This toolkit is designed to assist hiring departments by consolidating information needed to fill vacant position(s) and resources for the selection and placement of employees. Employment Services looks forward to partnering with you throughout the hiring process to help identify the best qualified candidates.

Advertising the Position

As part of the request to post a vacant position, advertisements for external sources must be submitted as an attachment for central HR Services review. Departments are responsible for funding and placing external advertisements, once approved.

Advertising beyond the NMSU job posting site should target audiences with a goal of obtaining a diverse qualified applicant pool. There is no specific advertising requirement; however, your goal should be to make a good faith effort in obtaining a qualified applicant pool by placing advertisements in media sources that target applicants with the functional-specific areas for your position. Generally for exempt positions, regional (Las Cruces, El Paso, Albuquerque etc.), local (Las Cruces, NMSU website, Dept. of Labor etc.) or internal to NMSU (Job Search site).

• Be aware of how language in the advertisement may adversely impact a diverse pool of candidates if the requirements are too restrictive.
• All advertising must include: department name, position title, requisition number, link to full posting and Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Statement.
  • Short Version of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Statement for Job Advertisements. All electronic job ads must include a link to the position announcement on the NMSU website, which contains instructions for requesting disability accommodation.
    • NMSU is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer committed to assembling a diverse, broadly trained faculty and staff. Women, minorities, people with disabilities, and veterans are strongly encouraged to apply.

OR

• • • NMSU is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. Women, minorities, people with disabilities and veterans are strongly encouraged to apply.

OR

• • • NMSU is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer.
• Resources: Sample Ads | Recruitment Publication Resources

Preparing for the Selection Process

Establishing Selection Committee

NMSU is dedicated to providing equal employment opportunities in all areas of occupation without regard to age, ancestry, color, mental or physical disability, gender, serious medical condition, national origin, race, religion, sexual identity, sexual orientation, spousal affiliation, or veteran status, according to state, federal laws and NMSU’s LEADS 2025 Strategic Plan.

The purpose of a Selection Committee is to ensure that the search process is fair and equitable to all and leads to the recruitment and selection of the best qualified candidate.

Staff Selection Committee Recommendations

In an effort to maintain efficiency and effectiveness of resources at New Mexico State University, Human Resource Services and the Office of Institutional Equity recommend the following processes be adopted as the standard for establishing a Selection committee involving and including the selection process. However, NMSU Management should evaluate each vacancy separately based on uniqueness of the position; and for factors as cross-departmental relationships, external university interactions, or underutilization to determine if a different selection process is needed. Central Human Resource Services approval is required prior to extending any offer of employment.

If a selection committee is used, each participant must complete the Search Advisory Committee Declarations Statement and route to the search chair for the department recruitment file.

Initial Review of Applications

Applicants are required to apply online for University vacancies. External application materials should not be accepted. Departments will directly receive all applications for exempt and non-exempt positions. During the recruitment process, application materials are confidential. Review and screening of positions should begin after the posting close date.. The employing department must evaluate and screen candidates to identify those that meet the posted minimum qualifications and of those which meet the department’s selection criteria, while at the same time documenting the reasons for not selecting other candidates. Use caution when deselecting candidates, because an automated email notification is sent immediately upon deselection. If an error is made in deselecting a candidate, contact your HRS Team Partner to discuss options. The deselection can be reversed, but the email notification cannot.

Resources/Tools:
Manager's Guide to Applicant Qualifications
Applicant Qualification Calculator

Candidate Assessments/Evaluating Candidates

The purpose of candidate assessments is to assist in making an objective and informed decision about which applicant will best provide the knowledge skills and abilities to be successful on the job.

A chart or matrix can be devised listing all interviewed candidates and listing, on the other axis, criteria for successful performance in the position such as experience, education, key skills, knowledge, abilities, presentation in interview, etc. This approach helps the interviewer organize and display a variety of pertinent information for consideration in making the final selection decision.

Resources/Tools:
Initial Screening Tool
Sample Criteria Tool

Preparing Interview Questions

Advanced preparation of interview questions provides a uniform basis for evaluating candidates. Prepare open-ended questions that will assist in evaluating the knowledge, skills and abilities required for a new employee to be successful on the job. Inappropriate questions that relate to an applicant's personal life or protected class status cannot be asked.

Resources/Tools:
Sample Interview Questions
Examples of Illegal Questions

Determining the Interview Process

Hiring departments may conduct interviews after the review date or deadline date of the position. Telephone interviews and/or face-to-face interviews provide viable information about the applicant's knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the essential functions of the job. As a standard practice, it is recommended that interviews be conducted in a consistent setting. The interview will also provide valuable information to the applicant about the department, university/community college and the local area. In structured interviews, the same questions are asked of each candidate. Responses to each question should be documented for further evaluation of the candidates and retained by the department for three (3) years in the Department's recruitment file in a secure location.

NMSU encourages departments to invite candidates for interview in writing (email or letter). We have created two sample templates for invitation to interview.

