The Public Policy/Administration Jobs Blog provides a forum for job-seekers seeking jobs in public affairs, public policy, and public management programs.
Friday, September 04, 2009
Discussion of 2009-2010 Job Market
Sorry about my lax moderating/blog maintenance, here's a new space for this year's market
Prestige is great, of course, but it is often accompanied by the unfortunate tendency among some of the better schools to make crappy offers or even mistreat junior professors based on the rationale "We are so desirable, everybody wants to come here, so we can do whatever we want". This strategy works up to a point, but there is an increasing number of up and coming institutions that realize that by doing the opposite is precisely how they can scoop some good candidates that may "belong" in R1, but decent offers from lesser though not stellar places could sway them when considering secondary factors such as cost of living, expectations, etc.
While I'll grant you that we're not as well coddled at prestigious R1's, I'll also say that the extent to which we suffer at them is greatly overstated.
This is unrelated to previous comments, but I'd like to post some advice to doctoral students: SHUT UP on facebook and twitter. It does you absolutely no good to rant about your financial troubles, tell us about your marital problems, or share your medical diagnoses. Get a clue.
The advice of not putting your dirty details online for all to consume is sound. It's impressively ignorant to simply wave it off and/or blame the messenger. And if that exchange was too much for you, academia definitely isn't for you. In fact, I don't see how you can work anywhere if you can't handle a disagreement.
I'm assuming it's not the disagreement, per se, but rather the "SHUT UP" and "pull the stick out of your ass" that the reader finds unnecessary.
Call me crazy, but I agree. Where I come from we handle disagreements with tact and talk to each other like civilized adults. That said, as someone who's been in the academy for several years (just got tenure and promotion) I've learned to ignore the self-righteous blowhards...it can be done. Don't give up on academia if it's what you really want to do.
"I've learned to ignore the self-righteous blowhards...it can be done."
Yes, and the best revenge is to outpublish these motherf****s 5 to 1. Many in academia forget that it is just a profession, and as such it doesn't entitle anybody practicing it to anything other than doing their job well while keeping their self-righteous opinions to themselves.
Perhaps that last person could be more specific? As other posts have reported, Indiana is hiring for multiple positions and the interviews will continue into the spring.
For those interested, it's rumored that the finalists for public management research conference 2011 (aside from Maxwell) were Arizona State, NYU (Wagner) and Washington (Evans).
NYU and ASU as potential hosts to PMRC? Seriously? Well, if so, I guess they gave it a whirl. My money is on it having been solely between Evans and Maxwell at the end of the day...Evans should get it next time around.
Thanks, 5:53, we know that. This is about which institutions bid for the conference. I also heard secondhand that UW-Madison put in a bid. But I'm fine with Syracuse doing it.
Could we get back to the job market please? A number of offers have been made. Yet there is nothing on here about it. South Carolina made an offer a while ago for their budgeting position. Kansas has made two offers, one is listed, the other went to a current assistant professor. Any ideas on who these offers went to?
Indiana Univ sent me a rejection letter a couple of days back for an assistant position in pm. They indicated that they had hired ...but it might just be boiler plate language. don't know
If I might make a request, it seems like many people are looking for info and while some of it is being passed along here, might I request that everyone check out the wiki page and update it with whatever they know? I have been trying to keep it updated as possible with what info I have, but short of my updates, it seems little is being posted there
problem solved...i added a link to the wiki that will link you through anonymouse to edit the page without your IP showing up in the history. for those worried about your identity, its safe once again
So GW had two jobs posted whose deadlines are today (12/20). Is this just so they have everyone's file by the time they return in January? Does anyone have a sense of when they would meet to select a shortlist?
As someone who has been on a SC i testify that the only reason things move slowly is poor organization and simple laziness.
It cracks me up how academics cling onto sense of self-importance by claiming non-stop how overworked and overstressed they are. Neither is true in comparison with other typical middle class professions.
some of us are just happy to hear from committees, regardless of how fast they work. Never been on a SC...but it cannot be terribly fun. Perhaps I haven't been in the biz long enough to be so bitter...and hope I never am.
Hi all - SUNY Albany is continuing its search into next semester. We are still accepting applications and our scope is now broadened to public management generalists. The ad is still posted on PublicServiceCareers.org. If you already applied and have not received a rejection letter, your application is still being considered. Get your materials in ASAP! Happy holidays!
