The University System of New Hampshire strives to provide a safe work environment. A pre-employment review of a candidate for employment is done to comply with pertinent laws, promote a safe work environment, and to protect USNH's assets, including its employees, students, property, and information.
Who is required to have a background check?
- Budgeted Benefits Eligible Positions
- Faculty and Staff
- Adjunct Faculty
- Adjunct Staff
- Graduate Appointments
- Student Hourly / Work Study Students with Safety / Security Sensitive Duties
Other
- Current Benefits Eligible Employees: a background review will be required if the job requires a higher level of review.
- Rehired Employees: If a background check was completed within the past year or the break in service was less than 120 days, a new background review will not be required, unless there are areas of review required by the job that were not covered in the previous review.
- UNH Youth Programs: Employees and volunteers working with UNH Youth Programs or Youth Skill Camps are required to undergo a background check before interacting with minors. Frequency and level of check depends upon whether the program meets the State of New Hampshire definition of a Youth Skill Camp and/or that of a UNH Youth Program.
- Volunteers: Full-time volunteers and part-time volunteers with safety/security sensitive duties. The cost of volunteer background checks is the responsibility of the home department.
- Operating USNH Vehicles: Anyone for whom driving a USNH owned or rented vehicle is part of their job or role must undergo an MVR Search before driving a USNH vehicle. This will most commonly be done during the background check process at the time of hire. Continued authorization to drive requires an MVR Search be conducted every three years for employees (including student employees).
- If a student is driving outside of employment such as for a club, organization, or on an academic field trip, please follow the Campus Student Driving process: UNH Student Driver Approval. This is required in addition to any previous employment related MVR Searches.
This service should be used to request background checks and/or motor vehicle record searches for the following:
- Graduate Assistantships (GA/TA/RA)
- Volunteers
- Rechecks/Annual Requirements for Youth Programs (every 3 years) or Youth Skills Camps (annual) for current employees
- Motor Vehicle Searches for required current employees (every 3 years)
Background checks for hires processed through Workday do not require a separate background check request ticket. Requests submitted for these hires will be cancelled as they are automatically initiated by HR during the hiring process.
The individual will be sent an email from the vendor, HireRight, with instructions and a link to submit the information required to process the background check request. Background checks take an average of 10 business days to be completed from the time the applicant submits their information to HireRight.
- Refusal on the part of a finalist to authorize a background review will make the individual ineligible for employment.
- Motor Vehicle Search: HireRight will provide any state required request forms depending on the issuing state of the driver’s license being reviewed. If a form is required, the driver must upload the completed form into the HireRight system before the search can be completed.
- NH MVR Search Form: this form no longer requires notary signature, full instructions are provided to the driver within the HireRight system.
- The vendor will send the completed reports to Human Resources upon the completion of the verification process for review.
- If there are no findings of disqualifying records, the HR coordinator will move the hiring process forward.
- Please note: A completed background check does not indicate that the candidate may begin working. Employees may only begin working once the full hiring process is complete and they have an active job in Workday. Hiring managers will receive a Workday notification when the hire is complete.
- Requestors of background checks outside of the Workday hiring process via TeamDynamix, will be notified via a ticket comment once the background check is complete.
- If there is potentially disqualifying information the HR Business Partner will communicate results to the hiring department on set criteria as according to policy. The candidate will receive a Pre-Adverse Action Notice from the background check vendor with additional details on disputing results, FCRA Summary of Right, and a copy of the background check report.
