I did the ASA job 'meat market' last year and was very successful. I had 7 interviews, including one where the DC just happened to see my vita and interviewed me as a potential opportunity hire. Of the seven interviews at ASA I had fly-outs to three and turned down an invitation to one. I actually ended up accepting the opportunity hire position in the end, which never would have happed had I not used the ASA job bank. That's not to say that I may not have done well anyway, but it was definitely an opportunity for me to make a good first impression with SCs.
For people with less-than-elite CV, the ASA service can be a good thing. Why? Because on paper you might not stand out compared to someone with more stereotypically favored credentials. If you're personable though, you can make a positive impression on search members. And if you're quick on your feet, able to relax easily, and a good student of body language, you can maximize the 20 minutes. I had several ASA go-rounds; each year I managed to snag at least a shortlisting, if not a campus visit, based on the meat market. Many of those visits = job offer. [If you're looking for a hard core R1 job, the meat market is at ASA but via strong/weak ties.
How does anyone know the ASA meetings got them interviews?
I didn't do it and got several interviews with schools who were at ASA.
Re: open till filled- often schools do this that anticipate smaller applicant pools (for whatever reason: small, few sociology students) so that they do not have to wind up with only a handful of candidates based on an arbitrary deadline.
People are simply drawing a connection between interviewing with a school at ASA and also being short-listed/on-campus interviewed with the same school. If you got a flyout from a school you interviewed with at ASA, then you obviously made a favorable impression.
We all concede that schools also interview people that they did not meet with at ASA.
I thought this would be a fun - and very optimistic - diversion. Does anyone want to help me fill in the blanks? (I got stuck)
On the _______ day of Christmas, my dream job gave to me...
An offer to join the faculty. .Two computers ..Three ...Four libraries ....Five paid summers .....Six ......Seven year to tenure .......Eight ........Nine students TA-ing .........Ten ..........Eleven movers moving ...........Twelve
An offer to join the faculty. .Two computers ..Three dedicated post-docs ...Four libraries ....Five paid summers .....Six windows in an office ......Seven year to tenure .......Eight courses per year ........Nine students TA-ing .........Ten invited talks ..........Eleven movers moving
Twelve grand in startup, Eleven great colleagues, Ten bus routes to campus, Nine good area high schools, Eight grand for travel, Seven years to tenure, Six conscientious RAs, Five great TAs! Af-four-dable housing, 3/2 courseload, Two computers, and an offer to join the faculty.
Any advice on combating job-market-failure blues? I have a pretty good CV and everyone thought this would be "my year" (I already struck out once), but with the exception of a couple of local (crappy) schools that haven't started interviewing yet, I'm pretty much out of the running. Ugh.
Because of my spouse, I'm pretty geographically limited (for the most part, he won't move away from the East Coast or to a city with a high cost of living unless it's for an amazing, dream job, and the competition for those jobs is intense). He's one of those people who thinks you work to support the life you want, not make your life fit around your work, so he doesn't want to move to some average place just so I can stay in academia (we love where we live - a nice house and near family, which is key when you've got little kids). Plus, he loves his job and makes a good income, so he can't really see moving for a job that I *might* like but isn't my dream job and pays crap. I get it, and I totally understand his point, but still...
Any advice for how to deal with what I'm feeling - depression and resentment?
And I'm afraid that even though I keep publishing, my chances are diminishing each year as my PhD gets old - I did a 3 year postdoc and am in my 2nd year of doing visiting positions (while having two babies). I'm not sure I can do this again. It's so demoralizing, and I feel so stupid for getting my hopes up.
Dear 11:04 I hear you, I'm in a similar situation, although my PhD is fresher. Like you, I'm resentful, and shocked at the many many (apparently stupid) choices I made-ended up with a prestigious PhD but few job opportunities. On the other hand, I have a wonderful family and a great support system in the city I live, so moving is not an attractive option for me either. I've given up on the idea of that dream job. No closure, just commiserating with you.
