Faculty Search Recommended Practices

Faculty search processes are an important part of Yale School of Medicine securing the best possible faculty. Many of the important principles are defined on the central Yale University webpages. The mechanics of the processes will be facilitated by the Faculty Affairs Department Teams. Faculty leaders are typically in charge of conducting searches with administrative support. The search process generally takes at least 4-6 months.

An initial stage of the search process is to determine the needs of the department and define the characteristics of an optimal candidate. This helps determine the appropriate members of the search committee (usually 4-8 faculty members). It is important to convey to prospective members of the search committee that it is a high priority task requiring commitment from faculty of different backgrounds, ranks, tracks, and perspectives. In some cases, it may be useful to include faculty from other departments to engage relevant expertise.

A new or replacement position can be posted and advertised once the request for position (RFP) receives conditional approval from the Office of Academic and Professional Development (OAPD). This approval also enables a case to be opened in Interfolio to which applicants can be instructed to submit materials. In addition to position postings and advertisements, departmental faculty can contact current and former trainees and other colleagues in their field to encourage their application when relevant. Informal networking and spreading the word about the position is often an effective way to find qualified candidates. All applicants should submit their materials in Interfolio, which allows for candidate tracking by the search committee and departmental administrators.

Regular meetings of the search committee help facilitate reviews and discussions. This allows for review of applicants and timely ranking, screening, and interviewing of candidates as their materials become available in Interfolio. It is important to consider all external and internal candidates who appear qualified.

All candidates submitting applications should receive a response acknowledging receipt of their materials and information about next steps. When applicants will not be pursued, they should be informed in a timely manner to be respectful of their other job searching. Candidates that seem like good matches for the position should be contacted to set up a preliminary telephone/virtual discussion by one or more search committee members. If these conversations are positive, the candidate should be discussed at the next search committee meeting. It is appropriate to give the candidates a sense of when they will be hearing back about next steps, e.g., search committee discussion about short list of candidates to be interviewed further.

Once the list of qualified / strong candidates is developed, the committee should consider which ones should be invited for remote or on-site interviews and campus visits. This decision reflects a commitment to the candidate by the committee, and so it is important that only serious candidates be advanced to this step of the process. It is important to set up an organized interview process to present the department to these candidates. Candidates who will not be pursued can be moved to the archive list to keep the working list manageable. It is important to maintain an appropriate amount of transparency with all candidates, especially internal candidates.

Through the initial screening and subsequent interview process, it is recommended that all applicants be given opportunities to respond to a common set of questions that are developed by the committee in addition to questions that may be more relevant to the candidate’s experiences and interests. It is also recommended that all candidates who move beyond initial screening and into a more formal interview stage (or short-list status) be allowed to present their work in consistent formats (e.g., written documents, oral presentations) and have similar access to the search committee and other members of the department. Throughout the process, it is important to document comments from the search committee in Interfolio for tracking the search process and outcome.

If candidates are asked to speak about their work remotely or at a campus visit, select a time that maximizes the opportunity for department faculty to attend. If candidates are not asked to speak about their work but meet with other faculty not on the search committee, each candidate should meet with the same faculty members, wherever possible. Take into consideration the relevant expertise of the faculty who will participate in interviews. Following a visit, individual search committee members should complete an assessment and possibly a ranking. The committee then meets to discuss the candidates and decide whether additional interviews are conducted or to make recommendations to the Department Chair about moving forward to an offer.

While the above considerations are similar across recruitments, there may be important differences across Tracks (clinically intensive and research intensive) and Departments (clinical, bridge, and basic science) that need to be taken into account. As finalists are identified for a search, the committee should work with their Faculty Affairs Department Team to address the administrative steps that ensue.

Of note, Yale Medicine has engaged and supports the use of Korn Ferry as a search firm to assist with the sourcing and hiring of clinically involved faculty. They can help with identifying and screening candidates and facilitate steps of the search process. If looking to engage these services, your Faculty Affairs Department Team can help facilitate the connection to Korn Ferry.