THE ACADEMIC JOB SEARCH PROCESS
1. Begin checking job ads from September on. Regularly check
2. Keep your advisor(s) apprised of which jobs you're applying for--update their list as needed-- in case they know someone in the departments to which you're applying or get phone calls from the search committees.
3. Send out applications--being careful to meet the deadlines. Send what the search committee asks for; follow instructions, in other words. Usually they will ask for the standard items in your credentials file: cover letter, C.V., letters of recommendation (at least 3), dissertation abstract or research summary and a teaching summary. Keep the abstract short. If the search committee wants a full writing sample, they'll ask for it. Sending tons of paper before it's requested may irritate some members of the committee. Many colleges or universities will require an original transcript sent directly from your university.
* A persuasive cover letter not only answers the questions “Who are you?” and “What do you want?” but also convinces the reader that you can exceed the hiring organizations/unit’s specific expectations and must be interviewed before you are snagged by a competitor.
Introduction-Who are you and what do you want?
-address the letter to the search committee chair. Write no more than 1 to 1 ½ pages.
-explain how you learned of the position and why you are interested in working for the organization. Employers are interested in your motivation.
-research your audience. Inside information makes it easier for you to present yourself directly and personally. Include some details about the hiring department/faculty. Drop a name or mention an article if you can do this with grace and tact. Engage the hiring department as you would an individual with a particular history and set of priorities.
Body-Why should we interview you?
-research the organization. Indicate that you have insider information. Go beyond details that would apply to any organization of the same size or type. Avoid the temptation to repeat gossip, slick brochure and website hype.
-explain how you can meet the employer’s needs. Use the terms in the job announcement to cite specific examples of your suitability for the position:
1.educational preparation, including specific course research/achievements. Indicate clearly when you will complete your degree requirements. 2. relevant experience (paid or unpaid) and achievements. Use the body of your letter to elaborate on items in your CV that are relevant to the needs of the hiring department. Do not be afraid of some redundancy. 3. leadership experience 4. skills valued by the employer 5. demonstrable work-related qualities 6. interest in/commitment to the organization’s mission, product or service
-use language that will catch the employer’s attention. Avoid writing a letter that could be authored by Everyman/Everywoman—any of your peers with the same qualifications. Get some of your special competence, personality and passion into the letter.
-emphasize your strong points. If you don’t fit all the preferred qualifications in theannouncement, do not call attention to the gaps in your education/skills/experience. Provided that you meet the major qualifications, the employer will discuss and assess your important limitations in an interview.
Conclusion-What will you do next?
-insert a hook in your conclusion. What action do you intend to take to follow up your application? Some options are: offer to send additional material, state when you will call to obtain more information about the position or the search committee’s timetable, include an email and/or phone number where you can be reached for an interview.
* A CV (“vita” or “curriculum vitae”) is a review of your educational and professional history. It is a type of resume traditionally required for employment at colleges or universities and research institutions. It differs in format from the resume because it gives priority to anticipated or earned degrees and related academic activities by listing these before work experience in other sectors or by omitting other sector experience. It also emphasizes the communication of knowledge and discovery through conference presentations and publications.
Your CV should include the following basic items:
-contact information: name, address, phone, email address
-education (degrees, institutions, locations with the date the degree is expected or was obtained) -dissertation topic and advisor and/or master’s project and advisor
-fellowships, grants, honors
-teaching/research experience
-other relevant experience
-technical skills and languages, including computer languages
Depending on your achievement and the type of academic position you are applying for, a CVmay also include any of the following items:
-a short paragraph summary of your dissertation
-descriptions of courses you designed and taught
-conference presentations
-publications in the bibliographical style of your discipline (placed at the end of the vita if the list is long). Publications in press or under review should be identified as such.
-graduate school/department and/or community leadership/involvement
-professional association memberships/committees
-list of reference contacts with their titles and institutions; phone numbers of faculty references should be listed only with the knowledge of those who have agreed to write recommendations on your behalf.
* The Teaching Statement-In general a teaching statement explains the basis for your desire to teach, your basic beliefs about what constitutes good teaching, the courses you are prepared to teach in addition to the ones requested/currently offered and why you believe your subject is vital to the liberally educated citizen.
Preparation
-enter notes into a teaching log/journal after each class session. Include notes on self presentation, content plans/questions/problems, student questions and your responses.
-ask students fro evaluations in mid-course. Don’t wait until summative end-of-course evaluation.
-get into the habit of peer assessment. Ask a peer/mentor to look as a videotape of a class for feedback, observe a series of classes or interview your students about your strengths and weaknesses.
