How to Complete the Request for Referrals Form

1. Department

From the drop down box, select your department or agency.

2. Departmental Program

If you are requesting referrals for a departmental program, select the departmental program from the drop down box. Otherwise, leave this space blank.
Click here for more information on departmental programs.

Return to the Departmental Program section of form

3. EE (Employment Equity)

The Public Service of Canada is committed to employment equity and supports programs that promote a more equitable participation of: Aboriginal peoples, members of visible minority groups, persons with disabilities, and women (particularly in occupations where they are under-represented).

The FSWEP system is programmed to generate a proportional number of EE students within any given candidate pool. To accomplish this, the system refers a number of EE students equal to the percentage of EE applications received from the specific area where the job is located. Each EE student must meet all other criteria on the request form to be referred.

Although students from employment equity groups are identified in regular inventory searches, when you choose this option, you will receive only those qualified students who have self-identified as a member of one or more of the employment equity groups.

• If you indicate more than one employment equity group, you will receive a separate list of students for each group.
• If you wish to hire both EE and non-EE students, you will have to complete two different "Request for referrals" forms.

Return to the Employment Equity section of the form

4. Job title

Enter a job title reflective of the work to be performed. Be specific. ("Summer Student" is not sufficient)

5. Description of duties

Enter a description of the essential duties of the job. This information will be used when contacting students to determine interest in the job. Please limit your description to 5 lines.

6. Number of jobs

Enter the total number of identical or similar jobs to be filled for one location only. If you require students for more than one location, complete a separate request for each location.

7. Number of Referrals per job

Enter the number of referrals for each job. The minimum is five. If you would like more than five, you must justify you requirement in the Special Instructions and Comments in item 22.

8. Hours per week

Enter the total number of hours per week for this job. When using fractions, use a decimal. For example, enter 37.5, not 37 1/2.
Maximum full-time hours during a non-academic term: 37.5/week
Recommended maximum part-time hours during an academic term: 25.0/week

Enter the hourly rate of pay based on the student's academic level. Click on "to be determined" if you have not yet established the rate. Click here to see the Treasury Board guidelines on rates of pay.

Return to Hourly Rate of Pay on the form

10. Duration of employment

Enter the dates on which the job starts and ends. Only those students who have indicated that they are available to work by the date the job starts will be selected.
Click on the icon to the right of the field and select the date from the pop-up calendar, or enter the date in the format yyyy/mm/dd. The date must be today's date or later.
Return to Duration of Employment on the form

11. Language requirements

Select the language requirements for each section.
Choose only the language skills the student will need to perform the duties of the job.
Return to Duration of Employment on the form

12. Part-time work

Select "Yes" if applicable.
Return to Part Time on the form

13. If this is a full-time position, will it have a part-time component at any time?

Click "Yes" if applicable and indicate the number of hours per week. The valid range is from 1 to 37.5. When using fractions, use a decimal. For example, enter 37.5, not 37 1/2.
Return to Part Time Component on the form

14. Variable work

If the work week has variable hours, select "Yes".
Return to Variable Work on the form

15. Shift work

If the job requires shift work, select "Yes".
Return to Shift Work on the form

16. Is travel involved?

If the student will have to travel as part of his or her duties, select "Yes".
Return to Travel Involved on the form

17. Will travel expenses be reimbursed for candidates to be interviewed?

Select "Yes" if travel expenses for interviews will be paid by your department.

Will travel expenses be reimbursed if candidate is appointed?

Select "yes" if these expenses will be paid by your department. Note that such expenses are for travel only and do not include relocation expenses or moving expenses.
Return to Travel Expenses on the form

18. Work location Information

Enter the name of the street and the city/town where the student will work. If the student will be working at more than one location, enter the main location only.

A work location code must be entered in order to identify students who are mobile to that location. Click on the link above the work location box for a list of work locations. For departmental program 007, choose Outside Canada (99999) and leave the basic area of selection blank.

