“I purchased the Campus Visit and Interview Intervention webinars and both certainly prepared me to provide concise, sophisticated answers. My campus visit went so well and it was the preparation, as you well know, that set me up for success.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Currently Scheduled Webinars

YES! All participants get access to a recording  —  even if you don’t attend the live event!  Just be sure and complete the full registration process on Zoom.

**To purchase the RECORDINGS of previous webinars, please visit the Prof Shop page. **

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hacking the Academic Job Market (In a Pandemic)

In this 90-minute webinar I walk you through the conditions of the current American job market, the most common mistakes made by job-seekers, and the ways you can maximize your chances of success while looking for a tenure-track job. I contextualize everything within the COVID19 pandemic and disruptions for the ’20-21 academic year.

We’ll cover:

• The big-picture conditions of the U.S. academic job market
• The impact of COVID
• How to think like a search committee
• The four core qualities of a successful tenure track job candidate during COVID19
• The all-important 5-Year Plan
• The ethos of job market documents
• The most common mistakes made by job seekers
• The three keys to academic interviewing
• Switching everything to Zoom
• What can and cannot be negotiated
• The non-academic option

We also examine the all too common errors of tone and approach made by anxious job seekers: narcissism, excessive humility, and hyper-emotionalism.  You’ll leave with a broad understanding of the real (as opposed to fantasy) criteria of tenure track hiring, and how to tailor your record and application materials to maximize your chances of success. While nobody can predict exactly what the pandemic means for the academic job market, I’ll share everything I know based on the best information available.

Includes time for Q and A with Dr. Karen.  All participants get access to a free recording of the event, even if you cannot attend the live event.

NEW DATE AND TIME: Saturday 7/11 3 PM EST

Cost:   $50

 

---

---

SPECIAL Q AND A SESSION for participants in the Managing Your First Year on the Tenure Track in a Pandemic.

Holding a special followup session for those who could not get their questions answered due to running out of time.

Friday July 17 3 PM EST

$25

 

---

---

Going Post-Ac in a Pandemic: Moving On with a Ph.D. in a Time of Stress

With COVID19, academic hiring and higher ed budgets have imploded. Everyone, even the tenured, need to contemplate Plan B income streams. This webinar will show you how to prepare for the non-academic job search, whether you’re still in graduate school, adjuncting, or well into the academic career.  We begin with the emotional struggle of letting go of the dream of the tenure track, and the social and academic challenges involved in the transition. We’ll contextualize all of this within the COVID19 pandemic and economic fallout.

Then, we’ll look at the process of re-evaluation away from a single-minded focus on the tenure track. We confront the incorrect belief held by many Ph.D.s (especially in the arts and humanities) that you don’t have any skills for non-academic jobs. You have a multitude of skills; you just haven’t learned to identify and mobilize them for jobs outside the academy. This webinar gives you the tools. With the COVID19-related implosion of the higher ed economy, now is the time to act.

We’ll cover:

• COVID19 impacts on the job market
• Confronting grief, sorrow, anger, and loss
• Why the non-academic job search matters
• What’s in a name?  Post-ac, non-ac, alt-ac, out-ac, and Real-Ac
• How do I tell my advisor?
• Obstacles to imagining a non-academic career
• Identifying your translatable skills
• Managing the all-important “keywords”
• Tips for the non-academic cover letter and resume
• Common pitfalls and challenges for the Ph.D. job seeker in the “real world”
• Job-search strategies that work
• Resources for the job seeker

This workshop is appropriate for anyone on the Ph.D. track–from early/mid-stage graduate students to ABDs, new Ph.D.s, and postdocs, instructors, and those already mid-career.  It’s also good for any advisors who wish to learn more about advising for the non-academic career. Includes time for Q and A. As COVID19 ravages the higher ed economy, understanding the post-ac transition has never been more urgent.

All participants get access to the recording of this webinar even if you can’t attend the live event.

Monday 7/13 at 6 PM EST/23:00 GMT. 

SPECIAL REDUCED RATE:   $35*

*Note about rate: Please be aware that we are a small business whose staff rely on their income from us; 2 are single mothers 100% dependent on the income they make from TPII. Discounts on rates are my effort to balance ethical obligations between those who depend on me (not to mention my own family), and struggling job seekers. Please also utilize the Postac Help category on the blog for loads of free, content-rich, advice-heavy blog posts by my Postac coaches. We are all working to provide help at this time.

