Montclair State Offers Free Online Jobs Database

Montclair State University is one of 28 colleges and universities statewide that have teamed up to offer the region's first online jobs database aimed at helping higher education institutions attract and retain a diverse work force.

The New Jersey Higher Education Recruitment Consortium, which is free to job seekers, was launched Nov. 15 and allows job seekers to search the full range of positions at colleges and universities, including professor, secretary, laboratory technician and kitchen staff.

"The recruiting of talented faculty and staff is a pre-eminent activity for Montclair State University," said Joan C. Ficke, associate vice president for Academic Affairs for Personnel and Resource Planning. "This is an additional--and valuable--tool that will enable us to find and attract diverse and accomplished candidates to our campus."

The New Jersey database currently lists more than 1,700 academic and staff jobs at the participating colleges and universities, and is growing. Couples looking for two placements in academia may search for jobs at the same institution, a region of the state (north, central, south), or statewide. Universities and college officials have found that difficulty in addressing the job needs of applicants' partners was a major obstacle to attracting a diverse applicant pool.

The Web-based system is the first of its kind on the East Coast and the first statewide Higher Education Recruitment Consortium in the country, though it was inspired by a similar initiative in California. In that state, two regional groups offer separate databases for colleges and universities in northern and southern portions of the state. 

The New Jersey consortium was initiated as part of a continuing effort to address work-family issues facing higher education. The consortium unites both private and public institutions from across the higher-education spectrum--universities, colleges and community colleges--to expand the recruitment of job candidates.

"We want to collaborate effectively to develop a family-friendly recruiting movement that will help New Jersey institutions retain a diverse group of faculty and staff," said Gilda Paul, director of the consortium, which is housed at Princeton University. "We hope to someday be part of a national group of education consortia as more colleges and universities collaborate across the country."

For a list and more information about participating New Jersey institutions, visit www.njherc.org.