# Presentation: 486181

## Getting a JobIn Academia

- Jennifer Schopf
- Argonne National Lab
- April 13, 2002
- jms@mcs.anl.gov

## My Story

- 1998 was finishing PhD in CS at UCSD in “hot”area
- Sent out 80 applications
- teaching, research, postdoc (labs)
- Accepted 15 interviews- ~8 weeks of travel
- 12 offers, went to Northwestern Univ.
- 3 years later, went to Argonne National Lab

- April 13, 2002

## Outline

- What to apply for (alternatives in academia)
- Where to apply
- Job Application Packet
- Interviewing
- Making Decisions
- Two-Body Problem

- April 13, 2002

## Picking the Right Job for You

- Academia- University, Lab, Research
- Post Doc vs Faculty
- Teaching vs Research
- Large vs Small

- April 13, 2002

## Benefits of Post Doc

- Lots of time for research
- Added publications
- Time to establish post-graduate career track
- Grant writing experience
- Build reputation
- Possibility of moving up in market
- More people to write letters for you
- Little or no administrative and teaching load

- April 13, 2002

## Cons of Post Docs (In CS)

- Some post docs are tied to specific projects
- Not truly independent
- Some bias in the field - “Couldn’t you get a REAL job?”
- Lower pay
- Relocating again in 2 years

- April 13, 2002

## Applying for Post docs

- Talk to someone senior in your area
- Research institutions and national labs
- NSF
- NATA, NSERC Canada, Foreign embassies
- Applications generally by fall

- April 13, 2002

## Limited Term Teaching Positions(Lecture or Visiting Positions)

- Get lots of teaching experience
- May provide an opportunity to be at a better department than otherwise possible
- Flexibility with no commitment

- April 13, 2002

## Teaching vs Research

- Teaching Schools
- Teach 5-6 classes per year (3-5 preps)
- Generally no PhD students, maybe MS
- Still expected to do some research
- 1 paper a year
- 1 grant (total) before tenure
- More committee work
- Less money (salary, startup, etc), less travel

- April 13, 2002

## Research vs Teaching

- Research Schools
- 3-4 classes per year (after first)
- PhD and MS students
- Expected to spend MOST of your time on research
- Several papers a year, esp. journals before tenure
- Several grants before tenure- solo PI and joint
- Better chance to know your community
- Better money than teaching, more travel

- April 13, 2002

## Large vs Small

- Large (25 faculty or more)
- Small fish in a bigger pond
- Instant collaborators - but beware of being overshadowed
- Well established procedures and support
- Small (15 faculty or less)
- Easier to establish independence
- Lots of dept “extras”
- Chance to build and influence

- April 13, 2002

## Outline

- What to apply for (alternatives in academia)
- Where to apply
- Job Application Packet
- Interviewing
- Making Decisions
- Two-Body Problem

- April 13, 2002

## Where to Find Open Positions

- http://www.cra.org/main/cra.jobs.html
- http://www.acm.org/cacm/careeropps/
- http://www.computer.org/careers/
- Word of mouth
- Send in an application anyway!

- April 13, 2002

## How to Decide Where to Apply

- Professional
- Who/what else is nearby?
- What have other people said about the dept?
- Personal
- Geographically compatible - can you live there? (weather, urban/suburban, hobbies)
- Family issues
- Other opportunities

- April 13, 2002

## Which Department to Apply to?

- CS/CE/ECE has no clear division
-  . All 3 will advertise for operating systems!
- Applied Math/CS Theory
- Cognitive Science/AI Computer Science
- When in doubt, send to both

- April 13, 2002

## How Many to Apply to?

- How many interviews do you want to go to?
- How competitive are you?
- How competitive are the schools?
- How focused is your search?
- Personally, I think more is better than less-  it’s just the cost of a stamp

- April 13, 2002

## Timelines

- Now
- Get to know the people in your field
- go to meetings, go to talks, interact!
- Publish
- Dec/Jan - Applications for openings due
- Feb/April - Interviews
- (Mid-Jan/Feb - send out additional aps?)
- March/June - Offers

- April 13, 2002

## Outline

- What to apply for (alternatives in academia)
- Where to apply
- Job Application Packet
- Interviewing
- Making Decisions
- Two-Body Problem

