[[academic_job-seeking_faq]] Academic Careers

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Like many wiki resources, this represents the collected wisdom of many. Most of this information is drawn from postings on the discussion forums on the Chronicle of Higher Education website: External link http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php. However, this collection of tips is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or representative of the Chronicle in any way.

Many of the questions here do not have definitive answers, because practices vary so much from school to school and from field to field. They are intended as general suggestions only. In all cases, use your own best judgment.

When the Chronicle forum mods post their collections of common answers on the fora, I'll link to those pages from here as well. If you make any substantive changes, please update the wiki thread on the fora so we can keep track of new additions. Thanks - VP
This thread can be found at: External link http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,30609.0.html

If you came here directly from the Chronicle fora or from some other site, and are looking for the wiki on which you can see the status of advertised searches in your field, that wiki address is: External link http://wikihost.org/wikis/academe/wiki/start.


JOB POSTINGS, GENERAL ACADEMIC JARGON, AND APPLICATION MATERIALS (CV, COVER LETTERS, REFERENCES, ETC.)

INTERVIEW PREPARATION, LOGISTICS, AND SEARCH DYNAMICS

THE CAMPUS INTERVIEW AND AFTERWARDS

GETTING, OR NOT GETTING, AN OFFER


JOB POSTINGS AND APPLICATION MATERIALS

When are jobs posted?

Although you will see odd postings for jobs throughout the academic year, the majority of TT postings come out sometime in the fall. Many disciplines habitually hold interviews at major conferences in the late fall or winter (MLA, AHA, CAA, etc.) and so their timelines are constructed to allow time for applications to be reviewed and potential candidates contacted in advance of such conferences.

Exact timing between disciplines will vary. Additionally, the posting date of ads is often affected by the need to gain approval from upper levels of administration after a department has written the ad.

There will usually be a second round of job postings in the spring. These postings are more likely to include visiting positions rather than tenure-track, although some TT jobs may be found in this round as well. Some of the positions that are advertised here are due to incumbents retiring or moving on to other jobs and leaving vacancies; others may only recently have been approved by upper admin.


Where are jobs posted?

In addition to the sites below, be sure to check out the websites for major associations in your disciplines.


For jobs in the Biological Sciences:

For jobs in Economics:


For jobs in the UK

For jobs in Japan

Sample resume formats

What do all these acronyms mean?

For an explanation of commonly-used acronyms and abbreviations in academe, see this thread on the Chronicle fora: External link http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,29829.0.html.


What about teaching/research loads, credit hours, and course preps?

Teaching loads are represented by numbers and slashes that indicate how many courses you are expected to teach in the fall and spring semesters, respectively. At a school that has a heavy emphasis on teaching, you may see job postings advertised as a "4/4" or a "4/4 load" - you would teach four classes in the fall, and four in the spring. Schools that expect you to do more research than teaching may list positions as 2/1, for example: two courses in the fall, one in the spring. Load assignments range all the way from 1/0 at very research-intensive universities to 4/4 or even 5/5 at community colleges.

Schools that have a winter term (called a J-term for "January term" in some places) may advertise that they run on a 3/1/3 calendar. Most of the time, this is just intended to show that they have a winter term and it does not necessarily mean that you will always teach 3 courses in the fall, 1 during winter term, and 3 in the spring. At some schools, winter term teaching happens on a rotational basis: every other year, every third year, etc..

Credit hours for teaching are assigned differently depending on the school and the type of instruction. The number of contact hours (in-class time) for a particular course is one factor; a humanities course that meets for 3 hours a week (give or take) is likely to be a 3-credit course. A course that meets for 4 hours a week is likely to be a 4-credit course. However, this is not a hard-and-fast rule, and other factors frequently come into play. Professors in areas in which lab courses are common, as well as professors in creative fields whose teaching responsibilities include studio instruction, are particularly likely to run up against difficulties in this area.

Also, the amount of credit a course represents for a student and the amount it represents in a professor's teaching load are not always the same. Again, this is particularly true of lab courses and studio or performance courses in the arts.