11:04 and 2:23. We all give something up. You get the family, nice neighborhood, spouse, but are stuck in the area. I can move wherever, but have no spouse or family. Very few people get it all, and its non-realistic to think you can.
I'm wondering if those who did get jobs this year so far would share if they were ABD, Ph.D. in hand, or moving from another jr. position. It would be interesting and informative for others in the future.
I'm currently in a post-doc, and I just accepted a position at a regional university (IIA). This is my second time on the asst prof market and to lend some encouragement to those still looking--it went much better this time!
My first job search was absolutely horrible. I applied for about 40 asst prof positions, got 1 interview. I did get the job which I turned down b/c it wasn't a good fit for a whole variety of reasons I won't go into. I wound up taking a post-doc after a whole lot of stressing. This time around (almost 3 years later) my success rate (at least a phone interview) was closer to one-third. I got 2 offers, and had to withdraw from several searches where the campus visits would have been after I had to make a decision.
And I want to be clear that I am in no way a "star". None of my interviews were with the most prestigious R1s, in fact only 2 of the 10 were PhD granting institutions. But, this time around I was much clearer about what I did and didn't want and what I had to offer. And I wound up with what I think may be the perfect job for me (not for my advisors, but for me).
I like the distinction made in the last post about choosing a job that is right for YOU not your advisors. Anyone have any advice on how best to talk to advisors about this issue, when it arises?
I think the best strategy may be to start preparing your advisors well in advance. You probably know well before you go on the market what kind of job would suit you best. I'd start prepping them then.
I had this discussion with my advisors (over choosing a teaching-oriented, well-respected, undergrad-only school over a top-20 program). I was very apprehensive. But, after explaining my feelings and showing them the (great) terms of the offer, they all came around (at least to my knowledge).
They knew from our years together that a work/family balance that was healthy was really important for me--and it was clear that my choice would be much better in that regard. I do still feel a need to "prove" myself to them--that I can still do good research--but that's my own demon; and I'm so happy in my current job that I don't care.
Hope that's helpful. You've got to do what's best for you.
Re advisors: for me it was all about being clear in my own mind what I wanted, and preparing them early and often. At the same time, I was diplomatic--you can't say "I'd never want your job" and I compromised and applied for things they wanted me to as well. It helped that the postdoc I took was something they wanted me to take.
Thanks for the advice, everyone. I particularly appreciate the counsel to first get a clear sense of what you want as a professional. I think that this is the hardest thing to do! Most of the time I am oriented towards a teaching job, but I do get a rush when the writing and research synthesize. There are a lot of ups and downs and backs and forths in this process; getting a job is, strangely, only one of them.
Does anybody else think that the job search is a little too similar to dating? Getting nervous waiting for phone calls. Wondering if they liked you. Wanting them to know you liked them without sounding too desperate. Initially, I actually did not get an interview because one search chair did not think I was interested enough after a phone interview. I'm not sure how that happened but it must have come across that way when they asked/tried to get at how many other places I was interviewing, whether I had offers, etc. Did I inadvertently play hard to get? This is worse than prom.
6:57, I know what you mean. For me the worst part is going home and then beginning to doubt/question everything I said and did, even if it seemed fine at the time!
Is anyone else out there struggling to finish their dissertation? Not to sound ungrateful, or to rub this in anyones face, I have secured a great job, but now seem to be floundering when it comes to the writing. I feel like the worse human alive. Any tips and advice as to getting the dissertation done?
Hi, 1:22. This is what I'm doing (let's hope it works!): I set a date for my final defense, because that gives me a firm deadline. My advisor had long ago recommended the book How to Write Your Dissertation in 15 Minutes a Day, and it's a big help, too; the idea is that you do SOMEthing - even a small amount - every day. Some days you'll do a whole lot and some days not so much, but you'll know that you're making progress and won't waste a lot of time beating yourself up. Good luck, and congratulations!
