Standardizing the interview process and developing a faculty interview rubric: An effective method to recruit and retain online instructors

With the increasing prevalence of online education, institutions of higher education may encounter challenges as they seek to hire instructors who have the skills, knowledge base, and competencies that “best fit” the unique characteristics associated with online teaching. This article describes the initial development of the Systematic Interview Rubric for Adjunct Applicant Review (SIRAAR) as part of a standardized interview process for hiring online faculty members at an online university. The development of the SIRAAR stemmed from the findings of a qualitative study using a web board focus group with 28 online faculty from Capella University, School of Human Services. Once an initial iteration of the SIRAAR was completed, it was then reviewed utilizing a “vetting” process with 11 faculty members in an informal, face-to-face discussion. The use of an interview rubric and a standardized interview process is proposed as a systematic strategy to support the hiring process, online faculty retention and quality online instruction.