Are you a doctoral student? Are you worried about your employment prospects?
The Professor Is In by Karen Kelsky provides a thorough analysis of the challenges and inherent competitiveness involved in obtaining academic roles in the US. The American academic sector is undergoing a crisis marked by substantial cuts in funding and broader changes impacting teachers and students alike.
Keep reading for an overview of The Professor Is In.
Overview of The Professor Is In by Karen Kelsky
The Professor Is In by Karen Kelsky was published in 2015. In 2013, public universities experienced a substantial decline in state aid. Universities, driven by financial constraints, are forced to raise tuition costs and rely more heavily on the appointment of administrative personnel, whose numbers are increasing at a faster pace than those of the faculty. Universities have scaled back their academic programs, cut teaching positions, and reduced essential services.
As a result of these cutbacks, universities increasingly rely on adjunct faculty members, who often earn wages below the minimum threshold and do not have job stability, health insurance, or retirement benefits. Faculty members with the same level of expertise as their tenured counterparts often face lower pay, sometimes even less than what a Walmart worker earns, and lack the support of the institution, which may affect the caliber of their teaching. The proliferation of part-time professor roles limits their participation in vital research and student guidance, thereby reducing the educational experience’s quality.
Graduate students often receive modest stipends for their roles as teaching assistants and see their debt levels soar. Students pursuing graduate degrees are facing growing financial burdens as the assistance provided for their education fails to cover the actual living expenses, resulting in economic hardship and limited career opportunities in academia.
The Diminishing Career Prospects in Academia
The realm of academic employment opportunities has contracted significantly, resulting in a noticeable reduction in the availability of tenure-track positions.
Institutions of higher education are progressively opting for short-term and provisional roles rather than the traditional long-term academic positions. From 1975 to 2011, there was a modest 23 percent rise in the availability of stable, full-time academic positions that could lead to tenure, whereas the non-tenured and part-time roles expanded to almost three times their original number. The heightened expectations placed on today’s full-time faculty have created a more challenging environment for Ph.D. graduates in pursuit of employment.
The academic sector is becoming more tolerant of precarious employment situations, characterized by an increase in temporary and supplementary roles. Numerous part-time roles are frequently combined by adjunct faculty to secure adequate earnings, leading to inconsistent employment circumstances and financial uncertainty. The allure and practicality of an academic career are diminishing for many because of limited resources, demanding timetables, and inadequate pay.
The competition for academic positions is intense, often resulting in feelings of discouragement among applicants who face a scarcity of tenure-track roles and grapple with burdensome application procedures, and those in adjunct teaching positions experience tough circumstances with little opportunity for advancement. Many early-career academics navigate a treacherous path toward stable employment, finding themselves in an environment where even assiduous efforts don’t guarantee a secure job.
6 Ways to Gain a Competitive Edge for a Career in Academia
Increasing academic competitiveness is essential for emerging scholars. Kelsky discusses six things you should do if you want to develop a robust scholarly background and succeed in an academic career: demonstrate academic achievement, practice professionalism, maintain autonomy, build a reputation, cultivate relationships, and implement a strategic plan. Let’s take a look at each one.
#1: Demonstrate Academic Achievement
Regularly updating your resume with recent achievements creates an impression of ongoing diligence. You can demonstrate academic achievement in several ways: write and publish, pursue grants and fellowships, participate in conferences, and create and teach your own curriculum.
Write and Publish
Academic achievement is often measured by the quantity of scholarly articles published and the ability to secure financial support from outside entities. Prior to the defense of your dissertation, it’s crucial to carefully plan your publication trajectory, which should include the publication of at least one article in a peer-reviewed journal as the sole author. Securing at least one peer-reviewed publication can significantly improve your academic standing.
It’s crucial to have your research appear in respected, peer-reviewed academic journals. Your chances of success in the job market can significantly improve if you’ve contributed a peer-reviewed article to scholarly publications. The significance and pertinence of your published works to your area of study can vary, yet it remains a crucial factor, even though the required quantity may vary among different scholarly fields. Sharing your dissertation’s findings too extensively before securing tenure could exhaust the essential materials needed for this professional milestone.
Pursue Grants and Fellowships
Aspiring academics must understand that securing funding is essential, as it not only offers financial support but also boosts your standing among academic peers. Grants provide not only monetary relief but also serve as symbols of prestige. Securing substantial international funding should be considered an essential part of an academic’s duties, and it’s advisable to do so before finishing your studies.
Participate in Conferences
Actively engaging in and coordinating panels at leading national conferences is essential for building a notable reputation in the academic field. This provides a platform to demonstrate research, engage with scholarly debates, and network with potential collaborators. Organizing an academic conference can notably enhance a scholar’s reputation; it should attract a substantial audience, be pertinent, and include notable speakers.