I too have a great job waiting for me in the Fall and find it incredibly difficult to make substantive progress on my dissertation. I also used the strategy proposed by 9:17. I have a defense date, which I've managed to get my entire committee to commit to (a near-miracle), and I've set up a writing schedule for myself, which keeps a fire lit under my bottom. Nevertheless, I'm constantly overwhelmed and find myself wanting to work on other stuff (like my syllabi for my new job).
I remind myself of something Jorge Cham (the genius behind the PhD comics) said: People don't finish their dissertations because of some natural process. They do it because they either ran out of money, got jobs, or were told to do so by their significant others. Your dissertation will not be your best work, it will probably be your worst, precisely because of the conditions under which you wrote it (even if the research itself is solid). So, just write it and move on.
Note: repeating this to myself does not actually help me "just write it" but it gets me in the right mindset to do so...
good for you that got a job already. I had a couple of interviews this month and now can't write my dissertation because I'm checking e-mail and phone every 5 minutes to see if they decided already. Any hints for dealing with this kind of anxiousness
I think the anxious checking is just part of the process, as unpleasant as that may be. Sometimes I force myself to focus by heading to a coffeeshop or bookstore (one that doesn't have internet) and leave my phone in the car. That way I have no choice but to focus for at least a couple hours.
Every morning I got up, ate breakfast and showered. Then I sat down at my computer and worked until I added 5 pages (not including tables) to my diss. Sometimes this took a couple hours, sometimes all day. I often edited down pages from the previous day, and then I had to write more to compensate for that. Sometimes if I was on a roll, I'd write more, but usually once I did that 5, I stopped and let myself use the rest of the day to daydream about my new job, look at housing ads online, etc.
When I finished a chapter, I sent it to my adviser, and then forgot about it. I didn't go back and revise any chapter until I finished the next one. (Before this plan, I got hung up on writing and revising one chapter over and over again.)
Remember, it doesn't have to brilliant, it just has to be done.
I was the original poster asking for advice on how to finish my dissertation... thank you all for your kind and practical advice. I am glad to report that of about 3am last night my dissertation is finally done! Good luck one and all - if I can finish it, anyone can!
Well, the thing that helped me most was getting into a strict routine of regular writing hours. I would work for two hours in the morning, have a proper lunch, work another two hours and then (if I could face it) do another two hours in the evening. I did not beat myself up if I didn't do very much at any one session, but I tried to do something at every session.
Of course, when it came down to it, I wrote about 1/4 of my dissertation in the last two weeks. I actually quite liked it as I was so focused by that point things really came together well (I wrote my introduction and conclusion then - I would suggest leaving those sections to the end too).
Another thing that helped me (and someone wonderful on this board suggested this) was to set a defense date. There’s nothing like a deadline to get you working. As soon as I had set this date I sent a mass email to all my friends and family letting them know, so I was beholden to them too. They were all very supportive and a few of them became my task-masters, checking in to see how I was doing and pushing me on. That really helped.
Anyway, just don't be afraid of writing; write anything even if it is the crappiest paragraph you’ve ever produced every day so you get used to the writing process. The longer you go without writing the harder it is to get back into it.
I know there aren't many people left on the blog, but still thought I would try...
Although I am very happy with how things went on the job market for me, during the process I realized what little infrastructure my department has to help students on the market. The problem is that job market success becomes overly-dependent on who the student's advisor is. As a parting-gift to my department, I wanted to put together some materials or set-up some type of event to provide some of the basic info for the market.
So... I was wondering if other departments have anything like this, and if so, what it looks like. Also, if anyone knows of any great "resources" I'd love to hear those as well. I just thought I would ask a bunch of people that I know felt similarly frustrated at points in this process.
My department has a bit of institutional support for job-seekers. We all got a list of questions you may be asked, questions you should ask, and FAQs about the job market. The department also maintains a binder containing copies of previously-used cover letters, research statements, teaching statements, and CVs.