A separate but related question is that of course preps. A "prep" is the preparatory work you do for a particular class: writing lectures, creating instructional materials, etc. If you have a 4/4 schedule and are teaching two sections of American History 101 and two sections of Medieval European History, you have four classes, but only two preps, since there are only two different courses. At some schools, though, you may have four classes with four different preps - one section apiece of four totally different courses. This represents substantially more work on your part than four classes with only two preps.

How can I find out the approximate salary range for a position?

Call or email the school's reference librarian as faculty salary is often a matter of public record and you can find out the exact amount faculty are paid.

Use the AAUP faculty salary survey, at External link http://chronicle.com/stats/aaup/.

This allows you to search by school for the average salary ranges of (say) assistant professors, which will give you a ballpark figure. Two caveats about this particular site:
1. It is an average of all assistant professors, not just new assistant professors. Therefore, your salary as a brand-new assistant prof might be lower than the average figure listed.
2. It is not discipline-specific. For example, business and science profs will probably make more than the average. Humanities and fine arts profs will probably make less.

Or try the following:
External link http://www.higheredjobs.com/salary/ which does include first year salaries but gives only the average for your discipline across all schools. It does not say what an assistant prof in Biology makes at Underfunded U.

Another potential source including other information about the school, is:
External link http://www.stateuniversity.com/ which only gives average across all ranks and disciplines at any state university. This site also gives you information about student quality (1st and 3rd percentiles in ACT/SAT scores, etc.).

The job ad says the deadline for applications is X. If I send my application on X+5, will they accept it?

Maybe yes, maybe no. It is impossible to predict with certainty. If an opening draws a large number of applications (say, 200 or more, which is not uncommon in some fields), then the search committee may not feel obligated to include apps arriving after the deadline in its first round. Some committees do not take deadlines seriously; others do.

You have nothing to lose by sending an app after the deadline (except time and postage), but you probably shouldn't count on it being accepted.


When they say the deadline is X, does that mean it has to be received by X, or postmarked by X?

In actual practice, this usually means postmarked. It is rare that a search committee whose ad says "Review of applications begins on November 15" actually sits down on November 15 to start reviewing ads. When in doubt, though, send it earlier rather than later. You never know what will happen with the Post Office.



I don't exactly fit the job ad. Should I apply anyway?

Many schools write job ads as "wish lists" of teaching and research areas they hope the "perfect" candidate will possess. Sometimes jobs go to applicants who have exactly these qualities. Sometimes they don't. Sometimes candidates with zero relevant experience in the field apply for jobs. Those apps are usually discarded almost immediately.

If there is a substantial amount of overlap between what you do and what the job app asks for, you may have a fighting chance at the job. However, if particular teaching or research areas are specifically stated as desiderata, and if you don't have experience in those areas, you may have an uphill battle. Your app will be helped if you can use your cover letter to show the search committee how your experience can fit their available niches.

Also, remember that if you get hired, you will have to teach in those areas. So don't apply unless you are sure you'd like to teach those things for the foreseeable future.


Can I email my application or apply online?

In some fields, this is becoming the norm, while in others it is frowned upon. Generally, it is best not to email an application unless the job ad specifically requests or allows it.

If you do email an application, you may want to send it as a PDF file so that the formatting of your CV and other materials is not lost in translation.



What does "evidence of teaching excellence" mean?

"Evidence of teaching excellence" may include one or several of these things:




What is a "statement of teaching philosophy"?

This is one of the more nebulous parts of the job app. A statement of teaching philosophy attempts to give a description of both your ideas about teaching and how you put them into practice in the classroom. It often refers to pedagogical techniques in your field and shows how you use those techniques in actual classroom situations. Additionally, it allows you to talk about classroom experiences that have been meaningful to you and how they have informed your views on teaching in general. Do you lecture? Do you favor discussion? Do students work in groups? Do you prefer that they work independently? How do you use technology in the classroom? These are all topics that can be addressed in a statement of teaching philosophy.

