The multi-faceted academic application and interview process can be daunting for a would-be faculty member. Various factors that impact the academic application such as institution type, experience, research interests, and long-term career goals will be explored in the context of finding an appropriate fit. This two-session workshop will provide attendees with the knowledge they need to understand the academic application process and preparing for the academic interview. The first session will focus on the pre-submission process whereas the second session will review interview and negotiation strategies. We invite attendees to bring their draft application packages to receive feedback.

1. Page 1 of 8
Strategies
for
Obtaining
Your
First
Academic
Position
Jacquelyn
K.
Nagel,
Ph.D.
–
James
Madison
University
Raquel
Perez-­‐Castillejos,
Ph.D.
–
New
Jersey
Institute
of
Technology
Abstract:
The
multi-­‐faceted
academic
application
and
interview
process
will
be
explained.
Various
factors
that
impact
your
application,
such
as
institution
type,
experience,
research
interests,
long-­‐term
career
goals,
etc.
will
be
explored.
This
session
will
provide
attendees
with
the
knowledge
they
need
to
understand
the
academic
application
process
as
well
as
tips
for
developing
a
strong
academic
application
package
and
preparing
for
the
academic
interview.
Tips
for
developing
a
strong
academic
application
package
and
preparing
for
the
academic
interview:
1. Academic
Application
a. Components
of
application
–
CV,
cover
letter,
teaching
statement,
research
statement,
references
i. Use
footers
to
your
advantage
to
easily
place
your
name
and
contact
info
on
each
page
of
your
application.
This
way
if
your
application
pages
get
separated,
the
reader
still
knows
which
candidate
they
are
screening.
ii. Your
CV
should
be
intuitive.
Use
logical
categories,
titles,
and
formatting
so
it
is
easy
to
find
information.
iii. Never
send
a
generic
cover
letter
(phrases
such
as
”Dear
Sir/Madam”,
”Dear
Search
Committee”,
”your
institution”
and
so
on
should
be
avoided).
iv. Your
cover
letter
should
be
different
for
each
application,
and
carefully
targeted
to
the
University
and
the
Department.
v. Do
your
homework
on
both
the
department
and
the
University,
and
work
this
information
into
your
cover
letter.
vi. Add
titles
in
your
statements
to
organize
the
information.
This
will
make
it
easy
for
a
search
committee
looking
at
hundreds
of
statements
to
easily
find
what
they
are
looking
for.
vii. The
research
statement
should
contain
an
overview
of
your
current
research
interests,
putting
them
in
the
context
of
the
target
department
where
possible.
viii. The
department
will
want
to
see
evidence
that
you
have
lots
of
ideas
for
new
research,
and
that
you
are
an
independent
thinker.
Sketching
out
some
potential
research
projects,
or
ideas
for
grant
applications
that
you
intend
to
write,
is
a
good
idea.
If
you
can
identify
specific
NSF
(or
other)
programs
to
which
you
plan
to
apply,
better
still.
ix. The
importance
of
a
teaching
statement
depends
on
your
target
institution.
Certain
universities
take
their
teaching

