Recruitment and Selection

What Recruitment and Selection covers

Recruitment and Selection is assessed in Unit AS 2, Human Resource Services, which is internally assessed and externally moderated. It covers internal and external recruitment methods, job descriptions and person specifications, interviews and psychometric testing, competency profiling, situational judgement tests and EI questionnaires and contracts of employment and effective recruitment.

The 5 subtopics

Each one has its own page. CCEA AS Professional Business Services students sit this topic in the first year.

• Internal and external recruitment methodsInternal and external recruitment, advertising, websites and social media, job centres and agencies with an agency fee calculation, and fair employment monitoring in Northern Ireland.Open →
• Job descriptions and person specificationsJob descriptions and person specifications, essential and desirable criteria, job analysis, Rodger's seven-point plan, and Northern Ireland's equality law for applicants.Open →
• Interviews and psychometric testingSelection and shortlisting, structured and panel interviews, the halo effect, video interviews, aptitude and personality tests, their reliability and validity, and a pass-mark calculation.Open →
• Competency profiling, situational judgement tests and EI questionnairesCompetencies and competency profiling, competency-based interviews and STAR, situational judgement tests, emotional intelligence questionnaires and assessment centres.Open →
• Contracts of employment and effective recruitmentContracts of employment and written statements, notice periods and holiday entitlement, express and implied terms, probation, restrictive covenants, and the cost of recruitment.Open →

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Take Recruitment and Selection further

The same content, four other ways.

Commonly confused

Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.

• Job description vs Person specification

  Job description: a document setting out the title, duties and responsibilities of a post. Person specification: a document setting out the qualifications, skills and qualities of the ideal candidate.

• Internal recruitment vs External recruitment

  Internal recruitment: filling a vacancy with someone already employed by the organisation. External recruitment: seeking candidates from outside the organisation.

• Aptitude test vs Personality test

  Aptitude test: an assessment of ability such as numerical or verbal reasoning. Personality test: an assessment of typical behaviour and preferences at work.

Questions from this topic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   What is recruitment?

   Model answer

   Recruitment is the process of attracting suitable candidates to apply for a vacancy. Selection then chooses the best candidate from those who apply.

2. 2

   What is internal recruitment?

   Model answer

   Internal recruitment fills a vacancy with someone already employed by the organisation. The post is advertised only to existing staff.

3. 3

   Name three methods of advertising a vacancy internally.

   Model answer

   A vacancy can be advertised internally by staff email, in a staff newsletter or on a noticeboard. Many firms now use a noticeboard on their intranet.

4. 4

   Give two advantages of internal recruitment.

   Model answer

   Internal recruitment costs less than an external campaign. The employer also already knows the candidate's performance record.

5. 5

   Give two disadvantages of internal recruitment.

   Model answer

   Internal recruitment brings no fresh ideas or outside experience into the firm. The promotion also leaves a further vacancy to fill.

6. 6

   What is external recruitment?

   Model answer

   External recruitment seeks candidates from outside the organisation. The firm can reach a much wider pool of talent.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

Recruitment and Selection revision questions

Is Recruitment and Selection examined at AS in CCEA Professional Business Services?

Yes. It sits in AS 2, which you take in the first year, so it is on the AS paper as well as counting towards the full A level.

What does Recruitment and Selection cover in CCEA AS-Level Professional Business Services?

5 subtopics: internal and external recruitment methods, job descriptions and person specifications, interviews and psychometric testing, competency profiling, situational judgement tests and ei questionnaires and contracts of employment and effective recruitment. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.

How is Recruitment and Selection organised?

By the CCEA 3210 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.