C R A W April 2005 The Job Search Process & Later Job-Related Decision Making Janie Irwin Penn State University Lori Clarke University of Massachusetts, Amherst The Academic Perspective

C R A W April 2005 Preparing for Your Job Search  Actually started several years before you thought you were looking  Thesis committee  Thesis content and associated papers  Contacts with other researchers  …

C R A W April 2005 Thesis Committee  Pick a committee that can help you develop your career. Of course they help define your thesis and become a researcher, but they also  Help in your job search Letters from well-known researchers have greater impact Can personally contact potential employers  After you have a job, help advocate on your behalf For committee assignments, panelists, speakers, …  Not all your committee members have to be well connected  Can mix junior faculty with senior faculty

C R A W April 2005 Thesis Content  Not one size fits all  Quality and flavor of thesis impact job opportunities  More applied results helps with industrial jobs  Theoretical component helps with university jobs  Pedagogical results helps with teaching college jobs  Thesis contributions need to match your job aspirations  Contributions might warrant a glowing letter for one type of institution but not another  Need to discuss a strategy with your advisor so your results match your goals

C R A W April 2005 Contacts with other Researchers  Will be covered in networking session, but  Meet with visiting speakers  Meet with faculty candidates and note what “styles” work well  Meet with researchers at conferences

C R A W April 2005 Decisions, Decisions Research University or Teaching College  Do you like teaching? Research? Both?  Would you be more comfortable in a big department or a small one?  Do you want to work with graduate students primarily? Undergraduates primarily?  What is your risk tolerance?  How important is salary? Location?

C R A W April 2005 What is often not said  Except for the elite Oberlin 50, college teaching positions are hard to fill  Pay is poor compared to University and Industrial positions  Teaching loads are high (and no TA help)  Teaching positions at research Universities might pay better and have a lower teaching load, but usually little status and usually a year-by-year contract

C R A W April 2005 What is often not said  Most faculty get tenure  Most departments hire expecting/hoping to award the person tenure  Hiring and mentoring of junior faculty is expensive, in time and money A big department investment so worth their while to make you successful

C R A W April 2005 What is often not said  University positions provide the most flexibility in terms of future options  Difficult to move from a teaching position to an industrial position UNLESS you can show that your job skills are still current  Very difficult to move from a teaching or industrial position to a university position UNLESS you have been publishing in high- quality venues

C R A W April 2005 What does this mean  If you aren’t sure what career path to chose and your advisor/committee are supportive, you might want to consider a research or industrial research position  If it doesn’t “work out” you can try something else  If you are sure what career path you want, make sure you can live with the consequences

C R A W April 2005 The Metrics  Research university metrics  Papers in top conferences, a few journal papers/ submissions  Great letters (esp. strong advisor support)  Good department fit (neither too many in your research area or no one)  Teaching college metrics  Papers in conferences  Teaching enthusiasm (and experience)  Factors out of your control  Number of slots, desirable areas, dept politics, etc.

C R A W April 2005 The Application Packet  Cover letter  Well crafted, complete CV  Three to five references ( addresses)  Two page research statement  Current research impacts, future vision  Include both short-term and long-term research goals  One page teaching statement  Experience (e.g., TA), interests  A well crafted, complete, professional web page containing pdf’s of papers

C R A W April 2005 Initial Contacts  Deciding where to apply  Check want ads (IEEE Computer, CACM,  If your faculty champion knows someone in a department you really are interested in, have them contact them  For certain fields, might want to apply to more than one department in the same university, e.g., CS and ECE  Don’t be too picky – the market is tight right now! If you are really interested in a particular department apply even if they haven’t posted an ad.  Be organized and do your homework  Spreadsheets of contacts, status  Travel arrangements, local information, maps, etc.

C R A W April 2005 My Travel Form  A one page form on which I can keep track of all travel details  Dates, destination, local contact information  Talk title  Hotel information & confirmation  Flight schedule  Ground transportation information  Cost estimates  Registration information & confirmation (for conferences)  Add the filled out form to your tenure file as data collection

C R A W April 2005 The Selection Process  Once your application has been received, the department will decide whether to  Ask for letters  Let you know that there is a “no match” But often you will not hear anything → “no match”  Have your letter writers send their letters  Might help sway the recruiting committee  A few will be invited for an interview  Ask your faculty champion to contact people they know at the places you have applied and put in a good word  For some positions, can let people know that you are going to be “in the area”

C R A W April 2005 The Academic Interview  The interview talk (preferably early, not at the end)  30 minute one-on-ones  May meet faculty from more than one department (especially if research interests overlap)  Meet with department head/chair (and dean)  Meet with a small group of senior grad students  Meals  Goal: Convince them that you will add strength to their department in important areas (research, teaching and service) and will be a collegial department citizen

C R A W April 2005 The Talk  Goals  Convince them that you are smart, that your research contributions are solid, that there are promising problems to tackle next, and that you will be a good teacher  Broad enough at the beginning to appeal to the entire audience  Focused enough at the end to show off your research skills and convince the experts in the audience (by this time you’ve lost the generalists)  Practice, practice, practice  Give a practice-talk to an audience of faculty and students from various research groups People might ask questions from viewpoints that you have never thought of!