2. Page 2 of 8
particularly
seriously
and
will
scrutinize
this
part
of
your
application
especially.
x. You
always
need
some
teaching
experience
and
it
can
be
achieved
in
a
variety
of
ways,
such
as
teaching
labs,
courses,
advising
capstone
teams,
short
courses,
filling
in
for
absent
faculty,
etc.
xi. In
your
teaching
statement
include
a
selection
of
courses
that
you
might
teach
within
that
department
from
their
current
offerings.
xii. Ideas
for
new
courses
(undergraduate
or
graduate-­‐level)
that
you
might
develop
should
be
included
in
your
teaching
statement
also.
Be
mindful
of
the
institution
type.
xiii. If
you
have
exceptional
student
comments
from
teaching
evaluations
that
speak
to
your
strengths
then
highlight
them
in
your
teaching
statement.
Same
for
teaching
evaluation
scores.
b. Decoding
the
job
description
i. Use
the
language
of
the
job
description
in
your
application
ii. If
you
are
unsure
about
applying
because
of
vague
wording
in
the
job
description,
then
send
an
email
and
ask
for
further
details
iii. It
helps
to
know
someone
at
the
institution
c. Organizing
your
information:
what
is
important?
i. Your
application
will
not
be
read
in
entirety
unless
properly
structured
ii. What
does
a
search
committee
look
for
in
a
junior
faculty
applicant?
1. Good
educational
background
2. Good
postdoctoral
experience
and
outcomes
(if
any)
3. Good
publication
record
4. Evidence
of
growing
independence
5. Good
writing
skills
(for
grant-­‐writing)
6. Some
teaching
experience,
preferably
with
good
reviews.
iii. How
will
the
search
committee
determine
if
you
have
the
skills
they
want?
1. CV,
cover
letter,
teaching
statement,
research
statement,
references
2. All
parts
are
in
important,
but
your
statements
will
not
be
read
unless
the
CV,
cover
letter,
and
reference
letters
measure
up.
Your
CV
is
very
important,
and
you
should
also
choose
your
letter-­‐writers
very
carefully.
Many
people
underestimate
the
cover
letter.

3. Page 3 of 8
iv. Submitting
a
few
well-­‐targeted
and
well-­‐prepared
applications
to
places
you
actually
want
to
work,
is
far
better
than
mass-­‐
mailing
hundreds
(or
even
dozens)
d. Aligning
your
application
package
with
the
institution/position
type
–
in
the
statements,
CV,
cover
letter,
making
sure
it
fits
with
the
institution
type
i. Institution
Types:
1. Teaching
and
undergraduate
focused
a. More
emphasis
on
the
teaching
statement
b. Research
statement
might
talk
about
scholarship
broadly,
this
depends
on
the
target
department
c. Choose
references
that
can
speak
to
your
teaching
ability
2. Research
focused
with
grad
programs
a. More
emphasis
on
the
research
statement
b. Choose
references
that
can
speak
to
your
research
ability
3. Somewhere
in
between
a. Show
good
balance
in
teaching
and
research
e. Importance
of
having
others
read
your
application
i. Make
sure
at
least
three
others
read
your
application:
1. someone
that
knows
you
and
your
work
–
this
person
will
be
able
to
tell
you
if
you
are
underselling
yourself
2. someone
that
does
not
know
you
and
your
work
–
this
person
will
be
able
to
tell
you
if
something
is
worded
awkwardly
or
comes
across
wrong
3. someone
that
writes
well
–
this
person
will
help
with
grammar,
punctuation,
spelling,
voice,
tense
and
other
language
related
issues
f. What
to
expect
i. It
will
feel
like
a
full
time
job
putting
together
the
applications
due
to
the
research,
editing,
thought,
strategizing,
and
personalization
that
should
go
into
each
ii. Again,
submitting
a
few
well-­‐targeted
and
well-­‐prepared
applications
to
places
you
actually
want
to
work,
is
far
better
than
mass-­‐mailing
hundreds
(or
even
dozens)
2. Academic
Interview
a. Phone
i. Components:
1. Questions
the
search
committee
asks
you

4. Page 4 of 8
a. Be
able
to
explain
how
you
fit
the
call
–
reiterate
what
you
have
put
in
your
cover
letter
(chances
are
someone
listening
in
has
not
read
it)
b. Be
able
to
answer
targeted
questions
about
the
goals
and
objectives
of
the
department
and
how
your
background
will
support
them
c. Be
able
to
explain
your
research
interests
and
how
they
fit
with
current
research
in
the
target
department,
as
well
as
name
potential
collaborators
in
the
target
department
or
university
d. Be
able
to
explain
which
courses
you
could
teaching
or
would
like
to
teach
using
the
course
number
and
title
for
the
target
department
e. Be
able
to
answer
questions
about
anything
you
put
in
your
application
f. However
useful
the
“bridging”
technique
is
in
media
interviews,
it
is
a
dud
in
academic
interviews.
Chances
are
the
interviewers
are
asking
the
same
question
of
every
candidate:
If
you
do
not
answer
it
properly,
the
questioner
will
assume
that
you
either
can't
answer
it
or,
just
as
bad,
don't
want
to.
The
interviewer
no
doubt
thought
the
question
was
a
good
one,
and
he
or
she
is
unlikely
to
think
more
of
you
for
not
answering
it.
2. Questions
you
ask
the
search
committee
a. Departmental
culture
b. Faculty
collaboration
c. Faculty
support
for
research
d. Expected
teaching/research/service
load
e. Young
faculty
opportunities
f. Mentorship
ii. What/how
to
prepare
for
the
phone
interview
1. Research
the
target
department!
Be
able
to
articulate
how
and
where
you
fit
within
the
target
department
using
their
language
2. Think
of
questions
they
might
ask
you
and
prepare
answers
3. Treat
the
phone
interview
like
a
face
to
face
interview:
a. Dress
professionally
b. Take
notes
on
the
questions
you
are
being
asked
(this
can
help
you
prep
for
the
on-­‐site
interview)