 

---

---

Starting a Consulting (Or Other) Small Business: The Other #Postac Option

“If you can only conceive of yourself as a professor, then you have condemned your labor to the mercy and whims of others” (Nate Kreuter, IHE). In this 90 minute interactive webinar for people with Ph.D.s (particularly in the humanities and social sciences), I’ll walk you through the basics of starting your own small business. We’ll talk about ways to re-cast yourself from academic to business owner, psychological obstacles to the transition, and then the nuts and bolts of setting up a business–from a website to invoicing to advertising. Particular focus on using a website/FB page/Twitter for marketing.

Topics include:
I.  Getting Used to the Idea
The post-ac transition
What is entrepreneurialism?
Academia, dependency, and risk aversion
Imagining your niche
Skills vs. outcomes

II. The Nuts and Bolts
Steps to starting a small business
Concept –> Brand –> Name
Creating a simple website/blog
Establishing credibility
Setting rates and policies
Simple ecommerce resources
Show me the $$: Invoicing

III. Finding Your Market
Getting and keeping clients/customers
SEO and basic internet marketing
Blog vs. newsletter
Using Facebook and Twitter

IV.  Growing The Business
Overcoming the fear of self-promotion
Money: not the enemy
Being your own boss

As always, time for Q and A at the end. All who register get access to the recording even if you can’t attend live.

Thursday 7/16 6 PM EST

$50

 

---

---

Talking Mental Health in the Academy (in a Pandemic)

Depression, anxiety, stress, overwhelm, trauma, burnout…. these are so common in academia as to be almost the norm. A 2018 study found that 39% of grad students scored in the moderate-to-severe depression range, as compared to 6% of the general population. And that was before the pandemic.

In this brand new webinar, we talk mental health, with particular attention to the specific stressors of grad school, the job search, adjuncting, and the tenure track, and contextualized by the COVID19 pandemic. This webinar aims to provide tools to openly discuss mental health challenges, identify symptoms and causes, and provide ideas for support. Please note: I am not a mental health professional and this content is for general informational purposes, not diagnosis or treatment.

We’ll cover:

• Facts and figures
• Stigma around mental illness in the academy
• Identifying symptoms of mental health struggles
• Causes of mental health struggles:
  • Isolation
  • Competition
  • Low pay
  • Overwork and exploitation
  • The Job Market collapse and precarity
  • Cultures of abuse
  • Racism
  • Sexism
• Suggestions for support:
  • Leaving
  • Reporting abuse
  • Setting boundaries
  • Therapy
  • Self-care
  • Community
  • Sharing

Mental health and well-being may be the single most urgent task for any academic in the time of COVID. I created this webinar to provide a space to share resources and, I hope, prompt ever more transparent discussion.

Includes 30 minutes of Q and A.

Tuesday July 21 6 PM EST

$35 [Special Reduced Rate]

 

---

---

Knowing Your Own Value in Academia: Self-Advocacy, Time Management, and Saying No

Overwork is the normative expectation of the academy, and becomes ever more so as standards escalate while budgets collapse. Overwork and exploitation are woven into the systems of graduate school, adjuncting, and the tenure track, and then are rarely unlearned after tenure.

In this brand new webinar, I talk about how to identify overwork and exploitation (since so few academics actually recognize it!), how to evaluate the stakes of given tasks and manage the time you allot to each, and how to say no to excessive demands.

We also discuss how to accurately value your own time, contributions and labor, to set the stage for effective self-advocacy throughout your career. This includes describing your work without self-deprecation, dealing assertively with advisors, PI’s and department heads, asking for raises and support, managing division of labor in collaborative projects, negotiating offers, etc.

Includes scripts for practice at home! Also includes 30 min of Q and A. All who register get access to the recording, even if you can’t make the live event.

Thursday July 23 6 PM EST

$35 [Special Reduced Rate]

 

---

---

---

How To Write a Winning Grant

In this 90-minute Webinar I walk you through Dr. Karen’s Foolproof Grant Template–a template for grant-writing based on what I call the “Hero-Narrative of Grant-writing” [“Here is a critical topic. Here is what’s been written about it; Here is an unfortunate gap our understanding of it, and why it matters. But never fear – I am here to save the day; here’s how, specifically.”] This template has helped thousands of academic grant-writers  in all fields over the years, and is astoundingly successful when used correctly. Which is harder than it looks, because applicants have trouble grasping what their critical topic is, and what a compelling rationale would be for studying it, in the minds of OTHER PEOPLE.

