What is a search committee?
What is a search committee?
What is a search committee?
Most student affairs job seekers who come to the job search aren’t familiar with the search committee. The search committee is a staple of higher education employment, recruitment, and service. The search committee is often one of the first aspects of the job search you’ll interact with after landing a first round interview.
This article will outline why it’s important to learn about the search committee and how it relates to your student affairs job search. The search committee’s purpose, process, composition, and commitment will be reviewed in detail. Search committees are usually comprised of individuals at the institution who are representative of its community and its values. A review of how they are recruited and retained will be provided.
Search committee procedures are often aspects of the student affairs job search that are a mystery for job seekers. This article will discuss those procedures in addition to what can be done in order to make this process more effective for everyone involved. Specific steps for how to prepare for an interview with the search committee will be shared as well as what to do during the interview. Finally, steps for involving yourself in future search committees as a student affairs professional will be discussed.
Why learn more about the search committee?
So why learn about the search committee? It’s important to know what they do in order to become better acclimated with the higher education job search as well as the role that this group plays with student affairs professionals. Search committees often conduct panel interviews. This is where more than one interviewer is present with the candidate.
Search committee interviews usually involve all members in attendance who in turn ask candidates at least one question. The search committee interview can be intimidating – especially as the candidate – because you are interviewing with so many other interviewers at the same time.
Search committees who conduct these panel interviews also have positive benefits for the search process. They can save interviewers’ time from having to setup several different interviews together; as well as determine how the candidate would work with the dynamic of the organization through interactions with multiple potential colleagues.
Panel interviews with search committees can be highly intimidating. However, it’s often a necessary part of the student affairs job search in order to proceed and succeed in your career.
Search committee purpose
The goal of the search committee is to ultimately make the search process more effective for everyone. This includes the hiring manager; colleagues; and applicants. While this is the intent, it is not always the outcome. That’s because not all search committees are created equally. Some may add a lot of value to the search process; while other may wander off track.
Despite this, search committees are powerful and active reminders of one of higher education’s most treasured characteristics: shared governance. Shared governance makes it so that multiple individuals with stake in the organization are provided opportunities to interact and make decisions in critical processes. It’s often why the student affairs job search takes such a long time. Nevertheless, search committees are employed on a regular basis in order to apply this shared government in practice.
The most effective search committees will be engaged at each step in the process. This includes the formation of the committee; creation of the job description; review of applicants; initial screening; and final round interviews. Search committees are particularly relevant for searches with larger scopes. This could come from higher profile positions (i.e. Dean of Students) to positions that solicit applicants across the nation.
In the end, the search committee’s responsibility is to select and recommend a candidate that they think should be hired based on the process and characteristics they outlined. As such, each search committee is lead by a search chair who determines the overall direction of the group.
Search committee process
The search committee’s charge and process is to add value and contribute significantly to the hiring decisions for the open position. This aids in the committee’s and institution’s commitment to shared governance.
The search committee implements this in process by ensuring that all candidates are provided equal opportunity and consideration during the search. The way that this approached can vary from committee to committee; functional area to functional area; and institution to institution.
One of the ways that this processes varies is how the committee handles the review and selection of applicant materials. Only some of the search committee members may review materials while the rest of them focus on preparing for first round and second round interviews.
Candidates selected for these interviews will often interact with some or all of the search committee members over the phone; via web conferencing platforms like Zoom, Skype, or Google Hangouts; and in person during the on campus interviews. The purpose of this is to provide a forum where members of the committee can interact with candidates throughout multiple stages of the process.
Search committee composition and commitment
Serving on a search committee is a vital aspect to the shared governance model of higher education. Members are often selected from multiple offices, positions, and responsibilities throughout the institution. As such, they perform these search committee functions in addition to their own professional responsibilities.
Search committees can also vary in size; though it’ll be up to the search committee chair to keep it reasonable. Committees can range from 3 members to over 10 members depending on size, scope, and direction of the search.
It can be alluring to have many more people on the search committee; especially since many people can review; screen; and interview applicants. However, since all search committee members perform these duties on top of their normal responsibilities; it is often wiser to choose a select few serve on the committee. A smaller and more agile committee with clear guidance on how to carry out their duties often makes for a more effective search.
Search committee and diversity
Shared governance plays a critical role in the search process. As such, it is important that the search committee also comprise a representative group of people from across the institution. Specific focus is often placed on the relationships between search committee members; reporting lines; and diverse perspectives.
This also means that search committee members must also be made up of people who are qualified to evaluate the qualifications of candidates. Simultaneously, they must also uphold and adhere to the institution’s commitment to excellence and diversity.
This means that committee members don’t always have to come from the same department hiring the candidate. As such, other functional areas in student affairs such as career development; community standards; and civic engagement have an opportunity to influence the recruitment of different candidates.
Therefore, having a well-balanced search committee representative of the institution gives the committee a tremendous amount of credibility.