- April 13, 2002

## Application Packet

- Cover Letter
- CV
- Research Statement
- Teaching Statement
- Papers
- Letters of Reference
- Similar for tenure-track, lecturer, postdoc, or lab research position

- April 13, 2002

## Cover Letter

- Departmental letterhead
- “Dear Search Committee (Chair):”
- 		NOT “Dear Sir:”
- Your name (printed, not just signed)
- University, Advisor
- Area of research and when you’re finishing
- Generally, not something to sweat - have one that you alter slightly for each school

- April 13, 2002

## CV

- Basic contact info- email, phone with dependable messaging, web page (think about what’s on it)
- Education info- where, when, what
- Thesis title, advisor, completion date, summary
- Small research summary (3-4 sentences)
- Papers, posters, talks, presentations
- have links to them online
- Fellowships, awards, grants
- Service, other education, special programs
- List of letter writers and contact info for them - email, snail mail and phone

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## Research Statement

- What are you doing now, why is it important, what is the main result they should associate with you
- How does your work sit in your field
- What other projects have you been part of, what was your role
- What do you want to do next?
- Concrete, feasible, independent

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## Teaching Statement

- Teaching philosophy
- Experience or prior teaching
- Mentoring experience
- have you worked with undergrads or summer students?
- Thoughts on classes you might like to teach or develop

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## Papers

- Can include copies of 1-3, but not more
- Make sure citations are on first page
- Should be recent, first author work
- In direct area of work you talk about as your main result in your research statement

- April 13, 2002

## Letters of Reference - Who?

- At least 3, probably 4, not more than 5
- One MUST be your advisor
- As senior as possible (at least one with tenure)
- As familiar with your work as possible
- Not all at your university, although academic is considered better than industry (for academic positions)
- If you’re applying to a teaching school, have one that can address your teaching

- April 13, 2002

## Letters of Reference - How?

- Ask early (November?)
- Give each writer a package with your job packet PLUS extra papers, thesis chaps
- Make SURE they get sent on time
- When they are requested, bug them to send!
- Give them a list of schools
- ask for sealed letters for each
- request that they be sent everywhere automatically
- Double check that they were sent (and triple check... and then ask again...)

- April 13, 2002

## Miscellaneous stuff

- Single-sided printing
- Reasonable spacing/fonts/copying
- Staple each thing separately
- Put your name on every packet (every page of your CV)
- Don’t fold things up
- Have your entire packet online (sans letters) - including your talk!

- April 13, 2002

## Outline

- What to apply for (alternatives in academia)
- Where to apply
- Job Application Packet
- Interviewing
- Making Decisions
- Two-Body Problem

- April 13, 2002

## Being Invited to Interview

- Be honest - would you go there if they made you an offer?
- Ask to speak with certain people (grad students, a research group, someone in another dept)
- Think about your travel
- east coast vs west coast
- several schools in one city at the same time
- Plan a day off in-between!

- April 13, 2002

## During the Interview

- Breakfast, lunch and dinner (often w. host)
- Half hour meetings with each prof in the dept.
- Meeting with Chair, Dean
- Possible meeting with grad students
- Talk
- Your schedule WILL get messed up - be flexible!

- April 13, 2002

## The Talk

- Often thought of as most important part of interview
- Judged for your research and area
- Judged for you ability to explain it to wide range of researchers
- Judged for teaching expectations
- Judges for interactions with audience

- April 13, 2002

## Preparing the Talk

- Rule of thumb-
- 1/3 for everyone
- 1/3 for your area
- 1/3 to show you’re good!
- Do 3+ practice talks first- seriously!
- Tune your talk for different audiences
- Consider having different talks for research and teaching schools

- April 13, 2002

## Talk, cont.

- Have slides to throw out (not just at end)
- Have slides to add & for common questions
- Speak clearly and loudly
- Be dynamic!
- Repeat the question back
- Think - is this a talk _You_ would want to sit through?

- April 13, 2002

## Questions during the Interview

- Brief descriptions of your research- 1 sentence, 3 min, 10 min
- practice these!
- What is the (single) most important contribution of your research?
- What is the most important new (recent) result in your field?
- Where do you publish/get grants from?

