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08. Dual Career Couples - Affirmative Action Searches

Search committees are frequently asked by an individual they are recruiting about job possibilities for a spouse. If a spouse is qualified for an academic position, you may wish to contact the appropriate academic unit or college to explore appointment opportunities. This type of activity may, of course, be reciprocal. It may also be possible to appoint a spouse in a non-tenure system position. If a faculty appointment is inappropriate, you may wish to secure for her or him research space and library privileges. Admission to a graduate program at MSU is another possibility. The Associate Provost and Associate Vice President for Academic Human Resources (353-5300) may be of assistance in exploring opportunities.

An offer to recommend appointment of a woman and/or a minority candidate may be acceptable to the individual, but the individual's final acceptance of the offer may be conditional on her or his spouse finding employment in the area and specifically at Michigan State University. The receiving academic unit at MSU must be willing to accept the spouse of your candidate. In such instances, it may be possible to use a Waiver of posting/search requirements (See "When to Use the Affirmative Action Hiring Procedure, and When to Use a Waiver" in the "Academic Hiring Manual") for the appointment of the individual's spouse in an academic personnel system appointment. Again, the Associate Provost and AssociateVice President for Academic Human Resources should be contacted for assistance.

If the spouse wishes to apply for a support staff position, the assistance of the Office of Human Resources (353-3720) should be sought regarding position opportunities. If a spouse is interested in applying for an elementary or secondary school teaching position, there are about twelve school systems in central Michigan which may have employment opportunities. Their administrative offices are listed in the Lansing Area telephone book.

If the spouse is not interested in an academic appointment, the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce (487-6340) may be of assistance in locating employment. It has published the Membership Directory and the Industrial Directory. Units can send the candidate copies of the classified advertisements from the Sunday edition of the Lansing State Journal. After knowing the career field of the spouse, creative planning should help find suitable employment in central Michigan for her or him.

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