I found the latter to be the most helpful of all the materials, so that might be a good place to start. The best help I got was by circulating my own materials to any faculty or grad student who was willing to read and give feedback.
we have NOTHING in the way of job market prep at my uni (top 25 R1). a group of us on the market this year organized a series of information sessions for ourselves and future job market cohorts.
thus far, we've collected interviews from alums, folks in non-aca research careers, and people in different kinds of aca environments (CCs, SLACs, etc). we put all of our materials together on an internal site for our future grads' use. we also share job market materials -- we've also agreed to read materials from folks hitting the market next year.
but I repeat, we get nothing from the dept - oh, i suppose I should mention that after some serious and public guilt tripping, a few faculty (including the grad advisor!) held an information session in late October of last year - about the only thing they had to discuss was "a walk through at an R1 interview." Needless to say, this meeting was almost useless as very few us interviewed at R1s ... and the meeting itself was thrown together very late in the job market season.
I was considering starting the 2008-2009 blog. Did people care whether we stuck with blogspot or not? Has someone already done this?
Note: my interest in doing this is a combo of curiousity and planning. I'm putting together some stuff for my department, and wanted to provide the link for the next blog (but found none). I managed to get a job this past year, so I would be merely a lurker on the site.
443 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 401 – 443 of 443I did the ASA job 'meat market' last year and was very successful. I had 7 interviews, including one where the DC just happened to see my vita and interviewed me as a potential opportunity hire. Of the seven interviews at ASA I had fly-outs to three and turned down an invitation to one. I actually ended up accepting the opportunity hire position in the end, which never would have happed had I not used the ASA job bank. That's not to say that I may not have done well anyway, but it was definitely an opportunity for me to make a good first impression with SCs.
For people with less-than-elite CV, the ASA service can be a good thing. Why? Because on paper you might not stand out compared to someone with more stereotypically favored credentials. If you're personable though, you can make a positive impression on search members. And if you're quick on your feet, able to relax easily, and a good student of body language, you can maximize the 20 minutes. I had several ASA go-rounds; each year I managed to snag at least a shortlisting, if not a campus visit, based on the meat market. Many of those visits = job offer. [If you're looking for a hard core R1 job, the meat market is at ASA but via strong/weak ties.
Why do some schools set the deadline and others just say "open until filled?" Is there any specific reason? Sorry about stupid question :(
re: open until filled...this way they can start interviews asap. if they don't like anyone, they can keep posting the ad again and again.
7:59
Thanks!
How does anyone know the ASA meetings got them interviews?
I didn't do it and got several interviews with schools who were at ASA.
Re: open till filled- often schools do this that anticipate smaller applicant pools (for whatever reason: small, few sociology students) so that they do not have to wind up with only a handful of candidates based on an arbitrary deadline.
Re: ASA meeting + interviews
People are simply drawing a connection between interviewing with a school at ASA and also being short-listed/on-campus interviewed with the same school. If you got a flyout from a school you interviewed with at ASA, then you obviously made a favorable impression.
We all concede that schools also interview people that they did not meet with at ASA.
I thought this would be a fun - and very optimistic - diversion. Does anyone want to help me fill in the blanks? (I got stuck)
On the _______ day of Christmas, my dream job gave to me...
An offer to join the faculty.
.Two computers
..Three
...Four libraries
....Five paid summers
.....Six
......Seven year to tenure
.......Eight
........Nine students TA-ing
.........Ten
..........Eleven movers moving
...........Twelve
~Benny
An offer to join the faculty.
.Two computers
..Three dedicated post-docs
...Four libraries
....Five paid summers
.....Six windows in an office
......Seven year to tenure
.......Eight courses per year
........Nine students TA-ing
.........Ten invited talks
..........Eleven movers moving
...........Twelve therapy sessions!
Twelve grand in startup,
Eleven great colleagues,
Ten bus routes to campus,
Nine good area high schools,
Eight grand for travel,
Seven years to tenure,
Six conscientious RAs,
Five great TAs!
