Information for Applicants

If you are applying for an academic vacancy, you may find it helpful to review our Academic Career Pathway (ACP) information. Our recruitment process aims to evaluate applications against the ACP’s and the person specification criteria in the job description (attached to the job advert) will detail the type of evidence you should provide on your application.   

If you are applying for a professional or support vacancy, it may be helpful to review our Professional Services Values and Leadership Expectations. Our recruitment process aims to evaluate applications against the values and other job-related criteria in the job description.  This is attached to the job advertisement and will detail the type of evidence you should provide on your application.

The panel who review your application will be seeking evidence that you meet the criteria against each point in the person/job specifications and we would strongly advise using specific examples for each point.

You may also find it helpful to structure your examples using the STAR technique; this is a simple way to help you answer questions in the application form and at interview, using evidence and real examples to show us your skills.

STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action and Result.

How do I use STAR?

S- Situation

You can set the scene and let us know the background and context to your answer. Try to be specific in your description.

T – Task

Describe the task you were responsible for in the situation and what you needed to do to complete or resolve it. Keep focused on the part you were responsible for and be concise. Include any challenges you faced.

A – Action

This is your opportunity to tell us exactly what you did to achieve a successful outcome. We are looking for the part you played. Using your specific example, show us the skills you used at each step eg planning, initiative, communicating, problem solving, leadership etc, but make sure this is relevant to the question and the criteria in the job description.

R - Result

Share the outcome of the situation, and your specific contribution. You can also tell us what you learned or if you would do things differently next time.

Shortlisting normally begins soon after the closing date. If you are unsuccessful at the shortlisting stage, we will send you an email as soon as the shortlisting process has been completed. Regrettably, due to the sheer volume of applications we receive, we are currently unable to provide individual feedback.

If you are successful at the shortlisting stage, we will contact you with interview details. Please tell us if you need any assistance or other special requirements to be able to attend the interview and a member of our HR team will be happy to help. 

We will let you know the outcome of your interview as soon as possible or give you a timeframe in which you can expect a response. You are welcome to request feedback from the HR team after your interview.

If you have been successful, a member of the interview panel will contact you to discuss your offer.  If you choose to accept the position, the HR team will send you an offer of employment and will support you through the pre-joining process.