Hire and engage personnel, students, and volunteers

The hiring process may take time to ensure the appropriate position is created, candidates are recruited, and applicants are sufficiently vetted. In general, the hiring process follows these steps in order:

1. Obtain position approval

• Before a position can be created, budgetary considerations need to be approved by the relevant office or department leadership.

2. Classify and create the position

• Once the addition of a new position has been approved, the process for classifying the positions is dependent upon the research area. This process, and completion of appropriate forms, should be coordinated between the hiring team and department business manager for non-clinical research positions, and research administrator positions. 
  • For SoM and SoN clinical research positions, access the Workforce Engagement and Resilience hiring page for more information about job classifications and the hiring process
• After ensuring the appropriate classification for the position, the hiring team should work together to create a job description and fill out the applicable Human Resources forms.

3. Post the position, and recruit and interview candidates

• Coordinate with your human resources representative to post the position on Duke’s hiring site or Academic Jobs Online, as appropriate. 
  • Access the Duke Human Resources website for policies and guidance around posting positions, along with recruitment best practices.
• Refer to your business manager or human resources representative regarding salary ranges for the position. Duke sets salaries based on a combination of budget, internal equity, and the education and experience of the candidate.
• The Office for Institutional Equity also provides guidance on developing a diverse pool of applicants to ensure that equity is a major part of hiring and talent acquisition.
• Hiring managers should ensure that the pool of candidates is sufficient enough to interview several qualified, diverse, and interested applicants. For more information about equitable interviewing practices and policies on offering employment to the selected candidate, access the Duke Human Resources website.
• Note: a Placement Health Review may be required if the position requires patient contact, work with research animals, or work in an environment where there may be potential exposures to body fluids, toxins, or other potentially harmful substances. Contact Employee Occupational Health & Wellness (EOHW) for questions or to schedule a Placement Health Review for a selected candidate. 

4. Hire and onboard

• Coordinate with the business manager to initiate the hiring process once the preferred candidate has formally accepted an offer. Preparation should be made for welcoming and onboarding well in advance of a new hire’s start date. 
  • All new employees should attend their relevant management center orientation session as soon as possible, some may need to do so on their first day. For more information about new hire orientation or to register a new employee to attend a session, access the Duke Human Resources website. 
  • Department orientation is an important process for establishing expectations, engaging the new employee in their role, and evaluating if the employee and role are a good match. Duke Human Resources provides strategies and actions to be taken on an employee’s first day and within a new employee’s first 90 days to help orient them to their new department.
  • Clinical research staff should also be directed to the competency based onboarding program, provided by the Duke Office of Clinical research. This program is a package of self-paced e-learning courses, curated by role, that will help acquaint new employees to performing clinical research at Duke.
  • Non-clinical research staff are invited to participate in a voluntary, group-based onboarding with the myRESEARCHnavigators as an introduction to the research enterprise at Duke. Information and registration are available here. 
• For information about training requirements based on role and research activities, access the Train research personnel page.

Special considerations apply regarding the process for approval and hiring of Postdoctoral positions. Also, depending on the type of appointment, payment structures may be different than that of full-time faculty and staff. The Duke Office of Postdoctoral Services provides guidance on Postdoctoral appointments and the associated process and policies. 

A visiting research scholar is an individual coming to Duke to take part in research activities, whether funded or unfunded, who is not receiving payment (ex: stipend, salary support) from Duke or enrolled in any official Duke Coursework as part of their visit. Other roles for this individual may include, but are not limited to: affiliate, research scholar, visiting scientist, visiting scholar, visiting graduate student, visiting undergraduate student.  

Visiting research scholars do not include:

• Anyone being paid by Duke
• Anyone enrolled in coursework at Duke
• Vendors
• Students from institutions that have existing student agreements with Duke (ex: Durham Tech Clinical Research Students)
• Observers here for less than 2 weeks
• Some Core Facility users
• "Visiting Scholar" (job code 1523) and "Visiting Research Scholar" (job code 1516). Contact the business manager or human resources representative for more information about the hiring process for these positions.

Involving visiting research scholars on a research team:

• Review the guidance on visiting scholars at Duke
• Notify the business manager and complete the Visiting Scholar Information Form to submit to the designee for the relevant department.

Non-Duke personnel must abide by all applicable training and requirements. Allowable activities are limited for all unpaid personnel involved in research at Duke. Utilize the allowable activities tool below to understand restrictions around activities prior to including visiting scholars on a research team.

Prior to offering a position to an international student or visiting scholars, the international activities guidance page should be reviewed and a human resources representative contacted.

The Visa Services site provides additional information on the process and requirements involved during the hiring process. It is important to note that visa processing times vary by specifics of the position, the person being hired, and the type of visa. Processing times can take anywhere from a few weeks up to a full year before being the individual is approved to begin work. 

• For international staff, contact brendan.j.murphy@duke.edu. Special considerations and approvals may be needed to comply with federal and institutional regulations.

Student positions are processed differently than staff positions, and allowable activities may be limited. Also, enrolled students can typically only work a limited number of hours per week, inclusive of any and all Duke positions combined. Contact the departmental business manager or human resources representative and research practice manager, if applicable, to discuss plans for, and the appropriateness of hiring students for a research project.  

Student research opportunities can be posted on the Duke Muser site, in accordance with established posting deadlines, or can be posted on the Duke Student Employment website.

Work study students

Only students who have qualified for work study allocation as part of their financial aid compensation may be hired for work study positions. For more information about the work study pay structure, how to find and recruit eligible students, and the work study hiring process, access the Duke Financial Aid website.

Note: students who qualify for work study are also eligible for paid student positions that do not require work study.

Unpaid internships can provide powerful educational and professional experience. Duke values the contribution interns, and has developed guidance and policies for establishing these opportunities for research projects. 

To explore possibilities for recruiting an unpaid intern from an affiliated institution to work on a research team (SoM), visit the Clinical Research Internship Program (CRISP) website for information.

Allowable activities are limited for all unpaid personnel involved in research at Duke. Utilize the allowable activities tool below to understand restrictions around activities prior to including visiting scholars, volunteers, visiting trainees/interns or other unpaid positions on a research team.

Volunteering is a great way for individuals to gain experience and give back to the Duke community. Duke values the contribution of volunteers, and has developed guidance and policies for establishing these opportunities for research projects. For more information about including volunteers as part of a research team, access the Duke Human Resources website.

Allowable activities are limited for all unpaid personnel involved in research at Duke. Utilize the allowable activities tool below to understand restrictions around activities prior to including visiting scholars, volunteers, visiting trainees/interns or other unpaid positions on a research team.

Minors (individuals under the age of 18) may be involved in certain aspects of research projects, as long as it abides by all HR, safety, and activity-specific regulations. Access the following links for information about including minors on research projects:

• Minors policy and associated staff responsibilities 
• Minors in work areas
• Minors engaging in animal research activities
• Minors engaging in clinical research activities: contact DOCR.help@dm.duke.edu. DOCR staff can provide assistance with navigating the requirements and permitted activities for learning experiences for minors.