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[rsblue18]

Hi all--

Two quick questions that I haven't been able to find elsewhere on the forum.

I am preparing for an interview at a UK institution, in a humanities discipline. I've been asked to give a 15 minute talk about my research agenda. I'm trying to mix together general descriptions of my current project (dissertation revision into book) and next project with some discussion of a specific chapter from each project  and then some logistics (namely, that I plan to submit two journal articles in the next 6-8 months, each based on a chapter of the dissertation, and that I have two major presentations of this work coming up in the next few months). My goal is to be both general enough that I don't overrun my time but specific enough (with the focus on two individual chapters) that it's actually interesting.

Is this about right? What have others done? I asked the chair for more direction and all I got was "talk about what you've done and what you want to do." 

Next, this is perhaps a silly question, but can I assume that everyone present for my talk will have read the writing samples I sent? I am not planning to discuss the chapter I sent them as a writing sample, but it would be helpful to be able to refer to it. At job interviews I've had here, there have definitely been people at my talk (and arguably people on the committee) who either hadn't read my writing samples or hadn't read them very carefully. What can I expect in the UK?

Thanks much for any advice!

[hegemony]

I definitely would not expect them to have read your writing sample, or for those who have, to remember it in much detail.  I've been on those committees, and after a while it all becomes a blur.  Also, they want to see how you do explaining your research from scratch; you're not holding a seminar on your topic, but showing off your presentation skills.

[wegie]

Were the writing samples part of the requested materials? If they were, then everybody on the interview panel will have seen them. If they weren't required items, and you sent them because you've always sent a sample, it's quite likely that nobody has seen them. It's a bit department/university specific, but the places I've been at have always presented identical packages to the panel and canned any extra material.

Is the presentation only to the interview panel or is it open access? If the latter, the other members of the department may not know very much more than the list of names and presentation titles of the candidates. Do be prepared, however, for questions about probable outputs from the research and potential "impact".

[empyrean_aisles]

Bumping because I'm interested in the responses.

And, OP, if you haven't boned up on the REF yet, do that quickly. Show what your 4 high quality outputs will be by 2012. (HEFCE hasn't decided on the exact census date or the number of outputs needed, but most people I know are working to 4 outputs & 2012.)

[scotia]

In my experience this is not an uncommon question in the UK. In 15 minutes you are not going to have time to discuss much more than your research agenda: as someone suggested, what you have done (briefly) and then, more importantly for the committees I have been on, a plan for the future.  For people who have recently completed their PhD we are looking to see if they can get beyond their PhD work and develop their own, independent and realistic agenda. So I would be more interested in hearing a broad introduction to your research, a summary of what you have done, and then more detail about what you plan to do in the future. Frankly the specific contents of papers resulting from chapters of your dissertation are only a small part of what I am interested in, and I would not want much more detail. Yes, talk about the publication plan in broad terms, but also describe the next one/two projects and how you plan to go about them  (e.g. have done some research on potential funders in the UK so you have a realistic plan for getting funding if you need it).

UK institutions often do not ask for writing samples (my current institution sometimes does, my previous employer did not) so whether they have been read will depend on the culture of the institution. UK job searches are very different to US searches (trawl through the 'Academics in the UK' board to see many discussions of this).

I don't see how you can really address individual articles in 15 minutes and talk about your broader research agenda. Others may have different views.

[rsblue18]

Ok, this is already very helpful. I should specify that I was asked to send in writing samples after I was asked to the interview. But on the basis of this advice, I am going to concentrate on the general, see how long it is, and add in some specifics if there's room.

Thanks!

[wegie]

Ok, this is already very helpful. I should specify that I was asked to send in writing samples after I was asked to the interview.

That's OK, then. All five or six candidates will have sent one, so the interview panel will have seen them all.

Whether they've all read them is (like the existence of lions in the Sahara) left as a question for the reader, but somebody on the panel will at least have looked at them and made notes.

