Create and Edit Committee Forms
This article explains how Unit Administrators can create committee forms for specific committee managers, members, and reviewers to complete during their workflow step in Interfolio's Review, Promotion & Tenure (RPT). Committee forms facilitate the collection, submission, and reporting of reviewer responses and can be required or omitted for specific reviewers.
Committee forms are different from the committee document requirement option, which involves file uploads.
Unit Administrators can create three types of forms from the Administration page: Candidate Forms (completed by candidates), Committee Forms (completed by committee members), and Case Data Forms (completed by Unit Administrators).
Unit Administrator Permissions
- Create, edit, and delete forms (within Cases or Templates) at their unit level or below
- View forms created above or below their unit
- Add required committee forms and specify who can complete them
- Bypass form requirements to advance cases
- Run reports on form responses within their unit or below
Committee Manager Permissions
- Complete, submit, and resubmit forms
- View their own responses, and, if permitted, view responses of others on their committee.
A committee form must be completed by the person it was assigned to. It cannot be completed by a Unit Administrator, Case Manager, or Committee Manager on behalf of the person it was assigned to.
Manage Committee Forms
- Navigate to the Administration page and select the Committee Forms tab on the left-hand side. This screen allows you to create, edit, duplicate, and delete forms. A Unit Administrator will see committee forms for all units they have access to.
- Click the +Add Form button to create a new form or click the Options dropdown next to the desired Committee Form to Edit, Duplicate, or Delete an existing form.
Once a form responses have been submitted, the form cannot be deleted. If the form should no longer be visible to committee members or managers, we recommend adjusting the visibility settings to hide it from their view.
- Identify the Form Name and Unit if creating a new form and click Add Form.
- Scroll down to the Form Creation section to add questions to the form. A committee form without any questions cannot be submitted. To add questions, Select the desired question type from the Add Question dropdown. Check out the table below for guidance on each question type.
When editing a form with recorded responses, users will be alerted that previous responses exist. Changes should not overwrite completed forms but only affect new instances.
Question Types
Question Type | Description |
---|---|
Text: Short Answer | Requires the user to enter a short text response to a question. |
Text: Paragraph | Requires a user to add a few lines of text in response to a question. |
Checkbox | Presents the respondent with a list of options they can check in response to a question. Simply enter text to create the list of response options. Note that more than one checkbox may be selected. |
Single Select |
Present the respondent with a list of response options and asks them to choose one. Click Add Option and enter text to construct the list of options.
|
Date | Require indicating a date in response to a question. An example is: “Please provide the date of eligibility for the next sabbatical.” Under Response Options, Indicate the information desired to record, date, or time. |
Number | Displays a number field for the respondent to select. Decimals are allowed. |
Dropdown |
Allow response options to be added that will appear in a dropdown list for respondents to choose from. Click Add Option and enter text to construct a custom dropdown.
|
Rating |
Rating questions allow a scale to be set and values to be entered against which to rate a candidate on custom criteria.
|
Unlike Candidate and Case Data forms, Committee Form questions are editable and can be revised after creation.
FAQs
What are some Use Cases for Committee Forms?
Committee Form Use Cases
Committee Member Vote
This example shows how to set up a form to record the committee member vote results before advancing the case to the next review stage.
- Select Number from the ‘Add Question’ dropdown. On the Add Question page, set the Question field to ‘Number of Yes Votes.' Click Save when finished.
- Repeat these steps two more times, but set the Question field to ‘Number of No Votes’ and ‘Number of Abstentions.’
It is also recommended to also add a 'Text: Paragraph' Question Type with the Question field set to 'Review Notes' to allow respondents to record notes.
- The completed form should look as follows:
Evaluation Form
Previously, Department Chairs, Deans, or Committee Members would upload a document reflecting their evaluation of a case. Now, Unit Administrators can create a form to capture that same information. It is recommended to create a 'Single Select' Question Type.
- Select Single Select from the ‘Add Question’ dropdown.
- On the Add Question page, set the Question field to ‘Please provide a final recommendation' and add the Response Options ‘Recommend’ ‘Deny’ and ‘Defer.’
- Click Save when finished.
Case Information Request Form
This example shows how to use this form to capture details of the review case such as current title, rank, series, and proposed title, rank, and series. The terminology at each institution may vary, but the following fields or their equivalent (Question Type in parentheses) have been suggested.
Question Type | Question Field Title | Details |
---|---|---|
Dropdown | School | Enter the organizational units at the institution as response options; recommended to add |
Text: Short Answer | Proposed Rank | Recommended to add |
Date | Appointment Start Date | Select Date as the Question Type and select Date as the response option; recommended to add |
Date | Appointment End Date | Select Date as the Question Type and select Date as the response option; recommended to add |
Text: Short Answer or “Blank” | Salary Level | Optional field |
Text: Short Answer | Mandatory Review Year | Optional field |
Date | Probation Start Date | Optional field |
Dropdown | Tenure Status | Optional field |
Checkbox | Other Institutional Affiliation | Such as hospitals and others; Optional field |
Dropdown | Current Rank | Optional field |
Text: Short Answer | Secondary Schools/Departments | Optional field |
Text: Paragraph | Request Notes | Optional field |
Can I assign a committee form to specific members or managers without requiring everyone in that role to complete it? Can the form be made optional?
Committee forms cannot be made optional—they are always required for anyone they are assigned to. However, after assigning the form to all Committee Members or Committee Managers, you can go to the Manage Respondents page and omit the requirement for specific individuals. This allows you to ensure only selected people are required to complete the form.
What happens to committee form responses when a case is moved backward?
Similar to documents, when a case is moved backward, completed forms should remain in the case while respecting the visibility settings of the applicable step.
Can I set forms to appear at the top of the candidate requirements section?
Yes. To have forms appear at the top of the candidate requirements section, you need to create a dedicated section that includes only those forms. Once you have this section prepared, you can position it at the top of the candidate requirements to ensure that those forms are displayed first.
If a step has two committees and the ‘Response Visibility’ is set to ‘Admin & Committee’, who will be able to view it?
Both Administrators and Committee Members will be able to view it, while only the committee for which the form is required will be able to complete it.
Can a completed candidate form be edited if the section is unlocked?
Yes. If the section containing the form is unlocked, candidates are able to make changes to their responses. After editing, they should submit the section again to save their updated answers.
Are there character limits for question responses?
Check out this article about Text Character Limits in RPT for information on committee form character limits.