The Appointment/Hiring Process

Academic HR

Academic Appointment Process

When getting ready to hire a candidate into an academic pay plan, use the following checklist to complete the necessary forms and steps in this process. Academic pay plans include salaried faculty, OPS (adjunct) faculty, post-doc associates, graduate assistants, house staff, pre- and post-doc fellows.

Academic Personnel Checklist

Requirements for Faculty Hire

The University of Florida is a state educational institution that is regionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). In keeping with the University’s mission and accreditation status, all newly hired faculty members will be required to undergo successful pre-employment screening which includes a review of criminal records, reference checking, and verification of education.  Any offer of employment is contingent on verification of education. All new faculty hires must submit:

• an official copy of their transcripts for their highest degree prior to their start date
• a minimum of three (3) references letters

Additionally, new hire faculty are required to participate in E-Verify, the federal online employment verification system and complete section 1 of Form I-9 on or before the first day of employment, and present documents that verify their identity and work authorization.

Faculty Transcript Request

When providing transcripts, a new faculty must ensure it is an official copy of his/her highest degree and that it is submitted by the date indicated in the appointment letter or prior to the start of the appointment. Transcripts must be sent directly to the hiring department or central HR from the issuing institution. An official electronic transcript may be transmitted directly from the issuing institution to the hiring department.

An official transcript should:

• not contain the designation of “Issued to  Student”
• have the issuing institution’s official seal
• have a signature of the appropriate authorizing  agent or the institution’s registrar
• be issued on the institution’s official  letterhead or stationary
• reflect date of issue

Foreign Degree Equivalency

Degrees earned from a higher education institution outside the U.S. must obtain a degree equivalency. Degree equivalency refers to evaluation by a crediting agency that the degree achieved is equal to the same degree level in the U.S.  Members of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES.org) organization are highly recommended as they are recognized by the institutional accreditation body (SACS) and immigration agencies. The equivalency process may take several weeks to generate results.

For additional information on transcription submission requirements, contact Talent Acquisition & Onboarding at 352-392-2477 or email jobinquiries@ufl.edu.

Courtesy Appointments

Courtesy appointments are non-paid appointments that may be granted to a current UF employee or a non-UF employee. In order to create a courtesy appointment for

• New Hire Courtesy Faculty: Submit an electronic ePAF Form. No additional paperwork is needed unless new hire is a foreign national without a permanently assigned social security number.
• Joint or Affiliate: Submit an electronic ePAF Form. No additional paperwork is required.

Graduate Assistants, Pre- and Post-Doctoral Fellows Hiring Process

This is a brief overview of the process for appointing graduate assistants, pre-doctoral fellows, and post-doctoral fellows. For a complete overview, please attend Training and Organizational Development’s Pro3 Series course PRO318 Hiring Graduate Assistants and Fellows.

Hiring/Appointing Graduate Assistants/Pre- and Post-Doc Fellows

In this summary we will cover:

• Step 1: Confirm eligibility requirements and qualifications, and gather paperwork.
• Step 2: Enter hire in ePAF and submit paperwork to Employment Operations & Records.
• Step 3: Enter Letter of Appointment in the myUFL system.
• Step 4: Enter commitment accounting.

Rehires/Re-Appointing Graduate Assistants and Fellows

The following are the general guidelines for rehiring and/or reappointing graduate assistants, pre- and post-doc fellows.

Student Assistant Hiring Process

Staff (TEAMS & USPS)

Establishing a New TEAM/USPS Employee

Below is a general workflow of this process, in this section we will discuss the hiring section. For more information on the making an offer section, click here.

Meeting with the New Employee Prior to their First Day

Once the verbal offer has been accepted, consider meeting with the employee to have them sign the letter of offer, gather supporting documentation for the Form I-9 as well as explain the rest of the hiring process.

This is an opportunity to provide a seamless onboarding experience for the new employee. As you may recall when you joined the University of Florida, there is a lot of information being provided that may or may not make sense on the first day! During this initial meeting you can:

• Go over the I-9 process through GatorStart, UF’s electronic onboarding system.
• Ask the new employee to bring required documentation for the hire ePAF.
• Provide the new employee resources regarding their benefits and retirement packages if eligible.
• Give the new employee a tour of the workplace.

Taking the time to do the administrative paperwork prior to the employee’s first day, increases the likelihood of having access to UF systems and decreases the chances of information overload for the new employee.

Entering a Staff Appointment in myUFL

When establishing a new staff (TEAMS & USPS) appointment, refer to the New Hire Checklist —TEAMS and OPS General/Student for guidance through this process. If the new appointment is for an employee with an active employee record, review the current employee section.

1. The New Hire Checklist

• Outlines the necessary documents needed for a new appointment to be approved in the myUFL system.
• Indicates documents that are part of the GatorStart onboarding packet.
• Separates the information by appointment type.
• Provides links to each form type that may be needed for the new appointment.

Before requesting new hire paperwork, review the Employees with an Active Employee Record section to ensure you do not over document for an existing employee.

2. Entering an EPAF

An ePAF is the electronic personnel action form that allows for the creation or edit of an employee record. For detailed instruction guides, visit the Hiring and Additional Pay Toolkit. The ePAF process when hiring:

• May differ if the new employee has an active employee record within or outside the hiring department.
• Begins with the originator (department-level), must go through several levels of approval including Level 1 (college-level) and Level 2 (Core HR). If needed, approval from Distance & Continuing Education (DCE) and Payroll and Tax Services may also be required.
• All ePAF requirements must be met prior to reaching Level 2/Core HR  in order to be approved at the time of receipt. It will be recycled back to the originator with comments if the requirements are not met for final approval.
• Generally takes 4 to 5 business days to be reviewed in order of receipt at Level 2/Core HR. Note: During busy seasons turnaround time frames may be longer.

