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Finding a tenure-track faculty position

Carolyn Elya

Spring 2023

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Goals of today’s meeting:

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  • Provide overview of process (demystify this black box)
  • Discuss major components of search
  • Point you to more resources
  • Share my experience/provide moral support

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Note: There is a lot more to cover here than we can reasonably cover, so please consider this as an intro to the process.

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What is this job?

Tenure-track assistant professor

“Tenure-track”: will be reviewed at some point in future by peers within and outside of institution. Process takes ~a year.

  • If you get tenure you get: title change, raise, job security.
  • If you don’t get tenure you get: time to wrap up (and hopefully find your next home)
    • Tenure clock: time until you are considered (“go up”) for tenure.Will vary by institution. Can be extended by major life events.

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Depending on institution, you will be expected to:

  • Run a research program (do science, get money, build reputation)
  • Teach
  • Serve institution, scientific community

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Ad positions posted

Timeline of the process

Aug

April

Dec

Oct

Feb

Applications due

Zoom invites sent out

In person invites sent out

In person visits

Offers extended/second visits scheduled

Data: Future PI Slack 2022-2023

I started applying here

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Setting expectations: rejection is normal

Data: Future PI Slack 2022-2023

My stats

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  • How do you find ads?
  • Preparing application materials - expectations and strategy
  • Remote screening overview
  • In-person interview
  • Offers and negotiations

Job search: the highlights

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Where can I find job postings?

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THERE IS NO CENTRALIZED LOCATION - effectively a scavenger hunt.

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Good places to look

Sample ads: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bRmKapjPn9zSzDmkzumIBfoHbcGKlDjr/view?usp=share_link

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Types of institutions

Primarily undergrad institution (PUI)

Teaching as important as research

Usually hard money (9 month salary)

Shorter tenure clock

Research-intensive institution (R1 or R2) w/ undergrads

Research most important, teaching can be close or distant second

Usually hard money (9 month salary)

Shorter tenure clock

Research-intensive institution (R1 or R2) w/o undergrads (e.g. med school)

Minimal teaching, research even more important.

Usually soft money

Long tenure clock

What makes an institution R1, R2 etc? Dictated by Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Determination made based on: funding $$, # students graduated, # faculty

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Typical application requirements

  • Cover letter
  • CV
  • Research statement
  • Teaching statement
  • Diversity statement
  • Reference letters (3)
  • {Papers}

My general strategy:

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Core document for CL, RS, TS, DS

Adjust length as needed

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Tailor last paragraph of CL to position

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Adjust RS to department (emphasize neuro, evo, etc)

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Address any specific questions in TS, DS

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Apply in chunks (6-12 apps) - set aside 1 day to submit everything (I did this every 2 weeks for 5 rounds)

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Just cover letters

Everything else

Final state of my Google drive folder

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Now you wait…

…and continuously check your spam folder for errant responses

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Remote screening

  • Generally 30 min (mine ranged 20 - 60 min)
    • This short! You need to be ready to go - computer on, Zoom open, headphones plugged in
    • May be recorded
  • Usually search committee
    • Could be partial, could include trainees
  • Ask questions about research, teaching, diversity.
  • Zoom pool can be dozens of candidates, depending on search
  • Prepare in advance - know who you’re talking to, ask about format (they might not remember to tell you!), revisit wording of job ad

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Example remote screening invite

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Example remote screening invite - follow up

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Example remote screening invite

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Example remote screening invite - follow up

Note: In this case, the questions were sent ~24 hours before the interview. Some schools will send earlier, some prefer to give you questions fairly last minute.