A good article about writing a statement of teaching philosophy for the Sciences can be found here:
External link http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_development/previous_issues/articles/2006_04_14/writing_the_teaching_statement/


What is a "statement of faith"?

A statement of faith is a document that applicants to a religiously-affiliated school may be asked to sign. Statements of faith differ in degree from school to school; some merely require that professors not actively oppose the teachings of the school, while others also mandate how professors may and may not behave both in and out of the classroom, including agreeing not to drink or engage in certain kinds of relationships or activities. Such statements are most common at highly conservative Christian institutions.



Can I save time by sending the same app to every position?

You will stand a better chance of success if your application is customized enough to each school to show that you could be a good fit there. If a school is oriented to teaching undergraduates, and your app describes you as someone who wants to spend the whole day doing research with graduate assistants, this will not seem like a good fit.

As with so many other aspects of the job search, the degree and manner in which you demonstrate "fit" will be up to you.




How long should my cover letter and CV be?

Standards vary by field. In general, a cover letter should be restricted to one or two pages. It should include paragraphs that address each of the components mentioned in the job advertisement. Keep your font size and margins "normal." If you are applying to a research-oriented school, you may want to put the paragraph that describes your research interests early in the letter; same idea for a teaching-oriented position and your paragraph about teaching.

Your CV will grow with your career. ABDs and new PhDs may have a two- or three-page CV, but established scholars may have CVs that are upwards of 10 pages. Include all vital information, but no padding.


Should I print my cover letter on departmental stationery?

This subject has raised quite a controversy, and again, there is no one correct answer.

One argument in favor of using departmental letterhead are that it lends credibility to an application, particularly if the application is from a relatively new PhD on the market for the first or second time. Arguments against it include concerns that it may not be ethical to swipe departmental supplies for personal purposes, particularly when those purposes are to get a job elsewhere.

Some solve this potential ethical dilemma by scanning a sheet of letterhead and saving it as a MS Word template. You can then print it on nice paper, knowing full well that you have not taken departmental resources. (This is not universally endorsed.)

I would like to present a dissenting view. I have received CVs as a member of SCs and do not endorse this practice. I was taught that departmental letterhead is used for any correspondence in the interests of the department. By using it for a job application, you may appear to be stating that your getting a new job is in the best interests of your current department.


Should I staple or paper-clip the pages of my app together? And do I need to use fancy paper?

Remember that when your app arrives at the department, it will most likely need to be photocopied by a secretary for all the search committee members. If you staple everything together, the staple will need to be removed. Pages may tear and become dog-eared or crumpled, and these marks can sometimes show up on photocopies. It looks messy and it's inconvenient for the person doing the photocopying. Paper clips allow easy grouping and ungrouping of materials. It's much friendlier.

Whether you use staples or paper-clips will have no effect on your application. As both paper-clips and staples may be removed, be sure your name appears on every page of all materials you send in, just in case pages get separated.

There is no question that an app on fancy paper looks pretty. However, again, it's going to be photocopied. Additionally, if you have lots of supporting materials, it may not be cost-effective to print everything on fancy paper. Printing the cover letter and CV on fancy paper may be enough to give you the feeling that you have observed appropriate formalities, but do the rest on plain paper.

Also, be sure that if you use colored paper, it is a color that does not go to gray when photocopied. Test it to be sure.



What about fonts and such?

Choose a clear, easily readable font and maintain proper margins. In CVs and cover letters, content trumps style every time, unless your style is so bizarre that it makes it difficult to find and appreciate your content.



Can I list job talks at other interviews as invited talks on my CV?

This is usually looked on as padding a CV, and does not make you look good to search committees.



The job ad didn't say the name of the person who's chairing the committee. To whom should I address my letter?

The best option in this situation is to call the department and ask. The department secretary will be able to tell you to whom the letter should be addressed, even if the search committee chair was not known when the ad was written. Addressing a letter to a specific person is a basic element of professional letter writing and, more generally, is polite. While using "Dear Search Committee Members" will not disqualify an otherwise qualified applicant, some SCMs do interpret a letter addressed to "search committee members" as impolite and an indication you could not take the trouble to find out to whom the letter should be addressed. You want to avoid having you cover letter look like a form letter.