Employees with an Active Employee Record

If hiring an employee with an active employee record, please consider the following:

• Is the person keeping the active employee record? The hiring department must determine if the person will need an HR600 even if the employee is not at a 1.00 FTE.
• Is the employee record for a fellowship or courtesy appointment? Having a fellowship or courtesy appointment does not equal an employer-employee relationship with the University of Florida. This means that the new employee should complete new hire paperwork. For new employees who will not have a break in service from their fellowship appointments, contact Core HR for the creation of a GatorStart packet.

Best Practices

• All ePAF transactions should be entered on or before the effective date of the job action.
• Submit by the deadline with all required materials attached to ensure new employee does not miss a pay period and if eligible, the employee can sign up for benefits within the allotted period of time.
• The list of required documents for an ePAF of a TEAMS hire will be provided by the HR Recruiter in the clearance email. Please note, Department HR may require additional documentation.
• For incomplete hire ePAFs
  • If submitting an ePAF to initiate a GatorStart packet, include a comment for the Level 1 Approver to recycle or keep at their level until the GatorStart packet is completed by new employee.
• E-Verify should be completed within three days of the employee’s start date even if the hire ePAF is not ready for submission because the social security card has been requested but not received. Attach Section 2 supporting documents to the E-Verify case if ePAF is unavailable.

ePAF as a Communication Tool

When initiating an ePAF, Originators can use the comment section to provide specific information regarding the ePAF. Meaning, if the ePAF is not ready to be approved because of missing documents, providing details about what is still pending allows your Level 1 Approver to efficiently review the ePAF prior to recycling.

Reasons to Enter a Note in the ePAF Comment Section

Below, are some of the frequent reasons why an Originator should provide additional information to a Level 1 Approver.

• ePAF is initiated to send GatorStart packet: If the ePAF is not ready for approval, enter a note for your Level 1 Approver to send back to your level until GatorStart is completed.
• ePAF is pending documentation: If the ePAF does not have all the required documentation, enter a note for your Level 1 Approver referencing what documentation is still pending. The 2-in-1 Loyalty Oath and Intellectual Property is not required for ePAF approval, but should be attached to the ePAF when it becomes available. A pending Health Assessment (HAMS) will be noted on the ePAF by Level 2 Approver, but it will not hold the approval process.
• ePAF needs additional documentation: To streamline the ePAF approval process, if the ePAF includes additional documentation such as HR600/Nepotism Form, which requires Core HR Approval, enter a note stating the type of form that is attached to the ePAF to make your Approver aware.
• ePAF under special circumstances: If special approval is obtained from a department or specific individual within Core HR, enter a note stating the special circumstances to prevent a delay in the ePAF approval process.

Why do ePAFs get Recycled?

Recycling of an ePAF is a form of communication between Approvers and Originators. Typically recycling occurs when ePAFs are not completed correctly or when all the necessary documentation is not attached and/or filled out appropriately. Approvers will provide detailed information in the comment section on what is still needed to proceed with the ePAF approval process.

Checking the Status of an ePAF

• To review the status of an ePAF, login to myUFL and click:

Main Menu > Workforce Administration > HR ePAF Home Page > View an ePAF > View a Hire ePAF

• Locate a specific ePAF by entering the eForm ID, UFID or name of the new hire.
• In the Comment History section you can review notes left by any of the approvers who worked on the ePAF.
• Click the Next button to view the ePAF Process Visualizer.
• The Process Visualizer will show the stage in which your ePAF is currently being reviewed.

• Click the Next button to view the ePAF Process Visualizer.
• The Process Visualizer will show the stage in which your ePAF is currently being reviewed.

Temporary OPS

Entering a Temporary OPS Appointment in myUFL

Temporary OPS appointments do not go through the clearance process as staff appointments. When establishing a new Temporary OPS appointment, you must refer to the New Hire Checklist —TEAMS and OPS General/Student for information on the process and the required documents when entering an ePAF. If the new appointment is for an employee with an active employee record, review the current employee section.

1. The New Hire Checklist

• Outlines the necessary documents needed for a new appointment to be approved in the myUFL system.
• Indicates documents that are part of the GatorStart onboarding packet.
• Separates the information by appointment type.
• Provides links to each form type that may be needed for the new appointment.

Before requesting new hire paperwork, review the Employees with an Active Employee Record section to ensure you do not over document for an existing employee.

2. Entering an EPAF

An ePAF is the electronic personnel action form that allows for the creation or edit of an employee record. For detailed instruction guides, visit the Hiring and Additional Pay Toolkit. The ePAF process when hiring:

• May differ if the new employee has an active employee record within or outside the hiring department.
• Begins with the originator (department-level), must go through several levels of approval including Level 1 (college-level) and Level 2 (Core HR). If needed, approval from Distance & Continuing Education (DCE) and Payroll and Tax Services may also be required.
• All ePAF requirements must be met prior to reaching Level 2/Core HR  in order to be approved at the time of receipt. It will be recycled back to the originator with comments if the requirements are not met for final approval.
• Generally takes 4 to 5 business days to be reviewed in order of receipt at Level 2/Core HR. Note: During busy seasons turnaround time frames may be longer.