Department of Science and Technology Studies

A Report on Spousal Hiring Policies in Academe
 

Suggestions for Noncompetitive Hiring Policies

(These are taken primarily from McNeil and Sher.)

Recognize the existence of dual career couples and choose to deal with it.

Policies should be in place before the search for potential candidates begins, not as a response to issues arising from the search. They should include policies regarding dual appointments, split/shared positions, nepotism, etc.

Be aware of federal programs and policies.

Develop contact networks for hiring within and external to the institution.

ASK. Okay, sometimes it does hurt to ask. But, unless given no choice, do you want to work at an institution that discriminates against you for being a dual-career couple? The problem is not the asking, but determining when it would be most politic to bring it up. For this there is no hard and fast rule.

My research seems to indicate that if there are no rules against it, the question becomes how willing is a department to hire a partner of a faculty member if there is a line open. All of the information on this topic appears to be focused on proactive ways of hiring or assisting partners at the institutional level, rather than the department level. Having such a policy in place should not change the need to address the situation on a case by case basis. The difference from the normal question of whether they are the most qualified, or the best fit, is how much does their spousal affiliation affect the department, and how much does a joint appointment affect their commitment and willingness to work. This is something my research cannot really help with since it is something that can only be dealt with in the context of the parties under consideration. The question then is what degree of preference does the department want to accord partners of appointees?

Changing policy can also be problematic if already hired faculty feel that their spouses should have been given the same opportunity when they were appointed.