Department of Human Resources

REFERENCE CHECKS

PROCESS

While the candidates are asked to provide the University with references, candidates should be informed that reference checking may be extended to their current and any or all of their previous employers, even though they may not be on their reference list. (Please be sensitive to coordinating the checking of the current employer's reference with the candidate. We do not want to jeopardize their current position).

If a candidate tells you not to contact a specific person or employer, please respect that request. The candidate is not required to provide this authorization, but checking references should be considered a very important part of the selection process and the hiring authority should be very cautious about hiring a new employee who will not provide adequate reference checking authorization.

All references should be relevant to the position sought. If a person provided as a reference by the candidate does not have knowledge of the candidate's ability to perform the tasks of the vacant position, then contacting that reference is of little use.

The best references are, typically, former employers (supervisors/managers with direct knowledge of the candidates work), former co-workers, and former educators of the candidate.