Thus I explain how to put yourself into the shoes of those other people — the people on the grant review committees, and how to avoid the most common misunderstandings and mistakes of applicants that revolve around self-absorption, obsession with minutiae, and self-juvenilization (grant applications are not your comprehensive exams).

As always, the webinar will include abundant examples of effective writing, and will include plenty of Q and A time for targeted advice for your situation.

All who register get access to the recording of the webinar even if you can’t attend the live event.

We’ll cover:

The big picture of grant-writing
How and why to construct a hero narrative of your research
The three things your proposal must do
The four biggest mistakes of grant-writers
How to use Dr. Karen’s Foolproof Grant Template
How to tailor a proposal

Includes 30 minutes of Q and A with Dr. Karen. All who register get access to the recording even if you can’t attend the live event.

Tuesday 7/28 at 6 PM EST/23:00 GMT

Cost:   $50

 

---

---

How To Apply for a Postdoc in the Humanities or Social Sciences

Postdocs are increasingly common in the humanities and social sciences, but many Ph.D.s are confused about how to apply for them. Is it like applying for a job?  When should I apply and how long am I eligible?  If I only have to teach one course, how should I discuss my teaching? What am I supposed to produce while I’m in the postdoc, and how fast?

This webinar addresses these questions and more. It builds on the material covered in the blog post, The Postdoc App: How It’s Different and Why.  We’ll discuss:

Why social science and humanities postdoctoral programs exist
When to apply
Reading postdoc agendas and missions
Understanding the ethos of a postdoctoral scholar on campus
Composing an effective postdoc cover letter
The elements of a postdoc research proposal
Addressing teaching in a postdoc context
Relating your work to the campus
Understanding the timeline of productivity

Includes 30 minutes of Q and A at the end. All who register get access to the recording even if you can’t attend the live event.

(Please note that this webinar is not suitable for STEM scholars seeking postdoctoral positions in labs.)

Cost: $50

Thursday 7/30 at 6 PM EST

 

---

---

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Past Webinars

**To purchase the RECORDINGS of previous webinars, please visit the Prof Shop page. **

Managing Your First Year on the Tenure Track (In a Pandemic) (past)

Description In this 90-minute webinar I walk you through the biggest challenges of the first year on the tenure track — especially in this time of unprecedented turmoil due to COVID19.

Topics we cover include

Anticipated disruptions due to COVID19
Online realities
Dealing with new colleagues
Handling department politics
Finding mentors
Establishing a classroom persona
Handling online teaching
Learning to say no to service
Establishing a conference schedule
Protecting your writing time (and mental health)
Tenure and extended tenure clocks due to COVID19
Pitfalls for women and people of color

Most importantly, I walk you through the planning that you need to do, from year one, to situate yourself for your eventual tenure case.

Of course all of this will be framed in the context of the impact of COVID19 and economic contraction on college and university campuses and the institution of tenure, as best as it can be guessed at this time.

This webinar complements the blog post, Advice For Your First Year on the Tenure Track, but focuses on learning when and how to say no, making choices about time management, laying the groundwork for your tenure case, and staying sane.

Includes abundant time for Q and A with Dr. Karen.

You WILL have access to a recording of the webinar afterward as well, whether or not you can attend the live event – as long as you register for it.