Af-four-dable housing,
3/2 courseload,
Two computers,
and an offer to join the faculty.
Any advice on combating job-market-failure blues? I have a pretty good CV and everyone thought this would be "my year" (I already struck out once), but with the exception of a couple of local (crappy) schools that haven't started interviewing yet, I'm pretty much out of the running. Ugh.
Because of my spouse, I'm pretty geographically limited (for the most part, he won't move away from the East Coast or to a city with a high cost of living unless it's for an amazing, dream job, and the competition for those jobs is intense). He's one of those people who thinks you work to support the life you want, not make your life fit around your work, so he doesn't want to move to some average place just so I can stay in academia (we love where we live - a nice house and near family, which is key when you've got little kids). Plus, he loves his job and makes a good income, so he can't really see moving for a job that I *might* like but isn't my dream job and pays crap. I get it, and I totally understand his point, but still...
Any advice for how to deal with what I'm feeling - depression and resentment?
And I'm afraid that even though I keep publishing, my chances are diminishing each year as my PhD gets old - I did a 3 year postdoc and am in my 2nd year of doing visiting positions (while having two babies). I'm not sure I can do this again. It's so demoralizing, and I feel so stupid for getting my hopes up.
Dear 11:04
I hear you, I'm in a similar situation, although my PhD is fresher. Like you, I'm resentful, and shocked at the many many (apparently stupid) choices I made-ended up with a prestigious PhD but few job opportunities. On the other hand, I have a wonderful family and a great support system in the city I live, so moving is not an attractive option for me either. I've given up on the idea of that dream job.
No closure, just commiserating with you.
11:04 and 2:23. We all give something up. You get the family, nice neighborhood, spouse, but are stuck in the area. I can move wherever, but have no spouse or family. Very few people get it all, and its non-realistic to think you can.
I'm wondering if those who did get jobs this year so far would share if they were ABD, Ph.D. in hand, or moving from another jr. position.
It would be interesting and informative for others in the future.
ABD-- I accepted a job at a R1.
I'm currently in a post-doc, and I just accepted a position at a regional university (IIA). This is my second time on the asst prof market and to lend some encouragement to those still looking--it went much better this time!
My first job search was absolutely horrible. I applied for about 40 asst prof positions, got 1 interview. I did get the job which I turned down b/c it wasn't a good fit for a whole variety of reasons I won't go into. I wound up taking a post-doc after a whole lot of stressing. This time around (almost 3 years later) my success rate (at least a phone interview) was closer to one-third. I got 2 offers, and had to withdraw from several searches where the campus visits would have been after I had to make a decision.
And I want to be clear that I am in no way a "star". None of my interviews were with the most prestigious R1s, in fact only 2 of the 10 were PhD granting institutions. But, this time around I was much clearer about what I did and didn't want and what I had to offer. And I wound up with what I think may be the perfect job for me (not for my advisors, but for me).
I like the distinction made in the last post about choosing a job that is right for YOU not your advisors. Anyone have any advice on how best to talk to advisors about this issue, when it arises?
I think the best strategy may be to start preparing your advisors well in advance. You probably know well before you go on the market what kind of job would suit you best. I'd start prepping them then.
I had this discussion with my advisors (over choosing a teaching-oriented, well-respected, undergrad-only school over a top-20 program). I was very apprehensive. But, after explaining my feelings and showing them the (great) terms of the offer, they all came around (at least to my knowledge).
They knew from our years together that a work/family balance that was healthy was really important for me--and it was clear that my choice would be much better in that regard. I do still feel a need to "prove" myself to them--that I can still do good research--but that's my own demon; and I'm so happy in my current job that I don't care.
Hope that's helpful. You've got to do what's best for you.
Re advisors: for me it was all about being clear in my own mind what I wanted, and preparing them early and often.
