University of Maryland, College Park Procedures Governing the Search Process for Permanent Faculty, Associate Staff, and Academic Administrators

The following search and selection guidelines, with appropriate rationale and procedures, have been developed to assist units in conducting and documenting the process leading to the employment of permanent faculty and associate staff at the University of Maryland College Park.

1. The formal request for initiating a search is intended to provide an opportunity for the Equity Administrator, the Major Unit Head, and the person making the request to discuss the affirmative action goals within the academic or administrative unit. This discussion should serve as a basis for approving the initiation of a search and the charge to the search committee.  
   
   With the exception of the President's Office, all reviews of requests to initiate searches and all subsequent reviews of activities and materials related to the affirmative action components of searches should be conducted by Equity Administrators who are external to the hiring unit. In the instances of appointments to Deans' or Directors' staffs, such reviews should be conducted by the Equity Administrator in the appropriate Vice President's unit. In the instances when the Vice Presidents are the authorizing Officials, such reviews should be the responsibility of the Assistant to the President for Equity Administration.  
   
   The request should include:
   1. a position announcement, and
   2. a list of the membership of the search committee or alternative screening committee.

The academic or administrative unit head (Authorizing Official) makes a request to the appropriate Dean, Vice President or to the President (Major Unit Head) for approval to fill a position.

The academic or administrative unit head has responsibility for appointing a committee chairperson and a "fair representation" of committee members, i.e., by race, rank, sex, and relevant discipline. Every effort should be made to have female and minority faculty or staff representation on all search committees, even if such representation comes from outside of the academic or administrative unit.