When I was going through the job application process as a doctoral student, the most challenging aspect of the search was to deal with the uncertainty involved in the process.  Although people often “talk” about the academic job search, I felt like they only touched on the high level, not the essential details. I was not sure exactly what to expect or what to do, and wished that the process was more transparent. 

In the past a few years, the academic job market has been especially competitive and even applicants with impressive academic credentials receive many rejection letters before landing a job. The purpose of this month’s student column is to share important details of the application process – before, during, and after job interviews – hoping that by understanding how the process works, applicants can prepare themselves well and will not feel defeated or lonely throughout the search process.

To this end, two great professors who have served on many search committees offer their insights on how to prepare for the academic job market: what to expect and what not to expect; what to do and what not to do, etc. Sharon Dunwoody is an Evjue-Bascom professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the U of Wisconsin-Madison and has been a good mentor for me. Virginia McDermott is an associate Professor and a graduate coordinator in the School of Communication at High Point U.  Lastly, I sincerely thank Jill Hopke, a doctoral student in the Life Sciences Communication at the U of Wisconsin-Madison, for formulating these questions from the job applicant’s perspective.

Step I: Before Interviews...

1. What factors should a candidate consider when evaluating whether or not a particular school is a good fit with his or her personal research program and teaching philosophy?

Dunwoody: Although it can sometimes be difficult to discern from afar, you want to try to determine if a department values the type of scholarship that you do.  Departments vary a great deal in the scholarship modes that they value, and you want to be reassured that the department of interest will encourage you to continue to develop in ways that suit your own interests.  It is sometimes not easy to figure this out, as all units will assure you that “research” is important and expected.  You need to dig deeper by talking with junior faculty in the department or with other acquaintances.  For example, if your research is more interdisciplinary and finding its way to journals outside of the communication field, will that be a problem?

With respect to teaching, if you have taken the time to build pedagogical skills during your graduate work, I think any sane department will be thrilled to let you continue to develop those skills—whatever they may be—in your new home.  How much teaching you will have to do may be an important variable…that comes into play with question #2 below.

McDermott: Fit is all about individual needs, so there are no clear guidelines on this.  Issues to keep in mind are the school’s emphasis—research versus teaching—and how that aligns with your interests.  Consider the department’s focus and how that supports your interest—are you the only one who does what you do or will you be part of a group of people in the same area?  These questions are best answered during the interview—ask the faculty about how they balance their time and the support for research and teaching.

2. In terms of relative importance, how do schools weigh teaching, research, and service when evaluating job candidates?

Dunwoody:  This varies by university and by department.  It is important, I think, for you to decide how YOU want to rank those three areas and only then opt into job applications from universities that seem aligned with your values.  For example, if teaching is your primary goal, then look for work in such locations as high quality liberal arts undergraduate colleges.  If you want to balance research and teaching, then many journalism/communication departments will loom as good sites.  If you want to develop an international reputation as a communication researcher, that is best accomplished at large research universities, where your scholarship may get more attention at merit review time than other responsibilities.  Service is important but—in almost all departments—is best done in moderation.

McDermott: Again, this is determined by the school’s needs.  Almost all schools will want a demonstration of quality research that is publishable; some will expect a number of publications.  All schools will want evidence of high quality teaching, which they evaluate with student evaluations and written evaluations by other faculty.  My advice is to try to develop high-quality teaching and not just a variety of classes taught.  You are probably better served by teaching the same course a few times so you can demonstrate how your teaching has developed. Service is the least important element for hiring a new graduate. I’ve been a faculty member in a research university and a teaching focused university, and I have heard committees say that the candidate has made poor choices because she spent too much time on service and did not have enough research or high quality teaching.

3. One of communication field's strengths is to train students in professional media skills. Thus, what kinds of "real-world" experience do schools look for in candidates?

Dunwoody:  Employers in departments that offer professional training courses look for as much practical experience as they can get. Whether they succeed in finding a candidate replete with the needed experience is another matter, and many searches decide to live with less real world experience in a candidate than they would like. Be sure to signal that type of experience in your CV. But do so honestly. In recent faculty searches, I encountered a number of CVs that, upon careful review, seem to have overstated the candidate’s professional experience. That was lethal to the candidates’ prospects.

McDermott: This will depend on if the university teaches professional skills to its students. Most research universities that I know of privilege research experience and often hire candidates who have spent all their adult life in graduate school. Teaching focused universities may prefer or require some professional skills, so if you have “real-world” experience, be sure to emphasize it on your CV.

4. What are key considerations to think about when seeking tenure-track vs. postdoctoral research positions in terms of one's professional and research program development, especially in the field of communication?  In other words, what are some advantages and disadvantages of doing a postdoc before getting a professor job?

Dunwoody: Postdoc positions, historically rare in our field, are becoming more common.  They offer an individual a great opportunity to get her/his research program under way and to get some publications into the hopper.  In my view, they are entirely beneficial to the individual who takes advantage of the opportunity to continue to build research skills and to publish.  The risk of a postdoc is that the time is sometimes too short (a year, say) to give an individual enough time to get some research done and into the publishing pipeline.  If the individual does not move fast enough, then the postdoc looks more like a year off than like a productive research job. “Years off” don’t play well in searches.

McDermott: I don’t know if my answer is the standard answer, but when I was in graduate school, we were told that there was a hierarchy to offers. We aim for a tenure track position (and personal preference determines if we want a teaching focused or research focused position) but if we don’t get a tenure-track position, a second best choice would be postdoc that would help us developed our CV. If a postdoc is not available, a non-tenure-track or visiting position would be acceptable. Although postdocs can be useful for developing a research profile, they are by design temporary, and you will spend part of your final year searching for a tenure-track position.