If it is not possible to get the name of a specific person, you can address your letter to "Chair, Basketweaving Search Committee." A suitable salutation for the letter under such circumstances would be "To the chair and members of the Basketweaving Search Committee:". Avoid "Dear Sir" or any other gendered phrase. Most of the time search committee chairs may be addressed as "Dr." or "Professor", but if for any reason you need to use "Mr." or "Ms.", be sure you know the person's gender! It is bad form to send a cover letter to a female search committee chair and open it with "Dear Sir".



The job ad didn't ask for [writing samples, published articles, sample syllabi]. Should I send them anyway?

There is a wide range of responses to this. In general it is not a good idea to overload a search committee with tons of things they didn't ask for. Some search committees also look at this as an inability or unwillingness to follow the rules. This may create a bad first impression of your file. Be warned that some schools operate under the premise that any extra materials cannot be considered, as each applicant's file needs to be equal and not everyone will have sent extra stuff. Also, sometimes the extra materials never even make it to the search committee, as the department administrative assistant may be responsible for removing any extra material.

If your materials are extraordinary, however, you may wish to send them anyway. They may help you. You will have to weigh the potential benefits of having them in your packet against the potential irritation you may stir up among the search committee.

A third option would be to allude to and briefly describe any extraordinary materials you have in your cover letter. If the search committee is intrigued, they may request that you send them.




Should I send all my student evaluations & syllabi, or should I be selective?

In most cases, representative students evaluations and syllabi are more appropriate, rather than sending everything. The goal is to provide material that will cast the best possible light on your teaching (or scholarshiop if you send sample pubs and papers). Many committees prefer to have unedited student comments as well as numerical evaluation scores that have been tabulated by the university and not the applicant. This way, they can be sure that the material is accurate.



It says they want transcripts. Does that mean just graduate ones, or undergrad also?

Transcripts are frequently requested from search committees, though not in 100% of cases. Look carefully at the wording in the job app; sometimes it specifies "graduate transcripts" and sometimes it says "all transcripts" or "undergraduate and graduate." Send what is asked for. If you can't tell from the ad, send them all.

A frequent objection to sending transcripts is the cost of obtaining official transcripts from each school - not bad if you are only sending out five apps, but it can pile up if you are sending out fifty or a hundred. If a school specifies "official" transcripts must be sent, it is generally a good policy to send them. However, if they do not specify that official ones must be used, you can send a photocopy. A sentence in the cover letter indicating that photocopies of transcripts are enclosed but originals will be sent upon request is a nice addition. Official transcripts may be required if the school makes you an offer.

Some schools do not ask for transcripts up front but will need them before they can hire you.


Do they want actual reference letters from people, or just names and contact info for references?

Usually the job ad will be specific. It is generally a good idea to send what the ad asks for; so if they just want names, don't send letters. Some schools never contact references until they are at the "finalist" stage of the search, so to have 200 applicants sending letters with their initial apps would waste a lot of time, toner, and trees. If the ad says "references," send a list, and advise that letters can be sent on request.



Do my letter-writers have to write a new letter for each position?

Many fields allow the use of a dossier service, which maintains your letters of recommendation and sends them out when you tell them to (for a small fee, of course). This reduces needing to keep asking your letter-writers for further letters. You can always ask a letter-writer to customize his or her letter for a particular job if you feel it is appropriate, but the dossier service can be invaluable if your letter-writers are less prompt than you would like.



What's the best way to mail my app?

Priority Mail with Delivery Confirmation is a good and cost-effective way to go. You can track your package online and will know when it was received.


How long will it be before I hear something?

Once the deadline has passed, all the search committee members have to read all of the applications. For disciplines that attract hundreds of applicants, this can be quite time-consuming. It is also time-consuming for positions such as those in creative fields which may require music CDs or video projects to be sent as part of the application.