$50

Wednesday July 8 6 PM EST

 

~~~~~~~~~~~

How To Publish Your Academic Book (past)

In most fields of the humanities and social sciences, a sole-authored monograph is the primary criterion for tenure. Getting your book done in time for tenure review is the leading source of stress for new assistant professors. You can do it, but it takes advance planning and organization. In this 90 minute webinar I walk you through the basic timeline for getting it done in time. We will cover the following:

conceptualizing your dissertation as a book
getting leave time to write
coordinating publication timeline and tenure review
writing a proposal
submitting your proposal
approaching editors
choosing a press
getting an advance contract
understanding royalties
knowing what to publish as journal articles
setting up a writing schedule
dealing with positive and negative reviews
revising
indexing, copy-editing and cover art

As always there will be time for Q and A at the end. You’ll receive a downloadable recording of the webinar.

Avoid unnecessary anguish and stress by understanding the process and planning ahead.

Thursday 1/23 at 6 PM EST

Cost:   $50

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on your chosen day. 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~

Job Talk Webinar (past)

In this webinar we will delve into the challenges of the all-important job talk.

I will explain the role of the job talk in the campus visit (it’s the single most important element) , and what it is meant to show about you as a candidate (it’s not what you think).

Kellee and I together created this webinar because I edit hundreds of job talks a year at TPII, and she hears them in her live skype Campus Visit Interventions, and the first drafts we see are routinely truly awful. (And when we were faculty members, in truth, most job talks we heard from candidates were pretty bad.) This is not because your research is poor!  It’s because nobody has ever explained to you WHAT a job talk is supposed to accomplish and HOW a job talk is supposed to be organized.

We now understand that most candidates have no idea about the proper ethos and organization of the job talk. They don’t get the “point” of the job talk, what it’s meant to achieve, and then how to achieve that through specific substance and organization.

So I will explain the most common pitfalls of the job talk, which are legion, including:

Excessive lit review (this isn’t your comprehensive exam!)
Forgetting to explain the topic before the analysis
Imbalance of theory and data
Overambitious scope
No clear argument
Overwhelming, illegible powerpoint slides

And I provide a proven template for job talk structure that will ensure yours showcases your research, engages the audience, and establishes your scholarly profile AND collegiality.

Finally, I will discuss the treacherous Q and A after the talk–what kinds of questions to expect, how to handle the audience, and most importantly, how to handle challenging, critical, or inappropriate questions.

Includes 30 minutes of Q and A.

All participants get access to the recording of this webinar.

Cost:   $50

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FREE WEBINAR – How To Negotiate Your Academic Job Offer (past)

The rescinded offer is unfortunately more common than ever, and it is imperative that candidates understand when and how to appropriately negotiate an academic job offer. Negotiating IS still standard and expected for the vast majority of all tenure track offers, but it takes skill to do it correctly, asking for all you can while retaining good relations with the department.

This webinar breaks down the stages of the academic job offer negotiation process, explains the things that can and can’t be negotiated at different types of jobs (including postdocs and full time non-tenure track positions), and different ranks and types of institutions.  It provides examples of successful negotiating language as well as common negotiating errors and pitfalls.

Negotiating points we’ll examine include salary, teaching release, moving expenses, start-up funds, conference and travel funding, research leave/junior sabbatical, summer salary, and the spousal hire.

We’ll discuss how to evaluate the culture and expectations of the institution and calibrate requests to the institutional context. We will dispassionately examine the phenomenon of the rescinded offer.  I’ll give examples from successful and unsuccessful recent negotiations that I’ve worked on through my Negotiating Assistance service.

And we’ll consider special challenges for women and people from communities historically marginalized in the academy. For some background reading, check out my blog post, Negotiating as Therapy.

Includes 30 minutes of Q and A.

Participants also get $100 off the cost of individual Negotiating Assistance (normally $600 [$700 for advanced/senior positions])

You WILL have access to a free download of the event for one week after the date, whether or not you can attend the live event, as long as you register for it.

FREE but you must register.

Thursday 12/19 at 6 PM EST

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on your chosen day. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Interview Intervention Webinar (past)

In this 90-minute webinar Karen Kelsky shows you how to interview effectively for an academic job. She covers the major questions asked most often, and their unspoken agendas.  She discusses the most common errors made by candidates, and how to organize and deliver concise, content-rich, non-desperate responses.

She will provide templates for responses to basic questions about your dissertation/current research, publishing, teaching, and fit, and abundant examples of both bad and good answers from actual client interviews.

In addition, we confront illegal/inappropriate questions, micro-aggressions, and the all important issue of overcoming Imposter Syndrome, and communicating confidence through verbal and non-verbal modes. And she spares a few words for how to dress, the best shoes for cold weather, and ideas for briefcases!

The material applies to skype, phone, and conference interviews, and the campus visit (although note that we have a whole separate webinar and recording available that is devoted to the campus visit!)

This webinar covers the same content, and addresses the same questions, as the live Skype Interview Intervention service ($250); it is an immediately available and cost-effective way to learn what to expect and how to prepare for all forms of academic job interview. Some clients do the webinar as preparation for a live Skype Intervention, if there are slots available.

As always there will be plenty of time for Q and A at the end.

You have access to a recording of the event afterward.

Thursday 1/02 at 6 PM EST

Cost: $50

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on your chosen day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How To Write a Winning Grant (past)

In this 90-minute Webinar I walk you through Dr. Karen’s Foolproof Grant Template–a template for grant-writing based on what I call the “Hero-Narrative of Grant-writing” [“Here is a critical topic. Here is what’s been written about it; Here is an unfortunate gap our understanding of it, and why it matters. But never fear – I am here to save the day; here’s how, specifically.”] This template has helped thousands of academic grant-writers  in all fields over the years, and is astoundingly successful when used correctly. Which is harder than it looks, because applicants have trouble grasping what their critical topic is, and what a compelling rationale would be for studying it, in the minds of OTHER PEOPLE.

Thursday 1/9 at 6 PM EST/23:00 GMT

Cost:   $50

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on your chosen day. 

 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Campus Visit Webinar (past)

In this 90 minute webinar I walk you through the basic expectations and potential pitfalls of the dreaded Campus Visit (sometimes called a Fly-Out). We will cover all of the core elements, including:

• The three key criteria at play in a campus visit
• The single biggest pitfall for candidates
• The basic organization of a campus visit
• The initial arrangements and scheduling
• Preparing for the visit
• Meetings with faculty, Head, Dean, and graduate students
• The formal interview with the Search Committee
• The job talk and Q and A
• The teaching demo
• Handling meals gracefully
• Maintaining your stamina
• Evaluating campus climate
• What to wear, especially in cold weather

As always there will be time for Q and A at the end. You will have access to a recording of the webinar 24 hours after the event.

Campus visits are hard!  A little advance knowledge will save a world of hurt!

 

Thursday 12/5 at 6 PM EST

Cost:   $50

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on your chosen day. 

