Background checks: Process
Table of Contents
Classified, professional, and temporary staff
Student employees, RAs and TAs, and volunteers
Faculty and other academic employees
The process for requesting a criminal conviction history background check.
Classified, professional, and temporary staff
HR reviews candidate-disclosed convictions (if any) to determine final candidate referrals. You will then:
1. Consult with your HR recruitment team member to obtain approval for the salary offer you wish to make.
2. Make an offer of employment to your candidate contingent on obtaining a satisfactory criminal background check.
3. Complete the recruitment, evaluate candidates, and select your final candidate.
4. If your candidate accepts your offer of employment:
- Complete the prehire activity in UWHIRES.
- Tell your candidate to look for an email message from UWHIRES (uwhires@uw.edu) with the subject line: “Candidate to Hire Portal.” The email provides an explanation as well as login instructions.
- Encourage the candidate to act on the email immediately as any delay in doing so may delay when they can begin their new job.
- Instruct the candidate to notify you if they do not receive the Candidate to Hire Portal email as expected. If this occurs, notify your HR recruitment team member immediately.
5. Your HR recruitment team member will notify you if the candidate is eligible for employment and will then initiate the hire in UWHIRES. If the candidate is not eligible for employment, the HR recruitment team member will tell you that the candidate has a disqualifying criminal conviction history, but will not reveal the details of the criminal conviction information. HR will also notify the candidate of ineligibility for employment via email.
Student employees, RAs and TAs, and volunteers
Student employees working on campus, including RAs and TAs and volunteers who perform duties that meet one or more of the security/safety sensitive criteria are required to complete a criminal history background check. Once you have identified the student employee or volunteer, you will:
1. Email UW Human Resources (UWHR) at ttmchbc@uw.edu to request a student/volunteer background check. In the body of your email, please use the following request template:
Requesting student/volunteer background check for:
Last name, First name, Active email address
Procard holder name: Last, First
2. A representative from UWHR will email the candidate(s) the Disclosure & Authorization (D&A) form and instructions to complete and return it. UWHR will bcc the background check requestor on this email.
3. Once the D&A form has been received, a HR recruitment representative will run the first background check: Washington Access to Criminal History (WATCH).
4. If clear, UWHR will run the second part of the background check from A-Check Global.
- a. Tell your candidate to look for an email message from A-Check Global to arrive sometime within the following two business days of the date you sent UWHR the authorization form. The subject line will read: “University of Washington – Criminal Background Check – Request for Information ACTION REQUIRED” and the email will have A-Check website login instructions.
- i. Remind your candidate to check the spam/trash/junk mail folder if they do not see a message from A-Check in their inbox.
- ii. Tell your candidate that they need to act on the email immediately as their system access will time out three days after the email message has been sent.
- iii. Before accessing the A-Check system, tell the candidate to turn off any pop-up blockers they may be using.
5. Instruct the candidate to notify you if they do not receive the A-Check email as expected; if this occurs, contact your HR recruitment team member immediately.
Medical Centers student employees and volunteers
Medical Centers Human Resources follows the same process for student employees as it does for classified, professional, and temporary staff (see above). The process for ensuring that volunteers are properly screened for disqualifying criminal convictions is handled by UW Medicine Volunteer Services.
Faculty and other academic employees
Academic Human Resources provides information about the background check process.
Positions having access to select agents
UW Environmental Health and Safety notifies employing units of the background check and suitability assessment requirements and processes.
Criminal Conviction History Background Check (CCHBC) requirements for UW and Third Party led Youth Programs
UW requires all employees and volunteers who have duties that fit the criteria for designation as authorized personnel to complete a CCHBC in accordance with Administrative Policy Statement 10.13 Protecting Youth at the University of Washington.