At the same time, I was diplomatic--you can't say "I'd never want your job" and I compromised and applied for things they wanted me to as well. It helped that the postdoc I took was something they wanted me to take.
Thanks for the advice, everyone. I particularly appreciate the counsel to first get a clear sense of what you want as a professional. I think that this is the hardest thing to do! Most of the time I am oriented towards a teaching job, but I do get a rush when the writing and research synthesize. There are a lot of ups and downs and backs and forths in this process; getting a job is, strangely, only one of them.
Does anybody else think that the job search is a little too similar to dating? Getting nervous waiting for phone calls. Wondering if they liked you. Wanting them to know you liked them without sounding too desperate. Initially, I actually did not get an interview because one search chair did not think I was interested enough after a phone interview. I'm not sure how that happened but it must have come across that way when they asked/tried to get at how many other places I was interviewing, whether I had offers, etc. Did I inadvertently play hard to get? This is worse than prom.
6:57,
I know what you mean. For me the worst part is going home and then beginning to doubt/question everything I said and did, even if it seemed fine at the time!
Yep, the worst for me was when someone would drop me off at my hotel. What are you to say..."I had a nice time...call me"? ;-) It was very awkward.
Yes, our own little academic version of "Was it good for you?"
is anyone else still reading this after getting a job? why can't i stop?!
6:32 - I am, and I have no idea why!
At least I'm only checking once or twice a day now.
I can't stop, either. And I was on the market 2 years ago. I know, it's sad.
Yes, it's strange that I keep coming back. At least on the CHE forums I can migrate over to other topics. But here... well... there is no excuse...
-karl
Is anyone else out there struggling to finish their dissertation? Not to sound ungrateful, or to rub this in anyones face, I have secured a great job, but now seem to be floundering when it comes to the writing. I feel like the worse human alive. Any tips and advice as to getting the dissertation done?
Hi, 1:22.
This is what I'm doing (let's hope it works!): I set a date for my final defense, because that gives me a firm deadline. My advisor had long ago recommended the book How to Write Your Dissertation in 15 Minutes a Day, and it's a big help, too; the idea is that you do SOMEthing - even a small amount - every day. Some days you'll do a whole lot and some days not so much, but you'll know that you're making progress and won't waste a lot of time beating yourself up. Good luck, and congratulations!
I too have a great job waiting for me in the Fall and find it incredibly difficult to make substantive progress on my dissertation. I also used the strategy proposed by 9:17. I have a defense date, which I've managed to get my entire committee to commit to (a near-miracle), and I've set up a writing schedule for myself, which keeps a fire lit under my bottom. Nevertheless, I'm constantly overwhelmed and find myself wanting to work on other stuff (like my syllabi for my new job).
I remind myself of something Jorge Cham (the genius behind the PhD comics) said: People don't finish their dissertations because of some natural process. They do it because they either ran out of money, got jobs, or were told to do so by their significant others. Your dissertation will not be your best work, it will probably be your worst, precisely because of the conditions under which you wrote it (even if the research itself is solid). So, just write it and move on.
Note: repeating this to myself does not actually help me "just write it" but it gets me in the right mindset to do so...
good for you that got a job already. I had a couple of interviews this month and now can't write my dissertation because I'm checking e-mail and phone every 5 minutes to see if they decided already. Any hints for dealing with this kind of anxiousness
I think the anxious checking is just part of the process, as unpleasant as that may be. Sometimes I force myself to focus by heading to a coffeeshop or bookstore (one that doesn't have internet) and leave my phone in the car. That way I have no choice but to focus for at least a couple hours.
Anyone else have ideas?
This is how I finished my dissertation:
Every morning I got up, ate breakfast and showered. Then I sat down at my computer and worked until I added 5 pages (not including tables) to my diss. Sometimes this took a couple hours, sometimes all day. I often edited down pages from the previous day, and then I had to write more to compensate for that. Sometimes if I was on a roll, I'd write more, but usually once I did that 5, I stopped and let myself use the rest of the day to daydream about my new job, look at housing ads online, etc.
