The University of Texas System is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, religion, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, citizenship status, veteran status or any other basis protected by federal, state, or local laws, unless such distinction is required by law. Reasonable disability accommodation may be requested by contacting the Office of Talent.
Recruiting, hiring and onboarding practices help reduce turnover and ensure UT System has the right talent in place to help meet its initiatives in a productive and effective way. The following information will guide you through these important processes to help you find, hire and retain the right employees for UT System.
Talent Intake
The Office of Talent wants to partner with you upfront to better understand your needs and help create a plan that will ensure you attract the right candidates in the desired timeframe. Prior to submitting your request to recruit for a position, it is highly encouraged for hiring managers to contact their respective HR Business Partner for a quick talent intake discussion. The talent intake is designed to help managers define and determine the type of position or candidate needed to meet the desired objectives. The HR Business Partner will also help you define what type of request you will need to pursue prior to posting.
Posting an Open Position
Prior to having a posting created, you will need to determine whether to request a new position, a recruit-to-fill or a reclassification.
- New Position - A new position is one that does not currently exist on the department roster or vacancy list. Typically, will need to develop a new job description to be reviewed and classified by the Office of Talent.
- Recruit to Fill - A recruit-to-fill (R/F) is an existing position that was previously created, budgeted and approved. The recruit-to-fill usually replaces an incumbent who vacates a position. Recruit-to-fills have no significant change to previously approved job description or classification.
- Reclassification - A reclassification occurs when there is significant change to an existing position. If you intend to change the job description significantly (purpose, essential functions, salary structure or overall classification), a reclassification must occur prior to posting the position. Reclassifications can occur with or without an incumbent occupying the position.
Once you have defined the type of request, you will need to work with your department HR Liaison to initiate the appropriate eForm. Please refer to the Recruiting, Hire, and Transfer Checklist for salaried positions. The checklist outlines the entire process and includes timelines and links to relevant job aids.
All job postings in PeopleSoft open to external applicants are posted to WorkinTexas, Indeed (basic, not sponsored), and LinkedIn. If you would like a sponsored posting on Indeed or additional external sites, please submit the External Posting Request form.
All UT System job postings must be open for a minimum of five business days unless an exception has been granted by the Chancellor. Managers and selection committee members will review the applicant pool to determine when they are ready to close a posting. If you have a desired applicant pool, please request for your job posting to be closed by sending an email to hrbp@utsystem.edu. Postings in PeopleSoft are automatically closed once a candidate has been selected for hire.
Review application materials
- Instructions for reviewing applicants may be found in the HR Liaison Manual. Please refer to RECRUITING > Review Applicants.
- To start reviewing applications for your posting, log into PeopleSoft (only those with the appropriate security access may review submitted applications for their department).
- If you have a desired applicant pool, please request for your job posting to be closed by sending an email to hrbp@utsystem.edu. Postings in PeopleSoft are automatically closed once a candidate's disposition is moved to "Ready to Hire.
Interview and Selection
UT System prohibits discrimination and is committed to treating employees and applicants consistently and fairly. The hiring department is responsible for ensuring a consistent, equitable and fair process. To promote an inclusive and consistent interview and selection process, hiring departments are encouraged to create a diverse committee to assist them in the selection of the right candidate. Make sure all individuals involved in the interview process understand their roles and responsibilities. Feel free to contact your HR Business Partner for additional information and services on interviewing and selection. The Office of Talent is also available to participate on the interview panel.
- Please review the Interview Guide.
- An Interview Question Matrix is available if needed.
- Reference checks:
- The Office of Talent utilizes a third-party reference check vendor, SkillSurvey.
- Once you have identified your top candidates to interview, contact your HR Business Partner with the candidates’ names.
- Department HR Liaison should use communication template provided by the Office of Talent to notify candidates they will be prompted to provide references, while they work to set up interviews.
- Your HR Business Partners will meet with you to review the findings from the reference checks.
- Additional Reference Check Resources:
Extending an Offer
The hiring department is responsible for creating the offer letter. Only individuals with delegated signature authority may sign offer letters. Before sending an offer letter to a candidate, please have your HR Business Partner review it. Please use the offer letter templates below.