5. Page 5 of 8
c. Smile
while
you
are
talking,
they
cannot
see
your
face,
but
the
positive
attitude
will
be
clear
in
your
voice
d. Have
your
application
and
research
notes
on
the
target
department
in
front
of
you
iii. What
to
expect
1. You
will
do
most
of
the
talking.
Know
when
to
stop
talking,
meaning
do
not
just
keep
talking
to
fill
silence.
Question
periods
are
usually
short,
so
interviewers
are
looking
for
relatively
short
answers.
If
you
find
that
you
are
going
on
and
on,
stop
yourself
before
someone
else
does.
Overly
long
answers
suggest
a
lack
of
self-­‐control,
uncertainty
about
how
to
answer,
or,
sometimes,
an
outsized
ego.
2. Do
not
take
too
long
to
answer
questions.
It
seems
like
you
are
unprepared
or
shy.
If
you
do
not
know
right
away,
begin
thinking
out
loud
so
them
know
you
heard
them
and
then
answer
the
question.
3. You
may
not
know
the
answer
to
a
question.
It's
hard
to
say
"I
don't
know"
in
a
job
interview,
but
search-­‐
committees
members
will
think
more
of
you
if
you
admit
that
you
don't
know
the
answer
than
if
you
give
a
poor
or
irrelevant
one.
Sometimes
they
will
be
impressed
that
you
were
willing
to
admit
your
ignorance.
b. On-­‐site
i. Components
1. A
full
1-­‐2
days
of
interviewing
a. Wear
comfortable
and
modest
shoes
and
clothes
that
fit
well
–
this
is
not
a
fashion
show
b. Bring
snacks
if
you
need
them
to
keep
your
energy
up
c. Have
back
ups
of
everything
in
multiple
formats
d. Be
polite
and
smile
2. Meeting
several
people
a. Every
person
you
talk
to
is
an
interviewer
including
staff
and
students
b. Do
your
best
to
learn
the
names
of
the
people
you
meet
c. If
possible,
demystify
and
personalize
that
search
committee!
At
the
introductions,
look
each
member
in
the
eye
and
make
sure
you
hear
and
recall
his/her
name.
Ask
what
department
or
area
of
the
college
each
person
represents
if