ContentYour teaching statement should discuss what you believe good teaching in your field is. It should include examples of real teaching moments where you have tried to practice your pedagogical values and methods. Eliminate truisms. Avoid coming across as arrogant or preachy. Make sure you create the impression of enthusiasm, conviction and reflectiveness about your teaching as a scholarly task and a lively art. Review your teaching log and assess/articulate:
-your identity as a teacher-bearer of a dying tradition, master/expert, authority, challenger of received ideas, connector, guide, learning coach, cheerleader, moderator/mediator, disciplinarian, and counselor.
-your approach to the subject matter-course function in education/in your discipline, key concepts, content organization, methods of presentation, learning activities/desired learning outcomes, and ways to evaluate student progress.
-your attitude toward your students, their backgrounds, goals, expectations, learning/personalneeds, their satisfaction/course evaluations, attitude toward students’ ideas and time, out-of-class interaction/service/field/laboratory learning.
-ask for feedback on your statement from experience mentors.
*Research Statements-Employers may use the terms “statement,” “summary,” or “proposal” interchangeably. The word “summary” suggests a focus on current research. A “statement” would include current as well as your future research agenda. It tells a search committee about your areas of specialty, your academic knowledge and writing ability, your fit with department faculty expertise and institutional goals and you potential to make a contribution to your sub-field and/or to win grants.
Content-Your research statement should describe
-prior and current research projects
-how your current research contributes to your field-its relevance, distinctiveness and importance
-your research goals for a 3-5 year period and potential outcomes
-your excitement about your research
-your debt to other scholars but also your independence as a thinker
-if applicable, funding organizations likely to support your research agenda and alternative projects showing the breadth of your interests.
Format
-length: 1-2 pages, 3 at the most
-avoids page long paragraphs
-divides content logically into headings, subheadings
-makes use of bullets and white space
-shows the benefit of careful proofreading and feedback from more advanced professinals
4. Who needs Interfolio?
-an advanced degree candidate to send academic credentials to search committees or other hiring institutions
-a faculty member to send a letter of recommendation on behalf of an OSU student or alumna/us
-a teacher to apply for a teaching position
-an undergraduate to build a file of recommendations from faculty
-an undergraduate to send application materials to graduate and professional schools or hiring institutions
*What your account buys
-24 hour access: The Interfolio system is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from anywhere in the world so you can manage your job search when and where you want.
-One package delivery: Interfolio allows you to put all the documents you need to apply for a position in one package.
-Targeted, customized deliveries: You can specify a unique set of documents for each delivery. And you can specify the order in which your materials are packaged so your presentation is powerful and persuasive.
-Low Cost: Since you need only send one delivery to each position, you save money and headaches; it's cheaper to send a 30 page delivery through Interfolio than to go to Kinko's and the US Post Office. The annual maintenance fee is $15.00.
-Self managed files: With Interfolio you have control of your portfolio. You don't have to rely on others to make intelligent decisions about what documents are delivered on your behalf.
-Lightning-Fast Delivery: Interfolio sends every delivery within one business day of your request. If you need to meet a deadline, we can send express deliveries the same day (as long as you make the request by 2 PM EST).
-Jobs @ The Chronicle of Higher Education: Interfolio delivers documents both electronically and on paper, so you can send your portfolio to any institution in the world. Additionally, Interfolio has a partnership with the Chronicle of Higher Education that lets you "Apply Online" to every position listed on The Chronicle of Higher Education Career Network.
*Contents of Credential Files:
Interfolio's internet service allows you to build an internet portfolio - a complete file of all your credentials - where you can store any of your life's work in a secure system:
-Confidential letters of recommendation
-Curriculum Vitae/resumes
-Writing samples
-Dissertation abstract
-Supervising teacher evaluation
-Student & peer evaluations
-Transcripts - from all of your degrees
-Anything else that you need to complete your search.
-You have 24/7 access to your portfolio, from anywhere in the world. Coordinating your application materials will take only minutes.
*Creating a new Interfolio account:
-Creating a new account is easy. Please note: An annual account set-up and maintenance fee of $15 per year is required.
-Contact Interfolio:Via Web: Email: Toll Free: 877-77-FOLIO
*Submitting letters of recommendation via Interfolio: -Letters of recommendation may be submitted electronically , using the web address below and the document ID assigned by Interfolio to the recommendation writer. Document IDfs are at the bottom of the form you received from the person who asked you to write a recommendation . document IDfs can also be obtained from support@ interfolio. com 0r by calling an Interfolio customer service representative at 1-877-77-FOLIO (36546).
