A genre of tweet has been gaining steam the last couple weeks, about the complete meaninglessness of academic job application documents or processes. It's all a crap shoot, argues this line of thought. Further, the collapse in hiring has only exposed … [Read more...] about Nihilism Was Inevitable
How To Write CVs
Banish These Words, 2016 Edition
Every season I note a new batch of trite, overused words cropping up in job and grant documents. I've already written about some of the most critical to banish from your vocabulary here, and here. Here is the newest set of words that need to go. The … [Read more...] about Banish These Words, 2016 Edition
Dr. Karen’s Rules of the Academic CV
Please note this advice is continually checked and updated! Including for COVID. ~~~~~~~~ Today's post is a long overdue post on CVs. While the CV genre permits a wide range of variation, and there is no consensus on the value or desirability of … [Read more...] about Dr. Karen’s Rules of the Academic CV
A Perspective From the Hiring Committee (A Guest Post)
This is a guest post, volunteered by a tenured reader. Also check out her previous post. I and my fellow committee members work in a somewhat technical field at a mid-tier state university. While every institution and department is different, … [Read more...] about A Perspective From the Hiring Committee (A Guest Post)
A Big Week at The Professor Is In: My Book Comes Out!
The day finally arrived! On Tuesday the book came out and The Professor Is In: The Essential Guide to Turning Your Ph.D. into a Job was officially launched onto the world. 480 pages, half of it newly updated and revised versions of the most … [Read more...] about A Big Week at The Professor Is In: My Book Comes Out!
Data Point, Data Point, Data Point…
Sometimes I hear reactions to The Professor Is In, that my level of attention to details and minutiae (everything from what kind of bag you carry to where your voice rises in your delivery of a sentence) is excessive--even anal or obsessive. … [Read more...] about Data Point, Data Point, Data Point…
Update on My Book: Blurbs, Reviews, and a Promotion
The book inches closer to actually existing in the material world (August 4)! It has gotten some lovely blurbs by amazing people, like this one by the inimitable Rebecca Schuman: “If you would like your academic career to begin in delusion and end … [Read more...] about Update on My Book: Blurbs, Reviews, and a Promotion
Buy My Book!
Love the blog? Now get it in handy book form--only $11.40! Available for pre-order now--comes out August 4! Buy it at all these places! It also makes a great gift for all those struggling grad students in your life! For bulk orders for use … [Read more...] about Buy My Book!
How to Apply for a Dean Position (A Guest Post in the form of an interview)
The writer of this post is dean at a public liberal-arts-and-science college in the Midwest. S/he has spent a career in public higher education at comprehensive and baccalaureate campuses in a number of instructional and administrative … [Read more...] about How to Apply for a Dean Position (A Guest Post in the form of an interview)
MLA Job Advice (A Guest Post)
I missed my weekly Friday post yesterday because I had grand plans to make it a video post, but when I recorded the video, I couldn't get it to upload. I ended up delivering my little lecture on tailoring the job letter three times at different … [Read more...] about MLA Job Advice (A Guest Post)