Strategies and Best Practices for Higher Education Faculty Recruitment for Online Instruction
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24203/0h1k2w81Keywords:
Keywords – Artificial intelligence, adjunct faculty, contingent faculty, continuous improvement, data-driven recruitment, global academic collaboration, hybrid instruction, LMS, search committee, structured evaluation, STEM.Abstract
The requirements, scope, and process of faculty recruitment have evolved considerably with the advancements in technologies and the explosion of online and hybrid teaching-learning settings. This digital transformation of higher education has extended into faculty recruitment practices, prompting institutions to adopt more efficient, inclusive, and strategic approaches to attract and retain qualified, competent, and suitable instructors. Online faculty recruitment offers broad reach and flexibility, but it also introduces new challenges, such as ensuring fairness, mitigating digital bias, and creating engaging and appealing virtual experiences. To attract and retain top teaching talent in higher education, academic institutions must need to implement best practices throughout the recruitment process of planning, outreach, evaluation, and onboarding. When recruiting faculty online, institutions must expect and plan for unique challenges, including technological availability, bias elimination in virtual formats, and ensuring inclusive practices, while guaranteeing academic thoroughness. This research outlines some strategies and best practices across key recruitment phases: strategic planning, job design, outreach and marketing, candidate experience, evaluation, offers and onboarding, and retention, all supported by scholarly and institutional values.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Courtney Jane, Bhaskar Sinha, Douglas Roberts
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