Third-party recruiting

Adapted from the National Association for Colleges and Employers (NACE), these guidelines govern the manner in which Third-Party Recruiting Agencies may use the services offered at Arizona State University. See more employer resources.

NACE defines third-party recruiters as follows: “Third-party recruiters are agencies, organizations, or individuals recruiting candidates for temporary, part-time, or full-time employment opportunities other than for their own needs. This includes entities that refer or recruit for profit or not for profit, and it includes agencies that collect student information to be disclosed to employers for purposes of recruitment and employment.”

The above definition includes, but is not limited to, the following entities regardless of the fee structure used by the entity to charge for services:

  • Employment agencies/organizations — organizations that list positions for a number of client organizations and receive payment when a referred candidate is hired. The fee for listing a position is paid either by the firm listing the opening (fee paid) or by the candidate who is hired.
  • Search firms — organizations that contract with clients to find and screen qualified persons to fill specific positions. The fees for this service are paid by the clients.
  • Contract recruiters and temporary agencies — organizations that contract with an employer to act as the employer’s agent in the recruiting and employment function for either short-term, long-term, or permanent hires.
  • Resume referral firms — commercial organizations that collect data on job seekers that is marketed to prospective employers. Fees may be paid by the employer, the job seeker, or both.
  • Commercial job listing/resume collection websites — large website-based job boards where employers and recruiters source candidate information to fill positions ranging from generalist to specialist roles (Indeed.com, Monster.com, ZipRecruiter.com, etc.).

Because Arizona State University can neither research nor endorse Third-Party Recruiting Agencies, the following guidelines have been established for the protection of students, alumni and Arizona State University. Any reported breach of the policy will result in deactivation of the recruiting agencies’ online account and termination of access to all recruitment services, events and resources. ASU reserves the right of refusal for any third-party employer and/or third-party recruiting activity.

  1. Third-party recruiters operate in congruence with the university policy of Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action and do not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, sex, handicap, or national origin. An employer or agency using the services of ASU understands that compliance with all related federal and state statutes and regulations is required for initiation or continuation.
  2. Third-party recruiters will abide by the Principles for Third-Party Recruiters as described in the NACE Principles for Professional Practice.
  3. As per Handshake Terms of Use policy (https://joinhandshake.com/tos/), outside services cannot bulk collect student data, employer data, job descriptions, or other marketplace information through the use of automated scripts (“scraping”) or similar technologies or methodologies.
  4. Third-party recruiters are also prohibited from requiring students to create an account on a third-party platform unaffiliated with the company or brand providing the employment role.
  5. Under no circumstances may fees be charged to candidates.
  6. Third-party recruiters will provide information about their operations, services and clients to ASU Career and Professional Development Services for review, upon request.
  7. It will be the responsibility of the candidate to contact (initiate and/or follow up with) the third-party recruiter. Candidate names and/or information concerning candidates will not be released to third-party recruiters unless candidates provide a written release, signed and dated by the candidate, for that specific agency. Federal law requires that confidential letters not be shared with candidates.
  8. Third-party recruiters shall disclose the company for each job that is posted into Handshake and identify themselves as a third-party recruiter in both their employer profile and in all job/internship postings.
  9. Third-party firms who are recruiting for positions within their own organizations must clearly differentiate those opportunities from their client engagements.
  10. If a third-party recruiter wishes to recruit on-campus or virtually (including, but not limited to conducting interviews, attending career fairs, hosting information sessions, networking or tabling) that recruiter shall agree to abide by the above policies and to identify the represented employer(s) to both ASU and students/alumni being engaged as candidates. Third-party recruiters who elect to recruit on-campus or virtually should understand that the candidate’s information provided during their recruiting visit is to be used exclusively for the specific employer(s) in which the recruiting visit is taking place.

Temporary agencies that contract with employers to provide individuals qualified to perform specific tasks or complete specific projects for a client organization may be considered as employers, not third-party recruiters. Individuals hired would perform work at the client organization, but are employed by and paid by the agency. Temporary agencies will be expected to abide by the professional practice principles set forth by NACE for employer professionals at https://www.naceweb.org. Temporary agencies may post job openings as long as the temporary nature of the position is clearly stated in the job description provided and meets all other vetting requirements set forth by ASU.

Entities acting on behalf of the university shall not release FERPA-protected information concerning candidates to third-party recruiters unless candidate(s) provide proper Consent for Access (signed and dated) for said entity. The entity must be willing and able to show proof of signed release if/when requested by university representatives. For purposes of FERPA, a “third party” includes any individual or organization other than the student or the student’s parent(s). With respect to third parties, even if the initial disclosure of protected information is permissible, FERPA limits the subsequent disclosure of the information by the third party. As such, once the university discloses protected information to a third party, it must ensure that the third party does not itself improperly disclose the information in violation of FERPA.

By W. P. Carey Career Services Center
W. P. Carey Career Services Center