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[seniorscholar]

My institution grants degrees in May, August, and December. I want to defend next month to get a tuition waiver for the semester, and that would still allow me to deposit until August. Would it really matter, though, if I'm working on papers having already graduated or still in the dept.? Many people graduate in May and start working only in the fall.

One of the standard line on cv's and application letters at my R-1 (which will not hire anyone to a TT job unless degree is "in hand" by July 1st) is "dissertation defense scheduled March 15; degree date August 17" -- this goes for my own doctoral students and is acceptable in the materials of applicants we plan to interview at MLA in January. In the latter case, the sc chair generally telephones the dissertation director to discover if the dissertation will really be finished and defended on March 15, and if the candidate has a job offer or is still being considered, the dissertation director will write an official letter on letterhead reporting that the dissertation has been successfully defended, will be deposited April 15 (one has only one month to do that here), and the information will be put on the official transcript on August 17, the graduation date for people who deposit after April 1st.

Note: our ad says that degree must be "in hand" by July 1st, but the Provost has never (to my knowledge) refused to issue a contract with "pending receipt of official transcript showing degree" added when the provost has assurance that it will be received; a receipt for dissertation deposit from the graduate school serves that purpose. And a paycheck even comes at the end of July, since TT employment runs by fiscal year: this is exceptionally helpful in addition to the moving allowance for relocation expenses.

[gomer_pyle]

However, I should also point out that your experience with the job market in your fields is apparently different from what I know about my field. As I've mentioned in earlier posts, in my field many people get hired ABD with *no* major publications. Perhaps just a few conference presentations and proceedings, maybe a publication in a mid-level journal or a book. You should have more than just your dissertation on your CV, but it seems to me that what plays more of a role is whether people have heard of you on the conference circuit and what they've heard. Because it's a very small field, word gets around easily.

Driftwood: I am in a field somewhat like yours....I've seen people with
2-4 first author pubs and they were hired as asst. prof. Having gotten
my PhD in a top school in the field with Prof. Big_Shot, I thought I
was able to land a faculty job.

Fast forward 2 years, I did manage to land a non-tenure faculty job (not TT).

Unfortunately, getting a TT job is harder than I thought. Probably a personal connection on the SC would have helped. I must have applied over 25 times which is a lot in my field. As a result of the funding situation, I lost my non-TT job two years ago.

I tried a couple of times for a TT job in the last two years but no success.

Sometimes, it's not what you know but what you know. How do you think
those people with no pubs managed to become asst. profs?

I am now working basically as a glorified tech guy in a
government-ish agency, far below what I had in mind.

In my old PhD school, we were told that any graduate will be barred
from applying to any faculty position. In the last few years, they hired
two graduates. So now, we need to have a PhD from that school to
be a faculty.

My point is, there is always more than meets the eye. If I knew that
academia is like this, I would have done something else.

[aprilmay]

Having gotten
my PhD in a top school in the field with Prof. Big_Shot, I thought I
was able to land a faculty job.

gomer_pyle, sorry this has been your experience. The above sentence shows the problem. No Ph.D. student, no matter how good the school, should be making this assumption. To answer your question, people without pubs get hired because they demonstrate a trajectory to do great work. One or two pubs several years ago is not as good as the potential to do great pubs next year. Already having pubs is great, but you need to keep it up. Two pubs for a new PhD is great. Two pubs for a PhD two years ago is not so great. The quality of the publications matters. I've seen applications shut down because someone had about 5 pubs in lowly journals. It would have been better to have none. If you want to keep going after the tt job, keep publishing. Good luck.

[driftwood]

Thanks for reviving this thread. I sympathize, gomer.
I'm currently teaching two classes at a nearby university for the sake of experience, and will graduate in May, as I had written in the original postings. I'll update on the job search once things are finalized in April/May.

[driftwood]

Dear all,
It's mid-May, and as promised a few months ago, I'd like to update on my situation with respect to the job search. I hope this post is informative and helpful to anyone dealing with the awful job market and perhaps deliberating whether to pursue an academic career or try out other options.

To make a long story short, I continued applying to various academic positions over the course of the academic year - everything from postdocs, through one-year VAPs, to TT positions. The total count of applications was over 20 (in a very small field), and nonetheless the results were not much better than the original pool of 9 applications: I was essentially offered only positions I really couldn't see myself happy in (e.g. adjuncting outside the US for very little money and no benefits) or, at best, waitlisted for positions I'd consider taking (e.g. a very well paying and prestigious postdoc in the US).

I decided to begin working on a non-academic search just about 2 months ago (i.e. a Plan B). Though it took some time to adjust to this, both psychologically and in practical terms (figuring out what I should apply to, networking, resume, etc.), the search actually went extremely well. This week I was offered a great job, with a great salary (more than an assistant professor), and in a big city I'll be happy to call home. What's more, the position is a unique opening to a whole field I have little experience in - it's related to some non-academic endeavors I was involved in before and throughout my academic studies, but only tangentially to my degree. I'll be starting the job exactly a week after I graduate.

I'm obviously very happy, and have no problem leaving my academic interests as a hobby for now, while keeping my options open in case anything relevant in academia comes up (though, to be honest, I'm skeptical I'll go back after having such a positive experience so far in the non-academic world).

I can't emphasize how important it was that I got involved in activities and positions that weren't directly related to my academic studies before I began my PhD and in the course of my studies. In today's market, grad students should probably devote time to a Plan B long before they graduate, just in case they'll need it. From a psychological point of view, what was most important was blocking out all the negativity I felt from academia and not allowing it to wear me down.

[polly_mer]

That's a wonderful outcome, Driftwood.  Congratulations on your success!

Thanks for coming back to update us.

[merinoblue]

Congratulations, Driftwood! I'm thrilled for you. And that's great advice for grad students. Best wishes.

[lightningstrike]

That's awesome. Congrats on not just your ability to land a good job in a good location, but for your ability to see a bigger picture in your life and career goals.