~~~~

Hacking the Academic Job Market (past)

In this 90-minute webinar I walk you through the conditions of the current American job market, the most common mistakes made by job-seekers, and the ways you can maximize your chances of success while looking for a tenure-track job.

We’ll cover:

• The big-picture conditions of the U.S. academic job market
• How to think like a search committee
• The four core qualities of a successful tenure track job candidate
• The all-important 5-Year Plan
• The ethos of job market documents
• The most common mistakes made by job seekers
• The three keys to academic interviewing
• The non-academic option
  

We also examine the pervasive intangible pitfalls that can bedevil job documents and interviewing, including narcissism, excessive humility, and hyper-emotionalism.  You’ll leave with a broad understanding of the real (as opposed to fantasy) criteria of tenure track hiring, and how to tailor your record and application materials to maximize your chances of success.

Includes time for Q and A with Dr. Karen.  All participants get access to a free recording of the event.

Thursday 11/15 6 PM EST

Cost:   $50

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on the day. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hacking the Academic Presentation (past)

Get ready for your academic conferences, job talks, and public speaking with this webinar on presentation best-practices.  As academics we must master public speaking skills to challenge the GOP assault on higher ed  – the stakes have never been higher for us to know how to present our work to the public effectively!

In this 90-minute webinar I break down the best practices of presenting your work to academic and public audiences in conference talks, job talks, public speaking, and so on.

We’ll address:

• the role of public speaking in the academic career
• how and when to gain experience
• handling the basic logistics
• managing nerves
• conference presentations–things to consider
• effective speaking techniques
• using visuals and Powerpoint
• body language and non-verbal cues
• reading an audience
• tracking the clock
• handling Q and A
• responding to challenges and critiques
• managing equipment

We’ll also discuss the most common errors made by inexperienced academic speakers related to talk organization, speaking style, and Q and A challenges.

Participants will have access to a recording of the event.

$50

Thursday, January 24 6 PM EST

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on your chosen day. 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Managing Your Career Once You Have a Job (past)

You’re on the tenure track! Now what?