Search committee procedure
The size of the search committee often dictates the scope of its responsibilities and how it executes them. Despite this, you can often see the search committee performing routine tasks such as collecting candidates’ application documents; conducting first round screens; and recommending finalists to the hiring manager.
Internally, the committee also provides copies of candidate documents to each other in order to review prior to any interview. This process also includes determining who on the committee will ask which questions to the candidate and in what specific order.
Questions asked by the search committee can come in several varieties. Some of which include standard interview questions (i.e. “Why do you want to work here?”) to more robust questions about the functional area; office; or institution. Challenging search committees will ask more behavior based questions that address candidates’ skills and competencies that are required for the open position.
The results of this procedure are to provide each candidate with the same interview protocol. This way, each search committee member can provide accurate impressions of every candidate rather than relying on a single opinion.
The search committee will then offer finalists to the hiring manager after deliberations are completed.
Search committee effectiveness
Search committees are formed due to higher education’s dedication to the shared governance model. However, that model doesn’t also include efficiencies. This often results in a long and protracted search process which also affects the total length of the student affairs job search.
Ultimately it is up to the search committee to conduct a thorough search to identify the ideal candidate for the position. This is often completed through a rigorous and comprehensive search process for the candidate under challenging conditions.
These conditions provide the search committee with a chance to collaboratively interact and interview each candidate that passes through the process. Such a process makes it so that a group dynamic is created that helps determine how the candidate may interact with future coworkers; colleagues; and collaborators in the future.
Prepare for the search committee interview
Student affairs professionals engaged in the search should prepare for an interview with the search committee the same way that they prepare for any interview: practice and research. Doing so is important, as the impression you leave with the search committee outlines your success as a candidate.
The steps that you take to prepare for a search committee interview differs based on functional areas. For instance, those professionals interviewing for positions in admissions or enrollment management should be aware of the institution’s current enrollment practices; targeted student demographics; and mission priorities.
Likewise, prepare for the search committee interview by learning about each search committee member. Discovering information about your future colleagues is a critical step towards better understanding their priorities and needs as members of the institution.
In addition, candidates should also enter search committee interviews with a list of questions already prepared. Creating these “strategic questions” helps you as the candidate identify and curate the type of information you wish to share with the committee.
Perhaps one of the most important things to learn during the job search process is identifying the culture of the institution. Specifically, how they work with students; faculty staff; administrators; parents; and the surrounding community.
In turn, the search committee can also ask you questions about how your work philosophy might impact the institution. Situational questions that target how you would address scenarios with imperfect information are often asked to better discover candidates’ experiences and intentions.
However, in the end remember that you are a candidate in a job search. You are interviewing the search committee and evaluating the opportunity as much as they are evaluating your knowledge, background, experiences, skills, and abilities.
During the search committee interview
The day will finally come when it’s time to interview with the search committee. This could happen in person during an on-campus interview or it could happen online in a virtual interview. No matter what the modality, it’ll important to prepare and execute well the day of the event.
Begin by reviewing each name (and title) of every person on the search committee during your interview. It’ll be important to refer to each of them by name as the interview goes on. Doing so will help you engage with each committee member individually which will help you establish and develop a meaningful and memorable rapport.
Make sure that you maintain eye contact when you speak with each interviewer. This will be important for establishing and maintaining focus as your interview goes on. In addition, note that the search committee interview can be a long one. Don’t add to the time frame for your interview by providing overly verbose answers. Instead, answer questions succinctly and pointedly.
It also helps to connect and tie in each of your responses to comments or conversations you may have had earlier with search committee members. Doing this ensures that connections you’ve established early on are referenced and tied back to your current conversation.
It’s helpful to send thank you notes or emails to search committee members after the interview concludes. This could be time consuming if your search committee was a large one. However, don’t feel pressured to thank each committee members via email. Instead, focus on the ones whom you felt most connected with. Those are the ones who will remember your interview and be able to provide more insightful and influential perspective on your candidacy.
Serving on a search committee
You may not think about serving on a search committee while being interviewed by one. However, this service is a great opportunity to gain some insight into this process and help you prepare for future search committee interviews. So, jump at the opportunity if asked to participate in a search committee as part of your professional duties.
Takeaways
This article reviewed the important reasons for learning about the search committee in the student affairs job search. It covered multiple areas including the purpose of the search committee; its process; composition; commitment; diversity; and procedure. Search committee effectiveness was discussed in detail in addition to how to prepare to interview with the search committee. Steps for post interview success were also discussed in addition to the positive benefits of serving on a search committee yourself.
I hope that you found this article useful! If you need some additional help on your student affairs job search, then check out the eBook The Student Affairs Job Search: A Comprehensive Guide available here.
Happy searching,
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Cite this Article
Eng, D. (2021, July 5). What is a search committee? Retrieved MONTH DATE, YEAR, from https://www.jobhakr.com/blog-1/2021/7/5/what-is-a-search-committee
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