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It’s not exactly news that the academic job market has been very competitive for some time now. And if you finally land the kind of position you’ve been looking for, everyone congratulates you, and you can’t help but feel pretty lucky. But what do you do if, for whatever reason, you decide this isn’t the job for you? Alternatively, what if you’ve been working in the same job for a number of years and are now considering a change of employers? It happens.
Maybe you’re extremely unhappy with the part of the world where you’re now living. Maybe your colleagues aren’t as collegial as you’d like. Maybe the people who made working there worthwhile have left or retired. Maybe there are family reasons for your need to relocate. No matter the cause, you might find yourself in the position of having to search for a new academic position while currently employed in what others might see as a perfectly good job. It can be a tricky situation. I think we’d all worry about the worst-case scenario of such a search. If your colleagues find out about your search, they could feel resentful or even betrayed. And if they do, and you don’t land a new job, you could find yourself back on campus next year… with colleagues who know you’d rather be working somewhere else.
What helpful advice do you have for those who find themselves conducting an academic job search…when they already have an academic job? Let us hear from you in the comments!
(Important disclaimer: Although I am the author of this post, I am not currently looking to leave my current job and look for another one. I’m perfectly happy where I am, than you very much!)
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