The University is an equal opportunities employer.

Shortlisting

Copies of all applications/C.Vs will be sent to the panel chair and panel members, normally within 48 hours of the closing date (contact your Recruitment Administrator if these have not been received by then). These documents contain personnel data, therefore in accordance with the Data Protection Act these documents should only be viewed by panel members. It is the responsibility of the Chair to ensure that confidentiality is maintained during the short listing and interview process. Applicants have not consented to their personal details being passed to a third party such as other College members/Colleagues and others who are not directly involved in the shortlisting process, if this happens it may constitute a breach of the Data Protection Act 1998.

The Chair is responsible for arranging a shortlisting meeting attended by all members of the selection panel (only in exceptional circumstances should shortlisting be carried out by correspondence).  Ideally the date for the shortlisting meeting should be agreed at the time the schedule has been agreed.

'Positive About Disabled People'

The University of Exeter is an equal opportunity employer which is 'Positive About Disabled People; as such the University has made a number of commitments regarding recruitment, training, retention, consultation and disability awareness (full details below). In terms of recruitment, the commitment we have made is to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for a job vacancy and to consider them on their abilities. Applicants are advised to disclose whether they have a disability in their application and it is the responsibility of the recruitment panel to ensure that any disabled applicant who meets the minimum essential criteria is offered an interview.

Panel members should also be aware of the duty to make reasonable adjustments for any candidate with a disability. Examples of reasonable adjustments could include:

  • changing the interview location for an applicant who has mobility difficulties
  • ensuring there is no background noise for a candidate with a hearing impairment
  • allowing an applicant with a learning disability to be accompanied by a helper at the interview.

At the shortlisting meeting, the panel will:

  • Assess each application against, and only against, the published selection criteria. You may find the Shortlisting Scoring Grid a useful resource for this exercise. Record the results on the Applicant Shortlisting form (PD63), contained within the PD01 Excel workbook. This form will be provided with the applications/cvs and will include the unique “recruitment reference” number;
  • Decide which candidates should be invited to interview (it would be expected normally to invite up to six candidates) and whether a test or presentation will be required.
  • Consider whether the selection process should include a test of some kind to assess certain selection criteria (eg written or numerical skills, ability to use spreadsheets or manipulate data, a short presentation).  Advice on this can be sought from your HR Business Partner.
  • Complete the Interview Programme form PD62, contained within the PD01  Excel workbook, and return this to your Recruitment Administrator.  This form requests details of the shortlisted candidates, details of any tests, timescales and any other special instructions. 

Note – a decision not to shortlist an applicant can be challenged under discrimination law at an employment tribunal.  It is recommended that a record is kept of the criteria under which job applicants are shortlisted for at least 6 months.

Please contact your HR Business Partner if you have any queries about an applicant’s right to work in the UK.

Shortlisted candidates will be invited for interview by your Recruitment Administrator. Candidates applying for a post at Grade E or above, will be sent an interview Expenses Claim Form (PD69) providing they are travelling from outside of EX1, EX2, EX3 and EX4 areas (for Exeter posts) or TR10 area (for Cornwall posts) they will be able to claim travel expenses. Candidates are now able to book accommodation directly and claim this back from the College/Service if they are unable to travel to and from the University all within the same day (Max £80.00).  See notes listed at the end of the PD69 for detailed guidance. Note that candidates normally expect to be given a minimum of 7 working days notice prior to interview.

Internal candidates which are not shortlisted:

In recognition of the University’s commitments to its staff in its Training & Development Strategy, unsuccessful applicants who already work for the University should also be offered the opportunity to speak to a Training & Development Adviser as a follow-up to the post-shortlisting feedback. After giving the verbal feedback, the Dean/Head should ask the member of staff if they would like him/her to ask a Training & Development Adviser contact them to discuss their personal/career development. If the answer is yes, then the Head should telephone or email their Training & Development Adviser to ask them to contact the member of staff.

Also at the shortlisting meeting (or at some point before the interviews):

  • Decide on the format of the interviews, the questions to be asked, and which of the selection criteria will be addressed by which members of the panel. 
  • Note – a core set of questions must be asked of every candidate, however this should not stop you probing the candidate’s answers by asking follow up questions.  
  • If exercises or presentations are to be included consider the specific arrangements in detail (eg venue, availability of computer/printer, powerpoint, nature of tests in relation to the selection criteria, how exercises will be scored etc).