This 90-minute webinar explains the basic organization of a successful academic career, and how to avoid the most common pitfalls besetting the new assistant professor. Focuses in particular on the crucial skill of time management, as well as charting your path to tenure, learning how to plan for your tenure case, and strategize potential tenure letter writers. With a clear sense of the obligations and challenges of the tenure track period you can improve your chances of achieving work-life balance and having a career that is satisfying and life-sustaining.

This newly updated webinar is based on the mentoring I did as a Department Head for the new assistant profs in my R1 department; I include SLAC-centric content as well. This webinar can be combined with “Surviving Your First Year on the Tenure Track” or viewed alone. It focuses more on the nitty-gritty of planning year-by-year, understanding the details of how tenure works, and finding sustainable work-life balance over time (and not just in the initial fire-hose of year 1).

We’ll cover:

The all-important skill of time management
Learning to say no
Learning when to say yes
Teaching well but not too much
Dealing with colleagues
Understanding departmental politics
Handling service obligations
Managing your image
Applying for leave
Carving out time for research and writing
Understanding tenure
Charting your tenure course
Cultivating tenure letter writers
Creating and maintaining your national reputation
Aiming for the next job
Work-life balance
Family and children
Challenges for women and faculty of color.

As always there will be time for Q and A at the end.

This webinar is appropriate for all fields. All participants get access to a recording afterward.

Thursday 4/18 at 6 PM EST.

Cost:   $50

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on the day. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Women and the Academic Career: What Works, What Doesn’t (past)

In this 90 minute interactive webinar, I walk you through the main challenges for women in the academic career, and offer specific strategies for confronting and overcoming them.

We’ll discuss:

• The male-centric model of the academic career track
• The tenure track and the biological clock
• Issues for WOC
• The perils of “nice”
• Sexual and gender harassment
• Unconscious self-sabotaging habits
• Techniques of self-promotion
• Assertiveness in language and body language
• Pitfalls for women on the job market
• Interviewing strategies
• Negotiating effectively
• Children: the good and the bad
• Achieving work-life balance

30 minutes of Q and A at the end.

Thursday 4/26, 6 PM EST/23:00 GMT.

$50

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

#MeTooPhd: Sexual Harassment in the Academy (past)

In this one-hour webinar inspired by the Sexual Harassment in the Academy Crowdsource Survey (now at over 2300 entries), I will share what I learned from the experience of conducting the survey, including thoughts on the range and scope of sexual harassment in academic settings (including departments, labs, research centers, campuses, academic conferences, etc.), patterns of predation, options for victims, and recommendations to institutions wishing to combat this scourge in the #MeTooPhD moment. I will discuss the profiles of predators, common patterns of protection/enabling/silencing of victims by colleagues and administrators, and particular vulnerabilities of women of color and queer/trans women in these contexts.

**This webinar does NOT include any specific stories, incidents, or information shared by any of the contributors to the survey.  The content is based on larger-scale patterns that emerged in the aggregate, and thoughts about ways to move forward that emerged from these larger-scale patterns.***

I will talk about why academia is so conducive to this form of harassment, and I will focus in particular on suggestions to help vulnerable populations recognize and confront harassment, in order to empower victims and potential victims to protect themselves, find both formal and informal support and make educated decisions about going public.

I’ll discuss some thoughts on the pros and cons of filing formal complaints, the current resources and limitations of Title IX policies, and immediate steps that departments and disciplinary associations can take to lessen the occurrence of harassment on campus and at conferences.

Includes 30 minutes of Q and A

All who register have access to a recording, even if they can’t attend the live event.

This event is free to all, but you do have to register at the link below:

2/22 at 6 PM EST

Free

Register Here

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Proper framing and tailoring

Examples of good and bad statements of purpose

We will go through how to design a statement of purpose, step by step, and discuss how to work with the prompts provided by admissions guidelines. Then we will deconstruct poorly written statements, and analyze sample examples of well-written ones. There will be time at the end for questions and answers for questions you may have that are particularly relevant for your specific statements and circumstances. All participants will receive access to a recording of the Webinar.

 

Cost: $50

November 13th, 1 pm EST

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hacking the Tenure Track Job Market (Past)

(formerly What You Need to Know Now About the Academic Job Market)

In this 90-minute webinar I walk you through the conditions of the current American job market, the most common mistakes made by job-seekers, and the ways you can maximize your chances of success while looking for a tenure-track job.