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After remote screening

  • You may never hear back (don’t take it to heart)
  • You may be invited for onsite interview (could be 2 weeks away, could be 2 months away!)
    • Within the week
    • Within the month
    • Beyond (probably a no go after 6 weeks)

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Ad positions posted

Timeline of the process

Aug

April

Dec

Oct

Feb

Applications due

Zoom invites sent out

In person invites sent out

In person visits

Offers extended/second visits scheduled

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In person interview: key components

  • Seminar (typically 45 min w/ questions at end)
  • Chalk talk (typically 1-1.5 hours)
  • Faculty one-on-ones
  • Trainee one-on-ones
  • Meet teaching faculty
  • Meet a Dean
  • Facilities tour
  • Meals! (at least 2/day, sometimes 3/day)

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Research seminar

  • Sets the tone for the interview
  • Typically 45 min w/ questions at end, but can be longer/shorter
    • May be interrupted, depending on dept norms
  • Will probably be recorded
  • Major goals:
    • Engage your audience
      • Get people excited about what you’ve done and what you will do
    • Demonstrate your communication (teaching!) skills (visual, oral)

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Research seminar: strategies for success

  • Big questions & motivation - 5 min
  • Postdoc work - 30 min
  • Preview of chalk talk - 5 min

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  • Tell a story, have logical flow
  • Appeal to a broad audience - avoid specific jargon, stay out of the weeds
  • Provide an outline
    • Tell them what you’re going to tell them
    • Tell them
    • Tell them what you told them

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Research seminar: strategies for success

  • Actively guide audience’s attention
    • Align what you’re saying and what you’re showing
      • Use animations to build in data when complex
    • Scrutinize your visuals - keep them clear and simple!
    • Be consistent - colors, diagrams
    • Explain all data that you show
    • Set up each slide - incept your next point as question in audience’s mind
  • PRACTICE in front of people that make you nervous, in front of people that don’t know your story already!
  • Memorize the first few minutes - starting the talk is the hardest part!
  • Use slides to prompt what you say - if you keep forgetting to include something, put it on the slide

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Research seminar: strategies for success

  • Answering questions:
    • Opportunity to demonstrate your engagement with classroom
    • Repeat the question - helps everyone hear, confirms which question you are answering.
    • Stay calm - assume questions come from genuine curiosity and interest.
    • Admit what you don’t know - people can see through your B.S.!

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Chalk talk

  • Allows faculty to assess you as a colleague
  • Usually closed door, search committee - whole department
    • Sometimes a trainee or two to watch
  • Usually ~1 hour, can be longer
    • Will be interrupted!
  • Will probably be recorded
  • Major goals:
    • Give audience preview of you as colleague
    • Get audience excited about your ideas
    • Show that you can fund your science (have a $$ strategy)
    • Have a discussion and hold your own

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Chalk talk

  • There are many ways to give a successful chalk talk.
    • Filter advice you get from others!
  • Contents: can be aims of grant, but don’t have to be
    • I found it useful to follow structure of near (2 year), medium (5 year) and long-term (decade) goals
  • Important to have a general strategy
    • Think about how to staff your lab and specific projects - talk to people about your strategy to get feedback on this. Doesn’t need to be exact
    • Have specific funding mechanisms in mind for different projects
  • Excitement (showpersonship!), feasibility, fundability

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Chalk talk

  • Start practicing as soon as you can (Dec if possible).
    • Practice with anyone who is willing! Especially seek out people who have attended actual chalk talks!
    • Writing and talking concurrently takes some getting used to
  • Yes and! - even if idea is not awesome/you will never do it in your life, frame positively (“That’s a really cool idea!”)
  • Keep your answers short (don’t ramble)
  • Control the conversation
    • “That’s very interesting! I’d like to move on to my next aim, but let’s circle back to that.”
  • Practice pacing - you want to get through your ideas. You can ask someone to help you keep time.

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Chalk talk: things I think were particularly useful

  • Providing outline on board
    • This is scope of material I want to get through, helpful for audience to see where you’re going to manage time, interruptions
  • Introducing who I am as a scientist: my general approach, the questions that excite me, long term goals
  • Having specific funding mechanisms in mind for different projects
  • Structuring in terms of near (2 year), medium (5 year) and long-term (decade) goals
  • Practicing with junior faculty (thanks, Ben!)
  • Memorizing intro spiel (<2 min)
  • Having cheat sheet and simple board setup

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Harvard chalk talk: before

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Harvard chalk talk: after

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You will be asked for:

  • Available travel dates (be kind to yourself!)
  • Title of talk (maybe abstract too)
  • Headshot
  • If there are any people you want to meet with (usually more 2nd visit)
  • Dietary restrictions (if not, volunteer this info to avoid awkwardness)

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You should be sure to find out:

  • Who’s hosting you
  • Length, format (interruptions? can I have notes? time to prep board?), audience of seminar and chalk talk
  • Who’s responsible for scheduling travel and hotel

Preparing for your visit

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Preparing for your visit

  • Know who you’ll be meeting with
    • Where did they train and who with?
    • Expertise/what do they study?
    • Role in department (assist prof? associate? chair?)
    • [Size and composition of lab]
    • [Picture]
    • [Spouse in department?]
  • Questions about position, department, program ready to ask whenever there’s a lull
  • [Startup list]

Template: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1B0rlEd599QxD1_7_MhzLqNDXndiPQzrHcDxT-aqaASA/edit

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  • Lab space
  • Teaching requirements
  • Tenure - timing? expectations? pre-tenure review? process? success rate?
  • Startup sunsetting
  • Grant support
  • Seed funding (internal grants)
  • Faculty responsibilities: teaching, service, advising?
  • Trainee experience - pay, quality of life, are their voices heard by higher ups?
  • Student recruitment
  • Grad student:faculty ratio
  • Mechanisms of grad student programs: rotations?

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  • Unions?
  • Hear about jr faculty experience from jr faculty
  • May want to know how many people are you hiring (if clear from ad more than one line available)
  • Community
  • Support from senior faculty, including mentoring
  • Admin support
  • Core facilities
  • Dept culture (incl. collaborations, support for families)
  • DEI
  • What is life like here?
  • Cost of living
  • Childcare

Non-exhaustive list of things to ask about during your visit

  • What projects are you most excited about?
  • Can you tell me about some of the collaborations within the department?
  • Can we check out your lab?
  • Where do you see the department going in the next 10 years?
  • What was your strategy in hiring people and establishing lab culture?
  • Support for junior faculty

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Packing

  • Game face
  • Charged laptop + charger
  • Laser pointer
  • HDMI adapter
  • Power bank to charge phone - it’s a long day!
  • Talk saved in the cloud
  • Laptop desktop, embarrassment free
  • Chalk talk cheat sheet
  • Faculty notes
  • Schedule

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  • Host contact info in phone
  • Whiteboard pens
  • Notebook + pen
  • Climate-appropriate attire
  • Comfortable shoes
    • [Compression socks]
  • Comfortable bag
  • Watch
  • Efficient snacks
  • Water
  • Ibuprofen, tums, coughdrops
  • Relevant show and tell
  • [HDMI cable]

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The visit - your interview begins once you step off the plane

  • Review your schedule in advance
    • You may be picked up by faculty
      • Know who’s meeting you! Check your phone/email!
    • You may head straight to a meal
    • You may have to figure out how to get to your hotel on your own
      • Prepare to be flexible
  • Act like a PI, not a post-doc - faculty are potential colleagues and peers. Think in terms of projects, not experiments.
    • Trainees will see you as PI
  • Stay hydrated, fed and caffeinated
    • Restroom = your breakroom

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Sample schedule

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Another sample schedule

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After the visit

  • Thank you emails
    • Host
    • Department chair
    • Search chair
  • Reach out re: reimbursements (be sure to thank the admin for coordinating your visit!)
  • Jot down any important notes/insights from visit
  • Rest

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Example startup budget:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/14C0uUWCXhR4uivaVbCwy-2uXmS5jWvQa/edit#gid=603337014

Startup budget

  • Key components:
    • Personnel
    • Equipment
      • “Capital equipment”
    • Core services
    • Lab infrastructure
  • Start this sooner rather than later
  • Ask people who have recently made budgets if they can share
    • Each quotes costs at least an email, probably a phone call

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Additional Resources

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Jargon you may encounter

There’s a lot. A non-exhaustive list can be found here:

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https://docs.google.com/document/d/1S6L9eAqWIIkJy1v2cRL3geM9upElstx_m1RebHi5t5s/edit?usp=sharing

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