Search and Screening Guidelines

Hiring Official Guidelines

Role and responsibilities

The “hiring official” is the person who will make the final decision on the selection. It is understood that further administrative review may take place, but this designation is given to the person who will choose the selected candidate. The search committee, when used, is advisory to the hiring official.

Appointing a search committee

The “hiring official” appoints the committee. The hiring official determines the number of committee members and the composition of the membership. The university’s Affirmative Action Plan specifies that committees’ memberships should be diverse. Members should be knowledgeable about the discipline or professional field and available for all or at least most of the meetings.

Search committee structure and organization

Committee appointments may include members of the department; individuals from outside the department who are knowledgeable about the area; community members such as Advisory Board members; students; or alumni. The hiring official names the chair. Diversity is expected on each committee.

Normal committee procedures include face-to-face meetings for organizational purposes, establishment of criteria, discussion of candidates, exchange of phone reference information gathered as assigned, exchange of interview reactions if the committee is involved, and the final vote to produce the recommendation to the hiring official. Email may replace in-meeting voting on credentials reviewed on paper, when the criteria do not call for discussion and exchange of ideas. “Polling” the committee individually on criteria interpretations is not seen as an effective substitute for committee interaction at rounds beyond minimum qualifications.

An initial organizational meeting allows the entire group an opportunity to discuss and agree upon each action taken, possibly including recruitment strategies and advertising. It enhances the group’s accountability for a fair and comprehensive search.

Committees normally function on a majority vote basis, with a quorum consisting of a majority of the currently-appointed members. (The actual number for a majority might change curing a search if a member resigns or is added.) If a committee prefers a higher standard of attendance or agreement, that should be voted on at the organizational meeting.

Procedurally, the committee is responsible for reviewing the documents that describe the position and taking job-related actions in the screening process. The hiring official should provide to the committee a listing of the teaching areas planned for advertisement or a summary from the A&P position description if the committee will assist in writing the ads. If the committee is established to screen, the hiring official will provide copies of the ads placed and other pertinent materials. In the on-line A&P system, these documents may be available via guest pass code.

Charging the committee

All committees are advisory. The hiring official describes the essential functions of the position and discusses the requirements and preferences. After the hiring official charges the committee, the committee periodically communicates progress. The committee normally does this through the minutes of meetings, but also may pose questions during the process.

In cases where the applicant pool is not suitable at some stage, the hiring official may provide clarification to the charge or a new perspective on the criteria and ask the committee to re-screen. Alternatively, the hiring official may take another action to enhance the pool and attract other candidates, or advance additional candidates from the pool, asking the committee to consider them using the original charge.

Advertising a position and posting on the UCF Position Vacancy website

Committees who are involved in the initial search process must set review or closing deadlines. Advertising is expected to reach the appropriate pool of potential applications; sources are chosen by departments. At least one source must be printable. This definition includes websites external to UCF when a printout of a job advertisement can be obtained.

Faculty and A&P searches may be conducted with advertising and recruiting that uses a phrase similar to “review will begin (date) and continue until position is filled.” This entitles the committee to begin review and keep searching as screening progresses. This system of open posting may be used when an extensive search is seeking candidates from many sources, for maximum flexibility in deadlines.

Timely applicants in open postings should be screened according to the same criteria, within “rounds” or screening stages, as long as they keep advancing. As an example, if most of the applicants have been screened through round four already, a new applicant does not proceed directly to Round Four. Minimum criteria are applied at round one, then subsequent rounds, until the application is declined or the applicant is included with others in the round under consideration.

When the hiring official believes that the search has been successful, the UCF on-line Position Vacancy Announcement must be posted. This is a required step to close the “open” search. All applicants postmarked through this step are timely. All those postmarked after this closing date are not timely and cannot be considered without extending the search.

In faculty searches, timeless is judged by the earliest documented date of contact by the applicant. If applicants are ruled out, documentation must be maintained. Retention of a postmarked envelope or printout of an email contact after the deadline date is sufficient. In A&P searches, the on-line system will lock out untimely applicants.

The timetable for the rest of the search is shaped by the remaining steps to be taken. If much of the screening has been done before the posted closing date, final screening of timely applicants (on or before the PVA closing date) might be the only task left.