C R A W April 2005 One-on-Ones  Goals  Convince them they want to work with you  Decide if you want to work with them  Do your homework  Have your 1 minute, 5 minute and 10 minute elevator talk ready  Check faculty out on the web, read some of their recent papers  Know how your research would fit with theirs and vice versa  Have a list of questions ready

C R A W April 2005 Possible Questions  What’s the best thing about your department?  What’s the worst?  How does the department make important decisions? Are there faculty retreats?  Who do you collaborate with?  Where are last year’s PhD graduates working?  How many faculty have been tenured in the last five years (and how many have not)?  What is the typical course enrollment (lower division, upper division, graduate)? What TA support is provided?  How good is the staff support (clerical and lab)?  What is your approach to recruiting students into your group?

C R A W April 2005 Chair/Dean Meeting  Goals  Convince them they want you in their department/college  Decide if you want to be there, decide if this is the right “boss” for you  Do your homework  Have your 1 minute and 5 minute elevator talk ready  Check department/college out on the web  Know how your research complements the dept/ college  Know which courses you would like to/could teach  Know possible funding sources for your research  Have a list of questions ready

C R A W April 2005 Possible Questions The one-on-one questions, plus  What is the standard teaching load? Can I create new courses? Can I buy out of teaching? How is teaching evaluated?  What is the pre-tenure faculty review process?  Are pre-tenure sabbaticals possible?  Are their Developmental Chairs for junior faculty?  What is the strongest department in the college? The weakest?  What is the largest department in the college? The smallest? Which are slated for growth (if any)?  What are the university’s IP policies?  What support groups/activities are provided in the department/college/university for women faculty?

C R A W April 2005 Meals  At most one drink  Good topics for conversation: travel, hobbies, kids, school sports, places and events in/around campus  Bad topics: politics, religion, conduct of personal-life

C R A W April 2005 Miscellaneous Tips  Try not to schedule more than one interview per week if possible  Some interviews span more than one day  You want to be at your best at each place you interview  Schedule flights so that you arrive a little early (even with flight delays) and so you don’t have to run for the airport right after your talk  Take bathroom breaks  Wear comfortable shoes and a jacket you can take off during the talk if the room is too warm  Check out the weather forecast and take appropriate outer wear  Stay alert. Get plenty of sleep the night before, exercise if you can, caffeine if needed

C R A W April 2005 Two Body Issues To tell or not to tell – and when ?  Full disclosure in the cover letter  The department can start working on it early But some departments may not contact you that would have otherwise  Its not always obvious, especially if you have different last names  Insist on separate interviews and being treated independently, but if you are willing to have a commuting marriage say so, if not say so

C R A W April 2005 Two Body Issues To tell or not to tell – and when ?  Full disclosure only after contacted for an interview  They have already decided they are interested in you  Make it clear what you will accept and do not set up the interview unless those expectations *might* be met  If you require two positions in the same department say so now, not after you arrive

C R A W April 2005 Two Body Issues To tell or not to tell – and when ?  Full disclosure during the visit  Can discuss your needs and the options  Can hear about options you had not realized were available  Full disclosure after an offer is being discussed  Department is definitely committed, but it is getting late to have much impact

C R A W April 2005 To tell or not to tell – and when ?  The more difficult it will be for a place to meet your needs, the sooner you should reveal your situation  If an institution is in a large city with a number of options, there may not be any need for assistance  If an institution is in a rural setting with few local alternatives, sooner is better than later  Do your homework  Know what other opportunities are in the area and how well they might fit your needs as a couple

C R A W April 2005 After the Visit  Send an thanks to your host and others who spent time/effort during your visit  File for travel reimbursements promptly  Be sure to keep originals of all receipts  Be prepared to be flexible. Offers usually come in with some time constraints. You may have to decide quickly  Is a bird in the hand really better than one in the bush?

C R A W April 2005 Always tell the truth  This is a small, very interconnected community  Do not tell more than one institution that they are your *first* choice  Be forthright  The people you are dealing with do this every year

C R A W April 2005 Negotiating the Offer  Start date  Teaching load and 1 st year teaching assignment  Ask to teach an advanced grad course your first semester  Research start-up package  RA support, conference and funding agency travel funds, summer salary, equipment, lab and RA space, committee service reduction, teaching-load reduction  Tenure clock issues (clock credit, clock stoppage)  Salary, benefits (medical, retirement)  Subsidized housing, moving expenses  Campus parking location/cost, child care facilities/cost

C R A W April 2005 Wrap-Up  Choose a job that rewards you for what you want to do  If you never hear “no,” you’re not asking for enough  But know when not to apply this rule

C R A W April 2005 Reading  See “Tips for a Massive Academic Job Search” (  Read Ms. Mentor’s Impeccable Advice for Women in Academia by Emily Toth  “Getting a Job”, CRA-W Career Mentoring Workshops