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> MSU Policy and Procedures > Recruitment & Hiring Manual
MSU Recruitment & Hiring Manual
For Executives, Administrators, Faculty, and Contract Professional Employees
Revised July 2006
300.00 Evaluation
SECTION 300 CONTENTS
311.00 Types of Evaluation Criteria
311.10 Minimum Criteria
311.20 Comparative Criteria
312.00 Approval of Screening Instruments
313.00 Additional Screening
313.10 Screening Interviews
313.20 Screening in Open-Ended Searches
313.30 When to Stop Screening
321.00 Responsibility for Screening Applicants
322.00 Procedures for Establishing the Legitimate Candidate Pool
323.00 Notifying Applicants
324.00 Maintaining Records
331.00 Overview of the Screening Process
332.00 Veteran's Preference
333.00 Reference Checks
333.10 Procedures
333.20 Calling References Not Named by the Applicant
334.00 Conducting Telephone Interviews with Applicants
335.00 Handling Internal Applicants
335.10 Expectations of Confidentiality
335.20 Conflicts of Interest
335.30 Respectful Treatment of Internal Applicants
341.00 Establishing the Finalist Pool
342.00 Equal Treatment
343.00 Documentation
310.00 Evaluation Criteria
311.00 Types of Evaluation Criteria
311.10 Minimum Criteria
311.20 Comparative Criteria
312.00 Approval of Screening Instruments
313.00 Additional Screening
313.10 Screening Interviews
313.20 Screening in Open-Ended Searches
313.30 When to Stop Screening
310.00 Evaluation Criteria
The search committee uses evaluation criteria to evaluate if and how well an applicant meets the qualifications for a position. This section identifies the two types of evaluation criteria and discusses their uses in the search process.
311.00 Types of Evaluation Criteria
There are two types of evaluation criteria: minimum or required qualifications and comparative or evaluative criteria.
311.10 Minimum Criteria
Minimum criteria are the required qualifications listed in the vacancy announcement. Each listed criterion is initially assessed on a Yes/No basis. Applicants who do not meet these minimum criteria are no longer considered and should be sent a letter informing them of that fact.
311.20 Comparative Criteria
Comparative criteria are the preferred qualifications which identify the strengths and weaknesses of applicants and compare one applicant with another.
Screening instruments must rate applicants on a numerical scale.
312.00 Approval of Screening Instruments
The search or screening committee must develop two sets of review documents or two steps in the review process to capture their evaluation of these criteria.
Screening instruments must be approved by HR/AA before the committee reviews applications.
313.00 Additional Screening
Most searches require more than one screening of the applicant pool to determine the finalists. In such cases, the search committee should develop successive criteria for each screening. These instruments must be based on the qualifications specified in the position description, including those listed in the “Successful Candidate Will…” section.
313.10 Screening Interviews
Committee members may wish to conduct a screening interview with a number of candidates in order to help evaluate applicants. These interviews may be conducted at professional meetings or job fairs and should be brief in nature. Committee members should ask no more than 3-5 questions, and candidates must be made aware that the interview is part of the screening process. The questions must be pre-approved by HR/AA.
313.20 Screening in Open-Ended Searches
An open-ended search is one which has no fixed deadline for the receipt of applications. Instead, the vacancy announcement and advertisement give the date when the review of applications will begin. Such searches allow the committee to continue to accept applications while reviewing already received applications.
Applications received after the screening date are not late and must be reviewed soon after they are received. Any applicant who is evaluated as being equal to or better than the applicants then-currently under consideration must be added to that group and folded into the review process.
313.30 When to Stop Screening
Applications should be reviewed for required qualifications whenever they arrive, and candidates who do not meet all the required qualifications should be sent the letter of regret.
Screening of applications from applicants meeting minimum qualifications can be temporarily halted when the hiring authority and/or the search committee have selected the candidates to invite to campus for interviews. However, if the interview process goes on for more than a month, applicants should be sent a letter or post card informing them that the search is still ongoing and they are still under active consideration.
Example:
The search committee is in the process of determining its finalists when three new applications are received. Members of the committee review them using the evaluation criteria. Applicant Jones is determined not to meet minimum qualifications and is sent a letter of rejection. Applicant Smith meets minimum qualifications but is not considered a viable candidate. Applicant Brown meets minimum qualifications and is as good as the best qualified finalist currently under consideration. Applicant Brown should immediately be added to the finalist list.
[Main Table of Contents]
[Sections 300-340 Contents]
[Section 310 Contents]
320.00 The Legitimate Candidate Pool
SECTION 320 CONTENTS
321.00 Responsibility for Screening Applicants
322.00 Procedures for Establishing the Legitimate Candidate Pool
323.00 Notifying Applicants
324.00 Maintaining Records
320.00 The Legitimate Candidate Pool
Legitimate candidates are the applicants who meet all minimum required qualifications for the position. An applicant who does not meet each of the required qualifications is not a “legitimate candidate” and is not reviewed further.
321.00 Responsibility for Screening Applicants
Committee members, not search support staff, should screen applications and determine if an applicant meets minimum qualifications. The committee chair may assign a subcommittee of at least two committee members to conduct the initial screening if there will be a large number of applications or the screening will be especially sensitive or complex.