-Letters may be faxed or mailed as follows:
Fax: (267) 295-8740
-Mailing address for paper document processing:
Interfolio, Inc.
Paper Processing Center
P.O. Box 19127
Washington, DC 20036-Overnight Delivery Address:
Interfolio, Inc.
2100 L St. NW, Suite 200
Washington, DC 20037
5. Set up a system of information control so you can keep track of your progress for each job.
6. Once the initial screening begins, you may be asked for additional materials. Send supporting documentation as requested. This stage of the search usually begins in November and continues through late January or a bit later. These materials may include
* course syllabi or proposals
* course evaluations
* offprints or preprints of articles
* all or part of your dissertation
* statement of teaching philosophy
7. Plan to attend the major conventions in your field. If you are really serious about getting a job, you need to attend these annual meetings to engage in the networking, scholarly exchange, and schmoozing of publishers' representatives that is necessary for career advancement. In American Studies, these meetings might include
8. Prepare for convention interviews. Undertake additional research on the department, including research and teaching interests of faculty members. Prepare good raps on your dissertation research, future research plans, how you'd teach courses you know they need taught, and what else you'd like to teach. Have a good set of questions to ask them that demonstrates that you've done your homework about their department, institution, and location.
9. Prepare for campus interviews. These "flybacks" may occur as early as December but usually take place between January and March. Have a 45 min. presentation on your research ready to go. Rehearse it.
*Types of Interviews:
-Just as in other sectors, faculty job interviews begin with screening candidates to find 3-5 finalists. Screening is customarily done via the telephone ( or for adjunct positions via email) or through professional conference systems where hiring faculty representatives prearrange to talk briefly with several candidates. Once candidates are selected out of a larger pool, they are invited to visit the campus for a more extended interview that may last 2 days. In most instances, campus interviewsare funded by the hiring department. The most successful campus interview is a conversation between colleagues, not a repetition of the doctoral prelim examination or the dissertation defense.
*Preparation
-research the institution, the department and faculty expertise
-if not provided, ask for names of interviewers and an interview schedule
-anticipate questions ( samples below) about: Details in your CV and cover letter, research agenda and course plans
-Practice a 30 second and 3-minute oral presentation about your research
-Schedule a mock interview/ job talk with faculty mentors, your counselor or peers; use the feedback to revise your presentation
*Campus Interviews
-Relax, smile, make eye contact
-Remember names/professional data ; include everyone
-Keep your answers brief and to the point, but provide specifics so that your listeners can imagine your research discoveries and your best teaching moments
-Take all interactions seriously: with chair and dean, faculty, graduate students, staff. Treat informal social gatherings as part of your interview
*Job Talks
-Don’t assume that everyone will have the knowledge to understand your most complex research specifics. Provide background information but limit it to 5-8 minutes; finish in the time allotted. Pitch your talk to a general audience, but also provide meat for the specialists.
-Present research information you are confident of, not material that hasn’t yet been thoroughly analyzed. -Remember that your ability to handle questions will demonstrate your self confidence and communication skills in the classroom.
*Sample Interview Questions
General Questions
Tell us about yourself.
Do you consider yourself to be more a scholar or a teacher?
Where do you think the discipline of ______stands today?
Questions on Research
Who was on your dissertation committee?
Tell us about your dissertation research findings.
Explain your use of theory/methodology in your dissertation.
How prevalent is the scholarly interest in the area of your dissertation topic?
In what ways are your dissertation findings "new"?
What makes your project an interdisciplinary project?
What will your next research project be?
Which funding agencies will want to support your research?
Which publishers will you be working with as you move towards tenure?
Questions on Teaching
What kinds of students have you worked with in the past?
How would you deal with teaching a primarily white / diverse/ adult /commuting / working student body?
What would you want your students to learn in an introduction to French film for undergraduates?
What texts would you use to teach a survey course in French cultural history?
What methods would you use to teach a 19th century French literature course?
Describe the undergraduate seminar that you taught on______.
Describe your most innovative teaching method.
If down the road you were invited to teach a graduate seminar, what would you offer?
Unspoken questions
Has this person researched our department/program history and the interests of our faculty?
Does this person ask discerning questions?
What kind of a colleague will this person be?
Will this candidate become a productive scholar? Qualify for tenure?
Does this candidate seem interested in students? in our students?
Will our students flock to his/her courses?
Does this candidate seem enthusiastic about the prospect of taking this position?
10. Wait to hear the search results. Search committees follow their own timelines in these matters. You may receive an offer within a day or two of your campus visit or 4-6 weeks later. You may receive a rejection call or letter within a week of your visit, several weeks later, or never