problem as thoroughly as possible.
ePAR Usage Questions
Q. What information do I need to enter into ePAR?
A. You are responsible for adding Service, Publications and related items to your ePAR. Specifically, from the left navigation menu, you are responsible for the following sections:
Research - Recognition
Research - Book
Research - Patent
Research - Presentation
Research - Publication
Research - Software
Research - Comments (if applicable)
Teaching - Comments (if applicable)
Service
The rest of your data is loaded from our end, once or twice per year. Please monitor the ePAR home page for updates when this happens.
Q. How do I enter my ePAR information?
A. Use the menu on the left to navigate the various sections of ePAR. Each section has sub-sections listed across the top horizontal menu. Clicking these will bring you to various forms used to add your information.
Q. I am a Department Chair, how do I view my faculty members' PARs?
A. The left menu has the option "Annotate PAR." Clicking there will give you sub-screens to allow you to select any of the members of your department, and you will then be able to browse and view their PAR just as you peruse your own. You will be able to add commentary as necessary, as well.
You can also download a spreadsheet that contains an abbreviated summary of all of your department's PARs by clicking "ePAR - Reports - Department Summary." There is a description of the report itself on that page, as well.
If you are a department chair but you do not see the above menu items, contact Amanda Richburg () and describe the problem.
Research Questions
Q. What do I do if I don't find some of my grants/proposals or if there is missing or incomplete information?
A. Send e-mail to Amanda Richburg () with copy to Terri Mancini () explaining the problem. Please be as thorough as possible, and if you have the correct information, please send it. The more you can provide, the faster we can correct the problem.
Q. In publications, are journal and conference/symposium publications considered as fully-refereed?
A. Only enter in this category publications that are refereed based on the entire paper not just an abstract or extended abstract. You should enter under Other publications that are not fully refereed.
Q. How do I see the details (e.g., total obligated amount, funding in current AY, cumulative funding, and other PI's involved) or a grant/contract?
A. Just click on "details" to the right of the row that lists the specific grant/contract.
Q. What kind of publications should I enter into the ePAR system? Just published ones?
A. You should enter published, accepted, and submitted publications, along with the corresponding date at which the status change event occurred (e.g., date of paper acceptance if status is Accepted). The ePAR system will display publications in the following order: Published first, followed by accepted, followed by submitted. Department chairs and the Dean may decide to consider only the published ones for evaluation purposes. But, the additional data can provide them more information on the activity of a faculty member. Since the ePAR system is designed to be used throughout the year, you should update the status of a publication as soon as a status change occurs.
Q. What if I don't know the exact date of a publication?
A. In many cases, you will not know the exact day of the month for a publication. In these cases, enter the first day of the month. For journals, you should use the first day of the month of the issue (e.g., use the first day of the quarter for quarterly issues). For conference publications, use the day the conference begins.
Q. What can be classified as conference publications?
A. The "conference" category applies to conferences, symposia, and workshops in which papers are peer-reviewed based on a full paper, not just the abstract.
Q. Should I list issued patents only?
A. You should enter data for both "filed but not issued" as well as "issued" patents. When a patent has been filed but not issued, leave the issue date blank. The ePAR system will list all issued patents first followed by filed but not issued. Your chair and the Dean may only consider the issued patents for evaluation purposes. As soon as a previously filed patent issues, you should login to ePAR and update its status to issued, update the filing number to the patent number, and enter the issue date.
Teaching Questions
Q. I do not see a student that I advise in the list of Committee Memberships. What do I do?
A. Send an email to Amanda Richburg () with the name of the missing student, and your role on their committee.
Q. Were summer courses loaded into the system?
A. No, summer teaching is not part of your regular duties.
Service Questions
Q. What end date should I use for a service entry that represents an ongoing activity with no known end?
A. Use a date that covers at least the end of the current PAR period. You can always update that date in the future once that service engagement ends. Remember that the ePAR system allows you to update your activities anytime during the year.
General Questions
Q. Where do I record things that do not fit in any of the fields?
A. Each section of the PAR has a section called Comments that you can use to add additional information in a text box. There is also a Comments section for the PAR as a whole.
Q. What are the PAR dates?
A. For all professional activities except research expenditures, the relevant period is from May 25 to May 24 of the following year.
So, for the 2006-2007 PAR it would be May 25, 2006 to May 24, 2007.
For research expenditures, the date range is July 1 to June 30 of the following year.
Thus, for the 2006-2007 PAR it would be July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007.
The ePAR system filters out for reporting purposes any activity not included in the PAR period. However, the information is in the database. If you have entered a publication with a date that goes beyond May 24, 2007 it will not appear in this year's PAR, but will automatically appear in next year's.
Q. Some publications seem to have disappeared when I print my report. What is the problem?
A. They are probably being filtered out because of the date. See above.