The system will take almost 100 percent of the paperwork out of the hiring process. Hiring managers will be able to create job postings and view applications online, and applicants with access to a Web browser will be able to search for jobs and submit applications any time of the day or night. The system will begin accepting applications for all staff openings Oct. 1 at http://uscjobs.sc.edu.

“Hiring managers will no longer have to fill out a paper form to send in a job requisition or come to the Employment Office to pick up applications for a position, and applicants won’t have to come by the Employment Office to complete an application,” said Jeff Cargile, director of human resources programs and services. “The only piece of paper that will be needed is a signed application for the person being hired. The hiring department will simply print out the application and the applicant will sign it.”

Hiring managers can create staff job postings online and view all the applications for positions by logging on to the system. USC Jobs also will accommodate search committees. Hiring managers will be able to create a guest username and password that will allow each committee member to view the applications online for that specific job.

The online employment site also will contain hundreds of templates for every classified staff opening—including job title, pay band, class code, minimum qualifications, and other information—at the University. “Probably 85 percent of the job requisition form is already filled out on the templates. The only thing the hiring managers might have to fill in are any special qualifications and contact information,” Cargile said. “For repetitive vacancies, managers can create new requisitions from previous advertisements. In those cases, 95–100 percent of all they need is probably already filled out.”

Although USC Jobs will be used to fill every staff position at the University, the system was built to accommodate faculty hiring as well, Cargile said. “If deans and department chairs want to use it for faculty openings, we’ll have it there, and they can use it. But they don’t have to,” he said.

Applicants can log on to USC Jobs at any time to search for and apply for regular employment, research grant, and temporary positions. Applicants also can create a profile—whether there’s a job opening they’re qualified for or not—and leave it on the site “to wait for the right job to come along,” Cargile said.

“The system will notify the applicant when a job in a certain department, for example, opens. Then they can click on the advertisement and apply for that position using the application they have created online and submit it,” he said.

The system also will allow applicants to answer questions and submit resumes, cover letters, and other supporting materials. Applicants also can check the status of all the jobs for which they’ve applied; add a resume, vita, or cover letter; or withdraw applications.

“The new system will eliminate all that copying and filling out all those forms for applicants. Eliminating paper is one of the biggest advantages of the new system,” said Ella Marshall, employment manager.

The University receives about 10,000 applications for staff employment every year, Cargile said.

Applicants can submit applications from any computer with Internet access. For applicants who need access, computers will be available at the Employment Office at 1600 Hampton St.

PeopleAdmin developed the online system specifically for the employment process in higher education. About 140 colleges and universities across the country use the product.

“The new system will save money and time,” Marshall said. “It will make the employment process much easier for the hiring department and the applicant.”

Anyone needing training on the new online employment system should contact the Employment Office at 7-3821.

9/04