AFTER THE APPLICATION WINDOW CLOSES:
EEO and Recruitment Reports: As soon as possible after the closing date or date for preferred consideration of candidates, and before any faculty members review applications, the Chair must submit to their contact AD and wait for clearance to proceed:
- Interfolio total pool EEO Report:
Who: Department Chair (Administrator on Interfolio: NOT the search chair)
When: Prior to date when search committee plans initial evaluation of total pool of applications. This is typically the date noted in the ad as deadline (whether hard or soft) for candidates to apply for full consideration.
What: on Interfolio
• Go to Report>Form Reports>follow menu to download EEO summary report
• Save CSV report as Excel File with name: “[DEPT]-EEO summary report” - Report on Recruitment Activities
• Details activities undertaken by members of the search committee and others, if applicable, consistent with Recruitment Plan for Inclusive Excellence
• Prepared by Search Committee chair (not on Interfolio), provided to contact AD by Department Chair
The EEO report is used as a check on patterns of unintentional or implicit bias, per University Search Procedures. This mandatory process applies to all shortlists generated, including lists for campus visits, but the process for generating the list is different after the total pool.
The Recruitment report should detail whether and how the department fulfilled the details of its recruitment plan. Many departments submit a list of outreach activities, the dates, and the individual who initiated them.
Both reports sent together (by Dept Chair) to contact AD in Dean’s Office (NOT to Kimberly), Cc: Search Committee Chair. Contact AD will reply to Department Chair (cc to Search Committee Chair) within 2 business days if possible with approval to proceed to next step (reviewing applicants, developing shortlist, etc.) or, if not approved, will initiate discussion with Department Chair on recruitment and how to increase diversity of pool in order to gain approval to move to the next step.
NOTE: EEO Report and Report on Recruitment Activities must be approved BEFORE reviewing any applications or meeting to develop shortlist.
Rubric(s): Although rubrics were submitted along with the ad as part of the approval process, they may be adjusted through the fall as faculty continue to talk about its search. These adjustments, however, must be set before each phase of candidate evaluation begins. If additional material will be requested from candidates at any point in the search process, rubrics must include how such additional information will be evaluated.
Interviews and selection: Faculty involved in these parts of the search process should participate in the STRIDE focused conversation on interviews and selection.
Interviews: Based on STRIDE best practices, each department should develop interview questions in advance to be consistently applied across all candidates for all interviews by the search committee. Interview questions, like the rubric, should be tied to the job and expectations of the faculty position.
Selection of candidate for recommendation to the Dean: Each department should develop a process for discussion and selection of candidates that is based on considering the strengths and weaknesses of each candidate with reference to the job and expectations as described in the ad and rubrics. There are now questionnaires provided by the Provost’s Office to help departments structure the information on which departmental decisions are made. This questionnaire is provided here.
Monitoring biases: At each step of the process, continue to monitor implicit biases, remembering that the metrics by which each of us has learned to evaluate excellence are not necessarily the best or only metrics that are appropriate to obtaining our educational, teaching, and research goals at UMBC.
Additional resources for Chairs, search committees, and departments:The book Searching for Excellence and Diversity, provided to every department doing a search over the past few years, is a good resource on the entire process, from starting a search to interviewing and making decisions. If your department hasn’t received a copy yet, the Dean’s Office will provide one.
SELECTING CANDIDATES: IDENTIFYING THE ‘LONG’ AND ‘SHORT’ LISTS:
Often searches are narrowed by using the rubrics to filter the pool down to a long list (“shortlist 1” or “longlist”: e.g., 8-20 candidates) for phone or video screening interviews. In some cases this is when letters are requested, which results in a further narrowing. Once the long list is identified, the members of that list should be ‘tagged’ in Interfolio, the Chair should notify the contact AD, then wait for authorization to proceed. Usually the Dean’s Office can turn these requests around within 2 business days.
Who: Search Committee Chair or Dept Chair (Dept decision)
When: As soon as shortlist (1 and/or 2) is developed by search committee but BEFORE any contact is made with any applicant.
What: “Shortlisted” application names are ‘tagged’ on Interfolio: Application status (“Shortlist”/“Shortlist 1”/”Longlist”) is applied to each application shortlisted by the search committee. Following changing the application status of each “shortlisted” candidate to “Shortlist”/“Shortlist 1”/”Longlist” on Interfolio,
send email to your contact AD, noting in email that application status on Interfolio has been updated.
To: Contact AD – (NOT to Kimberly) with
Cc: Dept Chair/search committee chair (whoever is not sending email) & contact AD, NOT copied to Kimberly.
Your contact AD will work with Provost’s Office to process the “shortlist” EEO Reports; they will reply to Department Chair (cc to Search Committee Chair, or reverse) within 2 business days (pending Provost office availability) with approval to proceed to next step of search or, if not approved, will initiate discussion with Department Chair on what to do for approval.
FINALISTS FOR CAMPUS VISITS:
Faculty groups and others: To all finalist candidates, prior to their campus visit provide the list of UMBC Faculty Groups (below). Offer to either arrange appointments for candidates to meet with representatives of any of these groups or provide time in their visit schedule if candidates want to set up their own appointments. Consider inviting faculty outside your department who may share the candidate’s interests to lunch, the seminar, or other meeting opportunities. Let candidates know that these are social meetings, not interviews.
Faculty Affinity Groups
The Provost’s Office maintains a list of affinity groups here.
UMBC and CAHSS Faculty Affinity Groups—the CAHSS Black Faculty Committee, the CAHSS Women Faculty Network, the Latino/Hispanic Faculty Association, the LGBTQ Faculty/Staff Association, the Asian & Asian American Faculty & Staff Council, and WISE (Women in Science and Engineering)—have members who are available to meet with job candidates, answer questions, etc.