Create and Teach Your Own Curriculum
Possessing a wide range of teaching experiences is highly valued. Instructing a course independently demonstrates your ability to manage and guide it without assistance. Should the department associated with your doctoral studies not offer chances to take charge of a classroom, seeking part-time teaching positions at nearby institutions could prove beneficial. Your qualifications should highlight your capacity for innovation within the educational sector and showcase your teaching proficiency, distinguishing you from the responsibilities commonly linked to a teaching assistant.
#2: Practice Professionalism
Expertise in a particular field of study and proficient management of the documentation and standards pertinent to your career path are what constitute academic professionalism. It’s important to have a perfect curriculum vitae, an impeccable cover letter, and a compelling teaching philosophy statement. You must understand the details of job openings, dress suitably for interviews, and ensure your application materials are submitted with professionalism. For instance, it’s crucial to use legible and standard fonts, appropriate margins, and avoid overly dense text to guarantee that the document has a professional and tidy appearance.
#3: Maintain Autonomy
Achieving success in the academic field relies significantly on your ability to be independent. Demonstrate autonomy from your mentors, and establish credibility within your specific field. Proactively disseminate your research findings, and participate in conferences independently—without expecting encouragement or assistance from your advisors. An impressive academic record is characterized by innovative and autonomous projects, as opposed to simply expanding on prior studies.
#4: Build a Reputation
By strategically networking and promoting your work, you can significantly enhance your visibility in the professional realm. Engaging in professional gatherings and effectively leveraging social media platforms can foster joint ventures, open up job prospects, and enhance your visibility in your field of expertise. You should also endeavor to obtain endorsements from experts affiliated with institutions other than your own.
#5: Cultivate Relationships
Educators must develop a supportive community that fosters networking and collaborative encouragement. Applicants must demonstrate their ability to collaborate with colleagues and contribute significantly to the department’s initiatives. During campus visits, the committee evaluates candidates to ascertain their potential for establishing relationships, an essential aspect of their anticipated responsibilities as faculty members.
#6: Implement a Strategic Plan
Developing a strategic vision is essential in the realm of academia. A clear five-year plan outlines the trajectory of publishing, conference participation, and grant applications aligned with career goals. Employers assessing candidates for employment can easily identify their preparedness, strategic planning methods, and anticipation of possible challenges in the academic sector.
Navigating Challenges as a Doctoral Student
Navigating through a doctoral program’s complexities requires balancing financial responsibilities and conquering individual doubts while laying out strategies for future professional success. Kelsky emphasizes not only the monetary difficulties Ph.D. candidates encounter when trying to obtain funding but also the mental and emotional barriers that can impede their progress.
Financial Challenges
Pursuing a doctorate often incurs significant expenses. Many graduate students accumulate considerable financial obligations in pursuit of their academic goals. As needed, look for respected programs that provide substantial financial support, which often includes aid that’s more in tune with the region’s living expenses. This will reduce economic stress.
A significant number of doctoral degree seekers frequently find themselves burdened with considerable debt. From 2004 to 2012, individuals who had completed graduate-level education experienced a substantial rise in their debt amounts, with a 43% increase when adjusted for inflation. By 2012, the median debt carried by graduate students had climbed to $57,600. A significant portion of these students are burdened with debts that surpass $100,000, accounting for one-fifth of the group. Scholars engaged in graduate studies are vital to their universities through their contributions to teaching and research, yet their financial compensation has not kept pace with increasing living expenses, resulting in economic difficulties for these academics.
The selection of graduate students by universities is frequently conducted through a process that lacks transparency. The inadequacy of stipends may initially go unnoticed in the offer letters, potentially resulting in unforeseen financial challenges for students. Advisors might sometimes miss circumstances that may result in situations where their own interests are at odds with those of their students, inadvertently guiding them into graduate programs that perpetuate exploitative labor and financial indebtedness. Discussions in academia often highlight the benefits that tenured faculty members receive from a system bolstered by the steady influx of new graduate students and the allocation of roles as teaching assistants; yet, these conversations frequently overlook the impact on the graduate students themselves.
A broad survey underscored the unstable economic situation of numerous doctoral degree holders, revealing substantial monthly loan repayments and the hope that their loans might eventually be forgiven. The research emphasizes the limited prospects for individuals seeking higher education in the humanities, a path frequently linked with significant financial risk.
Emotional and Psychological Challenges
The emotional and psychological challenges are equally taxing. Impostor syndrome—a persistent fear of inadequacy despite evident success—disproportionately plagues women and people from underrepresented groups. The syndrome can be intensified by microaggressions and the pressure to conform within academic norms. In the pursuit of employment, it’s crucial to find equilibrium between authentic self-representation and aligning with the expectations of the hiring panel, which typically leans towards candidates who present themselves as impartial and refrain from challenging established beliefs.
