Employers

Service guidelines

• Career Services invites employers to promote jobs or internship opportunities through the online job board, Handshake.
• Career Services reserves the right to refuse service to any employer who violates the National Association of Colleges and Employers Principles of Ethical Professional Practice or any Career Services policy. Lack of important information from the employer will result in declining employer approval and job approval requests; especially when requested multiple times by Career Services.
• Career Services cautiously works with Third Party Recruiters and allows Third Party Recruiters access to Handshake and post jobs under limited circumstances. Third-party recruiters will abide by our Third-Party Recruiters Guidelines as described below:
  • Identify themselves as a third-party recruiter on their employer profile and all job announcements (Must specifically state their Third Party Recruiter status on their contact profile in Handshake).
  • Charge no fees to the candidate.
  • Identify, upon request, the name of the actual employer they represent and permit verification of this information (job postings, career fair recruitment, etc.)
  • Provide a position description for valid openings.
  • Operate in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Release candidate information provided by the University exclusively and only to the identified employer; assuming the student has provided permission to disclose their information. Re-disclosure of candidate information is not permitted.

Note: The Career Services Office will respect the confidentiality of the actual employer information and will not publish it in any manner.

Job postings

• Job postings must be actual, current openings for internships, cooperative education assignments, and/or traditional, W-2 or 1099 full- or part-time employees.
• Full-time job posting should target soon-to-be graduates or alumni.
• Job postings and Handshake messages must contain sufficient detail to convey clearly to the user the nature and basic requirements of the job opportunity.
• Job postings and Handshake messages may not contain anything that is sexually explicit, obscene, libelous, defamatory, threatening, harassing, abusive, or hateful; or anything that is embarrassing or offensive to another person or entity.
• Job postings seeking candidates to promote a product, services, or website to other Missouri State University-West Plains students on campus will not be posted. Examples of job titles include Campus Brand Ambassadors, Campus Managers/Reps, Campus Marketing Assistants, etc.
• Job posting and Handshake messages may not be used to post advertisements or solicitations for employment requiring personal information at the time of application (such as bank and social security numbers); misrepresentation, whether defined by dishonest information or absence of information; fraud; harassment of Missouri State University-West Plains students, alumni or staff; breach of confidentiality as required by FERPA; failure to adhere to Career Services employer guidelines; any violation of Missouri State University rules and regulations; any violation of local, state or federal laws.
• In the event that a Missouri State University-West Plains student experiences any harassment or actual or potential harm at the workplace during an internship or job, the employer’s recruiting privileges will be suspended pending a resolution of the situation that is satisfactory to university and the Missouri State University-West Plains Office of Career Services.

Internships

As defined by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), an internship is a form of experiential learning that integrates knowledge and theory learned in the classroom with practical application and skills development in a professional setting. Internships give students the opportunity to gain valuable applied experience and make connections in professional fields they are considering for career paths, while giving employers the opportunity to guide and evaluate talent. Internships are learning-based opportunities that assist with career skill development and include a training component. Make sure to review and adhere to the the Internship Department of Labor Statement. Internship positions can be part-time or full-time, and paid or unpaid.

Unpaid internship considerations

The legal considerations are addressed through six criteria for unpaid interns for the service they provide to “for-profit” private sector employers articulated in the Fair Labor Standards Act (see FLSA Fact Sheet #71). If the six criteria are met, the Department of Labor (DOL) considers there to be no employment relationship. The six criteria established by the DOL are:

1. The internship, even though it includes actual operation of the employer’s facilities, is similar to training that would be given in a vocational school.
2. The internship experience is for the benefit of the student.
3. The intern does not displace regular employees, but works under the close observation of a regular employee.
4. The employer provides the training and derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the intern. Occasionally, the operations may actually be impeded.
5. The intern is not necessarily entitled to a job at the conclusion of the internship.
6. The employer and the intern understand that the intern is not entitled to wages for the time in the internship.

Compensation and fees

• Employers offering paid positions must pay at least the Missouri State minimum wage or the applicable local minimum wage if higher (calculated over any time scale such as hourly, weekly, semi-monthly, monthly or annually).
• Cryptocurrency, bitcoin, tokens, fiat or equity are not acceptable forms of payment.
• All internship postings must be clearly stated as paid or unpaid. (All unpaid internships must meet the guidelines – See unpaid internship consideration section). We do not post positions that are purely unpaid or volunteer opportunities as positions must meet the Department of Labor definitions and requirements that allow them to do so legally, and they must clearly state the pay status when posting their opportunities on Handshake.
• Commission Sales Positions: If no initial base salary is provided, the form of remuneration should be clearly stated in the employer's job descriptions and at the time of the initial interviews.
• Recruitment for positions requiring monetary outlay by candidates for equipment and training is strongly discouraged and potentially unlawful. Students and recent graduates will be reluctant to apply for such positions. This includes fees for certain federal and state licensing requirements, e.g., real estate, securities, etc. If fees are involved, this information must be explicitly included in the position description.
• Postings that request donations, application fees, or investments cannot be listed on Handshake.

