May 7, 2008
The Siren Call of an Overseas Position
In my previous post on good advice from mentors, I mentioned that of not taking an overseas position while I was A.B.D. I thought I’d follow up on that.
During my doctoral program, I received a February phone call out of the blue from a dean at a college with an overseas branch. The campus was in a quiet, tropical country. It was near the beach. The pay was extremely good in terms of the local economy: “most of our faculty have house servants, in fact.” It was near the beach. The position included two round-trip airfares, special insurance for medevac air ambulance if necessary, and the prospect of tax-free income if I kept my days in the States within a certain limit that’s established by the feds. It was near the beach. The teaching load was very nice, with extended vacation periods. Did I mention that it was near the beach?
I was intrigued by the position and the prospect of such an experience, but I was in the early stages of being A.B.D. My mentors each said, “NO! DON’T DO IT!” I think they actually spoke in all caps, in fact! They were emphatic.
My A.B.D. status was in large part the reason I declined the kind offer, but it was so tempting. I have a feeling that there are wonderful opportunities afforded by overseas positions, but I likewise sense that timing is everything in terms of how such appointments will impact the job search down the road.
In most of the searches I’ve run, we have had at least one applicant who was serving in an overseas appointment. They are hard to treat equally because of time differences for phone calls, costs related to on-campus interviews, relocation expenses, and a ton of other reasons. Mind you, we have always tried to treat them fairly and to ignore those kinds of factors, but the challenges for overseas candidates are nigh unto insurmountable.
I do, however, know a few people who’ve held those kinds of positions and who have benefited from the experiences, though the benefits have been more personal than professional, I suspect.
I’m curious, though, about two things.
First, if you’ve had experience in an overseas appointment, what is your advice to others who are considering such a position?
Second, for those of you on the hiring committees, what’s the reality about how overseas candidates are treated?
By Gene C. Fant Jr. | Posted on Wednesday May 7, 2008 | PermalinkComments
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Regarding the first question, I was offered and accepted a research scientist position in the U.K. My children both began school in our little village school in southern England. We had a great experience and in the end any thoughts that this might hurt my chances back in the USA were completely unwarranted. Ten years back in the US and we still consider some of our best friends those we met in England. On the second question I believe you will often find that overseas applicants here in the US will find their applications in the circular file with little consideration.
— john May 7, 07:50 PM #
I would give my right arm to teach in Europe or somewhere tropical…or South America or Australia…
— Jeffrey Smith May 8, 01:21 AM #
I’m currently working overseas as an academic librarian, at the American University in Cairo. I suppose things are different for librarians than for teaching faculty, but colleagues who have left here to return to the States have been snapped up. And experienced librarians in the US have also said to me they’d look closely at a candidate with international experience. Maybe librarians are better at recognizing the value in this kind of work.
— jp May 8, 02:11 AM #
I’ve worked for schools in both Japan and Argentina and privately in Spain and France and wouldn’t give up the experience for anything. In fact, I am still looking for overseas teaching opportunities because they add such a global view to our sometimes too-local perspectives.
— Keith Heller May 8, 10:35 AM #
jp,
What about an American librarian with a library degree that is not ALA accredited? A British CILIP accredited degree, for example.
— RL May 8, 11:02 AM #
Does anyone know of a good resource for securing admin. position at overseas Univ.?
— mk May 8, 11:24 AM #
I found my admin position overseas at richmond associates—they specialize in overseas appointments of development staff
— seth feldman May 8, 11:32 AM #
RL, most American universities will recognize the “international equivalent” of an ALA-accredited MLS.
— AK May 8, 11:55 AM #
Thanks for the reply, AK.
— RL May 8, 03:06 PM #
I have never had a domestic assignment in academia, all overseas. Good for one’s career? Depends. Next month I am off to a new assignment in a different country. Good luck!
— Ajarn May 8, 07:55 PM #
My philosophy has always been never putting myself in the position of being able to say “I shoulda…”. You have an itch to have an adventure overseas? Go scratch it. You won’t be sorry. I’ve done it three times now, in the UK and in the south Pacific. Best experiences of my life and of my family-member’s lives. And if you’re competent, you’ll have no trouble returning to the US. Really… And please… to suggest that life is only about satisfying the professional aspects of your existence? That’s really quite sad. Life is what happens while you try to be a professional…
— AL May 9, 03:23 AM #
Take a look at http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=401470,
a survey of British academics in the US.
— Abbott Katz May 9, 04:06 AM #
RL – The ALA and CILIP recognize one another’s accredited library degrees by reciprocal arrangement. Ditto between Australian/American library associations. An ALA or CILIP accredited degree will probably be recognized throughout the English-speaking countries of the world.
Academics of all sorts interested in international careers would be well advised to check the job listings in two places:
Jobs.ac.uk – the premiere resource for UK academic postings, but also aggregates job postings from other countries.
The London Times Higher Education Supplement – which also tracks jobs across a wide range of countries.
Librarians in particular should check LisJobNet – it tracks library positions, mostly in Britain, but with occasional postings in other localities (e.g. Beijing, Saudi Arabia).
— WM May 9, 06:38 AM #
I wholeheartedly endorse AL’s comment (#11). There is everything to gain by taking a position overseas. I have known many colleagues who accepted positions in Turkey, Egypt, and other countries and had no difficulty returning to teach in the U.S. I was fortunate to teach in Madrid for 2 years and was very successful when the time came to return to the States. And those 2 years were among the most rewarding years of my life, both personally and professionally.
— Ranen Omer-Sherman May 9, 07:15 AM #
I’m currently at the University of Botswana.
This is my third position in Africa. The other two were in South Africa and Uganda. I was in the US for a stint working in quite well paid positions as a tech writer, and doing adjunct teaching, but I prefer full-time teaching.
Here, or anywhere else in the British Commonwealth, things which seem intuitive in the US are regarded as very odd, and vice-versa. The University of Botswana implemented “semesterisation,“which is a typical US-style four year programme, a few years ago. Some of the staff still view it as alien and many problems are blamed on it.
Flexibility and open-mindedness are definite job requirements. Also, be prepared to do a lot of marking, especially in the developing world. Payscales are usually lower, some lower than others, but the cost of living can also be. We recently had a visiting scholar from Sweden. He earns the same as I do, but with much higher taxation and grocery bills.
The ABD should not be a problem. I finished my dissertation, with the University of Cape Town, while carrying a rather heavy teaching load in rural South Africa. Just make sure you have access to the necessary texts and your supervisor. Amazon.com means that it is easier now than it was in 1993.
I would say go for it. Anything that gets us out of familiar surroundings is good for our thinking.
— Grant Lilford May 9, 09:00 AM #
I’ve never taught overseas, but have always harbored the dream of a visiting position now and then in Europe and elsewhere as my children grow up. After tenure, what does it take to find and get positions in the EU (other than the UK) and Asia?
What are the issues that can arise with your home, tenure-granting institution?
— QuakerProf May 9, 03:32 PM #