Auburn University is an affirmative action/equal employment opportunity employer and conducts competitive recruitment for positions to identify and attract diverse and qualified candidate pools to ensure that the best qualified talent is being acquired at the university. Prior to initiating the recruitment process, units must Request to create a NEW Position or Request to FILL a VACANT Position through the Provost’s Office Position Tracking. The request must include the department, position number*, term, title, rank^, anticipated salary, rationale for filling the position (as tied to the strategic plan) and the funding source. Recruitment activity will be limited to the job title and rank(s) authorized by the Provost.
*The position number must be unique to the request and subsequent posting, as it is used for budgeting purposes and for recruitment tracking. If the position for which a unit is recruiting is a new position, a position number must be obtained from Human Resources.
^The faculty rank may be restricted--assistant professor--or open--research, assistant/associate professor. Any tenure-track or non-tenure track job title must be specific and must match the job title and description previously approved by the Provost.
The requestor will receive a system-generated confirmation of the submission and a system-generated email indicating approval to proceed with recruitment. Any questions about the submission will be addressed via email or phone call and the request updated as appropriate.
It is important that search committees reflect broad representation of gender and ethnicity.
Search committee appointments are the responsibility of the Department Head/Chair; however, the Dean must approve all search committee appointments. It is recommended that the HR Liaison be an ex-officio member of all search committees. Search committees should always receive a charge from the hiring authority or designee prior to the beginning the committee’s work. The charge will be provided at the first meeting of the committee prior to viewing/evaluating the candidate pool. Ideally the HR Liaison should attend the first search committee meeting to review search procedures and help the committee understand laws and regulations.
The chair of any faculty search committee should be a tenured faculty member with the experience necessary to adequately evaluate the needs of the department and candidates’ credentials. The Search Committee Chair has a great responsibility to ensure that the process is documented, and decisions are non-discriminatory and made based on job-related criteria.
During the process of advertising, interviewing, selecting, and hiring an individual to fill a faculty vacancy, the search committee will create a file to include minutes of each meeting. All search committee records/notes are to be retained within the department for a minimum of three years after the end of the search and then destroyed.
Search committee members should be indicated as such in the PeopleAdmin posting. All search committee members should attend search committee training and complete a Confidentiality Agreement.
Confidentiality is critical to the integrity of the search and selection process. The Search Committee Chair should ensure that members understand the boundaries of free discussion of candidates within the committee deliberations. The HR Liaison will be available for consultation throughout the recruitment process.
Postings — including Position Announcements and Short or Long-Advertisements may be developed by the department head/chair or the search committee with clear direction from the department head/chair. The posting should clearly describe what will be expected of the faculty member in terms of instruction, research, outreach, service, or any other responsibilities. These could include specific courses to be taught, course load, research expectations, specific outreach activities, advising, departmental service, supervision, administrative responsibilities, etc.
The posting must distinguish between required (minimum) and desired (optional) qualifications. When determining the minimum qualifications to be included in recruitment materials, the search committee must remember that all candidates who meet those minimum qualifications must be considered for the position, and any candidate who does not meet all of the minimum qualifications must be eliminated from consideration for the position. Desired qualifications cannot be used to eliminate candidates from further consideration during the initial review process. Desired qualifications can be used to differentiate between otherwise equally qualified candidates in selecting candidates for interview and in choosing the candidate recommended for the position.
The terminal degree is the minimum educational requirement for tenure-track faculty. If a department where the Ph.D. is the terminal degree (most departments) does not have a policy regarding consideration of ABDs (doctoral candidates with all requirements but the dissertation completed), the department head/chair must determine whether or not ABDs will be considered for the position. The department head/chair must also determine the acceptable discipline(s) in which the terminal degree is held.
The department head/chair may determine that teaching experience or that a specific type of research is required for the position. If the position will include supervisory or administrative responsibilities, the department head/chair may determine that prior experience in one of those areas is also a requirement for the position.
