Dr. Richard M. Reis UC Davis October 3, 2003 Preparing Now For Your Future Academic Career
Introduction and Brief Overview Why Tomorrow’s Professor? The academic enterprise Preparing for an academic career Finding, and getting, the best possible academic position Tomorrow’s Professor Listserve
Why Tomorrow’s Professor? Lack of understanding of the academic enterprise. Decisions for and against academic careers made for the wrong (as well as the right) reasons. More to preparing for an academic career than getting a Ph.D. More to succeeding in an academic career than teaching and research.
The Academic Enterprise Unlike any other institution The Carnegie classification A new definition of scholarship
The Academic Enterprise Unlike an other institution –Individual autonomy –Accountability –Rewards and recognition –Tenure
The Academic Enterprise The Carnegie Classification –Baccalaureate~630 –Master’s Granting~530 –Doctorate ~110 –Research~125
Preparing for an Academic Career A consequential decision What to do about supply and demand The Three-Pronged preparation strategy Research and teaching experiences as a graduate student and postdoc
The Three-Way Stretch Preparation Strategy –Breadth-on-top-of depth –Next-stage –Multiple option
The Three-Way Stretch Preparation Strategy Breadth-on-Top-of-Depth Places your developing expertise in a broad context, allows you to see connections between your work and that of others, to develop related areas of depth, and to make a more compelling case for your own contribution.
The Three-Way Stretch Preparation Strategy Next -Stage Enables you to think ahead, look ahead, and act ahead of the stage you (and your future competition) currently occupy and thus not only demonstrate your willingness, but also your readiness, to assume the position you are seeking.
The Three-Way Stretch Preparation Strategy Multiple Options Allows you to prepare concurrently for careers in academia, government, and industry.
Strategy applies to: –Choosing A Graduate School or Postdoc Institution –Choosing A Research Topic, Dissertation Advisor and Postdoc Supervisor –Publishing –Attending Conferences and Other Professional Meetings The Three-Way Stretch Preparation Strategy
The Three-Way Stretch Preparation Strategy –Presentations –Supervising Other Researchers –Managing Research Projects –Teaching Experiences
Finding and Getting the Best Possible Academic Position Identifying the possibilities Applying for positions What departments look for in new faculty Getting the results you want
Finding and Getting the Best Possible Academic Position Identifying the possibilities –Explore Now, Search Later –Deciding What You Want –Researching What’s Out There –Preparing for the Search
Finding and Getting the Best Possible Academic Position Applying for positions –Preparing Your Application Materials –The Application Process
Finding and Getting the Best Possible Academic Position What departments look for in new faculty –Overall promise, –General teaching ability,ability to teach courses in need of staffing, –Ability to do research, scholarship in specific areas, a specific research orientation, –Compatibility with department and institution, and –Potential for securing external research funding.
Finding and Getting the Best Possible Academic Position Getting the results you want –Your Negotiating Approach –Negotiating Principles –Dual-Career Couples –What if You Don’t Get the Job You Want?
Tomorrow’s Professor’s Listserve Tomorrow’s Professor Listserve is sent by-weekly to approximately 18,000 subscribers, mostly graduate students, postdocs and beginning faculty at over 500 colleges and universities in 106 countries around the world. Academia * New Faculty Reward Structures * Faculty Learning and Institutional Change Preparing for Academic Careers * The Academic Job Talk. * General Principles For Responding to Academic Job Offers
Tomorrow’s Professor’s Listserve Managing Your Academic Career * Tenure Tips * Twelve Suggestions for Optimizing Academic Career Success Teaching and Learning * Improving Student Learning While Saving Faculty Time * How Students Learn, How Teachers Teach, and What Goes Wrong With the Process Research * Elements Found in Most Successful Proposals * How Graduate Students and Faculty Miscommunicate
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