Round 2: Open House

*This round should be conducted if the first shortlist of applicants exceeds the number of spots available. 

Once the form responses have been reviewed and the first shortlist has been prepared, the second round of review should be conducted. This round could include Open House discussions on call in groups of 5 or 6. The number of groups and the number of participants in each group would be subject to the number of applicants in the first shortlist.

A few key considerations for this round include:

1. Conducting the Open House:

The Open House should include providing participants the opportunity to speak on any issue or topic they would want. Your role should be to welcome candidates, making introductions and thereafter give them the space to speak on an issue or topic of their interest. 

2. Duration of Open House:

The Open House should be conducted for up to 45 minutes. In case the participants would want to continue their discussions, they should be given the opportunity to continue their conversation even post you leave the call. 

3. Scheduling the Open House:

Keeping time in mind, the Open Houses could be scheduled back-to-back with a 5-minute buffer between two Open Houses. This way, it would be easier for you to assess applicants at once, as well as to be efficient with your time. 

4. Creating groups:

You could use a form to get participants to choose their date and time slot on a first-come-first-serve basis. This will ensure that the group making process is unbiased and that participants are attending the session at a time at which they are available.

5. Timings for Open House:

The Open House could be conducted on weekends so that most candidates are free. Slots for discussions should also begin in the morning at perhaps 9 or 10 AM so that discussions are finished by 5 PM. 

6. Platform for Open House:

You could use Skype to conduct the Open House discussions since it is a free platform. Additionally, applicants wouldn’t require an account to access the Open House. You can generate a link through which they can join. 

7. Dropouts:

Despite candidates selecting their preferred time slot, you should expect no shows and dropouts. You should try and accommodate those participants who aren’t able to make it to their time slot into other groups if that is possible. Alternatively, in extreme cases, you should also consider speaking to them individually post the Open House to assess their application. 

Here are the templates for the communications.