The qualifications for the position should not be so broad that few specifics are provided on which to base selection or elimination of candidates nor so restrictive that few will apply or qualify.
It is expected that all recruitment and selection activities will be accomplished in a fair, inclusive and consistent manner.
See PeopleAdmin Posting (recruitment) for additional instructions to create a posting in PeopleAdmin.
Auburn University is an affirmative action/equal employment opportunity employer and conducts competitive recruitment for positions to identify and attract a diverse and qualified candidate pool to ensure that the best qualified talent is being acquired at the University.
When developing a recruitment strategy, the search committee must be mindful of the University’s commitment to recruit the best faculty available. Periodically, Auburn University will contract with Job Listing Websites to automatically post vacancies. Those venues should be added to the Recruitment Plan section of the PeopleAdmin posting along with other discipline-specific advertising venues.
Professional journals, organizations, meetings, and conferences specific to the area of recruitment are excellent venues for initiating contact with qualified faculty within the discipline or specialization sought for the position. Graduate programs at other institutions and networking with former Auburn doctoral students may generate potential candidates.
It is strongly recommended that the search committee utilize the college or departmental website to announce the position vacancy and to utilize other online sites which may be available. The committee may consider utilizing printed media sources to provide a brief statement regarding position availability and then refer potential candidates to the unit website or other online site for complete information.
The HR Liaison is the point of contact through which all recruitment activity will move between the college/school/department and AA/EEO and the Provost's Office. All activities to be pursued during the recruitment process are to be indicated in the Recruitment Plan section of the posting in PeopleAdmin. Copies of all ads to be placed online and in printed media or to be posted at conferences, and samples of all letters to be sent to individuals, educational institutions, and professional organizations must be attached in the internal documents section of the posting in PeopleAdmin. The posting in PeopleAdmin, along with the associated Recruitment Plan, will be reviewed and approved through the normal electronic approval process. Should AA/EEO require clarification on any portion of the position announcement or how and where the position will be advertised, contact will be made through the Provost's Office to the HR Liaison. When AA/EEO has approved the recruitment plan and position announcement(s), the approved position announcement will be scanned and uploaded into the internal documents section of the posting.
Approval of the recruitment plan indicated by Approved to Post/Open workflow status in PeopleAdmin authorizes the search committee to proceed with the previously identified recruitment strategy and placement of the position announcement in venues indicated in the recruitment strategy. The appropriate individual may then place the approved announcements in the selected venues.
After the review date indicated in the posting, the search committee will screen all applications submitted for the position. The search committee must remember that all candidates who meet the posted minimum qualifications must be considered for the position, and any candidate who does not meet all of the minimum qualifications must be eliminated from consideration for the position. Desired qualifications cannot be used to eliminate candidates from further consideration during the initial review process. The search committee will make note of the reasons for non-selection. Only a brief statement is required; however, the criteria must be directly related to advertised criteria and must be specific, i.e., no terminal degree, degree in wrong discipline, documents not provided, etc. Non-selection criteria which simply restates the definition of the category is not acceptable (i.e., not as qualified as those interviewed, et).
The search committee will then begin a closer review of all candidates meeting the required qualifications for the position. Desired qualifications can be used to differentiate between otherwise equally qualified candidates in selecting candidates for interview and in choosing the candidate recommended for the position. Qualifications not indicated in the posting should not be used to eliminate a candidate or enhance a candidate’s consideration unless it can be shown that such qualifications are demonstratively relevant to the candidate’s suitability for the position. Interviews conducted over telephone or Internet meeting services and contact with references may be utilized by the search committee to determine the most highly qualified candidates for the position who will be invited for an on-campus interview.
The search committee will communicate to the hiring manager or HR Liaison the category and reasons for non-selection/selection for each candidate. Again, the criteria for non-selection must be specific. Reason such as “not a good fit”, “not a good match” will not be accepted.
