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Equity Action Plan

Goal 3: Recruitment & retention

Attract, advance, and retain students, staff, faculty, librarians and senior leadership from systemically and historically marginalized communities.

Why?

During the plan’s creation, UVic community members confirmed that diversity must be a priority. Their feedback suggests that current efforts are not enough to increase representation in all campus populations and positions. New strategies are needed to ensure everyone has opportunities to advance and thrive at UVic.

  • Hiring and advancement practices do not adequately account for inherent biases of individuals in positions of power (e.g., department chairs) or the power dynamics of the committee structure. As a result, policies concerning equitable hiring processes are undermined.
  • Employment practices do not adequately consider retention of faculty, librarians and/or staff from systemically and historically marginalized groups. As a result, UVic continues to struggle with increasing representation across all units and employee classifications. 
  • Follow up with unsuccessful job applicants to provide feedback is inconsistent or non-existent. This reinforces expectations of the ideal professional fit and limits opportunities for future applications/success.
  • The lack of affordable housing for students and employees is affecting recruitment and retention efforts. As a result, targeted student recruitment or limited/preferential hiring strategies may not be successful.
  • Staff job descriptions are often difficult to read, emphasize credentials and years of experience over skills and adaptability and include inconsistent details. This limits who may be considered "qualified" for the position.
  • Faculty job recruitment processes prioritize a traditional (and colonial) academic resume (e.g., publications, conference presentations, grants, etc.). This limits who may be considered "qualified" for the position. 

Committed actions

Community-wide impact

  1. Develop expectations for demonstrated skills and commitment to advancing equity on campus, beginning with senior leadership positions. Leads: VP Academic & Provost (Faculty Relations), VP Finance & Operations (Human Resources), University Secretary (Equity & Human Rights)

  2. Explore creative housing solutions for employees and students. Leads: VP Finance & Operations, VP External Relations

  3. Develop robust, standardized and equity-centred search and appointment processes for senior leadership positions. Lead: University Secretary (Equity & Human Rights)

Student-specific impact

  1. Develop targeted strategies to support student retention and success (e.g., program completion) across diverse populations. Lead: VP Academic & Provost (Student Affairs), University Secretary (Equity and Human Rights)

  2. Create mentorship and peer support initiatives for students from systemically and historically marginalized communities. Lead: VP Academic & Provost (Student Affairs)

  3. Increase grade school (K-12) outreach and pathway programs to support recruitment of systemically and historically marginalized groups. Lead: VP Academic & Provost (Student Affairs & Deans)

  4. Assess student recruitment and admissions practices for barriers that may disadvantage prospective students from systemically and historically marginalized groups. Update admissions processes to respond to the identified barriers (e.g., establish priority admissions pathways). Lead: VP Academic & Provost (Student Affairs)

Employee-specific impact

  1. Develop a university-wide strategy for employment equity goal setting, including efforts to support employee recruitment, hiring, retention, and advancement processes. Lead: Executive Council (Employment Equity Steering Committee)

  2. Develop university‑wide and portfolio‑level mentorship and sponsorship programs that support employees from systemically and historically marginalized communities to advance into leadership roles. Lead: Executive Council

  3. Identify and address barriers to building and leading equitable and diverse research teams including hiring processes, professional development and opportunities for early career researchers. Lead: VP Research & Innovation

 

Action Completion notes
Develop guidelines, under the terms of the Faculty Collective Agreement, to recognize the student support work done by faculty from systemically and historically marginalized communities as university service. Lead: VP Academic & Provost Additions were made to the meaning of service in the Faculty Collective Agreement(2022-2025) to include “contributions to student life in relation to their academic success with specific recognition of support and mentorship provided to students from marginalized groups” (25.22 (d)).

Design and implement committee chair training as part of the Equity in Decision-Making Processes online training. Leads: VP Academic & Provost, University Secretary (Equity & Human Rights)

The ARPT Resources Workbook was developed to assist chairs in embedding equity into all appointment, reappointment, promotion and tenure processes. Workshops and individual support for using the tool are available.
Ensure UVic’s commitments to and resources (accommodations and supports) for students and employees with disabilities are featured in all academic and hiring recruitment materials. Leads: VP Academic & Provost, VP Finance & Operations

 Coming soon.

Develop a collection of job description templates that are written in plain language, equity-centred and focused on skills. Lead: VP Finance & Operations

New equity-centred job description templates have been designed and released as part of the Human Resources Manager Support SharePoint site.

Undertake a survey on faculty and staff housing needs and use this information to develop appropriate housing strategies. Lead: VP Finance & Operations

In Fall 2022, UVic conducted an employee housing survey the results of which informed the development of the UVic Real Estate Strategy.

Updated October 2026

What's next

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