Question: My husband and I are junior professors. We've landed two tenure-track jobs in the same department and are profoundly grateful for them. At the same time, we don't want to stay in this region of the country forever, so we'll continue to apply for other jobs. But the odds seem to be against us. Word seems to have gotten around -- even to people we don't know -- that we're a couple, and that we don't consider a commuting marriage to be an option. (Both my husband and I have been surprised when interviewers brought up the dual-career-couple issue, even though we'd taken care not to mention each other.)
We're not sure who's leaking this information -- maybe one of our advisers, in a misguided effort to help -- but we're concerned about it. We see it as clearly limiting our chances, since prospective employers might eliminate us from the pool of potential hires if they think they'd have to hire both of us, not just one. What do dual-career couples do when it is clearly "out" that they're half of an academic couple? What kind of damage control is possible? By the way, these questions are always anonymous, right? Please don't use my name.
Answer: Yes, questions are always anonymous. You're describing a difficult situation. Unfortunately, well-meaning recommenders are one likely source of "leakage." It's very important to let everyone who recommends you know how you want the dual-career-couple situation handled. If recommenders are the source of damage, they may also be the source of damage control, in that one could make a call to the committee during the application-review stage recommending whichever one of you has applied (if you both apply for the same jobs, then it's probably best for you each to address the situation in your individual letters and state that you realize that only one job is available and that you are willing to both compete for it). If someone on the hiring committee brings up the "other person" question, then the recommender can reassure them on the spot. We're not sure whether leaving is an absolute priority or a strong preference for you. If it's the latter, you may also want to ask people to hold your search in as much confidence as possible, so as not to compromise the possibility of tenure where you are.
Question: Currently I am on the job market because my parents would like my partner and I to move back to the United States. We work in Europe in administrative and teaching positions for a U.S. institution offering classes on military bases. For one interview, I used something similar to, "Although I am highly satisfied with my current position, my colleagues, and my lifestyle in Europe, my desire is to move closer to family." This is the unmitigated truth. How better can I or should I approach this?
Answer: What you said was perfect. One thing that you might add in a cover letter, if true, is that you are willing to pay your own expenses to fly back for an interview, perhaps after an initial phone interview to make sure that you're a serious candidate. The expense of flying you in is a major obstacle to an employer, so it's very important that you make clear they won't have to undertake the cost. You might also stress that you're a U.S. citizen, although that might seem obvious from the fact that you want to return to be near family. Try to develop and strengthen connections in your field within the United States. Attend your national conference. Join and participate in relevant electronic mailing lists. Communicate via e-mail with scholars doing work related to yours. Since it sounds as if you want to relocate as part of a couple, make sure to discuss how you're going to coordinate both of your job searches.
Question: My wife and I have long and distinguished careers in business in New York City. We have worked hard and have been extremely fortunate financially. Now we want to get off the fast business track and out of New York to an academic environment where we can both make meaningful contributions. Our business backgrounds in finance, operations, and marketing are impeccable. What is the best method to approach this transition?
Answer: We'd suggest that you focus on administrative, rather than faculty, positions. A Ph.D. is close to essential for the latter, except for ill-paid adjunct positions. You will see many administrative positions listed in The Chronicle, in fact. Do a lot of networking before you begin applying, and talk with people in a variety of university roles. That will help you know which university positions to focus on. There's a good chance you'll need to take a pay cut, but we imagine you already realize that.
Question: I have just finished my first year as a tenure-track faculty member. Although it's a good position professionally, I would like to relocate to a warmer climate. How many years should I wait to get back on the market? I have heard that seeking another job after only a year makes you look unreliable to prospective colleagues. What is your opinion on the subject? Should I tell the department head that I am applying elsewhere? From whom should I get my letters of recommendation?
Answer: This is a tough question! The answer depends somewhat on the demand in your field. You would typically get recommendations from your old department, perhaps from professional colleagues elsewhere and, if possible, from someone in your current department whom you trust not to spread the word. Then you ask prospective employers to keep your search in confidence and to let you know before they contact your current department.
Whether you should tell your department head depends entirely on the department head. A mean chairman may try to sabotage your search or kill your prospects for tenure. A decent one may be reasonably supportive, but you really can't expect either type to be happy, considering how much effort goes into making a tenure-track hire.
Another factor is your reason for leaving. For example, if you have just learned you need to live in a warmer climate for medical reasons, most people will be more understanding than if you simply don't like the climate, which hasn't changed since you interviewed last year and told the department you wanted to work there. If the job is not as it was described, this may be something prospective employers can relate to. It also matters whether you hate the place so much that you know you will leave -- whether you find a new job or not. If you don't want the job under any circumstances, you have a lot less to lose by being open about your plans, and the department may also be better off learning sooner rather than later how things stand. Ideally you consider both how the decision affects you and how it affects other people.
Question: I was invited to interview recently for a great job and was told near the close of my two days on campus that the search committee planned to make a decision within two weeks. It's been nearly four weeks now, and I realize it's likely they've made an offer to one of the other candidates. Must I sit around and wait for the bad-news letter, or is it reasonable to e-mail someone from the search committee and ask what my status is? If so, is there a more-or-less standard amount of time that should elapse before inquiring? The uncertainty is a hard thing to shrug off -- it'd be easier to know that the job just isn't mine -- because the position would have really been wonderful.
Answer: Unfortunately, hiring committees don't always follow through as they should. By all means, e-mail the committee and ask whether it has made a decision yet, and, if it hasn't, ask about the time frame. You can say that you continue to be very interested in the position. It's possible they offered the job to someone else who is still deciding, and that you're No. 2 on the list, so don't assume it's filled. What you want to do is to let the committee know of your interest in case the position is still open and to leave a good feeling in case it isn't.
What you want to avoid is seeming to question the committee's timing or judgment. Certainly continue to apply vigorously for other positions until you've accepted an offer.
Question: I need your help. My girlfriend (whom I want to marry and spend the rest of my life with) is working on her Ph.D. and has entered the job market, applying for jobs in various places. The problem is this: I need to stay here for family health issues, and she wants a tenure-track teaching position and says she needs to relocate. How do we resolve this? We've been dating over a year now, and this problem is tearing us apart. I want to propose to her but haven't because I'm scared she'll get a job out of the area. Isn't there any way of her obtaining a position locally without having to relocate?
Answer: It's sometimes difficult for people in other career fields to understand the way the Ph.D. market for faculty positions works. It's a national market, and candidates who aren't free to relocate nationally at the start of their academic careers run the risk of ending up with either a lifetime of temporary or marginal jobs at marginal institutions or no academic career at all. Your girlfriend is very unlikely to obtain a decent academic job locally, and if she takes an undesirable job now, she greatly compromises her chances of getting a good one later. If you ask her not to move, you're asking her to give up a career she's spent years preparing for. This may not be the best way to begin a long-term relationship.
You say you can't move, but you surely don't mean you can't ever move. Some couples would deal with a situation like this by having the academic partner take the best job he or she can get in a metropolitan area (where a good choice of employment is likely to be available for the nonacademic partner), commuting for a year or two, and then having the other person move when it becomes feasible to do so. This is a tough problem, but it can be dealt with if you both are willing to be flexible in discussing all the options, and to be quite clear, if one partner makes a sacrifice, that its extent is acknowledged by both people involved.
If you're saying, in effect, "I want to marry you if you're willing to live here indefinitely," that's important information for her to have, and only the beginning of a conversation, so why not go ahead and tell her where things stand for you?
 |
 |
 |
