Glossary of terms
When following the 4-step recruitment process, you may come across the following key terms. Please contact your Recruitment Consultant or Senior Human Resources Partner if you require any further explanation.
The information on this site should be used in conjunction with the Recruitment and Selection Policy.(opens in a new window)
At Step One, you may come across the following key terms and phrases
| Key term/ phrase | Definition |
|---|---|
| Academic Staff Member | Staff who are predominantly responsible for teaching, research and community engagement activities for academic purposes. |
| Adjunct Appointment | Provides recognition to external people through invitation to undertake a specific activity with an academic (or other) unit, in accordance with the mission and objectives of the University. For more information, see the Visiting and Adjunct Appointments Policy. (opens in a new window) |
| Career Development Fellowship (CDF) | Limited term appointments, which cover the full sphere of Academic work (teaching, research, engagement and administration) offered to eligible candidates as detailed in the Academic Staff Agreement,(opens in a new window) Clause 12. |
| Casual Appointment | Used for short term work (less than 3 months); work that is ad hoc; irregular; fewer hours than a limited term appointment. |
| Conjoint Appointments | Conjoint appointments provide clinical teaching for the University's medical, nursing and health science students by non-University employees in hospitals and in other sites of clinical practice. |
| Contingent Worker | Employed via an agency, intended to fulfil short term vacancies of less than 2 months. For more information, see the Contingent Worker Engagement - Guidelines page. |
| Executive Appointment | Executive level appointments that form part of the University Executive including the Vice-Chancellor, Deputy Vice-Chancellors & Vice-Presidents, Vice-Presidents, Pro Vice-Chancellors and Deans. |
| Existing Position | A position that is already established within the University and its HR System; and has a corresponding position number with accompanying budget. Funding has therefore already been committed (despite possible changes to funding sources). |
| Higher Duties Allowance | Provided where a staff member acts in a higher role for a short period of time (less than 3 months); generally as a career development opportunity. |
| Honorary Appointment | Honorary appointments consist of visiting or adjunct appointments related to academic staff. |
| Limited Term Appointment | Appointment for a fixed period of time or defined task or project, limited circumstances under Clause 15.9 of the Professional Staff Agreement (opens in a new window) and Clause 13.7 of the Academic Staff Agreement.(opens in a new window) |
| New Position | The creation of a new position, which is over and above a business units approved Staffing budget (funded by an increase in base budget, strategic initiatives (and other identified internal funding sources) or via external funding). Changes to existing positions do not constitute new positions. |
| Ongoing Appointment | Appointments that are permanent, continuing or ongoing in nature. |
| Professional Staff Member | Staff who undertake work that is generally administrative; technical; managerial or in direct support of academic work. |
| Research only | Roles appointed to undertake research only. |
| Secondment | Career development opportunity for internal employees; temporary appointment greater than 3 months but less than 2 years. |
| Senior Appointment (HEW Level 10) | Often referred to as HEW Level 10; generally managerial in nature. |
| Teaching only; Teaching Focused Role (TFR) | Roles appointed to undertake teaching only. |
| Visiting Appointment | Provides recognition to external people who seek to be associated with the University to undertake independent scholarly work, for example during study leave from their home institution. Visiting appointments mainly recognise individuals who already have an academic appointment with another University and may be applied to external students (doctoral students) in appropriate circumstances. For more information, see the Visiting and Adjunct Appointments Policy. (opens in a new window) |
At Step Two, you may come across the following key terms and phrases
| Key term/ phrase | Definition |
|---|---|
| Business Case | A business case is required when seeking to appoint a new role that does not form part of a business units current Establishment and is not funded by a dedicated source outside of operating funds. For further information, see the business case submissions guidelines page. |
| Change Proposal | A document that outlines significant/major organisational change to business units. Please contact your Senior HR Partner for more information on this process. |
| Establishment (and re-establishment) | The process of creating positions within the HR System. This includes cost centres, organisation cluster, locations, etc. For more information, see the Establishment Guidelines page. The Establishment form (PDF, 440.12 KB) (opens in a new window) is the document that seeks all the necessary information to create a position with the HR system. |
| Funding Approval |
Confirmation and approval of funding:
|
| Job Evaluation Process | Once a position description has been agreed, it is submitted to your Senior HR Partner for job evaluation in order to determine the appropriate appointment/salary level. A Job Evaluation Group will assess the PD and any further context and provide a recommendation on classification for approval. |
| Position Description (PD) | The approved document which details the key responsibilities, accountabilities and selection criteria of a position. |
At Step Three, you may come across the following key terms and phrases
| Key term/ phrase | Definition | |
|---|---|---|
| Appointment via invitation | Appointments made by invitation – for specialist positions only. For more information, refer to the Appointment via Invitation Policy.(opens in a new window) | |
| Appointment by nomination (limited term less than 6 months) | Limited term appointments that are offered via nomination (less than 6 months). For more information, refer to the Professional Staff Agreement (opens in a new window) and Academic Staff Agreement,(opens in a new window) Clause 12. | |
| eRecruit | The University's online recruitment system, which is used to request advertising of positions and make appointments. Also used by candidates to submit online applications, build a candidate profile, etc. eRecruit (opens in a new window) is sometimes referred to as "NGA" which is the company that owns the system. | |
| Executive Search | Search consultants find suitable candidates for Executive/specialist or hard to fill positions. | |
| Internal and External | Available to both internal and external to Western Sydney University candidates; advertising chosen by the hiring manager; applications received via the University's eRecruit system. | |
| Internal Only | Vacancies open to employees of Western Sydney University (or a wholly owned entity such as Western Sydney University College) only. This is to be used when there is a reasonable pool of internal applicants. You can contact your Recruitment Consultant and Senior HR Partner should you wish to discuss. Advertised on the Careers website only with applications being received via the eRecruit (opens in a new window) system. | |
| NGA refers to the company that owns the University's eRecruitment system - eRecruit (opens in a new window) (see above). eRecruit is used to request advertising of positions and make appointments. Also used by candidates to submit online applications, build a candidate profile, etc. | |
| Selection Panel |
An approved group responsible for making recommendations on:
|
At Step Four, you may come across the following key terms and phrases
| Key term/ phrase | Definition |
|---|---|
| Interview | The process of meeting with candidates and determining their suitability through asking behavioural questions. This process is conducted by an approved selection panel only. Training on conducting behavioural interviews is offered through Organisational Development with training mandatory for the panel convenor. |
| Online Application | Each advertised vacancy requires an online application through the University's eRecruit system. Accessed from the Vacancies site. (opens in a new window) |
| Reference Checking | Making contact with a candidates' nominated referees in order to confirm selection panel deliberations on suitability. |
| Shortlisting | The process of determining candidates for interview (or progress to next step in the recruitment cycle). |
Related Links
The following forms, templates and guidelines may be required during the recruitment process:
- Engaging short-term/ contingent workers - FAQs for managers and supervisors (Standard Page ) (opens in a new window)
- Establishing/ changing a position - Guidelines (Standard Page ) (opens in a new window)
- Guidelines for Confirmation of Identity for Indigenous Australian Staff (PDF File 295.8 KB) (opens in a new window)
For a full list, visit the Recruitment forms, templates and guidelines page.
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