Saffy Sweetland, Recruitment Coordinator
We’ve all gone through the recruitment process, we make an application for a role, we have an interview and we wait nervously for the outcome. Most of us have gone through this nerve wracking experience with a sigh of relief at the seemingly simplistic onboarding requirements, we give our bank details, we show our right to work, and we begin our careers and never need think about the process again. Yet there’s so much more to recruitment than meets the eye.
As a PhD student, I focused on teacher training in high educational institutions surrounding sensitive topics such as healthy relationships and domestic abuse. The issues surrounding recruitment and retention of teachers was well known to me, however I was amazed by just how much goes into making the recruitment process happen at the university. We may believe, from our own perspective as candidates and employees, that the role is a relatively simple process. Perhaps a tick box here and there, a passport filed on the system, a log of the payroll and you’re good to go. But the recruitment team do much more than this to make recruitment happen. A continuous rapport between departments needs and recruitment is at the heart of employment at the university. The team work with passion with each department across campus to ensure department staff are up to date with employment offers and making the recruitment process as smooth and efficient as possible for hiring managers. From ethical guidance to practical solutions, the recruitment team are at the heart of making things as easy as possible for the hiring panel.
Not only was I surprised by how involved the recruitment team are with the hiring staff themselves but I was amazed by the personal level of care with not just department staff, but also candidates. I’m sure we can all remember that feeling of waiting nervously for the results of an interview. The recruitment team are incredibly passionate about the candidate experience, regardless of the outcome of the interview and work hard to ensure that communication is clear, supportive, and respectful at every stage of the process. What has stood out to me most since joining the team is how recruitment at the University goes far beyond filling roles. It is about building trust, maintaining high ethical standards, and supporting departments to recruit in ways that are fair, inclusive, and transparent. Having spent years researching education, relationships, and wellbeing, it has been refreshing to see those same values embedded in recruitment practice. As a new member of the recruitment team, I’m excited to contribute to a process that plays such a vital role in shaping the university community. Recruitment is often invisible once a role has been filled, but it underpins everything that follows, from teaching and research to student experience and staff wellbeing. I’m really enjoying learning more about the work that goes on behind the scenes and I’m looking forward to developing my role within a team that plays such an important part in supporting the university community.
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