Individuals pursuing academic roles frequently contemplate whether their unique personal traits will hinder or help them as they strive for a profession within the realm of higher education. When considering the integration of your personal identity into academic pursuits, it’s essential to carefully balance the benefits and drawbacks, which are influenced by how open the department is to diversity and the job market’s inclination toward wide-ranging expertise.
Doctoral students frequently feel alone and targeted, intensifying their doubts and compounding the emotional challenges they encounter. The quest for higher education can occasionally foster feelings of insufficiency that exacerbate issues, leading job seekers to unintentionally sabotage their prospects of achievement. Mentors play a pivotal role in nurturing students’ confidence and assisting them in overcoming doubts about their capabilities.
To successfully traverse the employment landscape, you must possess a steadfast resolve to handle refusals and the unpredictable elements of achieving success. Assess your financial resilience, the breadth of your support network, and your capacity for weathering setbacks. Stay calm and mature when setting your career goals, instead of giving in to feelings of insignificance or undue anxiety.
Unionization shines as a symbol of optimism, offering a path to challenge the existing conditions that can be oppressive. Kelsky challenges the misguided perception that adjuncts have not succeeded and advocates for a comprehensive reassessment that frees scholarly work from the limited perspective of a myopic system overly focused on merit. She contends that we can collaboratively guide the customs of graduate training and the process of academic hiring towards a path that’s more fair and enduring.
4 Effective Tactics for Getting a Job in Academia
Navigating the complexities of obtaining a suitable higher education role can be quite challenging. In order to distinguish yourself in the competitive world of academia and create applications that make an impact, it’s essential to undertake thorough preparation, develop a profound understanding of yourself, and establish meaningful relationships within the academic community. Kelsky offers several strategies for candidates aiming for a prestigious academic position. Let’s take a look at each one.
#1: Pursue Positions on the Tenure Track
If you pursue a tenure-track career, Kelsky writes that it’s important that you (1) understand how such roles work; (2) craft persuasive curricula vitae, statements of teaching philosophy, and other supplementary materials; and (3) master academic interviews and on-site university tours.
How Tenure-Track Roles Work
Securing a tenure-track academic role generally begins long before the job is formally advertised, usually initiating in the autumn of the previous year. Academic departments identify their staffing needs and suggest them to the dean—the individual with the authority to sanction these job openings, often termed “lines.” Once a position receives approval, the department forms a committee responsible for creating the job announcement, which is subsequently published in the late spring and appears in the editions corresponding to the late summer or early autumn period.
Upon the announcement of job vacancies, the selection committee examines the applications and selects an initial group of 25 prospective candidates. Applicants can advance through the evaluation stages using phone or video conferencing, leading to the creation of a narrowed list for the faculty’s review. As the new year begins, the most exceptional candidates receive invitations to explore the campus.
During campus visits, participants engage in various activities, including interviews and shared meals. They also must showcase their proficiency in teaching or highlight their research achievements. After the final candidate has left, the institution begins the decision-making process, which culminates in the presentation of an employment proposal and the assimilation of the new team member.
Getting Your Documents in Order
Crafting persuasive documents is crucial when seeking tenure-track academic roles. Make certain that your cover letter succinctly encapsulates your academic research, published works, and teaching philosophy, all within a firmly established limit of two pages. Make certain that your teaching statement is succinct—restricted to one page—and that it emphasizes specific instructional approaches along with the classes you’ve taught. Your research statement must concisely present your previous accomplishments and future goals within a limited two-page document.
Your resume should serve as a comprehensive document that may extend to five pages for those with substantial expertise in their fields. Hopefully, they choose to engage in more intellectual forms of interventions later on. Ensure that the documents you submit—including your resume and cover letter—are customized to showcase your qualifications in an objective way, steering clear of any wording that might express emotion.
Interviews can occur in numerous forms and environments, ranging from conference calls to on-site university visits. Be prepared to discuss your dissertation, publishing plans, teaching philosophy, and understanding of the department’s needs. Every interaction should be viewed as a key component in the ongoing evaluation of your compatibility with the department’s atmosphere.
Mastering Interviews and Campus Tours
In academic interviews, the evaluation centers on verifying your qualifications as a candidate, determining your appropriateness for the role, and judging your capacity for teamwork. Preparing thoroughly for a range of potential questions is essential, particularly those that delve into your scholarly work, published materials, specialized knowledge within your field, and teaching methodologies. Enhance your response skills to address inquiries—both affirming and inquisitive—by customizing your answers to align with the varied academic committees and institutions.
During your visit to the campus for a potential job, expect a full schedule encompassing multiple meetings, meals, and a relevant presentation for the job. It’s imperative to demonstrate intellectual acumen and prepare for potential teaching demonstrations. Engaging thoroughly with faculty members, academic administrators, and students is crucial at this point to ascertain mutual compatibility. Skillfully handle discussions pertaining to any positions that are offered to you.
