1. Survival in the Academy
Written in the early 1990s
A Guide for Beginning Academics
9/19/2018

2. Issues Facing the University
Money problems
Political battles
Diversifying institutions
Lack of perceived value
Political battles:
being politically correct
Freedom of expression
Harassment
Diversifying insitutions
Can’t say “just interested in becoming a professor”; they type of school that employees them will shape their lives
New fields coming up; old going away
Perceived Value
Not getting jobs
Use to be for the privileged elite
Recent studies indicate that only 25% of college students use to library; compared to 70% 20 years ago
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3. Types of Universities Multiversities Comprehensive universities
Smaller public colleges and universities
Graduate studies institution
Urban-centered universities
Junior colleges and university branches
Finding your fit
Tenure should be the result of doing good work, not the goal
Make accomidations to where you want to work!
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4. Issues Facing Academics
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5. Issues Facing All Beginning Academics
Campus politics
Develop a research and publication plan
Cultivate teaching skills
Prepare to deal with moral and political issues
Service
Controversial Issues
Campus Politics
“University politics are vicious precisely because the stakes are so small.” – Kissinger
Computers, secetary
Contriversial issues: Retain intellectual ingery; ocmpy with requirmetns of the system, and produce work of genuin valu
The Nature of the Political Game
Understand the power structure
Make allies, take sides; Find Mentor and avicesorts “important ellments of obtaining political power’
Make moral decisions about your relationships
Be prepared to deal with moral and political issues
Board of trustees that operates much like a copeorate group
Presdients, vice presidents, provosts, deans (do not care what the faculty does) do nohting crazy
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6. Inequity and Nontraditional Members
Benefit packages
Disability leave: pregnancy and childbirth
Family leave
Evaluating productivity
Evaluating scholarship
Evaluating teaching
Evaluating service
Inequitable service
Linguistic exclusion
Tenure and promotion schedules
The Standpoint of Nontraditional Academics
Motives and behaviors in individuals;
Layers of prejudice
Blatatn, Invidiual Bias: “you aren’t wanted here”
The Chilley climate: pervasive devalution: not bad motives or consiou biaes : “someone who has not endured a particualr oppresion and has not been socilzed to be passove realy annot comprehend the situation of someone who has
“Bring my wife”
Tradition: this is how the academ;y has always operatied
“Rules” = institutional structures, policies and practices
“Add women and stir” vs. “Add one and stir”
Tpic is discussed asusming a white, male standards and then references to one or two minories are added on.
Marginalization
Tradition = “This is how things work”.
Women
People of color
Gays and lesbians
Non-Euro-Americans
Disabled people
Members of minority religious
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7. Securing a Position
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8. Securing a Position Self analysis of career priorities
Talents
Desires
Goals
A good match?
Career-bound unification chart

9. Gathering Materials Academic accomplishments
Education, teaching experience, publications, and scholarship
Samples of work
Schedule meeting with advisor to get feedback

10. Interview Preparation
Start early by gathering topics, exploring visual aids, and asking others to listen to you explain portions of your research

11. Preparing Application Support Materials
Cover letter
References
Schedule a meeting with your advisor
Cover letter: should be focused on specific job openings
Ask for references early and give reference writers sufficient time to write about you
Ask for references from whom you have worked most closely

12. Examining The Job Market
Job listings
Guaranteed opening or and anticipated opening?
Rank and salary
Consult advisor
Job listings can be found in your professional organizations’ newsletters, in the Chronicle of Higher Education, and in direct mail announcements go graduate departments

13. Job Listings ISworld listserv.
check the AIS members’ job posting site:
check the AACSB listings at:
check the Chronicle jobs business faculty listings at: (this one lists a surprising number of IS-related jobs that never hit the AIS listings; the key is to look through ALL the business postings not job the IS postings, because several IS-related positions are actually listed under the business postings and get missed)
check the INFORMS jobs listings (tend to be more technical / supply chain, but several IS jobs):
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14. Job Listings
check the AAA jobs listings (look under AIS jobs):
check the national HERC listings, which is a consortium of national universities that share job listings:
There’s also a couple of other job-related academic sites that occasionally will list something that no one else does—though a lot of them are low-end positions: Academickeys.com and Higheredjobs.com
You can even go directly to the HR faculty openings for specific desired universities and see what faculty openingsthey have; some will allow you to sign up for an notification list for desired faculty jobs. This is particularly wise if you want to consider international schools, as many of their listings never make the above sites.
Conferences (ICIS Interviews)
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15. Preparing For The Job Interview
Practice makes perfect
Researching the department
Secure Itinerary
Obtain clear instruction about what is expected of you during the interview: Itinerary