Then the search committee has to find a time to meet. If there are five faculty members and an administrator on a search committee, that can be difficult to schedule. A month could easily go by between the application deadline and the time the committee first sits down to meet.

If they are unable to go through all the apps in one sitting, they will have to meet again. Add another two weeks.

When all is said and done, a reasonable window of expectation is one to three months after the application due date. Some committees are extremely organized and can do a rapid turnaround. The majority are not, due primarily to the difficulties of scheduling meeting times for full-time faculty and administrators. Also, circumstances could arise that take some committees longer (the search may have been temporarily suspended pending resolution of budget problems, etc.) Be aware that there is very little that a candidate can do to move the process along, unless they have an offer from another school in hand. As difficult as it may be, the best policy is to simply wait for news, and that may take several months or more.



INTERVIEW PREPARATION, LOGISTICS, AND SEARCH DYNAMICS


I currently have a job but want to quietly look for another one. How can I keep my search from coming to my current admin's attention?

Regrettably for job-seekers, there is no guarantee that your job search will remain secret. Word gets out - sometimes accidentally, sometimes on-purpose.

However, most search committees understand the need for discretion. A well-worded statement in your cover letter to the effect that you request their discretion in at least the initial stages of the job search is appropriate and is about all you can do. Going on the market is always a bit of a gamble. It is a wise idea to have something prepared to tell your chair if he or she should suddenly hear of your search and mention it to you.

Also, in most situations it will be difficult to move from one job to another without a reference from your current institution. If your chair is not a suitable prospect, look for another tenured faculty member who could speak on your behalf. The new school needs to know that your candidacy is above-board and you are not fleeing a scandal they would not like to take on.



Do I have to fill out that little AA card I got in the mail?

Technically, it is your choice. Whether or not it can be generally held true that the cards are used to make decisions in job searches is the topic of much speculation and distrust. Some people refuse to fill them out as a matter of principle. Others have filled them out using incorrect data. Some send them in as requested, in part because some want their particular demographic group to appear common in the sample of applications (and therefore boost the rationale for hiring someone from that group). If there exists a scientific study of how the data from these cards is used, it would be welcomed here.



What can I expect in a conference interview?

Some guidelines for conference interviewing can be found here: link http://www.ade.org/cgi-shl/docstudio/docs.pl?jil_jobseekers



What can I expect in a phone interview?

The phone interview is often a way for the search committee to whittle the semi-finalist list down to the list of finalists who will receive campus invitations. Sometimes a single member of the search committee will call you unexpectedly to ask you a few questions, so it might be helpful to practice talking about your research and teaching on the fly.

Most often, the search committee is sitting in a room around a table mike. They will usually introduce themselves (often very quickly), and then will go around and ask you some questions. Sometimes, search committees are given lists of questions that they must ask every candidate, in the same order, with no response or opportunity for follow-up questions. This can be very off-putting. In these cases, though, remember that they are doing the same thing with every candidate, so don't take any awkward silences personally.

There is a wide variety of questions you may be asked. Here are some potential ones:

and, one of the most important:

In general the most difficult thing about phone interviews is that because you cannot see them, and because of the strange dynamics of the speakerphone, you miss the normal cues of approval and encouragement that we rely on in face-to-face conversations. Trust yourself. Answer the question with what you think is an appropriately detailed answer, and then say, "I would be happy to expand on that if you would like." If they want you to keep talking, they'll say so. If they've gotten the sense of what you've said, they'll move to the next question. Be calm. Be friendly.

Some job-seekers say they like to dress for their phone interviews as if they were face-to-face interviews because they feel more on top of their game when they are dressed professionally. Others prefer to lounge in their pajamas because they are more comfortable that way. In either case, it is a good idea to have in front of you a printout of your entire application packet as well as printouts of the faculty webpages of the committee members (with pictures if possible) and any other relevant portions of the school's web information (mission statement, relevant curricular issues, facilities, etc.).


I had a phone interview. How long will it take them to decide whether I'm on the short list?