The minimum interview requirements are:

• Non-Exempt – Interview one for every three qualified applicants or at least four, if there are twelve or more qualified applicants.
• Exempt – Interview a minimum of two qualified applicants.

NOTE: Please see the Manager’s Guide: Qualifying Applicants to determine if the applicant meets the qualifications.

The Selection Process

Conducting Reference Checks

As a standard practice, central HRS recommends conducting the reference checks on your finalist prior to interviewing. It is good practice to notify your finalists of your intent. The online application has the candidate release form built in and applicants are required to agree in order to apply for the position. Hiring departments can minimize the risk of hiring an employee who will not be able to succeed in the new job by contacting previous supervisors to ask about job performance. Reference information provided by the applicant is an essential step in cross-referencing information received. You should only conduct reference checks on finalists for the position. Many companies will only confirm employment dates and positions held. You have a better chance of getting the information you need if you are able to contact previous supervisors directly.

References will often feel more comfortable confirming information provided rather than being asked a general question about job performance. If you are unable to obtain sufficient references, the next step would be to contact the candidate and let him/her know that without references, you cannot pursue his/her candidacy further.

Suggested Referencing Questions: Questions should not be asked of any reference that cannot legally be asked of the applicant.

The Interview

The interview gives you an opportunity to further evaluate the applicant's job-related knowledge, skills, and abilities. This interview also provides the ability to gather additional information about critical points on the application or to resolve any inconsistencies or contradictions that were noted.

Responsibilities as an interviewer are:

• To interview applicants and select employees on the basis of job-related qualifications
• To record the steps taken in the hiring process
• To project a professional and positive impression of NMSU on prospective candidates for employment
• To be consistent and treat all applicants equal when conducting the interviews
• Be cautious of informal conversations or inappropriate questions

Making the Offer

After the required reviews are completed, the hiring manager must submit the Hiring Proposal with the requested salary, proposed future start date, and draft offer letter to central HRS to obtain approval to extend the offer. The start date must be a future date allowing for time to process, and it is highly recommended that it coincide with the beginning of a new pay period. Central HRS will conduct a standard review, including but not limited to verification of qualifications, internal inequities, etc. Refer to the PageUp User Manual for instructions to deselect the remaining candidates.

Tools/Resources:
Manager's Guide to Proposing a Starting Salary

Sample Offer Letter for Staff

Sample Offer Letter with Contingency for Staff

Required Provost Office Approval for Making the Offer

Employment and Compensation Services will route the following actions for Executive Vice President and Provost Office (EVPP) prior to finalizing:

• Provost Office approval is required prior to extending an offer of employment for the following:
  • Dean/Assc Dean All Campuses
  • Community College Senior Level Administrators (includes Academic Administrators)
  • Interim appointments for the above
• Note: all approvals will be obtained electronically through routing of the electronic action.

Once all approvals are received, central HRS will approve the Hiring Proposal and an automated notification is sent to the Hiring Manager. At this time the Hiring Manager may make a verbal offer to the candidate. Once the candidate has accepted the verbal offer, the Hiring Manager should follow up with a written offer letter to the selected candidate. All offers of employment are contingent on a successful background check.

Once the candidate has accepted the offer, the Hiring Department will complete the Hiring Confirmation and submit it to HRS. The candidate will receive an electronic notification initiated by central HRS to complete the Background Check Release ( Background Check Process Flow). The Hiring Department will be notified when background check results are received.

Position Filled-Next Steps

Onboarding New Hire

To assist you with successfully onboarding your new employee, NMSU utilizes an electronic onboarding process via NMSU’s hiring system, PageUp. To learn more about this process, visit http://hr.nmsu.edu/onboarding-guide/.

More forms and documents to assist you in this process can be found on the New Employee webpage.

Disposition of Applicants/Following up with Candidates

After the Hiring Confirmation has been approved, the department will need to change the status of finalists to notify them that the position has been filled. This information is used to record and summarize recruitment activities for the Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action Program reporting requirements.

The online application system will generate an electronic response to all applicants that a final selection has been made. Non-selected applicants who request specific information or access to selection documents should be referred to central HRS at (575) 646-8000 or hrhelp@nmsu.edu.

Recruitment Record Retention

All application documents generated externally from the PageUp process may be scanned and attached as supplemental documents to the Hiring Proposal. Departments should be aware that these documents may be released to the public under the New Mexico Inspection of Public Records Act (NMIPRA). Examples of the application documents include but are not limited to: interview notes, candidate assessments, reference checks of finalists and online disposition of each candidate. For more information regarding records retention visit Records Management and Retention.

Supplemental/Additional Compensation

Regular staff and faculty serving as a temporary faculty member must be hired as supplemental compensation (note cannot exceed a total FTE of 1.50 under ARP 7.53 – Additional Compensation for Supplemental NMSU Employment. All other circumstances, university wide (including the community colleges), please use position number 918898 for Temporary Staff Supplemental Pay.