Introduction / Expectations

Engineering Career Services (ECS) adheres to the NACE Principles for Professional Practice for Career Services and Employment Professionals and expects employers to do the same. These principles are available on the National Association of Colleges and Employers website.

Employers are expected to maintain a positive, collaborative working relationship with ECS staff. That includes cooperation with ECS policies and procedures, meeting necessary deadlines to ensure smooth operation of on-campus interview visits, providing the job / company information and data requested, providing hire data as requested, complying with the legal obligations of recruiters, and maintaining the confidentiality of student data as outlined in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Employers that violate FERPA regulations will lose access to ECS services for five years, as stated in the regulations.

All employer representatives are expected to support ECS policies in all interactions with students. Of course, the ECS management team welcomes employer feedback and input on those policies at any time.

Employers that are unable to comply with these policies may wish to use other recruiting resources, such as newspaper advertisements, commercial job boards, or third-party agencies.

Service Guidelines

1. ECS reserves the right to refuse service to any employer that violates the NACE Principles for Professional Practice or any ECS policy.
2. ECS works with third parties only under limited circumstances, which are outlined in detail in the ECS Third-Party Policy statement.
3. ECS reserves the right to refuse service to any employer if a review of the specific opportunity or nature/status of the company suggests that it is inappropriate for our service population; if students are injured or exposed to unsafe working conditions; if the employer discriminates; or if ECS receives student complaints about discrimination, harassment, threats, unsafe working conditions, or any other questionable circumstance.
4. Employers without an operational website cannot be served until there is a website operational. ECS will review the employer’s website for appropriateness. Employers should have an EID number prior to initiating any hiring.
5. ECS will not provide service to any employer requiring upfront payment of any kind or the purchase of products or work equipment/tools (with the possible exception of safety equipment such as steel-toed boots).
6. Employers seeking to hire co-op or intern candidates must complete the ECIP Employer Agreement Form prior to account activation or receiving any service. ECIP employers are expected to abide by the policies outlined in this form.
7. In the event that a [name of institution] engineering co-op or Intern experiences any harassment or actual or potential harm at the workplace, the employer’s recruiting privileges will be suspended pending a resolution of the situation that is satisfactory to ECIP/ECS.
8. Employers who have laid off engineering alumni within the calendar year for reasons other than performance will not be permitted to interview additional candidates for the same job within the same year.
9. ECS does not recommend or select candidates for employers.
10. Your account as an employer provides you a limited, terminable right to access and use the ECS job search site only for your internal business use to seek candidates for employment and scheduling interviews.

Job Postings

• Job postings must be actual, current openings for internships, cooperative education assignments, and/or traditional, W-2 or 1099 full-or part-time employees.
• Your job postings or e-mails must contain sufficient detail to convey clearly to the user the nature and basic requirements of the job opportunity.
• ECS will review the employer’s website and each job description (whether a job listing or for an on-campus interview) for appropriateness. Opportunities suitable for other majors will be shared with the relevant career services office on campus and the employer will be referred to the appropriate contact.
• Co-op and intern employers should clearly specify the nature of any housing or relocation assistance in any interview information, posted job listings, and company profile. It is not appropriate to expect a student to relocate out of state without financial assistance or assistance locating appropriate, safe, affordable housing. ECS and ECIP reserve the right to insert alerts in any posted information for those employers that do not provide assistance to ensure that students are able to make informed decisions.
• Your job postings or e-mail communications may not contain anything that is sexually explicit, obscene, libelous, defamatory, threatening, harassing, abusive, or hateful; or anything that is embarrassing or offensive to another person or entity.
• You may not use your job postings or e-mail to post advertisements or solicitations for employment in the pornography industry; the gambling industry, or post pyramid schemes.
• You may not use your job postings or e-mail to post false, inaccurate, or misleading information.

Resume Access

• ECS will not give account access or forward resumes to home-based businesses.
• ECS will not send resumes to personal e-mail accounts.
• We do not send resumes or give any employer passwords to corporate “student ambassadors” or “student campus recruiters.” It is a violation of professional standards to provide a student’s resume to a fellow student for review and decision-making.

