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Office of Human Resources: Illinois State University

Organize the Application

The chairperson of the Recruitment Committee, with clerical support, (or the hiring decision-maker when a Recruitment Committee is not required/utilized) is responsible for setting up procedures that meet the requirements of confidentiality and efficiency. Record keeping and filing should be careful and secure, and organized so that committee members can easily sift through applications and retrieve particular candidates’ materials.

Establish Consistent Procedures

A fair, efficient search depends on the committee chairperson, committee members, and clerical support staff using the following procedures:

  1. Date stamping materials has been eliminated except in the instance where supplemental materials are requested outside of the online application system. Where those materials are requested, please see that the candidate receives email notification that the material has been received.
  2. Voluntary Information Forms are no longer required for A/P positions that are recruited through the online application system;
  3. The committee chairperson must ensure that applications are complete, or that missing materials are solicited;
  1. The committee must create a form for evaluating all applicants’ credentials. The evaluation form must be based on criteria described in the position description and announcement. Criteria that are not specified in these documents should not be used in making the selection decision. Please download the Sample Evaluation Form for help creating your own. The evaluation form should be designed to quickly identify candidates who do not meet the minimum qualifications as specified in the position announcement.

The following criteria apply to most administrative/professional positions:

  • Education
  • Experience
  • Scholarly or creative record
  • Administrative and other skills related to the position
  • Professional accomplishments related to the position

    • Deadline for Application Materials

    Because circumstances may vary from search to search, Recruitment Committees should set a deadline that works for their particular search. In general, if an applicant has been solicited for missing materials and has not supplied them (or indicated that materials may be delayed) by the time the committee begins scheduling telephone interviews, consider taking the applicant out of the pool. Keep in mind that all applicants must be treated in the same consistent fashion throughout the recruitment process.

    If candidates make contact about their search status

    Refer the candidate to a contact person that is not a Recruitment Committee member, HR when appropriate. The contact person should only describe the stage the search is in at the time (e.g., "We’ve begun looking at applications."), not the status of the particular application. To ensure fairness to all candidates, this procedure should be followed even if a very strong candidate indicates that he or she is short listed at another university.