Searching for Academic Positions
Job Search Sites/Places to Look:
Chronicle Vitae
Higher Ed Jobs
AERA Job Board & then also search within the SIGS & Divisions
Academic Keys
HERC (Higher Ed Research Consortium)
The Academia Job Wiki (LOTS of links, and scroll down the page to find menus of job postings by academic year and field)
LRA website
Check with your advisor as well
Check specific institution’s websites
Applying for Academic Positions
Suggestions:
Most job search docs have lists of required & preferred qualifications
Apply to 5-15 schools
Don’t waste your time by applying to jobs that you don’t have all the required qualifications
The preferred qualifications MAY give a sense of what type of person they’re looking for
Make a spreadsheet to track job applications: Info about the position, deadlines, search committee members, required application materials, etc.
Dossier (will depend on the job):
Cover Letter
CV
Teaching Statement (typically 1-2 pages)
Writing Samples
Diversity Statement (typically 1-2 pages)
Letters of Recommendation
Transcripts
Syllabus Sample
Cover Letter (samples available in the attachments below):
Speak to experiences teaching online, abroad, and/or service-learning (show diversity)
Can also draw from the school’s mission statement to organize the letter
Describe dissertation in a way that fits the job call/description itself
Outline in narrative form how you fit ALL of the required components AND as many of the preferred qualifications as possible
Outline how you “fit into” that specific institution -- how can you add to and/or extend what is happening or missing there
Don’t send a blanket cover letter to all institutions
There are a lot of parts of the cover letter that can be standard across letters
Organize the letter so that you address teaching, service, and research -- highlight the aspect of your work that is most in-line with what the specific institutions privileges (research for R1 schools, for example)
Length: 3 pages single-spaced w/double-space between paragraphs
How much should you LIST your services or publications (that are ON THE CV) vs. choose a few different things to focus on and explain…
Organization of the Letter:
Please accept my letter, I’m applying for XYZ position, and this is why I feel I fit your “call” (hone IMMEDIATELY into your teaching or research - whatever is most important for that institution)
Speak to each of the requirements in the job call
Review Dissertation (what is it about, what are the RQs, who are you referencing (but don’t add a reference page at the end), etc.); name your major professor and committee members
Discuss other publications that you have and what you’re including in the dossier (you don’t have to be 1st author on the publications you list; nor do they have to be in print at the time of application - they should be in process at least)
What awards have you gotten
What teaching have you done that’s pertinent to the position → call out specific projects/work that happened in those courses
Service: discuss local, institutional, and national service
What is your research agenda? What are you currently working on and what projects do you envision for the future
Summarize the main points of the letter and the aspects you’d like to highlight before closing the letter
Close by discussing what you’ve included in the dossier and thanks for considering the application
Preparing for Interviews and/or Campus Visits
Research the committee members
Organize/schedule a practice job talk that can be done with faculty/peers here in order to get feedback before going to the campus visit
Standard Interview Questions:
1. How do you plan to continue your research agenda here?
2. What courses do we currently offer that you might be interested in teaching?
3. What are you prepared to teach immediately after being hired?
4. What courses would you like to develop in time?
5. How do you complement our existing faculty?
6. You may get questions about service, given that this is going to be a more service-focused position than some others.
7. What journals/books/authors do you read? Teach?
8. How would you support students here?
Campus Visits:
Most R1 schools won’t require that you teach
Come up with LOTS OF QUESTIONS to ask before going to campus
Deans often read the application materials
Expect a busy schedule!
When You're Offered the Position!!!
Negotiating:
Don’t accept anything on the spot
Discuss the offer with your major professor in order to get advice
You can negotiate your timeline for thinking about the offer
Most institutions have a standard package that they offer -- so look at that and see what’s “missing” that you’d like to see there
Discuss summer courses; can negotiate a summer salary
Other possible items to negotiate: Salary, desk/office equipment, travel funds, class buy-out, computer/technology, grant or external funding obligations, having a graduate assistant
(If You're Not Offered the Position)
Remember, it was an honor to be selected for an interview and/or campus visit, and you were chosen over multiple applicants!
Great article: Academic Job Hunts from Hell: Why You Weren't Picked
Thank you to Drs. Jennifer Allen, Michelle Falter, Stephanie P. Jones, and Stephanie Shelton for their advice at the SSS on April 26, 2016. Thank you to Meghan Barnes for her contributions to these notes.
Additional items contributed by Karen Graham and Margaret Robbins from the March 27, 2017 SSS are attached below.