When I finished a chapter, I sent it to my adviser, and then forgot about it. I didn't go back and revise any chapter until I finished the next one. (Before this plan, I got hung up on writing and revising one chapter over and over again.)
Remember, it doesn't have to brilliant, it just has to be done.
share your experiences submitting to a soc journal..or just learn from others:
http://wikihost.org/wikis/socijournals/wiki/start
I was the original poster asking for advice on how to finish my dissertation... thank you all for your kind and practical advice. I am glad to report that of about 3am last night my dissertation is finally done! Good luck one and all - if I can finish it, anyone can!
well how did you do it? that seems rather quick! Congrats....
Well, the thing that helped me most was getting into a strict routine of regular writing hours. I would work for two hours in the morning, have a proper lunch, work another two hours and then (if I could face it) do another two hours in the evening. I did not beat myself up if I didn't do very much at any one session, but I tried to do something at every session.
Of course, when it came down to it, I wrote about 1/4 of my dissertation in the last two weeks. I actually quite liked it as I was so focused by that point things really came together well (I wrote my introduction and conclusion then - I would suggest leaving those sections to the end too).
Another thing that helped me (and someone wonderful on this board suggested this) was to set a defense date. There’s nothing like a deadline to get you working. As soon as I had set this date I sent a mass email to all my friends and family letting them know, so I was beholden to them too. They were all very supportive and a few of them became my task-masters, checking in to see how I was doing and pushing me on. That really helped.
Anyway, just don't be afraid of writing; write anything even if it is the crappiest paragraph you’ve ever produced every day so you get used to the writing process. The longer you go without writing the harder it is to get back into it.
Best of luck!
I know there aren't many people left on the blog, but still thought I would try...
Although I am very happy with how things went on the job market for me, during the process I realized what little infrastructure my department has to help students on the market. The problem is that job market success becomes overly-dependent on who the student's advisor is. As a parting-gift to my department, I wanted to put together some materials or set-up some type of event to provide some of the basic info for the market.
So... I was wondering if other departments have anything like this, and if so, what it looks like. Also, if anyone knows of any great "resources" I'd love to hear those as well. I just thought I would ask a bunch of people that I know felt similarly frustrated at points in this process.
~Benny
Benny:
My department has a bit of institutional support for job-seekers. We all got a list of questions you may be asked, questions you should ask, and FAQs about the job market. The department also maintains a binder containing copies of previously-used cover letters, research statements, teaching statements, and CVs.
I found the latter to be the most helpful of all the materials, so that might be a good place to start. The best help I got was by circulating my own materials to any faculty or grad student who was willing to read and give feedback.
-cpl
benny and cpl,
we have NOTHING in the way of job market prep at my uni (top 25 R1). a group of us on the market this year organized a series of information sessions for ourselves and future job market cohorts.
thus far, we've collected interviews from alums, folks in non-aca research careers, and people in different kinds of aca environments (CCs, SLACs, etc). we put all of our materials together on an internal site for our future grads' use. we also share job market materials -- we've also agreed to read materials from folks hitting the market next year.
but I repeat, we get nothing from the dept - oh, i suppose I should mention that after some serious and public guilt tripping, a few faculty (including the grad advisor!) held an information session in late October of last year - about the only thing they had to discuss was "a walk through at an R1 interview." Needless to say, this meeting was almost useless as very few us interviewed at R1s ... and the meeting itself was thrown together very late in the job market season.
I was considering starting the 2008-2009 blog. Did people care whether we stuck with blogspot or not? Has someone already done this?
Note: my interest in doing this is a combo of curiousity and planning. I'm putting together some stuff for my department, and wanted to provide the link for the next blog (but found none). I managed to get a job this past year, so I would be merely a lurker on the site.
Thoughts? ~Benny
Hi, well be sensible, well-all described
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