In reviewing applications, the search committee must be cognizant of the policy statement in the Auburn University Faculty Handbook that “An individual holding the terminal degree from Auburn University normally is not eligible for permanent appointment and thus will not be placed on probationary appointment except in rare circumstances. An exception might occur if the individual has held faculty rank at another university or college, had a responsible position in industry or professional practice, is a qualified candidate in a field where there are national shortages, has an outstanding national reputation, or is certified in a discipline by a nationally recognized specialty board or college. Exceptions may also be allowed if such appointments would permit a department or unit to meet its affirmative action/equal opportunity obligations.” Any such exception must be requested in writing by the department head/chair, supported by the Dean, and approved by the Provost prior to submitting the Hiring Proposal.
See Reviewing Candidates in PeopleAdmin for instructions to review candidates and input reasons for non-selection.
After reviewing the candidate pool, the department head/chair, Associate Dean, or Dean in association with the HR Liaison, may determine that there are an insufficient number of qualified candidates or diversity of candidates for the position and require further recruitment efforts before on-campus interviews be scheduled.
The search committee, with clear direction from the department head/chair, will determine the activities in which the candidates to be interviewed will participate. Such activities will include meetings with departmental faculty, the department head/chair, and the Dean. A seminar or other open forum may be required. Social activities may be scheduled. The search committee has some leeway in establishing the agenda for the on-campus interview, but the agenda for each candidate to be interviewed must be the same, and each candidate must be fully advised of the search committee’s expectations prior to arriving for the interview.
If candidates were not required to submit final, official transcripts of all graduate or professional coursework with their application, the search committee or HR Liaison should request them from those candidates selected for interview.
If the search committee is interviewing a foreign national and a prevailing wage has not already been requested, one should be requested now from the Office of International Programs.
Following the on-campus interview process, the department head/chair will poll the eligible departmental faculty to assist in determining the candidate to be recommended to the Dean and Provost for appointment. Following a faculty vote, the search committee will provide a brief summary of each interviewed candidate’s qualifications and the criteria differentiating the recommended candidate from the others, indicating why the recommended candidate was selected. If not previously done, the search committee and/or department head/chair will prepare reasons for non-selection for all other candidates and forward the complete list to the appropriate administrator (Departmental Hiring Manager or HR Liaison). In PeopleAdmin, the workflow status for each candidate should be changed to the proper category (i.e., Not As Qualified As Those Interviewed, Interviewed Not Selected, Did Not Meet Minimum Qualification/Incomplete/Too Late, Recommended for Hire, Withdrawn) and the reason should be entered in the explanation field box. Depending on the college this may be entered by the Hiring Manager or HR Liaison.
AA/EEO and the Provost’s Office will review the reasons for selection/non-selection as part of the comprehensive review of the candidate’s Hiring Proposal in PeopleAdmin.
Note: In a department with multiple active searches, a candidate for a position may not be selected for the position to which he/she applied but may still be considered qualified for another position. This determination may be made during the process of selecting those candidates to be interviewed or after the on-campus interview. In such a case, the workflow status should be indicated as “Pending Another Search” and the position number for which the candidate is still being considered will be entered in the space provided for criteria for non-selection. “Pending Another Search” would also be utilized when more than one person is being hired from a single candidate pool.
Note: For a candidate who withdraws their application at any point during the recruitment process the workflow status should be changed to “Withdrawn”. If the reason for withdrawal is known, that information should be noted in the space provided for criteria for non-selection.
Letters can be sent immediately to those candidates whose applications were incomplete or who did not meet minimum qualifications. A choice may be made to delay sending letters to those whose applications were complete and who met the minimum qualifications but who were determined to not be as qualified as those selected for interview, particularly if the candidate pool was small. It is recommended that letters to those interviewed but not selected be delayed until the department receives a letter of acceptance from the selected candidate.
NOTE: Please be advised that PeopleAdmin-generated emails will be sent to all candidates who were not selected when the posting status is updated to “FILLED”.
See Reviewing Candidates in PeopleAdmin for instructions to review candidates and input reasons for non-selection.
