You are about to interview a professor from India for a teaching position at Campbellsville

University. Which interviewing process should you use and what questions should you ask

Students are required to post their primary response (200 word minimum). Students will respond to at least 2 other postings (150 words minimum each).

reply -1 (samuel ramsay)

There are many different approaches that the university could use, however as the interviewer, the university needs to keep in mind the concerns that come with discrimination. Considering the situation and the person of interest is from India I believe that a structured interview would be the best approach going forward. The structured interview approach is supposed to be conducted by asking competency based questions to assess what skills someone brings to the table and to not let bias interfere with the interview (Muller, 2018). Competency based questions are geared toward relating past work experience to probable on job behavior (Muller, 2018). Questions that I would ask and that would follow along with this interview approach would be; “what is your work experience?”, “Do you have the appropriate education, training and skills to complete the tasks of this position?” Can you preform the essential functions of the position which you are interviewing for with or without accommodation?” (Muller, 2018). Asking and appropriately assessing these questions will give me and the university a good idea if the professor from India is qualified and has the experience to handle the position. Using this process we will be able to interview the professor without allowing potential discrimination to come into play. This will allow us to make the best decision possible for the university.

Muller, M. (2018). The Managers Guide to HR (2nd). New York, NY: SHRM.   

reply -2 (joseph tucker)

The most appropriate method of interviewing this potential applicant would be to apply a structured and formal process that addresses necessary job skills and experience. While some questions might veer into areas that seem more personal in nature (age, language, etc.), these should be framed and presented in such a matter that the information only pertains to the relevant job description (for example, age requirements for holding a certain position). In this particular case, English language proficiency would be of importance if the candidate is expected to teach on-campus classes to students in an English-speaking (and perhaps exclusively English-speaking) body.

As the candidate in the example is from India, whether or not they can provide evidence to meet citizenship requirements should also be addressed. However, this should be done through the formalized I-9 process, not informally by asking “where are you from?” etc. An issue should not be made—nor should there be questions asked—concerning the nation of origin; necessary language proficiency should be the only concern. Knowledge of the candidate’s educational background should also be addressed through the formal process to ascertain that they meet all educational requirements to teach in the positioned for which they applied. In the same vein, experiential questions about previous teaching positions or other relevant activities would be appropriate. Asking about relatives working for the organization and about being able to perform essential functions of the job would be appropriate and beneficial. Finally, position specific questions might arise, tailored to this particular job.