Reference check questions for deans

Much of a dean’s record is public: programs launched, gifts announced, enrollment and hiring. What the record does not show is how those results were reached. References can tell the committee whether the candidate consulted the faculty before deciding, kept the chairs they inherited, and could say no to a donor when a gift came with conditions the college should not accept.

Senior searches also draw calls the candidate never hears about, from committee members who know someone at the candidate’s institution. Agree with each finalist, in writing, whom you will contact and when, including people beyond their list. The consent section of our search committee guide explains why and how to ask.

Who to ask

• The candidate’s provost, or their dean if they are an associate dean moving up, who has seen their budget results and their judgment under pressure.
• Department chairs who reported to the candidate, including one who disagreed with a major decision.
• A faculty governance leader, such as the chair of the faculty senate or college council during the candidate’s term, who saw how they consulted.
• The development officer who worked with the candidate, for how they cultivated donors and kept the commitments made to them.

Questions to ask, by competency

Choose the competencies that matter most for the position and two or three questions from each. Ask every reference the same set, and when an answer is a rating, ask for the example behind it.

Shared governance

A dean who decides first and consults afterwards loses the faculty’s cooperation, and with it the ability to carry a plan through.

1. Tell me about a decision the candidate brought to the faculty before making it. What changed because of what the faculty said?
2. How did the candidate work with the faculty senate or college council when they disagreed about a policy?
3. When the candidate’s view of a promotion or tenure case differed from the department’s vote, how did they handle it?
4. Based on decisions you saw, how would you rate the candidate’s consultation with faculty before acting? (rating)

Strategy and resources

A dean decides which programs grow, which shrink and where faculty lines go. Every department wants to know why it did or did not get what it asked for.

1. Describe a program the candidate started, merged or closed. How did they build the case, and how did the affected faculty and students fare?
2. How did the candidate divide faculty lines and budget among departments, and how openly did they explain those choices to chairs?

Fundraising and external relations

Deans are often expected to raise money and to represent the college to alumni, employers and the community, without letting gifts set academic priorities.

1. What part did the candidate personally play in a significant gift, from the first conversation to the agreement, and how did they keep the donor involved afterwards?
2. How did the candidate respond to a donor or partner whose wishes conflicted with faculty hiring or curriculum decisions?

Leading chairs and staff

Chairs, associate deans and college staff carry out a dean’s plans. Who stays, who leaves and who grows under a dean says a great deal about how they lead.

1. What did the candidate delegate to chairs and associate deans, and what did they keep for themselves?
2. Tell me about a time the candidate decided not to reappoint a chair or replaced a senior staff member. How did they handle it with the people affected?

Judgment in public moments

A dean speaks for the college when something goes wrong, and for the administration when the college would rather not hear it.

1. During a public controversy involving the college, such as a dispute over a faculty member’s speech, whom did the candidate consult, and what did they say publicly?
2. How did the candidate tell the college about a decision from the provost or president that they had argued against?

Close the reference

End every reference the same way: ask whether they would hire or work with the candidate again and why, what support would help the candidate do their best work, and whether there is anything else you should know. The general question bank explains why the first of these matters most.

Checks a reference does not replace

• Titles, dates and reporting lines with HR at each institution. Interim, acting and associate titles are easy to blur across a long CV.
• Gifts and programs the candidate takes credit for, against what the institution has announced publicly, before the committee relies on them.

Warning signs to follow up

• Several chairs or associate deans who left during the candidate’s term, and references who avoid saying why.
• Enthusiasm from the provost, and caution or silence from the faculty governance leaders you were allowed to call.
• Fundraising described only in totals, with no donor relationship a reference can describe in detail.
• References who call the candidate "decisive" but cannot name a decision the faculty helped shape.
• A finalist who still asks you to avoid everyone at their current institution and cannot say why.

One warning sign is a reason to ask another question, not a verdict. Reference check red flags covers how to check a concern fairly.

Questions to leave out

Ask only about the work. Before an offer, the EEOC’s guidance says an employer may not ask a third party, such as a former employer, any question it could not ask the candidate directly. Leave out health, medical leave, age, family plans and other protected characteristics. What to leave out has the full list.

This article is general information for campus hiring teams, not legal advice. Confirm the requirements that apply to your institution with your counsel or HR policy office.