Enter the name, e-mail address and telephone number of the supervisor to whom the student will report or a departmental contact who is knowledgeable about the job. PSC staff may need to contact this person if further information about the job is required.
Return to Work Location on the form

19. Area(s) of Selection

Basic Area

Indicate the primary geographical area where you wish to search for students. For many jobs, the basic area of selection is the same as the work location. For basic area searches, only those students who have a present or permanent address in the basic area will be considered. Note that a student's school location is not taken into consideration unless it is the same as the student's present or permanent address.

The basic area of selection does not have to be the same as the work location, it may be broader. If you do select a broad basic area, it is important to keep in mind that all students who reside in the basic area of selection will be identified, even though they may not have specifically indicated they are available to work in the actual work location.

Extended Areas

If you feel there may not be a sufficient number of students residing in the basic area, you can identify up to four extended areas of selection.
Return to Area(s)of Selection section of the form

Student mobility

If you indicate that this request for referrals is for a departmental program position, or the job is located in the National Capital Region, the FSWEP program will default to selecting qualified students who reside in the basic search area, as well as qualified students who have indicated they are mobile to the work location even if they do not live in the basic or extended areas of selection.

Otherwise, you have the choice of not selecting any students from outside the search areas, selecting mobile students at the same time as students residing in the basic search area, or selecting mobile students after the the students in the basic and extended search areas. In the latter case, if there are enough qualified students in the specified search areas, there will be no referrals of mobile students from outside those areas.
Return to Student Mobility section of the form

Do you want to select students who have indicated they mobile to any location in Canada?

Check the box to accept students who have indicated they are available to work at any location in Canada. This search is used when you wish to hire students from anywhere in Canada, or when all other searches have not given you sufficient numbers of students.
Return to National Search section of the form

20. Education and Skill Requirements

Field(s) of Study

Fields of study can be requested only for students attending a post-secondary academic institution. Secondary students studying in a technical high school indicate their academic specialization by using skills.

• To hire a student at the secondary school level leave this area blank.
• For jobs requiring post-secondary education, you may enter up to eight academic fields of study.
• The fields of study you choose must relate directly to the job.
• If you enter more than one field of study, the system will search for all students who have indicated at least one of those fields.
• The search will not prioritize fields of study.
• To hire a post-secondary student where no specific academic specialization is required, leave this area blank.

Return to Fields of Study section of the form

Levels and years of study

In the first drop down box, select the lowest academic level and year you will accept. In the second box, select the highest. If you only want students from a specific level and year, leave the second box blank.

• If you specify a secondary level in the first box, and a post-secondary level in the second, the search will attempt to satisfy your request with secondary level students, before it identifies post-secondary.

Return to Level and Years of Study section of the form

Skills and Occupational Certificates

If specific skills are necessary to perform the duties of the job, you may enter up to four codes, in order of importance. Click on the link above the code boxes for a list of skills and occupational certificate codes. If no particular skills are required, leave this section blank.

All four skill codes are considered optional. If there are not enough candidates who possess the requested skills, the PSC will use various combinations of these skills to provide you with an adequate pool of candidates.

The intent of this program is to provide students with learning assignments therefore, emphasis should be placed on the academic fields of study rather than on skills.

• When choosing your four skills codes, ensure they reflect the duties of the job and are related to the field and level of education you are requesting.

Return to Skills section of the form

21. Send Referrals to

Use this section to identify the person to whom referrals will be sent. Enter the person's Name, E-mail Address, Address, City and Province/Territory, Postal Code, Telephone and Facsimile numbers.
Return to Send Referrals To section of the form

22. Special Instructions and Comments

You may add additional comments or details that could help the PSC regional office to conduct the candidate search. If you have requested more than five referrals per job, you must provide justification as to why the additional names are required.
Return to Special Instructions section of the form

If a sufficient number of students cannot be identified, the PSC officer handling your request will contact you to discuss your criteria further.