This may take days to months, particularly if you run into the Thanksgiving holiday, winter recess, fall or spring break, etc. It is tempting to begin to panic after a few days have gone by, but a strategy that is more sanity-saving is to try not to think about it for at least a month. You usually don't know the schedule of the committee; some other candidates may be traveling and may not be available to speak with the committee until weeks later. There are too many unknowns to make worrying profitable or productive here.


Who makes the travel arrangements for a campus visit, and who pays? Does this differ between 4-year schools and CC's?

Most 4-year schools will pick up the costs. Most CC's will not, or will do so only up to a certain dollar amount. Practices vary: at some schools, you will be directed to make your own travel arrangements and save your receipts for reimbursement; at others, the departmental administrative assistant will make arrangements for you (with your input, usually). One of the most common ways to do it is for the school to make hotel arrangements, since they know which hotels of reasonable quality are most convenient to the campus, and for the candidate to make his/her own flight arrangements.

Unless specifically stated by the search committee chair, schools will usually not provide for a candidate's spouse to come along on such a trip.



Will they send me a schedule of what I am supposed to do at the campus interview?

Yes. You may have to ask the search committee chair for it (respectfully) if it is getting close to your departure date and you haven't heard.


What should I wear to my campus interview?

The suggestions here are for a basic wardrobe. Different fields require and permit different things. It is generally held that people in creative fields are able to "get away with" clothing that is slightly less conventional than people in, say, science fields. However, even profs in creative areas do well to take the following suggestions as a starting point.

Additionally, your choices may be influenced by weather and by what you need to do during your campus visit.

Gentlemen: Suits are always appropriate. For less formal interactions, sports coats with nice shirts and khakis are a good option; nice sweaters may also be worn. Jeans are usually not a good option for a campus visit, even if all the regulars there wear them.

Ladies: Dark suits with a conservative blouse, sensible shoes, and unostentatious jewelry is a safe bet. It is OK to show that you have a personality, but in some fields there is a tendency to assume that women who dress too nicely are less serious than those who dress plainly. Whatever you choose should fit you well and you should be comfortable in it; both of those things will give you confidence. Make sure that people's attention is on you and what you are saying, not on your clothing choices.

For both sexes: bring a Tide To Go pen or other "emergency laundry" device.



THE CAMPUS INTERVIEW AND AFTERWARDS

What kinds of things will I have to do on a campus interview?

The campus interview includes many components. Some of the components are the same in virtually all fields, but some fields will have special field-specific components that may be added to this mix.

Things you could reasonably expect to have/do on a campus interview:



When should I ask about salary?

Usually the salary is brought up during the campus interview. It is not wise to ask about it before that point. Also, it is probably not a good idea to push about salary at the beginning of the campus visit. If it has not been mentioned by the SC chair or an upper administrator (Dean, Provost, Vice-President, whoever else you're meeting with) by the time your visit is nearing its end, a polite inquiry is appropriate: "Can you give me an idea of the anticipated salary range of the position?"


Do you have any interviewing tips?

There are many book and websites that address strategies for interviews, but some good ideas include:
1) Project confidence at all times by sitting up straight, speaking in an audible tone of voice, and maintaining good eye contact.
2) Smile once in a while, even if you have to make yourself.
3) Let the committee members or interviewers speak. Many candidates, hoping to make a good impression, monopolize conversations and lose the job in the process.
4) A good interview is always a two-way conversation. If you have nothing to say, the committee may assume you aren't interested in the job.
5) Above all, be yourself.


The committee wants to eat dinner at a steakhouse and I am a vegan. What do I do about this?

