Faculty & Staff

General Tips

• To reach a more diverse student population, post your role centrally on MyCareer (see instructions below for how to post a role in MyCareer)
• Avoid overreliance on "word of mouth" advertising as this can limit your ability to reach diverse candidates
• Ensure sufficient time for the job posting to be available 
• Include only qualifications, experience, abilities, and skills
• Avoid jargon and acronyms, use clear language
• Use gender neutral language (test your job description for gendered language using the Gender Decoder)
• Include a diversity statement and encourage students from underrepresented groups to apply

Tips for Creating a Job Description

• Consider keeping experience requirements low and relative to the amount of experience students would likely have had. Remember that part-time, summer, co-curricular and volunteer work experiences can meet your needs.
• Rather than hiring from only one specific degree, consider being open to students from different academic backgrounds because they may have the skills you're looking for.  Students may be hesitant to apply if they don't have the specific degree or experience requirements you've listed.
• List core responsibilities so that students know what they'll be accountable for, but don't go overboard with acronyms and jargon. Focus the job description on the key skills and experiences you want students to highlight for you in their application packages.
• Describe how the student will be supervised and mentored during their time at your organization.
• Describe the culture of your organization and why a student will benefit from working for you. 
• Provide details about the compensation package (e.g. salary, vacation, health benefits).
• In job posting, include contact information so students know who to address their cover letter to and invite students to contact you with questions about the position or your organization. 
• Like most job seekers, students tend to wait until the deadline to submit applications, so indicate whether you plan to review applications as they are submitted, or if you will wait until the deadline to review all applications.
• Include a clear list of items you expect in an application package (i.e. resume, cover letter, transcript, sample work, links to online portfolios etc.).

Template job description (Word, 22 KB)

Posting on MyCareer

1. Register for an account in MyCareer. Your application will be reviewed by Career Services staff within 2 business days.

2. Log in to MyCareer.

3. Post a job. Each posting is reviewed by our staff, and provided there are no issues, approved within two business days. An email confirmation will be sent containing the site address to view your posting. For more information, please visit our Post a Job page. 

Career Services will regularly post social media messages to encourage students to check job postings on MyCareer, but any additional promotion you decide to do can add to the reach of your posting. Here are some options:

• Students may follow local and campus news, as well as e-newsletters to stay connected (e.g. The Queen's Journal, Faculty email newsletter). If you hope to reach to more diverse student populations, consider advertising your job posting information in these places.
• If your department has an email list that goes to students in your area, include information about your position(s).
• Join a Career Fair to reach to more students who are interested in working in your organization and field.

Invitation 

• An interview invitation is best sent by email, including the following information:
• When the interview will take place, and for how long
• Where the interview will take place (virtually or in-person, and how to access the virtual or physical meeting space)
• Who will be present during the interview
• What the structure of the interview might be so that candidates know what to expect
• See sample interview invite
• Include a statement that indicates the unit's willingness to provide accommodations for candidates. Ensure a system is in place for candidates to request these accommodations, if needed

Process

Use the tips below to ensure you create an equitable and inclusive interview process for a diverse pool of candidates:

• Share interview questions by email 15 minutes in advance of the interview for candidates to review
• Use a clear, pre-determined rubric with a scale and examples that match the skills and qualifications required in the job description
• Consider having multiple interviews and having one of the hiring committee members act as an I-EDIAA lead whose job it is to keep I-EDIAA considerations active through the process
• Ask competency-based and behavioural questions e.g., Describe your approach to building relationships with team members, tell me about a time when..."
• Consider I-EDIAA training for hiring committee members facilitated through the Human Rights and Equity Office
• Have an inclusive interpretation of responses that considers English as an additional language, learning styles, and communication approaches

Choosing a Candidate and Extending an Offer

• Debrief the candidate’s interview performance with your hiring committee once all interviews have been complete
• Challenge possible biases in your own and fellow panelists' assessments of candidates; training can be facilitated through the Human Rights and Equity Office
• Avoid using "fit" or "gut feelings" as they often favor candidates with similar backgrounds to you and can undermine equity
• Refrain from considering external information when thinking about the candidate's abilities
• Ensure your hiring committee is reflective of the diversity of perspectives and backgrounds

Extending Job Offers to International Students

International students are eligible for employment opportunities at Queen's with valid study permit, work permit and SIN. This includes duties performed remotely or not, but within Canada. For more information on international students' eligibility to work please visit the Queen’s University International Centre website or contact QUIC at isa@queensu.ca.

Source: Queen's HREO and University of Toronto CACUSS webinar​​​

To learn more, the Human Rights and Equity Office offers Employment Equity for Staff training.

The EL WrapAround is a low-time-commitment, high-impact strategy tool that supervisors and students can use to engage in productive conversations about how to get the most out of an on-campus student role. Participation in the EL WrapAround is a requirement for all Work Study and SWEP roles, but is available to all student positions on campus. Please consider using this simple structure to add value to your office and to the students working with you.

To learn more about this simple but impactful strategy, please visit the EL WrapAround webpage.

Register in the EL WrapAround by emailing el.hub@queensu.ca

In addition to SWEP and WS (see descriptions above), there are some federal and provincial programs designed to offer financial relief  (wage subsidies, funding, tax credits) to employers who hire current students that Queen’s employers can be eligible. You can read more about these programs on our Hiring Incentives page. 

As always, the health and safety of Queen's student staff and volunteers is paramount. If you have any questions about health and safety for student staff and volunteers, please contact the Department of Environmental Health & Safety at safety@queensu.ca or ext. 32999.

• What skills may students bring?
• What work is not being done that a student could do? 
• What projects have we wanted to do but never had capacity for?
• What tasks can be collated into a role?
• What research (e.g., literature review, scan of best practices) could benefit or enhance our work?
• What student roles have we had in the past that we could adapt to a remote context?
• What schedule would work best (hours/week, days/week)?

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• Student Ambassador: champion your unit’s program and services to other students, promoting opportunities among their peers through various means.
• Data Analytics Assistant: analyze data in support of the efficiency and effectiveness of your unit, which could include social media reach, program or service data, evaluation responses, or client relations data.
• Communications Assistant: support the communications work of your unit, which could include social media copy, scheduling, analytics, graphic design, newsletters, media content, and promotion.
• Upper-Year Mentors or Peers: pair with mentees to support their journey at Queen’s, often scoped to a particular topic, space, or identity—e.g., study skills, women in STEM, resume coaches
• Project Assistant: assist one or more projects in your unit with coordination, design, communication, development, delivery, evaluation, or other support as needed.
• Simulation Laboratory Assistant: assist with the design, coordination, delivery, evaluation, or curricular simulated learning experiences, often in health sciences.
• Research Assistant: support research activities of a lab or group, with activities as wide-ranging as research activities themselves.
• Student Advisory Committee Member: a representative of the student perspective on committees in departments or units that advise on the design, delivery, and evaluation of programs and services
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• What hardware, software, and office supplies will students require and how will they gain access to them
• Projects with a clear and narrow scope and deliverables require less of your capacity to onboard and supervise so may be suitable for remote supervision—e.g., literature reviews, infographics
• How many hours will the student work and what capacity does your office have in terms of physical office space and equipment?
• Would the location impact a student’s ability to interact with colleagues and build their professional network?
• Does the student have scheduling constraints? Would they benefit from a flexible work arrangement (i.e. working outside of normal office hours)?
• Are there certain tasks that must be performed on-campus while other tasks can be performed remotely?
• What mechanisms do you currently have in place to maintain communication with remote workers?