Skip to main content
Metropolitan State University (Home)

Procedure 501: Recruitment, Screening, and Selection for IFO Resident Faculty Positions

Download Procedure 501: Recruitment, Screening, and Selection for IFO Resident Faculty Positions

This PDF is the official text of this policy. If there are any incongruities between the text of the HTML version (rightbelow) and the text within the PDF file, the PDF will be considered accurate and overriding.

University Procedure #501

Section 1. Purpose Statement

The purpose of this procedure is to provide a process for the recruitment, screening and selection for Inter Faculty Organization (IFO) positions. Consistent with University Policy 08, this procedure establishes the steps to be followed when conducting a search for tenure-track/probationary and fixed-term positions within the IFO bargaining unit.

Section 2. Scope

This procedure shall not supersede other federal and state laws, rules, and regulations, other university policies and procedures, or bargaining unit agreements and plans. This procedure is intended to address the recruitment, screening and selection for IFO positions only. It does not address the IFO salary placement process.

Section 3. Authority

This university policy is established in accordance with the applicable provisions of the collective bargaining agreements between the Minnesota State Colleges & Universities (MnSCU) and the IFO and MnSCU Board policies.

Section 4. Effective Date

This university procedure becomes effective immediately upon the signature of the President and remains in effect until modified or expressly revoked.

Section 5. Responsibility

The responsibility for implementation of this procedure is assigned to hiring managers/supervisor, the Chief Human Resource Officer and his/her designees in cooperation with the Director of Affirmative Action and his/her designees.

Section 6. Notification and Publication

The university shall inform all employees involved in the recruitment, screening and selection for IFO positions of the established policy and procedure. The policy and procedure shall be available on the university portal and be distributed all employees involved in the IFO search process.

Section 7. Objective

This procedure sets forth the basic IFO recruitment, screening, and selection steps and is designed to accomplish the following:

  1. Recruit, select, and hire the most qualified candidates for IFO positions;
  2. Meet the university's commitment to affirmative action;
  3. Create sufficient documentation of the university's selection decision-making with regard to each hire;
  4. Comply with state and federal laws regarding affirmative action and equal employment opportunity;
  5. To protect the university and those involved in the process from exposure to liability; and
  6. To ensure all applicants fair and consistent treatment in the university’s selection processes.

Section 8. Definitions

  1. Position Request form: A Position Request form is submitted when a new position is to be established or a vacant position is requested to be filled.
  2. President’s Council (PC): The University’s executive leadership team consisting of the President, Vice Presidents, Chief Human Resource Officer, and his/her Special Assistant/Director of Government Relations.
  3. Recruitment Plan Form (RPF): A form that indicates the composition of the search committee, the recruitment and advertising plan, and the Affirmative Action goal(s), if any.
  4. Notice of Vacancy (NOV): Also known as “job posting.” The NOV outlines the minimum or required and desired qualifications for the position. The NOV is drafted by HR and the hiring manager/supervisor and provided to the search committee for comment and feedback before posting.
  5. Office of Affirmative Action (OAA): The Director of Affirmative Action and his/her unit are responsible for all affirmative action compliance matters related to the screening and selection of candidates for IFO bargaining unit positions.
  6. Hiring manager/supervisor: The individual who has the authority to plan, direct, and monitor the work of the position (Executive Director, Dean, Provost, etc.)
  7. Appointment Authorization Form: The form that must be completed by the search committee chair and hiring manager/supervisor upon completion of the search.
  8. Prior Work Experience collection form: A form that captures candidates’ prior academic and non-academic employment and volunteer experience(s). The information is used to determine the candidate’s salary placement.

Section 9. Initiating a national/regional search

    1. Hiring manager/supervisor submits a Position Request form to the Provost and/or President’s Council for permission to initiate a search.
    2. The search is approved/disapproved; the form is sent to HR and the hiring manager/supervisor.
    3. The hiring manager/supervisor designates the chair of the search committee.
    4. The hiring manager/supervisor determines the composition of the search committee as follows:
  • The committee will be comprised of no fewer than three members.
  • Someone designated as providing administrative support to the search committee; and
  • The search committee members must reflect diversity.
  1. For the completion of Recruitment Plan Form (RPF), the hiring manager/supervisor in consultation with the hiring department determines:
  • Where any additional advertising will be done;
  • Budget implications of the additional advertising and candidate reimbursement
  1. After consultation with HR, the hiring manager/supervisor completes the Recruitment Plan Form (RPF) and returns the RPF to HR.
  2. HR reviews the RPF and discusses with the hiring manager/supervisor and search committee underutilization (if any) and diversity goals related to the filling of the position with the hiring manager/supervisor and search committee.
  3. Hiring manager/supervisor and HR finalize the NOV and provide to search committee chair for review and comment by the search committee. Search committee chair provides comments back to the hiring manager/supervisor.

