Inclusive Recruiting
4,200
STUDENTS OF COLOR
4,200+ students of color help diversify your candidate pool
34%
FIRST GENERATION
34% of GVSU learners are the first in their family to attend college
62%
IDENTIFY AS FEMALE
Over 62% of GVSU's student population identify as female
CAMPUS PRIDE
Named "Best in Michigan" university for LGBTQ+ Students
COMMITTED TO VETS
GVSU earned numerous accolades for support of student vets
CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE
GVSU is ranked 6th in the nation for study abroad participation
The GVSU Career Center is committed to advancing equity and inclusion within our institution and in the communities where our students and graduates live and work. We understand that recruiting a diverse and inclusive workforce is one of the most important challenges facing organizations today. While diverse talent is important to you as an employer, working in an organization that values inclusion and equity is equally important to our learners. Our students and alumni are researching what potential employers are doing to create inclusive environments for all employees, and selecting to work with organizations who embrace this culture.
Here are some steps to get started:
Step 1: Know Your Workplace DEI Culture
How does your organization foster an inclusive culture?
- Do your job postings and announcements include statements specific to your commitment to inclusion and equity, and explicitly encourage diverse candidates to apply? Are you enabling candidates with physical, cognitive or situational disabilities to easily request interview accommodations in your application process?
- Are inclusion and equity values statements clearly embedded into your organization’s strategic goals, mission, vision or guiding principles?
- Does your organization have mentoring programs? Employee resources groups? Family-friendly programs such as job sharing or remote work schedules?
- Does your organization have unbiased retention in the workforce, meaning that employees are retained at equal levels regardless of race/ethnicity or gender? What does diversity look like at all levels particularly at the management, executive, and board levels? Are you transparent in reporting where you are at and where you strive to be in this regard?
- Does your organization employ an ADA compliance officer or consultant to help support employees with disabilities? What types of regular accommodations are made for employees who may need them? Is your workplace barrier free?
Is your commitment to an inclusive workplace reflected in your benefits package?
- What are your spousal/partner/household benefits?
- Do you have equitable parental leave policies inclusive of biological and adoptive parents?
- Do your benefits include transgender inclusive health insurance coverage?
What type of organizations do you do business with?
- Do your suppliers include small, women, minority-owned, and/or LGBTQIA+ organizations?
- Do you conduct business with and/or have products made in countries that do not protect the human rights of their workers?
- What are the causes that your charitable/volunteer efforts benefit?
Step 2: Use Inclusive Recruitment Best Practices
- Utilizing the guiding questions above, ensure your organization's campus representatives are prepared to openly discuss and answer questions about your organization’s demonstrated commitment diversity, equity and inclusion.
- Reduce barriers. Setting GPA requirements and narrow qualifications (such as allowable majors, school years or mandating numerous years of experience) are practices which limit candidate pools.
- Ensure pay transparency and equity.
- Candidates are more likely to apply to postings where a salary range is listed, and the employer demonstrates a commitment to equal pay (e.g. conducts audits for gender and racial pay equity).
- Offer paid internships - often only the most privileged candidates are able to take on unpaid experiential learning opportunities.
- Include examples of how your organization supports an inclusive and equitable work culture or link to DEI resources in your Handshake profile (i.e. list employee resource or mentoring groups, community engagement efforts, etc.)