We’ll cover:

• The big-picture conditions of the U.S. tenure track job market
• How to think like a search committee
• The four core qualities of a successful tenure track job candidate
• The all-important 5-Year Plan
• The ethos of job market documents
• The most common mistakes made by job seekers
• The three keys to academic interviewing
• The non-academic option
  

We also examine the pervasive intangible pitfalls that can bedevil job documents and interviewing, including narcissism, excessive humility, and hyper-emotionalism.  You’ll leave with a broad understanding of the real (as opposed to fantasy) criteria of tenure track hiring, and how to tailor your record and application materials to maximize your chances of success.

Includes time for Q and A with Dr. Karen.  All participants get access to a free recording of the event.

New date: Thursday Sept 22, 2016 6 PM EST

Cost:   $50

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on the day. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How To Write an Academic Job Application, Part II–Teaching Statement and Research Statement {past}

In this 80-minute webinar we examine the other two primary documents in an academic job application–the teaching statement and research statement.  I explain the role of each of these in presenting your profile, and the relative importance of each in the deliberations of the search committee.  I then give recommendations for the most effective content, organization, and tone of each of these documents, with examples.

The Teaching Statement is perhaps the most difficult of all job documents to write, and I spend particular time on its purpose and execution, and the many common pitfalls common to this document, especially weepiness and hyper-emotionalism. I also introduce organizational tips for the Research Statement with attention to effective sentence and paragraph structure.

There will be 30 minutes of Q and A at the end.  All participants get a free downloadable recording.

 

Thursday 8/13 at 7 PM EST/24:00 GMT

Cost:   $50

After completing payment by clicking below, you will be redirected to the dedicated Go-To-Meeting Webinar Registration page, where you will fill out a registration form and be given instructions and an access code to sign in on your chosen day.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

For Grad Students Only–Turn Your Ph.D. Into a Job {past}

This webinar is for current graduate students, on strategizing for the academic and non-academic job markets while in graduate school. It is open to students at any stage in their program, including those just starting this fall. (I love to talk to newbies!)

We will cover:

• Understanding the financial risks of a Ph.D.
• Evaluating the status and job placement rate of your graduate program
• Evaluating the effectiveness of your advisor for job placement
• Changing advisors when necessary
• Assembling a committee
• Reading trends in your field with an eye to the job market
• Setting a 5-year timeline to completion
• Understanding the role of grants
• TA-ing vs. teaching
• Participating in departmental life
• Avoiding excess service
• Attending national conferences
• Strategizing your recommenders
• Building your CV

We will also discuss strategies to keep your options open for non-academic jobs, including

• Finding mentors
• Networking
• Informational interviews
• Identifying and developing your skills

Throughout we’ll address ways that you can “stop acting like a grad student” and take charge of your program and your career.

As always, time for Q and A at the end.

Let no grad student proceed uninformed!

Thursday 5/7 6 PM EST

Cost:  $30

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Targeting Your Skills for a #Postac Career (led by Margy Horton) {past}

In order to grow your post-ac network, craft a solid business plan, or write a credible resume, you need to know your skills–and you need a language in which to articulate those skills.

In this webinar, I (Margy Horton) help you to identify your strongest skills, discover new ways of framing them, construct them into a compelling story, and decide which skills to sharpen in order to enhance your marketability. My experiences in both launching my business, ScholarShape, and organizing a group of Academic Entrepreneurs, have taught me that academics can indeed mine, re-frame, and “sell” previously unknown skills. This presentation is filled with real-life examples from my experiences at the intersections of academia and entrepreneurship.

In the Q and A, you can ask me to speak directly to your situation, and after the webinar, you’ll receive a downloadable recording. When you register for this webinar, you’ll receive a PDF of my list of over 100 skills that are common among academics–a more comprehensive list than any you’ll find elsewhere.

What we’ll cover:

1. How skills are different from knowledge, expertise, and credentials

2. How to identify your marketable skills (Hint: you may have over 100)

3. Four techniques for re-framing and re-labeling your existing skills

4. Why you need to frame your skills as a story (And five templates for writing your skill-story)

5. The “alchemical skills” that you can acquire to elevate your other skills

6. A dozen free or inexpensive ways to develop new marketable skills

7. Q and A

All participants will receive a free downloadable recording of the event.