- April 13, 2002

## Questions 2

- What are you currently working on?
- What will you work on next?
- Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10?
- What kind of projects do you want to have students work on with you? (think grad, ms, and undergrad)

- April 13, 2002

## Questions 3

- What’s going on in group X (not your group) at your current school?
- What are your strengths/weaknesses as a researcher/teacher?
- Who would you expect to interact most with in this department?

- April 13, 2002

## Questions 4

- What courses would you like to teach?
- What do you like about teaching?
- What are you looking for in a department?
- What are you looking for in a startup package?
- Where else are you/have you applied?
- What kind of offers do you have?

- April 13, 2002

## Questions 5

- Be honest
- Be direct
- Be discrete
_**Don’t say anything bad about anyone**_

- April 13, 2002

## Illegal Questions and What to Do

- So, when are you going to get married?
- Oh you sound just like my mother
- So, when are you going to have a baby?
- Oh, you sound just like my father
- Aren’t you a little young to be starting in a position like this?
- My family’s blessed with good genes, we all look younger than we are
- Generally, people asking these things will mean well....

- April 13, 2002

## Be Sure To Stay Reachable

- Have a cell phone with voice mail that you give out as a contact number so people can find you on the road
- Take a portable with you- but check to make sure everyone can handle portable slides
- Get local dial-ups to check mail from the hotel

- April 13, 2002

## Things to Make Your Life Better While Interviewing

- Keep a notebook of thoughts
- Get enough sleep
- Watch your health
- Try to exercise, eat ok
- Take time for yourself/family

- April 13, 2002

## Outline

- What to apply for (alternatives in academia)
- Where to apply
- Job Application Packet
- Interviewing
- Making Decisions
- Two-Body Problem

- April 13, 2002

## The Offer

- Teaching load - often reduced for 1 year
- Committee load - often reduced for 1 year
- Salary - Taulbee survey
- http://www.cra.org/statistics/
- Startup funds (equipment, travel, summer)
- Student support
- Tenure clock
- Moving expenses (including your flight)
- Resources - space, admin, supplies, etc

- April 13, 2002

## Negotiating Your Offer

- Decide what is absolutely non-negotiable to accept the job
- Some things are easier than others to argue
- Ask for the advice of your host
- You _ARE_ expected to argue with what they give you- do this!!
- Don’t be afraid to ask for a delayed start date or adjusted tenure clock

- April 13, 2002

## How to Choose Among Offers

- How hard do you want to work?
- Cohesiveness/environment of dept?
- Colleagues
- Big/little fish in a little/big sea
- Importance of getting big grants
- Likelihood of tenure
- Big science vs small science

- April 13, 2002

## Things to Consider

- Quality of students
- Availability of students in your area
- Growth plan for department
- Department vision/leadership/standing within university

- April 13, 2002

## Choosing 2

- Relative importance of teaching/research/service
- Your vision vs department vision
- Quality of life!
- Environment/climate
- Cost of living
- Schools

- April 13, 2002

## Outline

- What to apply for (alternatives in academia)
- Where to apply
- Job Application Packet
- Interviewing
- Making Decisions
- Two-Body Problem

- April 13, 2002

## 2-Body ProblemApplication Tips

- Consider cities/regions with more than one univ. or an active industry (SF, Boston, NY, Chicago, Toronto, Vancouver, Paris, etc.)
- Consider commuting distance
-  Berkeley - Stanford - IBM Almaden
- Consider applying for a post-doc or temporary teaching position
- Apply to a little lower caliber institution

- April 13, 2002

## 2-Body ProblemWhen to tell people

- Pros and cons of:
- On the application
- At the interview
- At the offer
- Some schools have special funds for this

- April 13, 2002

## The best pieces of advice I got....

- Don’t say anything bad about anyone
- Keep a notebook of your experiences
- Stay as “connected” as you can
- Take some time for yourself
- Have fun with it - you’ll never be in a situation where so many people want you and you don’t have to do anything ever again!

- April 13, 2002

## References

- Me
- jms@mcs.anl.gov
- This talk
- www.mcs.anl.gov/~jms/Talks/academicJob.ppt
- Getting a Job- CRA-W
- www.cra.org/Activities/craw/pubs.html
- Sample Job Packet
- www.cs.nwu.edu/~jms/JobPacket/applic.html
- Ellen Spertus’s info
- www.mills.edu/ACAD_INFO/MCS/SPERTUS/ job-search

- April 13, 2002