16. Academic Interviewing
Field questions gracefully
Expect meetings with the department chair/head
Take the opportunity to talk to students, especially graduate students

17. After The Interview
Endless waiting…
Negotiate salary and benefits

18. Accepting The Job Check contract carefully
Many considerations come into play after you sign the contract
What kind of office will I have,
How do I order the books for my classes
Where do I begin to look for housing

19. Starting Out
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20. Tenure Legally recognized system of due process protection
Academic freedom
Feelings of acceptance and ease
Concentrate on career goals
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21. The Frantic Cycle Managing relationships with colleagues
New teaching duties
Self-exploration
Working as an identifiable entity
Research, research, research
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22. Starting Out Know the rules for tenure
Know the people who will vote on your tenure
Know exactly what to do to get tenure
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23. Managing Relationships
Make alliances
Deal with administration
Don’t make enemies
Assert yourself in an accepted channel
Individuals are among the most unpredictable entities in the universe
Making allies
Do not make needless enemies
Assert yourself in an accepted channel and an appropriate way
Dealing with Administration: find out what type of influence certain administrators have on your tenure case
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24. Tenure Start by being briefed on the rules
Learn early how to put together a tenure file
Find out from others how to put it together
Know the decision process
Know the expectations of those making the decisions
Learn early how to put together a tenure file long before it is due in the dean’s office
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25. 8 Obligations of Professionalism
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26. Obligations of Professionalism
Be culturally literate
Be sophisticated in one’s specialty
Research and disseminate the results
Serve the academic community
Make sensible decision about one’s career
Maintain collegiality and mutual respect
Play a realistic role in the world at large
Teach well
The Obligation of Cultural Literacy
There is no academic discipline that can exist outside the context of common wisdom
Communication is the only means by which knowledge can be unified into a common wisdom
To write and speak well, to listen attentively, and to read critically
The Obligation of Content Sophistication
The professional academic is expected to be an expert on something of suitable worth
The information must be cogent, current, useful, and communicable
Research and disseminate the results
Publish or Perish
Academic professional must know how to do research and write up the results with sufficient quality as to qualify them for publication
Academic professional mush be able to integrate research into the teaching process
Teaching mission
Whatever institution most of you serve, in some way, your main mission will be teaching
The Obligation to Serve the Academic Community
Service supports and underpins the Academy. Without it, the Academy cannot survive in its present form. Every professional has a duty to service, although service alone is not enough.
The obligation to make sensible decision about one’s career
The obligation to be yourself
To be a mature academic professional, you must make the right choice of a position that will enable you to use your talents and fulfill your goals for personal accomplishment.
Collegiality
Colleagues can be helpful or harmful.
Most of the important decisions about your career will be done by peer review
Play a realistic role I the world at a large
Community at large
No academic can exist apart from life in the broader universe
Virtually all academics will have some opportunity to apply their discipline practically in the so-called “real world”
By the same token, local communities and political parties will look to academics for participation and advice
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27. Teaching in Academia Teaching Modalities: Testing is a necessary evil.
Teaching is an active process.
Teaching is the guidance of learning activity.
Teaching is the direction of performance behavior.
Teaching is the uncomplicated presentation of information.
Teaching is provocation of ideas and creative expression.
Teaching involves setting a worthy model to imitate.
Teaching includes special relationships between faculty and students. (When in doubt, don’t)
Good teaching demands an understanding of the teacher’s responsibilities.
Teaching Modalities:
Lecturing – inefficient, remember Johnson & Johnson’s “Cooperative Learning” Primer, Dale’s Cone of Experience, presentations by Dr. James LaSalle and by Kyla Macario
Discussion
Others – lab experience, projects etc.
Testing is a necessary evil.
Evaluation of teaching is an uncertain enterprise
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28. Research and Publication
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29. Why publish? Advice: Where to publish
Identify questions that should be resolved and are interesting to you
How can the field be advanced by answering these question
Set priorities
Resources and qualifications
Where to publish
Why publish? Portable weatlh
Research != Publication
Considerations in doing research
Motivation, Attitude, Resources, Qualifications, Focus, Execution
Considerations in publication
Deciding whether to publish, Where to publish, Manuscript preparation, The publication process
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30. Criticism
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31. Criticism Accepted criticism gracefully and productively
Solicit more feedback
Give feedback in teaching
Resistance to criticism
Denial
Suspicion
Rationalization
Refusal to Participate
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
Begging for Mercy
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32. Future Corporatization Professionalization Politicization Dangers
Focus on profits and academics
Professionalization
Focus on professional development not intellect
Politicization
Federal/State control of resources
Dangers
Loss of:
Core values/Mission?
Collegiality?
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