January 2027

Semi-Monthly Payroll

Beginning January 1st, 2027, all exempt staff, Year-Round (YR) faculty, Academic-Year (AY) faculty, and graduate students will move from monthly to semi-monthly pay.

No changes to your total compensation or benefits will result from the transition from monthly to semi-monthly payroll cycles. What’s changing is simply the timing of your paycheck—you will receive 2 payments monthly, which will typically occur on the 15th and the last day of the month.

For detailed information about AY faculty contracts, please follow the link below.

Visit the Faculty Contract Transition Website Explore the semi-monthly payroll details

Easier Budgeting

Smaller, more frequent paychecks make it easier to plan and manage personal finances, especially with regular expenses.

Faster Funds Access

Semi-monthly payroll gives employees quicker access to wages and benefits, helping them manage unexpected costs and access HSA/FSA funds sooner.

Faster Leave Accrual

Employees will earn and have access to their accrued leave sooner.

What Can I Expect?

Final monthly paychecks will be received on December 31, 2026. The first semi-monthly paycheck will be received on January 15th, 2027, to reflect the January 1-15 pay period.

Additional details on unique deduction types (e.g., garnishments, retirement contributions, etc.) will be shared in separate communications with affected employees. However, please reach out to the project team at SemiMonthlyPayroll@baylor.edu with any questions.

What is NOT Changing?

Biweekly (non-exempt) employees' pay schedule
Faculty, staff, and graduate student total compensation
Time and Absence entry procedures for staff and biweekly employees

How Can I Prepare?

While no immediate action is required, the following recommendations are provided to help employees begin thinking about and planning for the upcoming payroll change. These are proactive steps to consider as you prepare for the transition.

Come back and check the Semi-Monthly Website regularly.

New resources and updates will be continuously added.

Before the payroll change occurs, we encourage you to review your current budget and the timing of recurring payments.

Review the Upcoming Semi-Monthly Payroll Journey in Ignite.

The Ignite journey is designed to help you be prepared and informed by providing:

Financial tools & resources
Payroll calendar
Example Payslip
Who to contact with questions

Access the Journey in Ignite

In fall 2026, a required Journey in Ignite will be assigned.

This fall, all impacted staff, faculty, and graduate students will be required to complete a mandatory journey in Ignite with actionable tasks.

The required Ignite journey will include actionable tasks related to:

Updating your retirement contributions
Reviewing your tax withholdings and direct deposit

Why are We Changing Payroll Schedules?

Foster an efficient, competitive, and world-class academic environment.
Support the Academic-Year (AY) Faculty Contract Transition, which enhances Baylor’s ability to recruit research-intensive faculty, as well as provide faculty three summer months for research, grant, consulting, or administrative responsibilities. For more information on the AY Faculty Contract Transition, visit the Faculty Contract Transition website.
Enhance the employee experience through improved cash flow and financial planning, opportunities for increased earnings in retirement contributions, and faster leave accrual.
Increase operational efficiency by reducing remedial actions such as off-cycle payments, streamline the onboarding and offboarding processes, and improve budget and financial planning.

Contact Info

For general inquiries, please email SemiMonthlyPayroll@baylor.edu.

For benefit deduction and employee leave-related inquiries, please email AskHR@baylor.edu.

For tax withholdings, garnishments, and direct deposit-related inquiries, please email Payroll_Office@baylor.edu.

For questions related to Faculty Contracts, please email Provost_Office@baylor.edu.

FAQs

Resources & Support