next »

[jgp32]

I'm actually asking this question on behalf of my husband...we have been living overseas for the past couple of years, as my husband has a TT job at a university in the UK.  We really can't manage the high cost of living here, though, and would like to return to the US.  My husband is going on the market this fall in hopes that he may be able to get an offer.

We've been told that it may be more difficult for him to get interviews, since he's coming from overseas (and visits are therefore significantly more expensive).  Is this true?  Will he have to be a more outstanding candidate than he would be otherwise in order to get an on-campus interview, or is this a myth?  I would think that if the department were interested, they would find a way to bring him for a visit, but perhaps funding limitations preclude this on some occasions?

Also, I don't know if this makes a difference, but he's applying for positions at business schools (which often seem to have plenty of money).

Thanks for any thoughts anyone might be able to offer.

[seniorscholar]

At my east coast research university, we often have a candidate in from the UK (and sometimes elsewhere); the cost during the Jan-Feb interview season in my field is often less than from somewhere in the central US that requires one or two changes of plane. My impression, however, is that smaller schools are often less interested in doing that and less likely to understand that the market for top-quality faculty in many fields is an international market, not a national or local one.

In any case, if (as I think I understand from your message) your husband is a US citizen or holds a green card, make sure he says that in the cover letter, not only on the c.v. (Again, research universities have international faculty and know all about getting visas; some small schools don't.) And if his degree is not from a US university, he should have a half-sentence explanation of the degree and institution, and also perhaps a brief description of the program and school in which he now teaches. The UK vocabulary (and the ranking of schools outside of Oxbridge and LSE) is often a mystery to people in US departments.

[sociological]

I am overseas for a postdoc, but also on the job market, and I was advised that even fancy R1s will not be willing to foot the bill for my international flight. So, on my cover letters, I indicated that I will be back in the U.S. during the interview season. This basically means that I will pay for my own flight back to the US. It's expensive, but on the other hand, I consider it an investment in my career.

[jgp32]

My husband is a US citizen, and his degrees (and all previous positions he's held) have been in the US as well...he hasn't mentioned on any of his application materials that he's an American, but I assume it would be obvious from his CV?

I was wondering whether he should do something like what ratih suggested--mention that he will be in the US in December/January, or somehow indicate that he's willing to pay for at least part of the travel expenses--but he says that he doesn't want to do this and that any school that's interested would be willing to fly him out (also, we'd prefer to save the money if possible!).

Is there anyone out there in a b-school who might be able to weigh in?  Do you guys have more money to allocate towards interviewing?

Thanks again!

[seniorscholar]

There are a great many people who are not US citizens who have all of their degrees from US universities, and some of them had also had one or two teaching positions on temporary visas. Any application material sent from outside the US (or from someone inside the US who has what I'd call a "double ethnic" name -- Liang Yu Lee may, for example, be US born, but many Americans can't even guess the gender and will certainly assume the nationality is non-US) should mention the US citizenship or permanent resident status in the cover letter, since it is not typically on an academic c.v.

In the OP's case, it can certainly go in the last paragraph, along with a sentence that says something about making a trip to the US during a certain period -- you don't want to say you'll come for one interview, probably, but if someone in business will indicate what the usual interview season is, you could say , for example, "I will be scheduling a trip to the US during February and could be available for interviews at that time."

Though as I said in my first post, my East Coast public research university happily pays to bring people from the UK for interviews.

[daniel_von_flanagan]

I was in this situation, and couldn't get an interview back in the US to save my life, even with an "I will pay my own transatlantic fare" clause in the cover letter.  I took a temporary position back in the US, from where I then applied and had enough takers to restore my damaged ego. - DvF

[zharkov]

My husband is a US citizen, and his degrees (and all previous positions he's held) have been in the US as well...he hasn't mentioned on any of his application materials that he's an American, but I assume it would be obvious from his CV?

Don't assume.....  state on the CV something like Citizenship: United States of America.

[jgp32]

Thanks for your input, everyone--he will put something on his CV that indicates his US citizenship.

I'm quite disappointed to discover that it seems as though (at least some) universities will pass on candidates because of the cost of bringing them in for an interview (although I realize that it's impossible to know why a search committee might have passed on a candidate for a particular hire).  Moving here wasn't something that we did enthusiastically, and it's frustrating to discover that it may make it harder for us to get back to the US.  I really don't think that my husband would be willing to take a short-term job just to return to the US...if nothing else he has really enjoyed the security of his TT job (and the very light teaching loads that are common in the UK!).

Sigh.  You think that once you're on the tenure track, everything will fall into place, but of course once you're there you learn that that's not true.

[sociological]

Yikes, I did not think to put my US citizenship on my CV, and my applications have mostly been sent out already. Well, it will be interesting to see if I get any interviews...

[wutan]

In my case, I am not a US citizen and I do not currently have a US visa.  My response to any questions about this will be---as kindly provided by Zharkov in a thread some time ago---"eligible for H1B visa". 

One of the places I will be applying to is already asking for this information outright in the application package.  I am worrying that any non-residents will be automatically discarded, which is why I am reluctant to volunteer this information in cover letter.  I suppose citizenship is actually one of the things you are allowed to use as grounds for discrimination.

In regards to being flown in from Europe or not, I was on the job market next year and worried about the same thing then.  Still, I did get two on-campus interviews, both of which did not hesitate to fly me in.  This year I have decided not to risk it, so I am scheduling a research visit in the US during interview times and dropping note of this in my cover letter.  Any universities strapped for cash can piggyback on top of this trip.

[fishfolk]

I think it's difficult to generalize.  I have a campus interview already lined up for later this autumn in the US and I live in Europe.  Some SC members realize that it's often less expenisve to fly in from Europe than from a non hub airport in the heartland ... while others do not.

Good luck on your search!

[themistius]

I'm a US citizen but did my doctorate abroad.  I was fortunate to get two different flybacks from Europe at the universities' expense last year - from LACs no less.  The discipline trade show is over the winter break, and I concluded all of my cover letters with something akin to 'I will be attending THE conference this year and would enjoy talking about this opportunity in person at that time.'  My c.v. has my American citizenship emblazened at the top (my pedigree plus last name leave things in doubt).    It is possible, though it's an uphill struggle.  At one of the SLAC's the SC chair said the VP for finance nearly had a heart attack at the cost, but they made their case and footed the bill.

[porcupine]

They do sometimes fly people in - a friend of mine from Germany was interviewed for a tt job last winter. But it doesn't hurt to indicate you'll be attending the major conference in your field and perhaps to have a plan to spend a semester there for research during campus interview season.

[larryc]

If we liked your application materials we would at least check air fares before we made a decision on who to invite. But if it was more than 500-600 dollars we will probably invite someone else. We won't take you up on your offer to split the costs because that seems awkward. Sorry.

Yikes, I did not think to put my US citizenship on my CV, and my applications have mostly been sent out already. Well, it will be interesting to see if I get any interviews...

Ratih, drop a quick email to your SC chairs: "Dear Snoogums: I just realized that I did not explicitly state on my c.v. that I am a U.S. citizen. In case this is relevent I am attaching an updated c.v. Cordially, Ratih."

[jgp32]

Wow...I'm still quite surprised that a department would pass on a promising scholar in favor of a less-stellar candidate simply because of the cost of a plane ticket.  Publication records DO have an effect on a department's standing as a research institution, don't they?  Wouldn't most departments be interested in landing the best people available, even if it means spending a few hundred more dollars during the search?