On-Campus Recruiting / Interview Scheduling

• Cancellations: Employers that cancel interview schedules once the student sign-up window has opened are responsible for contacting students who were invited to interview to inform them of the cancellation.
• Space available: During peak periods, ECS may limit the number of interview rooms available for a given employer. Employers with a history of reserving more schedules than they can fill will be limited to one more room than was filled in the prior year.
• Extra space/“room only”: If you will need additional space for tests or administrative purposes, please request a “room only” at the time you request interview space, as same-day requests often can‘t be accommodated.
• Missed deadlines: ECS will make repeated efforts to contact employers who miss on-campus recruiting deadlines. However, should the employer fail to acknowledge reminder calls or e-mails, ECS reserves the right to determine whether to change the schedule from pre-select to qualified open or to cancel the interview schedule.
• Schedule issues: ECS will make every effort to customize interview schedules to accommodate recruiters’ needs; similarly, ECS will make every effort to ensure that only students who match the employer’s stated qualifications and work authorization are able to interview. Employers who decide to remove individuals from interview schedules are responsible for notifying those candidates and explaining why they were removed, unless ECS permitted a “non-match” to schedule.
• Schedule timing: Employers should consider travel implications before interview schedules are finalized—or at least before student sign-up begins—to minimize conflicts on the interview date. ECS will gladly accommodate employers’ schedule preferences when stated in advance. Please note that all interviews (and tests) should be planned to conclude by close of business at 5 p.m.
• Intern housing: Co-op and intern employers should clearly specify the nature of any housing or relocation assistance in their interview information and company profile. ECS and ECIP reserve the right to insert alerts in any posted information for those employers who do not provide assistance to ensure that students are able to make informed decisions.

Transcripts /Academic Standing Verification / Work Authorization

• ECIP/ECS strongly discourage employers from requesting that students provide official transcripts at the initial interview. The fee for processing official transcript requests can present a financial burden to students who actively participate in interviewing. Employers that simply want to see courses completed can do so by requesting an “unofficial” transcript (degree audit or “advising report”), which students can download from their University Registrar’s account at no charge.
• ECS will verify academic standing and work authorization for registered students who have signed a consent form. We are not able to verify this information for non-registrants employers might meet elsewhere on campus.

Student Privacy Issues

• Photos or videos should not be used as part of the selection process. Exceptions will be made for use of video conference facilities on campus for those employers unable to conduct on-campus interviews.
• Social security numbers should not be used during the hiring process.

Unpaid / Volunteer Work

• ECS / ECIP does not post (or provide resume referrals) for unpaid internships or employment. The only exceptions are bona fide charitable organizations seeking clearly labeled part-time volunteers and the Peace Corps.

Legal Notes for Employers

• The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) requires signed written consent from a student prior to the disclosure of personally identifiable information from education records by an educational institution. All students registered as job seekers with Engineering Career Services and the Engineering Cooperative Education and Internship Program are required to sign such a consent form so that this office can legally provide their information to potential employers.
• Employers should know that redisclosure of student information is prohibited. In other words, employers who receive students’ resumes and educational information may use it only for the original purpose for which disclosure was granted. Thus employers may not transmit (or redisclose) student information to any other employer or third party, nor to others within the employing organization for any purpose other than employment purposes. If an organization improperly rediscloses student records, federal law prohibits that party from obtaining student records for a period of at least five years.
• Students working as cooperative education or internship employees during Autumn, Winter, and Spring quarters are required to enroll in a zero-credit course, Engineering 689. There are a number of benefit s to students associated with this enrollment. For employers, one important benefit is that it provides legal protection from claims of unemployment, should students attempt to file for unemployment following a scheduled work term.
• The University Office of Legal Affairs has advised all University faculty and staff that they are not to sign “hold harmless” agreements.

Engineering Career Services is committed to equal employment opportunity for all persons and provides services to our students and employers on a nondiscriminatory basis. We expect all employers to comply with U.S. and [state] employment laws and we recommend including an EEO statement with all job descriptions.