Negotiating Assistance is $625/first seven non-sequential days ($425 for NTT non-tenure track/VAP; $725 for tenured positions), and seven days are virtually always sufficient (it goes down to $525 [$325/$625], and then $425 [$225/$525 ] for subsequent weeks in the extremely rare event that this is necessary). Lastly, basic NA work covers up to 2 competing offers (2 external offers or one external offer and a home institution counteroffer), but if you are juggling 3+ competing tenure line offers, including counteroffers, that also requires an additional $150 rate for both untenured and tenured clients. If we make an effort and achieve NO results whatsoever, we refund half your payment.
Email us at gettenure@gmail.com for One-on-One Personalized Negotiating Assistance. We always prioritize negotiating requests and strive to provide a same-day (sometimes same-hour!) response.
Work Process: The seven days are non-sequential, and can proceed in fits and starts, matching the pace of actual negotiations. We can start immediately, and we make ourselves available by email and gchat (no phone calls) for the quick turnaround of responses required by most negotiations. All of these policies are to protect you, the client (You do NOT want to trust Karen’s memory of a phone call!). Working by email preserves a record of all exchanges to which we continually refer back for speed and accuracy as we proceed. While we technically don’t work on weekends, for NA clients only we check in to keep up with and respond to urgent updates on Sundays. You must return the signed contract to proceed with the work. After payment you’ll get a set of instructions on how to provide the offer details; please don’t submit any info until you get that and can follow those instructions.
Policies: We provide precise instructions for the work which codify the info in concise bullet point lists because we have to quickly hold many variables in the mind at once, and also be able to refer back to them quickly as we move forward. We also have all NA clients sign a contract acknowledging the nature and (very small) inherent risks of the work (Find the contract here.) If your negotiation requires fewer than 7 days I don’t refund payment or apply it as credit to other work. In the event that your institution refuses to negotiate and you achieve no gains, I will refund 50% of the payment. However, if you change or mind or lose your nerve and sign either without negotiating, or without using my assistance, payment is non-refundable. Negotiation credit is good for 3 months (ie, you can use the 7 days any time over a 3 month period; after 3 months I must re-invoice at the second week rate.) Finally, once you have accepted the offer and reviewed and signed your contract, our work is finished. If you have new questions at a later date related to the original position or a new position, that you want further help on, it requires a fresh start and a new invoice, with rate to be determined based on context. I’m happy to clarify any of these details further. Email us at gettenure@gmail.com. We always prioritize negotiating requests and strive to provide a same-day (sometimes same-hour!) response.
A few client testimonials:
Assistant professor, R1 Social Sciences: “I increased my offer by $12,000 conservatively. Another major benefit was that I was confident I wasn’t asking for anything crazy, and I wasn’t missing anything obvious. Since this was my first go-around with a U.S. job offer I would have been much more uncertain about it, particularly in my situation where my advisor was unavailable due to a medical condition. Particularly when I had done the interviews and was waiting for an offer, which is a tense time, the fact that I had this service helped make that easier.”
Assistant professor w/spousal, R2, STEM: “My negotiation was very productive, and my partner just signed a two year post-doc contract at UX, and they are encouraging about the strong possibility of a TT afterward. Thanks is not enough for your invaluable assistance during this extended and overwhelming process.”
Assistant professor, SLAC, STEM: “I am very pleased to report that Dr. Kelsky’s resources were so helpful, that alongside structured mentoring programs at my postdoc institution, I got incredibly lucky and secured two interviews in my first year on the market which produced an offer from my dream institution, alongside two prestigious second postdoctoral fellowship offers. As a complete newbie who didn’t even think I’d get an interview this year, let alone an offer, I was overwhelmed with the negotiation process. I worked with Karen in the negotiation process and I was able to secure a deferral to take one of the fellowships, receive a 6% increase on the initial salary offer, and negotiate for an incredibly generous start-up package that far exceeded what I had initially expected to get.”
Associate professor with tenure, R1, Humanities: “As a mid-career academic in the humanities, I knew exactly how important it would be to negotiate good terms for my new position. Karen provided me with: concrete examples of things I could negotiate for; a sounding board for my requests; assistance in clarifying and rewriting my negotiation emails; and overall, tremendous peace of mind in what would otherwise have been an extremely stressful process. I successfully negotiated increases in my salary, start up package, and travel support, totalling 11K. I highly recommend her negotiation assistance services, no matter what career stage you’re in.”
Assistant professor, SLAC, Social Sciences: “When I got the job offer, I was so terrified to negotiate, specifically for the delayed start date. I felt a bit lost, and then I went to a yoga class and on the wall was a quotation from Cheryl Strayed which said, ‘The best thing you can possibly do with your life is to tackle the motherfucking shit out of it.’ It was at that time, I knew I should contact you and just get one-to-one help with the negotiation so that I could advocate the best I could for myself without worrying about taking up someone’s time or unsettling a relationship, but also not sabotage myself. I am glad I reached out, because I think I may not have represented myself as well otherwise. Thanks for your time, Karen. I look forward to FINALLY becoming an adult after so many years of training….to earning a good salary, to having a retirement plan, to moving to a place where I could really build a home and a life without a foreseeable expiration date. Thanks for being one of the people who helped me get to this point.”
Assistant professor, Regional Teaching College, Music: “This morning I officially accepted a tenure track job offer from a regional institution in the southeast. Karen’s negotiating assistance helped me see which of my ‘wants’ were an appropriate ask for a regional institution. She helped me find the proper tone to ask for these things, and she also found some things in my ‘want’ list that might be questioned as uninformed or insulting from the department’s point of view. With TPII’s assistance, I was able to obtain a 6% salary raise, double my moving assistance, and clarify exactly how to obtain $10,000 in start up funds for my line. For a regional academic position in the arts, particularly in the southeast, this type of package is almost unheard of.”
On-Demand Courses & Webinars Available to Inform this Stage of the Search:
*Negotiating Your Academic Job Webinar
This on-demand webinar walks you through the elements of a typical academic job negotiation, explaining what can and can’t be expected based on size, type and rank of institution. Addresses the question of the rescinded offer. Shows common misunderstandings and pitfalls, and provides scripts for successful negotiations. Focuses on tenure track offers but includes discussion of NTT, VAP, postdoc and other positions as well. Updated for COVID and beyond.
*Webinar is $50 [*Includes Voucher for $100 off One-on-One Negotiating Assistance!]
Managing Your First Year on the Tenure Track
For those who scored the tenure track job–this tells you what to
expect. As a former department head who mentored a number of faculty
through successful tenure cases, Dr. Karen explains exactly how to lay
the foundation for success in your new job, and avoid common errors.
Focus on time management, departmental relations, and work life balance.
Newly updated to reflect the profound economic, social, and political
conditions of COVID19 and beyond, and the Movement for Black Lives.
$50
Managing Your Career Once You Have a Job
Shows you how to track out a research and teaching trajectory across the 5 years of the probationary period, with an emphasis on the humanities and social science fields. Focuses on creating an effective Five-Year-Plan, and working backward from your tenure year to plot out specific publishing goals. Also looks at departmental politics, managing colleagues, handling the demands of teaching, and calculating appropriate levels of service. Addresses children and work-life balance. Based on Dr. Karen’s years as a department head mentoring a number of faculty through successful tenure cases.