You should notify your supervisor before you apply for a vacant position whether the position is posted internally or externally. To be eligible to transfer to another position within the college, you will need to have a satisfactory reference from your current supervisor. So it's always best to have open communication with your supervisor and discuss your intentions prior to applying to another department. 

Our goal is to grow and know our internal talent so we can keep our amazing talent within the college, whenever possible rather than potentially lose talent to outside opportunities. If you have any concerns related to this issue, please contact Kathleen Hayes, HR Manager, Talent Acquisition in Human Resources.