An expanded and updated version of this post can now be found in Chapter 22 of my new book, The Professor Is In: The Essential Guide to Turning Your Ph.D. Into a Job. I am keeping a shortened version here, but for the complete discussion … [Read more...] about Why Your Job Cover Letter Sucks (and what you can do to fix it)
Major Job Market Mistakes
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
Getting Ready for the Job Search
[Sharing this week's Chronicle Vitae column for all of you who are gearing up for the Fall 2016 job market] I’m gearing up to go on the academic job market this fall. What should I do to get ready? I answered a similar question in a semi-facetious … [Read more...] about Getting Ready for the Job Search
Beat the Fall Rush: Summer 2016 Updates
Hi everyone! Today is a brief interruption in our usual editorial policy (devoted, as you know, to alternately despairing and enraged commentary on the total downfall of US academe), to share some scheduling info to help you plan ahead. Including a … [Read more...] about Beat the Fall Rush: Summer 2016 Updates
Thoughts from the UK and Denmark
Kellee and I are heading into the final week of our month in the UK and Europe! We've had an absolutely amazing journey so far. We visited the Universities of Aberdeen (thank you, Amy Bryzgel), where I did a talk on the US job market, and an … [Read more...] about Thoughts from the UK and Denmark
Don’t Be That Asshole (by Kellee Weinhold)
We continue in our series of interview-focused posts by Kellee Weinhold, the master of Interview Interventions, Job Talk Interventions, and Campus Visit Interventions here at TPII. Several years ago, at a Yom Kippur break fast with a group … [Read more...] about Don’t Be That Asshole (by Kellee Weinhold)
Can I Negotiate? Advice For All, Especially International Ph.D.s
I am regularly asked "can I negotiate my offer when it's my only offer?" People constantly seem to think you need multiple offers to have leverage. This is not true. For the vast majority of schools, you can and should negotiate your offer. The … [Read more...] about Can I Negotiate? Advice For All, Especially International Ph.D.s
How to Write Your Own Rec. Letter, plus All of my Vitae columns
In my two+ gratifying and enjoyable years of writing for Chronicle Vitae, I've only had one column rejected by them, and it is this one, which I submitted late in December as an end-of-year compendium of all my columns, organized thematically. I … [Read more...] about How to Write Your Own Rec. Letter, plus All of my Vitae columns
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)
The Art of the Cover Letter is Live!
The Art of the Cover Letter is now live! The Art of the Cover Letter ($79) is a 10-module self-guided course, all-online, available anytime 24/7, that walks you step by step through the planning, info-gathering, writing, and editing of your academic … [Read more...] about The Art of the Cover Letter is Live!