5. In terms of evaluating a candidate's teaching experience, what makes an individual's teaching philosophy and portfolio stand out?

Dunwoody: Well, first it is important these days to actually have a teaching philosophy and portfolio. Too many job candidates are emerging from their programs with a bit of teaching assistant experience but not much else. They will not fare well at a university that values teaching enough to want to see some substantial evidence of skill building. Many universities now offer graduate students the opportunity to attend to pedagogy as a skill and to build a teaching portfolio. Here at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, for instance, students can earn a certificate in “research, teaching and learning” that ensures they will emerge with an articulated teaching philosophy and with a substantial portfolio. 

McDermott: I look for well-developed syllabi that show how the candidate designs a course. Assignment descriptions are very important when I evaluate their teaching. I also like when a candidate provides a full accounting of his teaching. For example, a list of all courses taught, the number of students in each course, the relevant student evaluation scores, and the overall GPA earned in that course.

Step II: During Interviews...

6. What are the most important questions a candidate should ask of the hiring committee during phone and campus interviews? What questions should a candidate avoid asking during those interviews?

Dunwoody: How does the hiring unit provide feedback to a new faculty member regarding progress toward tenure and promotion?  What resources are available at the university to enable an assistant professor to continue to improve as a researcher (for example, the existence of internal competitive grant programs) or as a teacher?  What is the unit’s track record with respect to tenuring and promoting junior faculty?  How would resident faculty describe the atmosphere in the department?  Questions that you don’t want to ask at the first interview:  How often can faculty apply for sabbatical?  What does it “cost” to buy out of teaching?

McDermott: I think it’s important to ask about why the position is open—is the department growing or has a faculty member left? Is this a new program initiative or part of an established curriculum? As a committee member, I appreciate when the candidate asks about department culture—it shows that she is considering fit and the need to be a colleague and not just a teacher/researcher. I don’t think the phone interview is the appropriate time to ask general discipline questions of the committee. I was recently on a committee and the candidate asked what we thought about something that had just happened on Twitter. Initiating a discussion about currents events is great dinner conversation but a poor choice of a question to ask during a phone interview.

7. What is one thing about your department or school that you wish a candidate would well research in advance of his or her job interview?

Dunwoody: It is important to know whom you are visiting. Take a look at the faculty roster.  Take a look at the research these folks conduct. Indicating some familiarity with the place during your visit can have a powerful (and positive) effect. 

McDermott: Know what the program offers and how you would fit into the program. Also, although there’s no need to memorize the CV of every faculty member, you should review their online biographies and CV. This will give you a sense of what the faculty do and how they balance their teaching and research.

8. If a candidate has a partner, should the candidate mention it, and if so, when is a best time to do so?

Dunwoody: At some point in your job interview, the department chair should ask if there is anything you would like to raise as an important issue with respect to considering a position at that university.  That is the time to bring up spouse/partner needs.  If finding a job for a spouse/partner is critical to your accepting a position, you need to be clear about that.  If that second job is highly desirable but not mandatory, be clear about that as well.  The department is ethically bound to make a decision about tendering an offer to you without regard to these issues.  But it is fair to say that two-body needs are major issues for universities and that many hiring efforts ultimately falter on this point.  No matter how hard it tries, the department may fail to find that second position.   

McDermott: There are a number of factors to consider—would you consider taking the job if your partner did not get hired as well?  Do you know if the university has a policy about partner hires?  The answer to these questions will likely determine when you should mention the possibility of a partner hire.  I’ve been on faculty when a candidate we called about coming for a campus interview indicated that he would only move if his wife also got a job.  In this case, the advance notice allowed the department to request an extra faculty line and expedited the whole process.  In another case, the candidate did not mention her partner hire until we called with the offer.  This made the whole process very complicated and protracted because her husband was in a different discipline, so we had to negotiate with the provost and the other department had to interview the spouse.  I think it behooves all involved if the candidate mentions the possibility of a partner hire while on campus.  This will help the university evaluate its resources and options and make a knowledgeable offer.
 

Step III: Once the Job Offer has Been Made...

9. When one gets an offer, with whom will the candidate negotiate and what are acceptable aspects of a position over which to negotiate? If you have other offers, is it OK to mention them?

Dunwoody: Negotiations take place with the department chair or her/his representative. Ideally, these discussions take place before a letter of offer is issued.  You can certainly put the salary level into negotiating mode, although you want to do so with some understanding of average salary levels at that university. Also, feel free to ask about resources that you think would benefit your ability to get your research program up and running, things such as course release, graduate student support, summer support and flexible funds. The level of moving expenses may or may not be negotiable.  Universities will vary greatly in what they can offer in startup packages, so do have a frank discussion with the chair when the time is right. 

McDermott: (1) Say ‘thank you’ for the offer and, if really interested, express your excitement.  Get all the details of the offer—salary, benefits, start-up funds, moving funds, professional development funds, and any course releases prior to tenure. Ask what their timeline is and when they would like a response from you.

(2) Review the offer with your adviser or mentor and discuss which elements you would like to negotiate. This is your one chance to negotiate, so you shouldn’t feel awkward. In fact, most people expect you to negotiate. If possible, review the salaries at that university so you know the standards. It is helpful if you are able to justify your request rather than simply asking for more.

(3) If you are deciding between multiple offers, it is acceptable to share that information with the hiring officer. As soon as the negotiating is complete, be prepared to give an answer.

(4) Once you’ve accepted the offer, notify all other schools that you are withdrawing your application. It is professionally unacceptable to keep interviewing after you have accepted a position. We are a small discipline and memories are long.