Ohio State made an offer for the Public Management Asst. Prof position. The person has received multiple offers and I don't think he/she will take the OSU offer. I will not, in the interest of privacy, disclose who got the offer.
This is what I know about Roosevelt. Someone was offered the job and they turned it down. From what I gather form this person is that he/she did not get a good vibe from the department. They must of had a really shallow applicant pool to repost the position instead of offering to the next person on the list.
Villanova is calling candidates to see if they are still available/interested. They said the committee will meet at the end of the month to decide who to bring out for interviews.
Which of the policy/pa jobs on the market this year would be career-suicide if taken? Basically, which job will you most likely never be able to leave?
Unnecessary, inflammatory, post. You can "leave" any job if you are good enough and produce good enough work. Of course, there is always the snotty crowd convinced that merely existing at a certain place destines them to greatness (or failure). That is a sad, sad, sad coping mechanism.
Few new jobs are posting, even for VAP positions. Is this likely to be the pattern for the rest of the spring market, or is it too early in the semester for schools to post?
Too early for most places. Hiring decisions/modifications won't be made until there's at least one faculty meeting. And of course there will be a lag between decisions and action.
I got an email with a form to fill-out concerning teaching certain courses. I filled it out and faxed it. I was assuming that every candidate in the pool received an email.
To those with SC experience: Aside from the obvious fact that you can't always bring in candidates in a particular order due to scheduling issues, are candidates generally brought in in order of preference? Or is there no general rule-it's variable by school/department?
From my experience on search committees, there is no order--just logistics. Your ideal is that all of the candidates are good and it ends up somewhat like choosing which of your children is your favorite child. The thing that the SCs in my experience have sought to do is limit the distribution of time so that you can make a quick decision--if the last candidate is two weeks after the second to last, this can drag out the process.
We're definitely not nice or egalitarian enough to consider candidates "children" that we love equally, but nonetheless we can rarely schedule in order of preference. If nothing else, the most desirable candidates have fuller schedules.
I would anticipate a hit on soft money (grant funded) positions and positions associated with grant funded research centers but virtually no other impact since the federal government does next to nothing else for universities.
What happened with the Arkansas State job? I know there have been interviews for the theory job, but the PA/policy job keeps getting deleted. What's the story?
don't know what happened to the arkansas state job, but back in nov i had a run in with the dept chair over whether or not i submitted everything. he emailed said they were still waiting for my cv...funny his email was a reply to my original one, on which you could clearly see the attached cv. politely said my apologies, reattached it and sent it back. he responds that they are still waiting for my app through the university system. i apologize and give him the confirmation number their system gave me weeks before. he responds it isn't the correct number. so i log back into their system, confirm the number and respond for him to check with hr becuase it's there and the info is correct.
i think the department is messed up and controlled by idiots. had already decided i wouldn't go for an interview by the time he emailed back again and said i needed to resubmit the computer app through their hr cause i did it wrong. incompitent idiot.
^^^In defense of Ark State, at least the director is following up with applicants and trying to raise the number of complete applications in the pool. Most departments don't bother.
you can tell me i sound like a jerk or that at least they were trying to raise the number of full applications, but remember this....mine was complete from the start
6:02, you can't tell someone else they sound like a jerk and not end up looking like a jerk yourself. Let it lie, dude. Job searching is stressful enough without the flaming.
Western Carolina University is looking for an International/Comparative Assistant Professor. Open field. Since they have a Masters in Public Affairs, there might be an opportunity for a International PA/Policy type.
I have accepted an offer, but have yet to receive a contract, and it's been well over 2 weeks since making a decision. In the meantime, I have received emails from schools asking if I am still interested, which doesn't necessarily mean they want to interview, but is better than nothing. What's your advice? Do I still interview if asked, or do I just wait for the contract and take myself off the market now?
Some universities operate under decades-old bureaucracy that mandates up-front payment. I'd agree with the 20-25% estimate. (Note: The most put-together departments circumvent this by using the Chair/Dean's or other senior faculty's credit cards to make the purchase.) Absent this, the key is how professional the school/department is about getting your money refunded. For my first job, I had to go through a woman who ran the show and made everyone as miserable as possible when she had to do her job with any modicum of timeliness. I took the job, but later realized she was a harbinger of administrative headaches to come. I left.
i've only had to pay my own costs once....and the school didn't reimburse me for everything (I think they still owe me like $35...not much, but given i didn't get the offer it was a little annoying). So just be aware that you could end up getting hosed in the end.