322.00 Procedures for Establishing the Legitimate Candidate Pool
As discussed in Section 310.00, the committee must develop a screening instrument which lists the required qualifications and provides a place to indicate, on a "Yes/No" basis, whether or not each qualification has been met. The committee should complete this evaluation for each applicant and indicate if the applicant is a legitimate candidate. Committee members should consider questionable cases separately and vote to determine if the applicant meets or fails to meet the required qualifications.
Since applicants who do not meet each required qualification are excluded from further consideration, committee members are urged to be as inclusive as possible in making their determinations.
Search support staff must indicate on the Applicant Flow Chart which applicants met required qualification and which did not.
323.00 Notifying Applicants
An applicant who is no longer being considered for a position must be informed of this, in writing, as soon as possible.
Do not give reasons why the applicant did not meet minimum qualifications and certainly do not tell the applicant that he or she was not a "legitimate candidate." That term is MSU jargon and is universally misinterpreted away from campus.
Sample letter:
Dear Candidate,
The search committee for the position of Coach of Underwater Lacrosse has reviewed your application. We regret to inform you that your application is no longer being considered. We thank you for your interest in Montana State University and wish you success in your future endeavors.
324.00 Maintaining Records
The committee must keep careful records indicating why each individual applicant did or did not possess the minimum qualifications for the position. This information must be retained in the search committee files.
[Main Table of Contents]
[Sections 300-340 Contents]
[Section 320 Contents]
330.00 Evaluating Applications
SECTION 330 CONTENTS
331.00 Overview of the Screening Process
332.00 Veteran's Preference
333.00 Reference Checks
333.10 Procedures
333.20 Calling References Not Named by the Applicant
334.00 Conducting Telephone Interviews with Applicants
335.00 Handling Internal Applicants
335.10 Expectations of Confidentiality
335.20 Conflicts of Interest
335.30 Respectful Treatment of Internal Applicants
330.00 Evaluating Applications
After establishing the legitimate candidate pool, the committee continues evaluating applicants and comparing them with each other to determine the better qualified candidates.
331.00 Overview of the Screening Process
Committees should structure their deliberations in the following manner:
- Review the materials submitted by all applicants against the required qualifications and establish the legitimate candidate pool.
- Evaluate the materials submitted by the applicants who comprise the legitimate candidate pool, using comparative criteria to assess the required qualifications and the preferred qualifications.
- Check references and/or conduct telephone interviews with applicants as necessary to establish the finalist pool.
- Report the names of finalists to HR/AA and the hiring authority. The hiring authority will determine the candidates to interview and will obtain interview approval from HR/AA and the Provost or appropriate Vice President.
- Interview and evaluate the candidates.
- Prepare a report on the strengths and weaknesses of each candidate for the hiring authority.
(Note on terminology: Finalists are often called the "long list"; interviewees are sometimes called the "short list." Applicants who have agreed to be interviewed are "candidates.")
332.00 Veteran's Preference
State law (MCA 39-29) requires public employers, including units of the Montana University System, to provide preference in initial employment for veterans and certain eligible relatives of veterans by:
- Adding points to the raw score of a numerically scored screening instrument, or
- Hiring the veteran or eligible relative of a veteran if, at the conclusion of the search process, there were commensurately equally qualified candidates among whom was the veteran.
MSU uses the first of these options in administering veteran’s preference for executive, administrative, faculty, and contract professional positions.
To ensure compliance, HR/AA sends a veteran's preference notice form to applicants upon their request.
When the Veteran’s Preference Claim form is returned, HR/AA notifies the search committee chair or search support staff and explains how the veteran’s preference points are to be administered.
Veterans and eligible relatives of veterans who do not complete a veteran's preference claim are not given point preference under Montana law, even if the committee can determine from the resume that the applicant is a veteran.
- State veteran’s preference applies only to initial hire with the institution.
- Search support staff must keep accurate records that show the committee’s compliance with the Montana Veteran’s Preference Act.
333.00 Reference Checks
Telephone reference checks allow committees to ask specific questions and learn directly relevant information about a candidate's qualifications, strengths and weaknesses.
Committees should check at least some references provided by the applicant and must check the same number of references for all applicants under consideration at the same stage of the search process. For instance, a committee may check only one reference for each of eight legitimate candidates, and then check one more reference for each of the five finalists.
333.10 Procedures
To check references through a telephone interview, the committee should:
- Develop a list of questions to ask the references. In developing their questions, committees should familiarize themselves with the impermissible and permissible questions discussed in Section 133.00 and ensure that all questions are job related. Limit questions to no more than 6-8 questions for a one hour interview so referees have a chance to explain their responses and engage with the committee.
- Send the questions to HR/AA for approval.
- Call the reference. At least two members of the search committee should participate in any conversation with a referee. One committee member should ask the questions and lead the interview. Both should take careful notes on what was said in response to the questions.
- Report the results of the reference call to the committee, disregarding any information which is not job related.