In an ideal world, the committee should check with you to see if you have any dietary concerns before scheduling meals. However, this does not always happen. Usually it is merely an oversight on the chair's part and is not intended as any personal rudeness to the candidate. Again, how you handle this will depend on your personal judgment and how comfortable you are in situations like this. You may be able to send email to the SC chair that says, "I see you have scheduled us for dinner at Land Of Meat restaurant. I am looking forward to having a meal with the faculty, but I have some dietary concerns that require me to be on a vegan diet. Would I be able to call ahead to the chef and ask that they prepare me something appropriate?" Usually in a case like this, the chair will be horrified at having made this oversight, and a constructive dialogue about appropriate dining options may take place. You do not need to be specific about your reasons for your dietary choices; they may be medical, ethical, or religious, and the search committee doesn't need to know. Regardless, this is not the time to preach about them! If the chair is baffled as to where you might eat as a vegan, suggest an Asian restaurant (Chinese, Japanese, or Thai, e.g.), where you won't have to worry about avoiding dairy.

Your other choice is to grin and bear it. At most restaurants one can get salads and plain rice or other foods that are unlikely to trip dietary alarms. One can always blame picking at one's dinner on being nervous! However, if you decide to go this route, commit to being gracious about it, and do not let the committee even get a whiff that the food isn't to your liking.


Should I send a thank-you letter after a campus interview? If so, to whom?

Yes, this is usually good form. It is best to send it to the search committee chair, and be prompt about it. For this purpose, a paper letter is better than email. Some job-seekers report that they also do drop brief emails to faculty on the search committee with whom they felt a particular connection.


GETTING, OR NOT GETTING, AN OFFER


I had my campus interview. How long will it be before I hear anything?

This is frequently the worst part of the whole interview process - waiting for the phone to ring after a campus interview. It could be anywhere from days to months. After all the interviews are completed, the search committee must meet. They may not make a decision in one meeting, so that process may take a week or two on its own. Then the committee must communicate its decision with upper administration. The exact procedures for this vary from school to school, but invariably the upper administration has to get involved, and if an administrator is on vacation, at a conference, or busy with other things, this can drag out for a long time. Also, the first-choice candidate has some time to think about the offer. Two weeks is a standard period, but it may be less or more depending on the school. So if you are the second-choice candidate, there may be a month or more after you interview before the school is able to extend an offer, and then another two weeks while the first-choice candidate makes up his or her mind. If that candidate turns down the offer, the school could then make an offer to you, six weeks or more after your interview.

It is not safe to assume you are out of the running for any position until the school tells you you have not been hired (or you hear through the grapevine that someone else has been hired).



If they call and offer me the job, what should I say?

Conventional wisdom says it is not a good idea to accept or reject the job over the phone, as you will then lose negotiating power. A good strategy is to say something like, "That's great news and I'm flattered to be asked. When do you need an answer?" This allows you to start the negotiating process and sets up the timeline for decision-making.


I got a job offer from School A, but I would rather work at School B. I had a campus interview at School B, but I don't know where I stand. What should I do?

In these situations, it is appropriate to contact School B and let them know you have received another offer, and you would like to find out more information about School B's timeline for decision-making. You will have a limited amount of time to respond to School A's offer, and you cannot leave them hanging while you wait on School B. While it is inappropriate to rush the decision-making process at School B, it is definitely fair to let them know you are being courted elsewhere. If they are close to making a decision, they will do their best to let you know.

However, School B may come back and say that they cannot have a decision for you before School A's deadline arrives. In cases like this you will just have to decide whether the bird in the hand outweighs the potential birds in the bush. Due to different hiring timetables at different schools, it rarely happens that a candidate has all offers in his or her hand at once.



Can I negotiate salary? If so, by how much, and what are some good negotiation techniques?

It depends on the school. Some schools have fixed salary scales or operate on a "step" system in which salary is determined by qualifications and years of service. It is generally not possible to negotiate salary at these schools. Many CCs operate on this kind of "step" system.

Some schools expect you to negotiate for your salary, and you will not be doing anybody any favors if you don't negotiate. If salary at your target school is negotiable, then you may be able to get a slightly higher figure than the original offer. However, you will probably not get more than an additional 3-5%. So, if the original offer is $50K, you may be able to negotiate to $52-53K, but probably not more than that. Because future salary hikes such as raises and cost of living increases are usually based on your base salary, it is worth it to try to negotiate even an extra $1K.