Career Services reserves the right to remove job listings on Handshake or decline further service to those employers who do not abide by these compensation/fee guidelines.

Résumé access

• Career Services will not give account access or forward résumés to home-based businesses.
• Career Services will not send résumés to personal email accounts. Exceptions may be made on a case by case basis.
• Career Services will not send résumés or give any employer passwords to corporate "student ambassadors" or "student campus recruiters". It is a violation of professional standards to provide a student's résumé to a fellow student for review and decision-making.
• Career Services will not send résumés to Third Party Recruiters.
• Career Services reserves the right to not allow employers "résumé access" if the employer uses the résumé data inappropriately or abuses this service. Career Services will evaluate and act accordingly to student/alumni complaints about employers.

On-campus recruiting/interview scheduling

• Employers interested in setting up a table in academic buildings on campus must reserve the table through Career Services using the Handshake recruiting database. The employer must adhere to the campus/building guidelines for visitors/vendors.
• The tables must be located in designated areas only, and Career Services will not allow employers to leave their table to solicit to students who have not shown an interest in their organization. If the Office of Career Services learns from other campus departments that an employer is soliciting and harassing students while visiting campus, the employer will not be allowed to visit campus again—even if there has been a change in recruiters for that organization.
• Cancellations: Employers that cancel interview schedules once the student sign-up window has opened are responsible for contacting students who were invited to interview to inform them of the cancellation.
• Space available: During peak periods, the Office of Career Services may limit the number of interview rooms available for a given employer. Employers with a history of reserving more schedules than they can fill will be limited to one more room than was filled in the prior year.
• Extra space/“room only”: If you will need additional space for tests or administrative purposes, please request a “room only” at the time you request interview space, as same-day requests often can‘t be accommodated.
• Missed deadlines: Career Services will make repeated efforts to contact employers who miss on-campus recruiting deadlines. However, should the employer fail to acknowledge reminder calls or emails, Career Services reserves the right to determine whether to change the schedule from pre-select to qualified open or to cancel the interview schedule.
• Schedule timing: Employers should consider travel implications before interview schedules are finalized—or at least before student sign-up begins—to minimize conflicts on the interview date. Career Services will gladly accommodate employers’ schedule preferences when stated in advance. Please note that all interviews (and tests) should be planned to start no earlier than 8:30 a.m. conclude by close of business at 5 p.m.
• Intern housing: Co-op and intern employers should clearly specify the nature of any housing or relocation assistance in their interview information and company profile.

Student privacy issues

• Photos or videos should not be used as part of the selection process. Exceptions will be made for use of video conference facilities on campus for those employers unable to conduct on-campus interviews.
• Social security numbers should not be used during the hiring process.

Exceptions to policies and guidelines

Career Services reserves the right to make exceptions to these policies and guidelines as warranted by special circumstances, i.e., in certain situations deemed to be acceptable and beneficial to our students, the Career Services Office, the University, or recruiters using our services. Such exceptions will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Any exception made does not constitute a change in policy, nor is there a guarantee that this same decision will apply in the future.

Missouri State University non-discrimination policy

The Missouri State University system is a community of people with respect for diversity. The University emphasizes the dignity and equality common to all persons and adheres to a strict non-discrimination policy regarding the treatment of individual faculty, staff, and students. In accord with federal law and applicable Missouri statutes, the University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin (including ancestry, or any other subcategory of national origin recognized by applicable law), religion, sex (including marital status, family status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or any other subcategory of sex recognized by applicable law), age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by applicable law in employment or in any program or activity offered or sponsored by the University. Sex discrimination encompasses sexual harassment, which includes sexual violence, and is strictly prohibited by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.

This policy shall not be interpreted in a manner as to violate the legal rights of religious organizations or of military organizations associated with the Armed Forces of the United States of America.

The University maintains a grievance procedure incorporating due process available to any person who believes they have been discriminated against. Missouri State University is an Equal Opportunity employer. Inquiries concerning the complaint/grievance procedure related to discrimination on the basis of a protected class, including sexual harassment and sexual assault, or compliance with federal and state laws and guidelines, should be addressed to the Director, Office for Institutional Compliance, Carrington Hall 205, 901 S. National Ave., Springfield, Missouri 65897, Compliance@MissouriState.edu, 417-836-4252.

Line of authority

Responsible administrator and office: General Counsel & Vice President for Legal Affairs & Compliance, Division of Legal Affairs & Compliance
Contact person in that office:  Director, Office for Institutional Compliance