Section 10. Exceptions to conducting a national/regional search

    1. Community faculty positions: The University may fill its community faculty positions without conducting a search in accordance with University Policy #5010 or Procedure #501.
    2. Limited Search: Under rare and special circumstances, the President may determine it is in the best interest of the University to conduct a limited search and may waive the national/regional search requirement. With the President’s approval, such a search may be limited to posting the vacancy for university applicants only, conducting a local search only, or considering only a single applicant. This provision would apply to emergency replacements, spousal hires, visiting professors, or special hires that uniquely advance the institution.

Section 11. Recruitment

      1. HR posts the NOV in accordance with the RPF.
      2. HR provides search committee members with training on best practice, using the online applicant tracking system, confidentiality in the search process, roles and responsibilities of the parties involved in the search process, and any Affirmative Action considerations for the search process.
      3. The search committee develops the questions for interviews and reference checks using the sample questions provided by HR, and submits the questions to HR for approval.

Section 12. Screening

  1. HR will determine whether an applicant is able to avail him/herself of prior consideration, transfer, or the retrenchment provisions of the IFO agreement. HR will notify the hiring manager/supervisor and committee chair in the event these agreement provisions apply.
  2. If the pool contains no individual eligible to avail him/herself of prior consideration, transfer, or the retrenchment provisions of the IFO agreement, HR notifies committee when the pool of candidates is ready for committee review.
  3. The committee screens applications for minimum qualifications. Applications not meeting minimum qualifications are excluded from further consideration.
  4. The committee determines ratings for applicants in the pool of those who meet minimum qualifications. Committee selects from the pool those qualified for an initial interview and submits the group of applicants to HR for Affirmative Action compliance.
  5. HR either approves the pool for initial interviews or makes recommendations for the pool.
  6. The committee conducts the initial interviews and submits finalist recommendations to HR for Affirmative Action compliance. HR will confer with AAO as needed.
  7. The committee conducts reference checks for finalists’ listed references.
  8. Support staff person schedules on-campus interviews for those finalists with favorable references.
  9. On-campus finalist interviews are conducted by the committee and hiring manager/supervisor.
  10. All finalists are provided with a “Release of Information” forms for signature.
  11. All finalists are provided the Prior Work Experience form and asked to return them to HR.
  12. Hiring manager/supervisor conducts additional reference checks as needed.

Section 13. Selection

  1. Committee reviews and collects all materials collected and generated during process, completes the Strengths & Weaknesses and Appointment Authorization form, and submits to hiring manager/supervisor.
  2. Hiring manager/supervisor reviews Strengths & Weaknesses document and may request a meeting with the committee should s/he be seeking additional feedback from the committee on the finalists.
  3. Hiring manager/supervisor makes decision on candidate to be hired. If the hiring manager/supervisor determines none of the finalists are acceptable for hire, the hiring manager/supervisor must contact HR to discuss and send an email confirmation to HR and AAO declaring a failed search and why the search was failed.
  4. Hiring manager/supervisor submits the Strengths & Weaknesses and the completed Appointment Authorization (with its attachments) forms to HR.
  5. HR routes aforementioned documents (and the NOV) to AAO for signature.
  6. After receiving a fully executed Appointment Authorization form, HR will contact the hiring manager/supervisor to review and discuss the candidate’s Prior Work Experience form and determine a salary offer for the candidate.
  7. Hiring manager/supervisor extends offer to the candidate.
  8. If the candidate declines the offer and the hiring manager/supervisor does not wish to offer the position to any of the other finalists, the hiring manager/supervisor must contact HR to discuss and send an email confirmation to HR declaring a failed search and why the search was failed.

Section 14. Review

This procedure is subject to review on an annual basis, or as needed.

Section 15. Approval

Issued on this date: October 8, 2014

Devinder Malhotra, Interim President