#2: Create Tailor-Made Submissions
If you plan to apply to a variety of academic institutions, Kelsky recommends that you understand the goals of each institution and the expectations of each role. Then, ensure your expertise and approach are in harmony with the fundamental values and needs of each organization.
Learn the Goals and Expectations of Each Institution and Role
Investigate the variety of academic settings, which include not only elite ivy-covered universities but also institutions dedicated to specific fields in the humanities and sciences, alongside expansive state universities celebrated for their comprehensive research initiatives (often referred to as R1 and R2). Each academic level carries its own set of expectations pertaining to scholarship and teaching duties. While prioritizing undergraduate teaching, small prestigious liberal arts colleges may also expect a dedication to research on par with major research universities. Universities that aren’t as highly ranked are adjusting to an environment where the competition for job applicants is intensifying and the expectations for academic publications are evolving. Customize your strategy and conversations to align with the distinct goals and principles of each organization.
Look for a Good Match
Craft individualized resumes and cover letters that are customized for every unique role and hiring organization. Ensure your application reflects the specific elements of the job posting and the online presence of the university, highlighting how your educational and investigative expertise corresponds with the department’s key areas of interest. Ensure you convey sincere excitement without overwhelming the committee with unnecessary details. Emphasize your unique academic agenda and preparedness to assimilate into the broader educational community.
#3: Leverage Digital Platforms
Establish a professional digital footprint through the utilization of networking sites such as LinkedIn and by crafting a personal website. Ensure that your online profiles are updated regularly and accurately reflect your scholarly accomplishments. When you produce content for public dissemination, carefully evaluate how it conforms to the standards of public discourse and its capability to promote your academic goals.
#4: Build Professional Connections in Your Area of Expertise
Cultivating relationships is crucial for discovering academic prospects. Engage genuinely—but with a strategic approach—when dealing with peers, mentors, and distinguished experts in your field of specialization. Participate actively in events, initiate conversations, and immerse yourself in activities that promote networking and collaboration with people who might support you and could turn into your future partners. Leverage social media wisely to build networks that could result in valuable partnerships or potential employment opportunities.
3 Tips for Alternative Career Trajectories
Recognizing the declining likelihood of obtaining a permanent academic appointment, Kelsky offers insights and strategies to assist scholars in leveraging their academic knowledge for success in non-academic professions. She advises that you accept the fact that academic career opportunities are limited, identify skills you can transfer to other fields, and develop entrepreneurialism. Let’s explore each of these tips.
#1: Accept That Academic Career Opportunities Are Limited
Kelsky highlights the disproportionate nature of the academic employment landscape, where the limited availability of tenure-track positions stands in stark contrast to the abundance of individuals holding Ph.D. degrees, thereby intensifying the difficulty of pursuing an academic profession. In addition to seeking tenure-track roles, you should also explore professional opportunities beyond the academic environment. Prioritize financial stability, managing debt, and building savings. Kelsky underscores the significance of choosing academic positions that align with personal ambitions and warns against becoming overly entrenched in the conventional ways of academia.
#2: Identify Transferable Skills
Numerous students pursuing advanced degrees are coming to terms with the challenging reality that they may need to explore professional opportunities beyond the academic sphere due to the scarcity of permanent professorial roles. Advocating for the formation of unions could be an effective approach to combating inequitable treatment of adjunct faculty.
Kelsky implies that you can maintain your independence by changing your everyday routines—irrespective of the professional trajectory you choose, be it within academia or other sectors of specialization. Despite initially feeling shame and encountering disapproval from colleagues, she recounts the personal satisfaction gained from selling jewelry at a local farmer’s market, indicating that you can indeed find contentment in pursuits that aren’t connected to scholarly work.
As a Ph.D. graduate, you should reconceptualize your self-image by emphasizing the broad range of abilities you’ve developed as you move into a non-academic employment area. Kelsky underscores the necessity for you to distinguish your competencies from your scholarly persona and evaluate the applicability of these competencies across various non-academic positions.
It’s important to expand your view regarding career paths that aren’t limited to academic settings and consider additional education as a means to fill any skill gaps for roles outside of academia.
#3: Develop Entrepreneurialism
Individuals with doctoral degrees possess the ability to shape their own professional paths by engaging in entrepreneurial activities. Pursuing a career outside the conventional sphere can result in personal satisfaction and the acquisition of new abilities. Kelsky is adept at guiding individuals through various academic career paths, emphasizing the viability of different professional journeys.
Academic endeavors typically engage with theoretical ideas, while business ventures often yield immediate and tangible satisfaction. Academics should consider valuing work independently, without the need for validation from traditional academic institutions. You might do well to vigorously pursue career ambitions that you previously disregarded, while recognizing your broad spectrum of transferable skills.
