There is already a lot of work happening around the University in terms of inclusive recruitment and general guidance in recruitment practice. This section has been designed specifically with students in mind.
Students are often not professionals in a career field, and in many circumstances, this is their first instance of applying for a role or potentially even paid work.
Often, we are looking for passion and interest in our student employees. This is something to bear in mind through all parts of the recruitment stages- we are trying to encourage student participation, and using inclusive approaches is the right way to start!
The advert
1. Job design
Inclusivity starts at the job design stage. When you are writing up what you think the job will look like, think about your own bias- are you inadvertently writing the role with a specific type of candidate in mind?
Think about how this could impact who you are able to recruit.
Getting the advert right is essential to attract the pool of candidates you're hoping for. The linked pages give advice for filling the Unitemps advert form.
- What you should consider
- What you can signpost out to
- What could put students off (who are you
The recruitment process itself takes place through the Unitemps portal.Link opens in a new window
It's easy to miss out on good candidates, depending on where and how we post the opportunity. Learn more about how and where to engage students.
The interview
Shortlisting, how you set up the interview, and equipping the staff involved- these are all important considerations that could have a huge impact on the outcome as well as the experience for students involved.
Consider things such as:
- An activity a student can prepare beforehand
- The style of questions being asked
- How to help students best represent themselves
6. Evaluating an interview
When evaluating a candidate:
- Consider how candidates will be able to display the skills and criteria you're looking for
- Try to record the candidate's response, as well as your thoughts about their response
- Consider evaluating candidates not individually, but evaluating the response to each question in turn
- Allow for reflection time, and come together after all candidates have been seen
- As you go through, write feedback you would send should the candidate not be successful whilst it is still in your mind
The chair should act as the “inclusion representative” whose role is to challenge groupthink during the evaluation process.
7. Offering the role
- Explain the next steps they need to follow from Unitemps to confirm their acceptance
- Remind them of the expected start date, and any other key dates and times
- Arrange where and how you will meet them for their induction, and whether there will be induction materials to read
- Confirm the equipment you will provide, and how they can go about collecting/accessing it
- Confirm communication routes - students being hired to work with the University should be encouraged to use Teams for communications (or your other normal communication channels for the project)
- WhatsApp can be helpful as an alternative, although it can't be assumed students should share their personal mobile number, so agreement to use WhatsApp should be sought from everyone involved before a group is created
- If they need any introductory courses or training- share how to access these
8. Unsuccessful candidates
- Always offer feedback, and share with them any general guidance or support (such as with the careers team) that they may want to access.
- If your department/team regularly recruit for student roles, you could also ask if they would be willing to remain on file for any future positions.
- Remind them of any other opportunities for them to get involved with the project (e.g. workshops or focus groups) so that their voice can still be heard!