See a short promo with audio here:   TPII Skills Webinar PROMO – Horton

Wednesday May 28, 6 PM EST/3 PM Pacific.

Cost: $50

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Starting a Small Business: The Other #Postac Option {Past}

“If you can only conceive of yourself as a professor, then you have condemned your labor to the mercy and whims of others” (Nate Kreuter, IHE). In this 90 minute interactive webinar for people with Ph.D.s (particularly in the humanities and social sciences), I’ll walk you through the basics of starting your own small business. We’ll talk about ways to re-cast yourself from academic to business owner, psychological obstacles to the transition, and then the nuts and bolts of setting up a business–from a website to invoicing to advertising. Particular focus on using a website/FB page/Twitter for marketing.

Topics include:
I.  Getting Used to the Idea
The post-ac transition
What is entrepreneurialism?
Academia, dependency, and risk aversion
Imagining your niche
Skills vs. outcomes

II. The Nuts and Bolts
Steps to starting a small business
Concept –> Brand –> Name
Creating a simple website/blog
Establishing credibility
Setting rates and policies
Simple ecommerce resources
Show me the $$: Invoicing

III. Finding Your Market
Getting and keeping clients/customers
SEO and basic internet marketing
Blog vs. newsletter
Using Facebook and Twitter

IV.  Growing The Business
Overcoming the fear of self-promotion
Money: not the enemy
Being your own boss

As always, time for Q and A at the end. You’ll get a recording of the webinar the next day.

 Scheduled for Friday Jan 31 3 PM Pacific/6 PM EST/23:00 GMT.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Interviewing for Your Postacademic Career (led by Allessandria Polizzi)

In this 90-minute webinar, I (Allessandria Polizzi) will walk you through the business interviewing process from beginning to end based on my 15+ years of experience in Human Resources function, and as a corporate hiring manager. I explain the point and purpose of each stage, as well as how to prepare, pitfalls to avoid and other tips and tricks. If you are beginning the journey to a postacademic job search (or are just in the beginning stages of exploration), this webinar will show you what to expect.

 We will cover:

• How to make a great first impression
• The in-person interview (2nd, 3rd and beyond): what to wear, how to prepare and what to do while there
• What’s an assessment and how do I ace it?
• What to do after the interview is over
• Don’t hit the panic button: Tips of the trade to help you land the job you want

Includes Q and A with Allessandria.

Interviewing is a critical element in your postacademic career process. Through interviewing, you share your qualifications for a potential position and also learn about the culture of your future employer. Knowing what to expect and how to prepare allows you to maximize both opportunities.

All participants get a free recording of the event.

Thursday June 12 6 PM EST/3 PM Pacific

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Webinar Info

Once you pay you are directed to a dedicated access page on Go To Webinar to register for the event. You receive an access code, which you enter on the day of the event to log onto the webinar on your computer or telephone.  I present the webinar live. You can see and hear me, and to see my powerpoint slides.  You can ask questions and comments on the chat/question functions.

Some readers wonder if the webinars are redundant with the blog posts. I work hard to make sure that isn’t the case, and offer fresh new content that goes beyond the posts. I’ve learned that many participants find it is helpful to have the spoken and interactive presentation on the Webinar reinforce the written information on the blog.  One key point of the Webinars, aside from the Q and A, is the abundant use of examples of BAD job market writing or interviewing, with explanations of what exactly is wrong, and how to fix it.

Here are some reactions to previous webinars, and a testimonial from a Campus Visit Webinar client who used it to land a tenure track job:

“The webinar, which took a little less than two hours, was more useful to me than the entire semester of the ‘Preparing Future Faculty’ course I took through my university’s graduate school.”

“I found it very helpful. Why? Because I needed clarity re: the importance of ‘peer reviewed’ journal articles (of which I have none). You helped me see that while the dissertation is made out to be a ‘BIG ISSUE’ in the life of a Ph.D. student, what should now be one’s major concern, as a result of this lame market, is developing an active publishing record so that one can present themselves as a ‘colleague’ in the job market rather than a ‘grad student.’ Many advisors don’t realize this market change.”

“I appreciated the way that Karen focused not only on what we should do, but also on what we should avoid doing. Many of the job books I have neglect this important contrast.”

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask me, Karen, at gettenure@gmail.com.