Pre-Review for Faculty Hiring

Purpose

To detail the requirements and process for obtaining initial EVPP approval for any tenured or tenure-track faculty hire in Liberal Arts.

Relevant Definitions:

Pre-review: The process of obtaining required Provost’s Office (Faculty Affairs) approval prior to discussing any potential offer with a tenured or tenure-track faculty recruit.

• Note: “Pre” means the approval should be requested prior to negotiation of terms of hire.

  • Once the pre-review materials have been submitted, departments can proceed with the recruitment process, including initiating preliminary discussions with the finalist, with the caveat that the department must be clear that university approval to extend an offer has not yet been granted.

  • No commitments should be made to a finalist prior to receiving pre-review approval and approval of the Associate Dean for Academic and Faculty Affairs.

  • Sample language for communicating with finalist prior to pre-approval: “The department has voted to offer you the position, and we have submitted a request to the Provost to move forward with the hire.”

Process:

1. Once a department identifies a finalist, and before any additional recruitment action is taken, the following materials are submitted to COLA_HR (cola_hr@austin.utexas.edu) attn: Stuart Tendler:

   1. Finalist CV

   2. Interfolio Posting ID.

   3. Proposed rank of candidate

   4. Brief description of the recruitment process, and process of identifying the finalist for this position, including:

      1. the process the search committee used to identify and encourage potential candidates to apply, including who was surveyed for candidate recommendations and the total number of invitations sent;

      2. the total number of applicants for the position;

      3. the number of preliminary interviews conducted;

      4. the number of candidates who came for campus visits.

   5. Provide a rationale for selecting this candidate as the finalist:

      1. Note: If the candidate received their PhD from UT Austin, was a postdoc at UT Austin, or is currently employed by the university, provide additional justification(s) to support the selection.

   6. What is the candidate’s current institution?

   7. Provide a brief summary of the candidate’s research area and why it is important to the department/college.

   8. What is the candidate’s current rank/position and tenure status?

      1. Provide a justification if the proposed position at UT Austin is at a higher rank than the candidate’s current position.

   9. Any additional information you would like to share about the request.

2. COLA HR will submit the request to Faculty Affairs and notify the department when the review is completed.

   1. The review may result in approval, denial, or a request for additional information.

3. Once pre-review is approved, departments may proceed with the recruitment.

Related Policies:

Required Faculty Hiring Processes and Senate Bill 17

Other Related Links:

Interfolio

Tenured and Tenure-Track Recruitment (COLA wiki)

PARs for Tenured and Tenure-Track Faculty (COLA wiki)