Employment & Search Resources

On this page you will find resources for guidance during faculty searches as we recognize TU’s strategic vision for the design, promotion, and delivery of best-practice diversity, inclusion, and cultural competency efforts across campus.

10 Quick Tips for Successful Faculty Searches

1. Assess department needs and obtain approval to begin a search (Dean, Office of the Provost, Provost Budget Office). All relevant faculty search and hire forms can be found in the forms repository.
2. Schedule a Successful Faculty Search Training session through the OIIE and Office of the Provost. To do this the steps you need to take are as follows:
   1. Self-enroll into the Successful Faculty Search and Hire Training module via Blackboard.
   2. Watch the training video and pass the test within the module.
   3. Work with your chair and dean to schedule a 30-minute training review session for your college with OIIE to go over your questions from the module. Once you find a time reach out to us via email, HiringFaculty AT_TOWSON.
   4. Once complete, all faculty will need to re-take the training every three years.
3. Create a Job Announcement, including minimum qualifications, preferred qualifications, and using inclusive language and distribute to local / national resources to attract underrepresented populations.
4. Select a diverse search committee to include members with different perspectives and expertise and a demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusion (consider appointing members from outside the department, particularly for interdisciplinary searches).
5. Create clear evaluation criteria for determining general eligibility and for screening a short-list of promising candidates.
6. Be aware of the possibility of your own hidden bias or cognitive errors in evaluating competence and merit:
   1. Positive and negative stereotypes - presumption of innate competence / incompetence, ability / lack of ability to fit in, etc., based on race, gender and other personal characteristics
   2. Raising or lowering the bar - setting higher / lower standards for some candidates based on negative / positive stereotypes
   3. Good fit / bad fit - reference to the disciplinary niche or programmatic needs of the department, and / or indicator of how comfortable or culturally at ease we feel about the letters of reference, CVs, published work, written statements about research, teaching and service.
   4. Bias: An error in evaluating performance, skill or potential. In evaluating performance, bias leads to lower assessments for some and more lenient ones for others - despite the same qualifications and level of accomplishment (Steinpreis, Anders, Ritzke 1999)
   5. Implicit Bias Resources
      1. Lesson 1: Schemas, mental short-cuts that help us navigate the world around us
      2. Lesson 2: Attitudes and Stereotypes
      3. Lesson 3: Real World Consequences
      4. Lesson 4: Explicit vs. Implicit Bias
      5. Lesson 5: The IAT (Implicit Association Test)
      6. Lesson 6: Countermeasures
7. Provide information and access to accommodations for candidates with disabilities.
8. Request interview pool demographic data from OIIE and schedule approved interviews and events to ensure consistent treatment of all candidates, including internal candidates (see list of interview questions).
9. Follow-up with candidates who did not meet requirements / interview expectations after an offer is extended and accepted.
10. Ensure correct disposition codes and rationale are entered for each applicant / candidate and celebrate your new colleague!

Faculty and Staff Employment Opportunities

TU is committed to fostering a learning community that mirrors the face of the population surrounding the campus, regionally and Statewide. University diversity initiatives include building strong, targeted diversity outreach efforts to foster the achievement of diversity goals in hiring. You can find information about current openings through human resources.

Provost's Budget Office

The Provost’s Budget Office is here to help you search for and hire tenured/tenure-track, clinical, and visiting faculty, as well as lecturers, adjunct faculty and academic staff.

Recruitment Resources

For more information and resources OIIE and the Office of the Provost have listed below websites, organizations and publications to provide support in your Diversity Initiatives and faculty searches.