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[knitting_4_sanity]

My partner does program management work for the elite big city university from which I will soon graduate.  He's been taking advantage of his tuition remission to persue a graduate degree in administration, and will have one more year to go when I (in theory, hopefully) head off to a TT this summer.  We're planning on doing a year of distance while he finishes his degree, and hope he can join me summer/fall 09.  He'd be happy to stay in higher ed, but has experience in other industries (nonprofit, publishing) and is, by and large, pretty flexible.     

My interviews, so far, have been spectacular, but have been at SLACs in remote corners of the country-- some in areas with very, very few middle class jobs, and some at very, very small schools.   We had been hoping I would land at a TT in an urban area where he could just find a job, but that may not come to pass.  We're  growing anxious.
 
Does anyone have any advice/experiences/thoughts on how to ask for help finding him a job a year out?  Any thoughts on creative solutions?     
 

[expatinuk]

Well... what are the chances of you staying where you are for a year and going out on the market next year. If you're not being offered anything in a grographic area where he would be able to get something you'd probably want to leave next year.

[knitting_4_sanity]

It's a possibility, although, really, it all comes down to cold, hard cash.  We're in a highly expensive urban center, my funding has run out, and while I've got some adjunct work which I find emotionally fulfilling, it would be challenging for us both to live on his salary and the pennies I make adjuncting.  Our "Plan B" (if I don't get a job at all) is indeed for me to hold off filing my dissertation until the fall, pick up as much adjunct work as I can, and learn creative ways to cook ramen, but we were sort of hoping we might make it into the middle class sooner rather than later...

[profwannabe]

If he'd be happy to stay in higher ed, I would explore the possibility of a spousal hire at a college where you land.  This may be trickier for you because he won't be ready to start at the same time as you, but rather than just looking for a new job after a year you could threaten to do so if they can't find a job for him.

[expatinuk]

One of the things you MIGHT want to look into to address the cold hard cash issue is the ability to do any temping work. I did this when I lost my assistantship (due to a Uni cash crisis) one summer. Because I had great office skills I actually made more money than I did adjuncting and with my assistantship. I also did a lot less work. I found that the more skills you have the more money you make and the less work you do.

In fact I ended up spending the summer actually READING for my dissertation because there was so little work. I was hired as a maternity cover and the company HAD to use someone or lose the money.... they were fine with me looking busy. And I was busy, just not with their work. ..... they didn't have any!

[sibyl]

It's too hard to answer this question a year out.  During the coming year, there should be ample opportunity for the two of you to develop networks in your new area and determine whether he can really make a go of it.  He appears to have considerable flexibility, and to have decided that your career is going to come first. 

During the negotiation phase, you should say, By the way, my spouse will finish a degree in X next year and he has experience in Y and Z.  What can you tell me about leads on job prospects for him in the area?  If there are possibilities at the institution, the dean will be glad to share them and to keep an eye peeled; if there aren't, the dean can probably connect you with someone who knows the area well.  In other words, don't treat it as a negotiation point but as an information point, and invite the dean to sell you on it.

Good luck.

[svenc]

Knitting, for many schools in rural areas, spousal employment is the number one faculty retention issue.  When you get offers, talk bluntly to the schools about the situation.  They may be able to do more than you might expect at first glance, esp. if your spouse is willing to stay in higher ed.

Best of luck!

[mellonia]

My partner and I had a frank discussion about lifestyle and career choices before I went on the market, which wound up (in part) somewhat limiting where I applied to places where we knew we'd have a decent chance of wanting to live there, and where he would be likely to find a job. (basically, we knew that as an academic wanting to wind up at a research institution, my choices were more limiting than his, and also knew that it wasn't going to be possible for me to negotiate a job for him).   When I took my current position we gave it 5 years to see whether he would be able to build a career that was fulfilling.  Both during my postdoc (I'm in science) and when we moved here, my partner worked a diversity of temporary jobs to keep contributing to supporting the household, in his field (mostly, so resume-building) and in just over a year here he landed a permanent job.  I guess my point is that it worked for us, and I feel very lucky about that, but the important thing was we kept our eye on the prize (two positions in one place) and built our CV's to help make that happen.  It was hard financially at times but all is great now.

Good luck to you both!

[writenow]

Plus 2 homes are more expensive than one--so if you leave big city, will your partner go move in with someone for free? If he will be paying the same rent without any support from you, and you will be paying rent elsewhere, it is hard to see how being apart is a financially sound move...

This has kept us from several such arrangements...

[knitting_4_sanity]

Thanks, everyone, for your support and input. 

Since my initial post, I have accepted a TT at a SLAC in a small city with a healthy economy and solid-looking employment possibilities for my program manager partner.  (Unless, of course, the economy tanks this year.) 

We got language in my offer letter promising for help networking to find him a job, and we're taking mellonia's advice to give it five years to see how it works in the new region.  I'll check in next year and let you know how it goes!

[drdice]

Knitting, for many schools in rural areas, spousal employment is the number one faculty retention issue.  When you get offers, talk bluntly to the schools about the situation.  They may be able to do more than you might expect at first glance, esp. if your spouse is willing to stay in higher ed.

Best of luck!

What svenc said. My spouse retired last year and came with for the new job. In my later interviews last year I was savvy enough to ask about possibilities for him with various sports teams at the u or in finance where his background is, and most places had people in those departments for me to talk to during my interview. I didn't figure this out until midway through my interviews, so it didn't do us any good at the job I took. Employers are most inclined to come up with things to help you and the spouse when they are wooing you, in my experience.