Approval of this request authorizes the unit to extend an offer of appointment to the recommended candidate. For a faculty position within a department, the approval of the department head/chair, the Dean, and the Provost are required by submitting a Hiring Proposal in PeopleAdmin. For a department head/chair position or for a position within a dean’s office, the approval of the Dean and the Provost are required. For a dean position, the approval of the Provost and the President are required.
All faculty recruitment must be approved by the Provost no later than July 15th for faculty whose appointments will begin Fall Semester and no later than November 15th for faculty whose appointments will begin Spring Semester. Recruitment for 12-month faculty must be approved by the Provost at least one month prior to the scheduled appointment date.
Departments are reminded that the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and the Association of American Colleges have issued a joint policy statement that an offer of appointment to a faculty member serving at another institution should be made no later than May 1 for the following Fall Semester and that a faculty member should not be solicited to leave another institution prior to the end of an academic year for which they hold an appointment.
Concurrent to completing a Hiring Proposal in PeopleAdmin, the unit should update their position tracking information by logging into SmartSheet and completing the following fields: Effective Date of Hire, Actual Salary, and Actual Funding Source.
The voluntary affirmative action survey is incorporated into the online application. The value of the information to be obtained from this survey cannot be overstated. The responses, which are summarized in an electronic Departmental EEO report, should be provided to the Dean at the conclusion of the recruitment process. The PeopleAdmin Departmental EEO Report is a useful tool to use to analyze the diversity of the pool. The responses assist the Dean and the Provost in evaluating the unit’s recruiting efforts to attract minorities and women and in determining the value of specific advertising venues.
At no time prior to the selection of those candidates to be interviewed or the selection of the recommended candidate will the unit be advised of the gender or race/ethnicity of any candidate.
In consultation with General Counsel, the Provost’s Office has created a library of offer letter templates for tenure-track appointments, non-tenure track appointments, and administrative appointments. These letters should be utilized and updated with the specific details of the appointment as advertised.
If this is a tenure-track position, information should be provided regarding the tenure process and the date employment with the university will cease should the faculty member not receive tenure. If the selected candidate is a foreign national, the letter must include a statement that when the faculty member is eligible for tenure consideration, the awarding of tenure will be contingent upon the individual providing evidence of eligibility to remain in the United States with appropriate work authorization from the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service or another agency, if applicable.
If a department where the Ph.D. is the terminal degree (most departments) has a policy regarding consideration of ABDs (doctoral candidates with all requirements but the dissertation completed), and the offer is being extended to an ABD and recruitment materials indicated that ABDs would be considered, a statement must be added to the letter of offer indicating that if the Ph.D. is not complete at the time the appointment is scheduled to begin, the initial rank will be Instructor at a salary of an amount at least $3,000 less than the recommended salary as Assistant Professor, with the exact amount of the salary reduction having been determined by the department head/chair with the approval of the Dean. Also include a statement that promotion to the rank of Assistant Professor at the higher salary will be made at the beginning of the semester following completion of the Ph.D. It is strongly suggested that if the offer is being extended to an ABD, a one-year deadline be placed on the faculty member for completion of the Ph.D.
If recruitment materials did not indicate that ABD candidates would be considered, the letter of offer must include the statement that if the Ph.D. is not completed at the time the appointment is scheduled to begin, the offer of employment will be withdrawn.
If this is a visiting or limited term position, the visiting status and term of appointment must be stated.
If this is a non-tenure track position, the letter must include the statement that this is a non-tenure track appointment.
If the selected candidate is a foreign national, the letter must include a statement that the offer is contingent upon the candidate meeting eligibility requirements for work in the United States by the date the appointment is scheduled to begin.
The department or college is responsible for creating and maintaining each faculty member’s personnel file to include, at a minimum, the faculty member’s signed offer letter and any letters of continuation, for non-tenure track faculty; official transcripts of all graduate or professional coursework; executed Faculty Tenure Agreement until tenure is awarded or a letter of non-continuation is issued for tenure-track faculty; and Faculty Annual Reviews, including Third Year Reviews for tenure track faculty.