Good luck!

Oh, and don't get too phased when you get herded into a room with the rest of the candidates ;-)

[babbinacara]

Your Interview will presumably have two parts--the 15 minute research agenda talk and then an actual interview with the search committee.

Don't waste precious time in the research talk chatting about how this will be an article and that another article and this other thing will be in this conference presentation....No, make the talk about your research, as the chair said: seven minutes on what you've done, seven minutes on what you will do next: ideas, methods, data.  One minute for "umm"ing, a quick slurp of water and segue between the two halves.
(Your current project shouldn't be "turning my dissertation into a book", btw, but something that sounds a bit less like drudgery--"this was my PhD research and ideas and I am now expanding them in this new way into a scholarly publication".)

Leave your plans for dissemination to work into the interview. Someone will surely ask a question of clarification about your future research, and you can sneak in that as you are transitioning from past to future research you will be doing X and Y articles that will inform your next work (though that should be clear from your "In Prep" section of your cv, I'd have thought). They may even ask what your REF outputs will be, and then you're ready to go and flying. It's likely someone on the ctte will have been assigned to read your submitted writing in detail, and you will possibly have one question on that too.

Lots of luck!

[embitteredhistorian]

Hi all--

Two quick questions that I haven't been able to find elsewhere on the forum.

I am preparing for an interview at a UK institution, in a humanities discipline. I've been asked to give a 15 minute talk about my research agenda. I'm trying to mix together general descriptions of my current project (dissertation revision into book) and next project with some discussion of a specific chapter from each project  and then some logistics (namely, that I plan to submit two journal articles in the next 6-8 months, each based on a chapter of the dissertation, and that I have two major presentations of this work coming up in the next few months). My goal is to be both general enough that I don't overrun my time but specific enough (with the focus on two individual chapters) that it's actually interesting.

Is this about right? What have others done? I asked the chair for more direction and all I got was "talk about what you've done and what you want to do." 

Next, this is perhaps a silly question, but can I assume that everyone present for my talk will have read the writing samples I sent? I am not planning to discuss the chapter I sent them as a writing sample, but it would be helpful to be able to refer to it. At job interviews I've had here, there have definitely been people at my talk (and arguably people on the committee) who either hadn't read my writing samples or hadn't read them very carefully. What can I expect in the UK?

Thanks much for any advice!

I went through a very similar when I worked in the UK. My interview went incredibly, absurdly well--despite my constant pessimism, I walked out thinking, "that couldn't possibly have gone better." I got the job although I was a complete outsider applying for a job in a highly nepotistic department (I was the first outsider ever to get that particular position; of course I learned all this much later).

Anyhow, a friend gave me very useful advice: find out what everyone in the department is doing. This is no small task if it's a big department, but it pays off enormously. I was lucky in that the people on the hiring committee were all empirically and historically minded, so my research interests matched theirs perfectly. There was one committee member who dislikes historical, empirical research, and he sat back with his arms crossed through my entire presentation.

I'd add two things to babbinacara's brilliant advice: not only should you talk about the ideas and methods of your research, but I'd end by saying how it will have implications inside and outside your field for further research. I did that and it inspired a lot of interest in my work. Secondly, it is considered bad form amongst some British academic circles to include "in prep" or "under consideration" publications on the CV. I don't agree with this, but I'd been told by many in the UK that this was crass.

[empyrean_aisles]

You are actually going to the process of defending your dissertation. If you want to ask for professional advice on possible questions that the panelists will throw to you, I think you can ask the aid of some dissertation and custom essay writers. They are the ones who know best about the common and general questions that will come out during the defense.

OP, what are you thinking? What you really need to prepare your writing samples and research talk is the help of someone who hasn't grasped either the principles of basic grammar, or the difference between a job talk and a dissertation defence!

ukessaywriter, your talents are wasted here! There are other places where your talents will be appreciated.