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[history_phd21]

(Disclaimer: I searched and could not find relevant info for phone interviews.)

I was just scheduled for a phone interview with an elite SLAC …only 3 days to prepare.
I plan to research the search committee and practice a short intro of my dissertation and my teaching philosophy, etc…
Any hints or help on how to prepare for this? How were your phone interviews?

[voxprincipalis]

I don't know how you searched, but when I typed in "phone interview" I got 25+ pages of threads on this topic. Here are some that you will probably find relevant.


http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,22238.0.html

http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,19313.0.html

http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,18990.0.html

http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,26894.0.html

http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,18474.0.html

http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,18410.0.html



VP

[doctormommy]

Only 3 days to prepare? Hah! Please refer to my thread titled "DOH!!!"

[history_phd21]

-Thanks VP… I think I need to work on my newsgroup searching techniques.

- Doctormomy… I actually read your post a few days ago and when I got a call from a suspicious looking phone number I broke into a sweat, panicked and was sure it was from one of the schools that I applied to… so I didn’t answer the phone… and searched the number online and sure enough it was from one of my top job choices. So I hurriedly prepared for a possible interview. The same number rang an hour later and it was the secretary setting up a phone interview in a few days. :-)

[hum_postdoc]

I've had one phone interview, and it was awkward. Prepare as you would for any other interview and have answers ready for the usual questions about research and teaching. Also have your questions ready too. It's hard because (as people have said here before) you can't read people's faces, you have to be very good about signaling when you're done with an answer, and remain calm. Because you're on the phone, you might have to ask them to repeat themselves more than you would in person. Also, hopefully your interviewers will identify themselves before they ask a question so that you can address them by name and try to establish a rapport over the phone.

There were a few nice things about the phone interview. I was in my pajamas at my desk at home and had all kinds of notes in front of me. But overall, it's tough, but you can do fine if you prepare and speak clearly.

[not_a_gradstudent1]

Any hints or help on how to prepare for this? How were your phone interviews?

I just had one just the other day. Despite all the preparation I did, there were still some questions out of left-field  and the whole thing felt very awkward from my end, mostly because of not being able to gauge the committee's reactions to my answers or know which of the 5 people on the other end was asking what (not to mention a bad case of speaker-phone phobia).
It seemed, though, that they responded best to answers that showed I had done some research on the school and its location - referring to the town like the locals do, or using the department's idiosyncratic terminology, for example.
If I could prep for it again, the only thing I'd do differently is make sure I was more relaxed - I was so jittery, I practically fell out of my chair when the phone rang and jumped the gun on a lot of the early questions, which just got me even more pent up for the rest of the interview. 

[oldfullprof]

Keep talking.  Be interesting.  Don't give brief answers and stop.  We eliminate everyone who does that during the phone interview, even if they sound bright.  Be real forthcoming.  You have only one dimension through which you can present yourself during the phone interview.

[gennimom]

I once applied to a position teaching high school in another state, and got a phone call that turned into a phone interview. I must have done something right because they asked me to come for a f2f. That seemed to go well, but then the school board nixed hiring anyone in the middle of the year. I think something else was going on, because when I reapplied in May, there was a new principal. Hmmm.

Anyway, that is beside the point. You never know until you get that first surprise interview how you will do. You may do better than you think. Try not to sweat it.

[trabb]

- Doctormomy… I actually read your post a few days ago and when I got a call from a suspicious looking phone number I broke into a sweat, panicked and was sure it was from one of the schools that I applied to… so I didn’t answer the phone…

I hesitate to post this lest I sound condescending and nasty.  However, you might want to rethink this attitude if at all possible.  The reality is that through this whole process of job searching, you will be called upon to speak about your qualifications, your research, and your teaching at the times when you least expect it - in hotel bars, in elevators, and anywhere else you might imagine that you could run into someone from a search committee.  Sure, there will be times (as doctormommy pointed out) where circumstances are such that you're not super-focused and razor-sharp, but I think you'll do much better if you expect that every call will be someone asking you about your qualifications.

Soo...I suggest practicing on two groups of people.  For the next three days, you will have plenty of opportunities to talk about your research.  Every campaign worker who calls and asks if you have a moment to talk - say "yes, now let me tell you about my research."  After elections, opportunities will arise more sporadically, but you likely will still have the occasional Citibank employee call to whom you can expound upon your teaching philosophies.

[drdirt55]

trabb,

You are a genius!  I can't wait to try it out.  I think I'll take my name off of the No-Call list just to have more opportunities to practice.  Do they hang up on you?

[purell]

Phone interviews can be unpredictable. They can ask anything. One experience I had was frustrating. The committee called almost 2 hours late, which was bed time for me because of the time zone difference. Each member asked three unrelated questions at one time and then gave me an opportunity to answer all the questions and then the next member did the same thing. One question dealt with what I knew about the state the school was located in. Of all of the interviews I have been on, I have never been asked to provide a summary of my dissertation. They focused instead on questions relating to my philosophy of education and key issues in my discipline.

One nice thing about phone interviews is you can have notes in front of you.

[anthroid]

The phone interview is probably the most important part of the job search process.  The advice you're getting is good, historyphd2.  purell, I am surprised no one asked you to summarize your dissertation; if someone is ABD or a baby Ph.D., it's the first question I ask.  One of the points of the phone interview is to see if you can summarize your research, teaching abilities and philosophy, and commitment to the academy in a good-humored, collegial way.  Yes, it's awkward and difficult and, at its worst, completely scripted (and therefore boring).

All of that being said, the OP may be taking this, and huself, just a little too seriously.  Answer the phone, for pete's sake!  Don't inconvenience folks, especially the administrative assistant, because you're nervous!  No reasonable search committee would call you up for a surprise phone interview. 

[smurfette]

I just wanted to point out that for a phone interview that I will be having soon, the SC emailed me the questions ahead of time. This is VERY MUCH appreciated.  I don't know how common this is, though... 

[sidwell]

I had a 15 minute phone interview w/6 people on the other end. The 1st question was 'what books would you use to teach Intro to _______" at this particular school. While I am currently teaching that course where I am, it somehow threw me...but I recovered...I had no idea how it went, but then I got a campus invite...so I guess it was OK. It seems it is harder to tell how a phone interview went given the lack of visual feedback. On the other hand, some in-person interviews seem to go quite well and then you never hear from the school again...

-Sidwell.

[smurfette]

What I am finding is that there is so much variation in these interviews...  I've had interviews that lasted 1 hr with just 1 person interviewing me. Then I've had 30 min interviews with 6 people on the line.