333.20 Calling References Not Named by the Applicant
Occasionally a committee will want to contact a reference who is not named in the applicant's dossier. In such cases, because the names of applicants are confidential and applicants may have legitimate reasons for not wanting someone to know they have applied for a position, committee members must first inform the applicant they wish to call that reference and ask his or her permission.
If the applicant agrees, the committee should interview the referee as soon a possible. If the applicant disagrees and asks that the potential referee not be contacted, the committee must respect that request.
If that applicant is later interviewed, since the names of interviewees are public knowledge, the committee may then check the reference without so informing the candidate.
334.00 Conducting Telephone Interviews with Applicants
Conducting telephone interviews with applicants can help committees learn more about the applicant than can be gleaned from written materials. To conduct telephone interviews with applicants, the committee should:
- Have at least two committee members participate in the telephone interview, but the more committee members who can attend the better.
- Develop a list of questions to ask during the interview. These questions must be related to the job or to the candidate's background and should follow the guidelines for permissible and impermissible inquiries at Section 133.00.
- Limit the number of questions to 6-8 open-ended questions so applicants have an opportunity to engage with the interviewers. Use the questions to address any concerns about the candidate's background or qualifications which may have surfaced during the reference checks, taking care to protect the confidentiality of the referees.
- Send the interview questions to HR/AA for approval.
- Conduct the interview. Take and retain careful notes.
- Report the results of the reference call to the committee, ignoring any information which is not job related.
335.00 Handling Internal Applicants
Internal applicants are current or recent employees of the University. Internal applicants are frequently employed in an acting or interim capacity in the job being searched or are employees who are working or have worked in the department or unit conducting the search.
335.10 Expectations of Confidentiality
To ensure fairness and objectivity when there are internal applicants in a search pool, search committee members should maintain absolute confidentiality in regard to committee deliberations and should never discuss their personal feelings about any applicants, particularly internal applicants at committee meetings.
Further, the names of internal applicants, their status in the search, or their strengths and weaknesses should never be discussed with anyone outside the committee except the hiring authority and HR/AA.
335.20 Conflicts of Interest
Committee members should be alert to any conflicts of interest or perceived conflicts of interest in regards to the search process and/or their relationship to applicants and report these to the hiring authority or HR/AA. In most cases, if a committee member knows an applicant well or has had more than casual dealings with an applicant, the committee member should either resign from the committee or recuse him or her self from reviewing that applicant’s materials.
In almost all cases, it is important that committee members not only be objective but that they be perceived as being fair and objective.
Committee members should not act as references for applicants. Letters of reference written by a committee member should immediately be removed from the applicant’s file.
335.30 Respectful Treatment of Internal Applicants
Search committees should never announce the names of internal applicants. It is the right of any internal applicant to announce, or not announce, to the campus that he or she has applied for the position.
Because failing to advance in a search for which one is an internal applicant can be potentially devastating to an employee’s reputation and harmful to her or his future working relationships on campus, committee chairs or hiring authorities should contact internal applicants by telephone or in person to tell them that their applications are no longer being considered or that they were not advanced to the next stage of review at that time.
Also, since nothing is more harmful to an internal applicant’s reputation more than reading about his or her rejection in the newspaper, committee chairs and hiring authorities should be cautious about releasing information to the press before informing an internal applicant of his or her status.
[Main Table of Contents]
[Sections 300-340 Contents]
[Section 330 Contents]
340.00 Finalists
SECTION 340 CONTENTS
341.00 Establishing the Finalist Pool
342.00 Equal Treatment
343.00 Documentation
340.00 Finalists
Finalists are applicants who remain under consideration after the committee has completed all steps in the screening process short of the on-campus interview.
341.00 Establishing the Finalist Pool
There is no required number of individuals who must comprise the finalist pool.
The chair of the search committee or the hiring authority must submit the names of finalists to HR/AA.
Not all finalists should be interviewed. The hiring authority may select a sub-set of finalists to recommend to HR/AA and the Provost or appropriate Vice President for interviews.
342.00 Equal Treatment
Search and screening committees must ensure that applicants are treated fairly throughout the screening process. Specifically this means that candidates at the same stage of the search process will have received the same treatment as all other applicants at that same stage. In other words, if the committee calls one reference for one applicant who scores in the top ten legitimate candidates, then one reference should be checked for the other nine. If one finalist has had two references checked and participated in a telephone interview, then all finalists must have received the same treatment.
Further, committees must avoid any action which gives, or appears to give, one candidate an unreasonable or unfair advantage over another.
343.00 Documentation
At every decision point in the search process, committees must maintain accurate records of the specific, job-related reasons why they did or did not advance an applicant for further consideration.
As the screening process continues, the rationale for each decision will necessarily become more detailed.
Since search files are kept for three years, the committee must record its deliberations in enough detail that HR/AA can reconstruct the decisions if the search is ever challenged.
Committee members should ensure that their evaluation of reference checks and screening interviews are part of the deliberations of the committee and are documented in the minutes of the search committee. They do not have to submit or retain their hand written notes from interviews.
[Main Table of Contents]
[Sections 300-340 Contents]
[Section 340 Contents]
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