There is a kind of line in job documents that is technically blameless, but is so generic, so very much “stating the obvious” that it also completely pointless. This kind of line fills space while doing nothing to distinguish you … Continue reading
My book, The Professor Is In: The Essential Guide to Turning Your Ph.D. Into a Job, is available for pre-order from Amazon and Barnes and Noble! Pre-order price ~ $13.00 (paperback), $10.00 (Kindle or Nook). For bulk orders for use … Continue reading
A few months ago I wrote a column in Chronicle Vitae about managing your time for a postdoc; the main point being, get your writing done! A reader wrote to follow up and share her own story about failing to … Continue reading
I’ve worked with a handful of clients applying to project-based postdocs in Europe. We’ve had some bumps in the road, as I had to learn the expectations of these postdocs. A successful reader recently gave me a few pointers, which … Continue reading
In the Foolproof Grant Template I ask for an opening sentence or two that quickly engages the reader on the “big topic” of the research. My clients have a terrible time grasping what that opening should look like. They’ve been … Continue reading
When writing job letters clients often struggle to understand the distinction between their dissertation TOPIC and their dissertation CONTRIBUTION. In the first dissertation paragraph you talk about the content of your dissertation–main argument, methodology, findings. In the second paragraph you … Continue reading
For the next few months I will be posting the “best of the best” Professor is in blog posts on the job market, for the benefit of all those girding their loins for the 2013-2014 market. Today’s post was … Continue reading
List addiction is an epidemic among academic writers. I have a blog post about the subject (which I knew nothing about prior to my work in TPII), and I refer at least 50% of clients to that blog post at … Continue reading
Dr. Karen is on vacation in Italy July 2012. During that time she is re-posting older blog posts her regular Tuesday and Thursday posting days. She’ll recommence new posting some time in August. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (Tuesday Post Category–Strategizing Your Success in … Continue reading
Last week, I was working on a client’s materials. We were on something like draft #4 of her dissertation abstract, following on weeks of work on her c.v. and job letter. She’d been working hard, and her materials showed it. … Continue reading