1. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 1 Lecture 20 Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard, PSU Todd Leen, OGI-OHSU All material © 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000 David Maier, © 2006 Todd Leen Lecture 20: Vita and Interviewing

2. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 2 Lecture 20 The Vita A vita for an academic or research position is quite different from a resume for another kind of job. Why and what? Candidate will create the job Much more detail (can be 6+ pages instead of 2)

3. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 3 Lecture 20 First Concern of Department or Lab How good is your scholarship? –Mastery of areas –Ability to fund and conduct research –Publishing –Advising and teaching –Professional activity: conference program committees, journal editorial boards

4. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 4 Lecture 20 Other Concerns How do you fit? –Areas of overlap –New capabilities –Affect on curriculum Do you match a particular need? –Research needs often broad –May need help covering or expanding parts of curriculum –(Lab) May have a particular client or project

5. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 5 Lecture 20 Special Case Postdoc or research assistant professor Might be recruited for a particular project Skills become important –familiarity with methodologies –familiarity with technologies

6. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 6 Lecture 20 What About a Postdoc Position? Exists in academia and industry Generally working under direction of a senior researcher Usually for a limited period: 2-3 years Might lead to a “regular” position Don’t assume so, ask during interview if interested

7. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 7 Lecture 20 Plusses Can build up your research record Pays better than grad student You might be main person directing a project Adds to your pedigree, if at good place Might get experience writing grants, teaching, supervising students Chance to broaden expertise May be chance to visit another country

8. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 8 Lecture 20 Minuses May not be establishing your record as independent researcher Doesn’t pay as well as a faculty or regular research position Pre-determined focus of research Post-doctoral fellowship (your money) buys intellectual freedom You could end up as a programmer or developer --- poor manager

9. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 9 Lecture 20 Sections of Vita Many organizations work, here’s one 1. Name, contact info Leave out personal info: marital status 2. Degrees titles of theses, list advisors 3. Experience Some things go away after first real job: TA, research assistantship, tutoring, unpaid internships, unrelated summer jobs 4. Honors

10. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 10 Lecture 20 Sections of Vita 2 5. Research interests 6. Courses taught (maybe) 7. Grants and contracts 8. Patents 9. Publications: must be complete Might split as journal, conference, tech. reports Leave off “submitted” items unless you’re a new researcher – and best to put these in a separate subsection 10. Students or postdocs advised 11. Memberships in professional societies

11. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 11 Lecture 20 The Vita 3 12. Professional and service activities (e.g. conference committees and journal editing / reviewing) 13. Invited talks, presentations, panels 14. Consulting 15. References (check) Always include your advisor Okay to ask if they will be strong It’s as long as it needs to be to get everything in.

12. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 12 Lecture 20 Applying for a Position Cover letter – couple of pages at most What position Why you are interested Availability date Research interests Sometimes prose statement in addition to material in vita. Teaching interests What’s in their catalog; what you could add. Outside the academic & research arena Stress accomplishments in experience, summarize skills, leadership

13. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 13 Lecture 20 Interviewing A talk is expected for an academic or research position. The more times you give it, the more questions you’ll have heard. Go see talks by candidates at your own school.

14. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 14 Lecture 20 Who You Will See Faculty, researchers Chair, Dean (Boss, Boss’s Boss, …) Students Research staff Don’t hesitate to ask to see someone in particular.

15. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 15 Lecture 20 What They Will be Looking for Will you fit? Technically, personally, teaming Are you smart? Are you flexible? Can you communicate? Are you ambitious? Are you deep and broad?

16. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 16 Lecture 20 What Will They Ask? What’s next? What about in 5 years? What do you need to succeed? Why do you want to come here? What could you teach What do you think of X?

17. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 17 Lecture 20 Make a List...of what you want to find out. –benefits, conditions of employment –facilities: equipment, library –who to work with –(lab) publication permitted, encouraged –teaching, administrative load –how’s the department doing in the larger organization –governance, management, politics –expectations for funding –student support, student quality –tenure, promotion, annual review process –Startup package

18. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 18 Lecture 20 Figure Out Who to Ask Useful to contrast answers: –How important is the department in the university? –Do junior people get much mentoring? –What is department well known for? –What’s it like to live in this town?

19. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 19 Lecture 20 Some Questions to Ask What do you work on? Why? What are department plans? What is the record for promotion in department or group? How is teaching decided? How do raises and contracts work? Are you happy here? Ask the chair and the dean what their most pressing problem is

20. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 20 Lecture 20 Questions for Specific People Junior faculty or staff –What was your initial teaching load? –Who do you collaborate with? –What help did you get? Grad students –What do you call faculty members? –Who are the good teachers? –Why did you come here?

21. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 21 Lecture 20 What to Convey What do you want them to know? –New ideas you plan to work on –Other areas of interest –Constraints— Know what you can contribute –Look at current areas—what new capabilities do you bring? –What are their hiring goals? –What could you teach, what existing projects could you contribute to? Find someone you can call in advance to get some of this info.

22. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 22 Lecture 20 Don’t Get into arguments Underestimate influence of one person Make negative comments, gossip Forget you’re being evaluated, during talk, interviews, walks, dinner … Reject teaching possibilities

23. Scholarship Skills Tim Sheard & Todd Leen 23 Lecture 20 “Pre-Think” Interview yourself, so you have answers ready –Where are you headed in your research? –Is that the only thing you want to work on? –What are your goals for the next 5 years? –What facilities do you need? –What’s your price? –What courses could you teach, develop?