Equal opportunities in recruitment procedures

These Guidelines provide an overview of the legal bases connected to the recruitment procedures at the University of Bern. They also include recommendations/information on the different phases of a recruitment procedure which are intended to increase equal opportunities.

The transparency and quality of recruitment procedures, i.e. the fair and sound assessment of all applications received, also increase equal opportunities, while ultimately achieving the objective of finding «the best person» for a professorship. In the appendix to the Guidelines, there are examples of the different tools such as a synopsis, lists of criteria and the Committee meeting procedures, all of which can be adapted to suit the specific subjectrelated context.

Since the first edition of these guidelines, a lot has happened at the University of Bern, which has made a new edition necessary. For example, there have been several revisions of the Recruitment Regulations, which has led to new regulations relevant to the quality of employment procedures. In addition, guidelines on conflicts of interest and abstentions as well as guidelines on job sharing in professorships have been adopted. Some new services, such as counselling and coaching services for dual career partners, are also to be mentioned in this updated version of the guidelines.

The Guidelines are directed at everyone who is involved in recruitment processes, which is exactly what is called for by the 2021 Strategy. It stipulates that equal opportunities must be actively implemented by everyone.