December 28, 2007
Too Much Advice?
There are probably a few too many mirrors in the Fairmont Hotel.
That’s where the giant “Job Interview Area” is situated at this year’s MLA. And the mirrors are everywhere. Dramatic beveled ones following the staircases and escalators up to the interview zone and huge framed ones on the walls at the sign-in area.
Aren’t these job seekers self-conscious enough already?
Early orientation sessions for scholars on the job hunt lasted into the evening yesterday. There were tips for members of search committees, tips for foreign-language job seekers, and tips for job seekers in English, then mock interviews until 10 p.m.
As you might predict, search-committee members seemed less desperate for counsel than the other groups. The fullest workshop was the one for scholars seeking jobs in English, for less-than-mysterious reasons.
One of the last queries in the crush for advice for English job seekers came from a tall, suave-looking guy in a sweater vest. “Have you ever had a candidate who’s just too good?” he asked. “You think they’re overqualified so you don’t hire them?”
“I’ve come across people who I thought were over-professionalized,” replied one of the panelists, a professor at Ohio State University. Then she may have added another layer of worry to the proceedings: “I can tell when a person has listened to too much advice.”
John Gravois | Posted on Friday December 28, 2007 | Permalink
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