- Full Time
- Hourly (up to 19 hours/week)
- Hourly (up to 29 hours/week AND less than 135 days duration)
- Hourly (more than 30 hours/week AND less than 90 days duration)
- Unpaid Intern
- Student Associate
Highlight the Full Value of the Offer
Compensation is only one part of the employment experience. To help candidates better understand the value of working at UT System, hiring managers may complete and share a Total Rewards Statement during the offer process. This personalized tool highlights the estimated value of salary, retirement contributions, insurance, paid leave, and other benefits, helping candidates see the full investment UT System makes in its employees. A Total Rewards Statement can be an effective way to reinforce your offer and help candidates make an informed decision.
Prior to setting a start date, please know:
- there needs to be at least two weeks from when the eForm is approved by the Department Head and the start date; and
- start dates should align with the Office of Talent Orientation Schedule.
For information regarding relocation options, please contact your HR Business Partner.
Executive Search Firms
Executive search firms are used to recruit for high-level, highly specialized or hard-to-fill positions. The University of Texas System has entered into contracts with reputable executive search firms approved under a Request for Proposal (RFP) process. These contracts cover all UT System institutions so there is no need to repeat the RFP process to engage with one of these vendors.
Onboarding
This is when we welcome the selected finalist to UT System! Once a finalist has been identified, there are a few steps the finalist will need to complete prior to beginning work.
- New Appointment eForm
- Please submit the New Appointment eForm to initiate the hiring process. Only those with the appropriate security access may submit an eForm. Please refer to the HR Liaison Manual HIRE & ONBOARDING > New Appointment eForm for instructions.
- This eForm serves as an automated notification to the team within the Office of Talent who completes pre-hire actions (criminal background check, employment verification, degree verification, and obtaining pre-onboarding forms).
- Onboarding Welcome Packet
- Hiring Managers should prepare the Onboarding Welcome Packet in advance of the new employee's start date.
- This packet streamlines the onboarding efforts for managers and establishes a baseline new employee experience by providing a consistent, welcoming and valuable resource.
Who do I contact for assistance with the recruiting, hiring and onboarding process?
The Office of Talent will work as partners in the recruiting, hiring and onboarding process, but the hiring department is responsible for ensuring a successful outcome.
The different roles within the Office of Talent play an important piece of the entire recruiting, hiring and onboarding process. Please contact your HR Business Partner if you are unsure of who will be able to assist you. Below is a brief description of important roles in the recruiting, hiring and onboarding process.
HR Business Partner (HRBP). This role takes a consultative role working in HR. HRBPs have multiple departments within the UT System assigned to them, provide resources and build relationships with focusing on the missions and objectives set forth by the organization. Your HR Business Partner can assist you in understanding talent needs before they impact the department, help you create your position description and work with the compensation team to appropriately classify your position. More often than not, your HR Business Partner should be your first point of contact prior to recruiting, hiring and onboarding.
HR Service Partner (HRSP). The HRSP handles a variety of HR items including hires, benefits and general HR inquiries. The HRSP partners with HRBPs and other Subject Matter Experts within the Office of Talent to escalate inquiries or requests.
Compensation Manager. Helps provide support in the form of compensation policy development and enforcement. Reviews the job duties for all positions. Creates classification framework and pay grades. Understands position leveling, equity issues amongst positions that are performing similar duties and has the ability to share market information that can impact your position structure and classification.
HR Liaisons. Approximately 40 employees who have been designated by their department head to perform HR functions within the department. As partners of the Office of Talent, HR Liaisons play an important role from creating a welcoming environment for new hires to maintaining workplace unity while supporting employees and management. The Office of Talent supports the HR Liaisons by providing foundational and functional training through our quarterly HR Liaison meetings and day-to-day support.
Records Retention
All recruiting documentation collected during the hiring process, including interview notes, selection matrices, and candidate evaluation materials, must be uploaded to the job posting in PeopleSoft. Resumes and application materials do not need to be uploaded separately unless they contain interview notes, evaluation comments, or other hiring-related documentation not captured elsewhere.