A frequently cited book on the Chronicle fora is Getting to Yes by Roger Fisher and William Ury; the principled negotiation strategies it endorses are highly recommended.


What are some other considerations that are worthy of negotiation?

(I could use some help here from people in different fields!)

This also depends on the school and the field. In the sciences in research oriented institutions, it is considered your responsibility to make sure that you have negotiated for what you need to succeed in your research.

Some of the things you may wish to negotiate for are:

(I've heard of some folks negotiating for the following as well, but if this seems too out there for most situations please remove it!)


I had a campus interview, but never heard anything at all from the committee, and it's been months! Now what?

Regrettably, sometimes it does happen that committees never contact people they didn't hire to let them know the outcome of the search.

I got a VAP position, but am also a finalist for a TT one. Can I abandon the VAP position in favor of the TT one?

If you were to get the TT position, many schools would understand that it would be better for your career to take that instead of the VAP. If you decide to go this route, immediate and respectful notification of the VAP school is absolutely necessary. Do not delay a second longer than necessary, because the VAP school will need to make an offer to another candidate (very possibly someone who was released from the search when you were hired).


How do I resign from my current job? And when should I let my current school know I have a new job?

When you are leaving one position for another, a simple resignation letter will suffice. It only needs to say, "I am resigning my position as of X/X/XX to take another position at Rival University."

If you are leaving one tenure-track position for another, ask for a leave of absence!

Although it is sometimes tempting for people leaving jobs in which they are unhappy to deliberately delay telling their school, the best thing is to notify them once the contract or letter of appointment at your new school has been signed by you and received by the new school. This allows your old position to be advertised and filled with as little disruption to the school as possible.


This is my second year on the market and I haven't gotten a job. I'm discouraged. What's wrong with me?

Nothing is wrong with you (probably!). Job-hunting in academia is very difficult, and job searches routinely go on for several years. The job market is not always the meritocracy it seems like it ought to be. Recognize that search committees are often plagued by politics, which can be bitter and divisive. Sometimes some candidates are hired because their teachers knew people who knew people... Sometimes you don't get a job because Distinguished Professor X hated your advisor when they were both in grad school together.

Of course, sometimes you could benefit from fine-tuning your materials or approaching interviews differently. Approach someone you trust and respect, both personally and professionally, and ask that person to look at your materials (and, if possible, to conduct a mock interview with you) and offer an honest assessment. Take careful notes on everything this person says, and don't allow yourself to get defensive. Later, look at your notes and carefully think about what comments are valid and how you might integrate them into your application. Does your cover letter really express who you are as a teacher and researcher? Does it reflect you as a bright, enthusiastic, flexible scholar ready to contribute to a team? Are you satisfied with how it represents you? If not, make some adjustments. If so, then try to hang in there, if an academic job is what you really want. Do not take a lull in the job search as a sign that you are in the wrong career. Meanwhile, keep writing, publishing, networking, teaching, and being active in your field!




What are some books or other resources that might be helpful in my job search?

(please fill these in)

*Job Search in Academe: Strategic Rhetorics for Faculty Job Candidates
Dawn M. Forno and Cheryl Reed

*Tomorrow's Professor: Preparing for Academic Careers in Science and Engineering
Rick Reis

*Ms. Mentor's Impeccable Advice for Women in Academia
Emily Toth

*The Academic Job Search Handbook
Mary Morris Heiberger and Julie Miller Vick

*On the Market: Surviving the Academic Job Search
Edited by Christina Boufis and Victoria Olsen

For Economists:A Guide(and Advice) for Economists on the US Junior Academic Job Market
by John Cawley
Link: link http://www.aeaweb.org/joe/articles/2006/cawley.pdf

*The Chicago Guide to Your Academic Career: A Portable Mentor for Scholars from Graduate School through Tenure
John A. Goldsmith, John Komlos, and Penny Schine Gold

*Interfolio: Academic dossier delivery service
Link: link http://www.interfolio.com``st````rd``
academic_job-seeking_faq, Rev. 66, Last changed on 2009-04-12 23:29, 46129 page hits
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