6. Page 6 of 8
s/he
does
not
volunteer
the
information.
Yes,
the
committee
is
interviewing
several
or
maybe
many
candidates,
but
you
may
leave
a
lasting
impression
if
your
responses
are
on
target
and
you
establish
a
connection,
albeit
brief,
with
each
member
of
the
committee.
3. Giving
a
teaching
or
research
talk,
or
both
a. Don't
use
an
interview
to
experiment
for
the
first
time
with
a
new
technology.
If
you
do
use
technology
in
your
talk,
ensure
that
it
will
work,
but
have
a
backup
plan
in
case
it
doesn't.
b. Be
prepared
for
anything
to
happen
so
make
sure
you
have
multiple
copies
of
your
talks
in
different
media
c. Technology
could
fail,
the
power
could
go
out,
but
the
show
must
go
on.
Do
not
panic
and
then
project,
perhaps
subconsciously,
a
message
of
"this
isn't
fair!"
Take
a
deep
breath
and
show
that
you
are
prepared,
you
are
flexible,
you
can
roll-­‐with-­‐it
and
continue
with
your
presentation.
ii. What/how
to
prepare
for
the
on-­‐site
interview
1. Research
the
target
department!
Be
able
to
articulate
how
and
where
you
fit
within
the
target
department
using
their
language
2. Research
faculty
of
the
target
department!
Address
faculty
by
their
name
3. Bring
extra
copies
of
your
application
materials
4. Have
a
copy
of
the
schedule
with
you
at
all
times!
5. Think
of
questions
they
might
ask
you
and
prepare
answers
6. Dress
professionally
and
be
ready
for
lots
of
walking!
7. Smile
and
be
polite
to
everyone
iii. What
to
expect
1. More
questioning.
a. Short
interviews
with
several
faculty
members
–
some
related
to
your
background
area
and
some
not
b. Do
not
answer
inappropriate
questions.
Things
like
"Who
did
you
vote
for
in
the
last
election?"
or
"So,
are
you
planning
on
having
any
more
kids?"
Politely
remind
the
person
that
is
none
of
their
business.
Being
gracious
is
always
better,
when
possible,
but
in
some
cases
you
should
push
back
a
little
with
a
reply
such
as,
"Is
that
a

7. Page 7 of 8
requirement
for
the
job?"
Committees
may
not
ask
such
questions.
They
are
usually
trained
on
what
is
not
appropriate
(your
marriage
status,
kids,
own
or
rent
home,
etc...).
But
open
forums,
all
bets
are
off
and
your
ability
to
take
that
question
and
turn
it
into
a
response
about
your
qualifications
for
the
job
are
key.
2. Tours
a. Be
observant
about
equipment
or
facilities,
not
only
what
is
there,
but
what
each
faculty
member
is
given.
If
you
move
on
to
the
next
stage
of
negotiation,
you
will
be
asked
to
prepare
a
list
of
your
needs.
Make
sure
your
list
is
on
par
with
what
is
currently
given
at
the
target
department.
b. While
on
tours,
be
thinking
of
what
space,
supplies,
equipment,
offices/desks,
funding,
etc.
you
will
need
to
get
your
research
or
scholarship
started.
c. Look
for
collaboration
opportunities.
There
might
be
faculty
doing
research
in
an
area
that
is
closely
related
to
your
research,
which
could
develop
into
a
new
and
exciting
area
of
research.
3. Meals
a. Generally,
most
meals
will
be
with
someone
from
the
target
department
or
university
b. This
is
not
a
time
to
rant
about
what
you
have
or
have
not
seen.
Do
not
forget
you
are
still
on
the
interview,
therefore
treat
it
as
such
4. Very
little
alone
time
a. Make
sure
all
your
interview
prep
(e.g.,
presentations,
research)
is
done
before
the
interview;
you
will
have
very
little
(if
any)
time
to
prep
while
on-­‐site.
b. Sleep
will
be
more
important
while
on-­‐site.
Plenty
of
sleep
will
help
you
to
handle
stressful
or
nervous
situations,
and
stay
positive.
5. Everyone
trying
to
figure
out
if
you
“fit”
a. It
is
important
to
be
professional
and
polite,
but
also
be
yourself.
The
target
department
wants
to
know
if
you
will
fit
with
the
people
as
well
as
the
program.
Be
genuine
and
be
yourself.
b. Not
only
should
the
target
department
and
university
assess
your
fit,
but
you
should
as
well.
Ask
questions
of
faculty,
staff
and
grad
students
to
assess
if
you
would
enjoy
working
there.
Also

8. Page 8 of 8
consider
if
do
you
see
yourself
being
successful
at
that
institution.
References
• Sternberg,
R.J.
(2013)
“12
Bloopers
to
Avoid
in
Job
Interviews”
in
The
Chronicle
of
Higher
Education.
http://chronicle.com/article/Bloopers-­‐to-­‐
Avoid-­‐in-­‐Job/137449
• Cummings,
L.
(2013)
“Applying
for
Faculty
Positions:
Preparation”
Department
of
Mathematical
Sciences,
New
Jersey
Institute
of
Technology.