Talking Points: Searches, Diversity, & Decision Strategies

Important Facts About Searches, Diversity, and Decision Strategies

NSF data indicate that 84% of married women with doctorates have a spouse who works full time; 42% of married men with doctorates have a spouse who works full time.
55% of women scientists are married to another scientist; 32% of of men scientists married to another scientist.

Source: National Science Foundation Women, Minorities and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering: 1996 Arlington VA (NSF96-311)

The best candidates in under-represented groups are generally disinclined to explore employment at universities without clear and publicized standards for promotion and tenure and procedures for partner accommodation.
When department heads/chairs were asked to evaluate whether a candidate was qualified for a position in their department based on a CV, they were significantly more likely to rate the candidate as qualified if a male name was on the CV than if a female name was on it, although the CVs were identical. Even diversity-friendly selection committees invariably rank female and minority candidates lower when using a single composite measures (e.g. overall impression).
When female and minority candidates are ranked on the basis of several numerical, multi-objective criteria, the same candidates do better than predicted from a single, overall ranking.
Decision-making processes based on explicit, multiple, numerical criteria which are chosen at the inception of the selection process are less acrimonious among faculty, result in more qualified and accepted job candidates, and are more fair to underrepresented groups.
Interviewees, successful and unsuccessful, frequently meet in the future and compare notes, and invariably talk about interview experiences with colleagues and mentors. Searches with unevenly asked questions , unclear goals and decision criteria, and impolite or disinterested participants convey a lasting negative impression of both department and university. A track record of bad experiences makes it more difficult for the institution to attract quality candidates in future hires.
Advertisements written with more specific job responsibilities/research areas in mind are generally more successful in attracting both more highly regarded and more diverse faculty. Think about writing a prototype role statement for your potential hire before you advertise to guide the advertisement and the search.
"Google" is now an accepted verb in Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary. What is and is not explicitly stated regarding positions and practices speaks loudly to modern job applicants.