Once I was a job candidate a school very much wanted to hire. During my fly-in, they asked me to pay for my expenses and save receipts - including every cup of coffee! It just went on and on, one thing after another (don't get me started on the office setups or...), and I could tell this institution had administrative problems. So I declined their offer. Somebody was smart enough to follow up and ask me for some frank feedback, which I gave them. So this story had a happy ending because I've heard from their subsequent hires that they fixed these issues and made candidates feel much more welcome since.
I don't mean for this to sound petty -- it's just that I think some institutions are in serious denial about what kind of signals they send job candidates.
How long does it take on average to get reimbursement for travel expenses? I have been waiting for three months and I just wondered if that was the norm.
^^ Exactly. It's easy for us to sound like whiners, but when we know many of our colleagues are getting the star treatment, these signals really don't help hiring institutions rope in candidates.My "favorite" experience:No pickup at airport, no agenda, and no escort between meetings. I spent the entire day disoriented, lost, or both.
I have been waiting for just over three months for my travel reimbursement. The truth is many schools treat candidates especially those of us who are not "stars" (whatever that means) as second class citizens. Is it because they already know who they are going to hire and they are just going through the motions? I have been on a number of interviews and based on behavior during and after my visit if I was offered a job I would definitely turn them down. Some search committees need to realize that they are dealing with human beings and we expect to be treated with some dignity if nothing else.
I wouldn't even go to an interview that asks me to pay for my ticket upfront. This tells you everything you need to know about the institution - "upfront". Not to mention that nobody has the cash flow to fly all over the country.
These stories are awful! But just a gentle reminder that any blame here should be assigned to PEOPLE, not institutions.
It is people who are schooled (or not) in the basic good manners of a host, not institutions. I've had gracious, generous and thoughtful hosts on flyins, and I've had boorish hosts, self-absorbed hosts, and whiny hosts. It is pretty easy to figure out what it's going to be like to work with these people.
And if you forgot to send a timely and gracious thank you letter to the dean when you returned home, don't complain at all.
Correction: Seefeldt got ONE of the policy analysis positions at Indiana. There are 3-4 policy positions open. This fact has already been posted to the blog.
The public/nonprofit position is still open and search committee still active.
You are stupid to turn down an interview in this market because they ask you to pay for a flight up front. I've found that this is the norm. Of the 7 campus visits I have had this season, only two paid for my flight up front. All of the others reimbursed me. I'd say 3-4 works in the expected time frame for reimbursement. Just use money from your savings--you can't spend it while it is in their hands! Then when you get a couple checks back, put it back into your savings account and you have a pretty nest egg...
I've been a regular contributor to this blog as a search committee member and junior professor, but now I am the one who needs the advice. If this isn't the right forum, please suggest other places where I might get an answer.
The problem is massive salary compression. The new hires 3-5 years junior to me and my colleagues are getting paid 25% more than my CURRENT salary. Some are earning more than my department's associate profesors. This is not a merit issue, it's the market.
First question: is this the experience of other "senior" juniors in PA/PP?
Second question: what would you do? I have filed salary appeals (we're in a hiring freeze). I really can't conscience a fake try at the market. I am confident I could get an outside offer and leverage more pay from it (in fact my dean openly advocates this practice) but I find the practice unethical.
To make one thing clear, I like this job and don't want to move.
^^ I had a similar issue a year ago. I ended up telling the dean what you say (love it here, don't want to go on market, etc.) But then I said I will if I have to. I was given a merit raise. That being said, we aren't under a hiring freeze, haven't been furloughed,etc.
^^^ Oh, and as far as I can tell salary parity is an issue across the board, though assistants getting more than (productive) associates would be an extreme.
i also know a guy who argued that he should be given a raise, but didn't have a back up offer someplace and so the department let him go instead. my recommendation, if you're going to go for a raise and don't want to go on the market for an offer first, make sure your publication record is equal to or better than those in the department who are getting paid better.
Okay, me again (and this is the last post, with apologies to those who just want the job news and nothing else). My personnel committee has already rated my research record as superior. I have 2 dozen pubs. I get soft inquiries from other schools pretty regularly. The question is what to do with them without wasting their time in a fake job hunt.
I'm looking for hard evidence from other schools that they are seeing salary compression too and some assurance that I can do something about it.
If you want "hard" evidence, I think this is hardly the place to look. However, with your record, an "I'll get an outside offer if I have to" chat is the way to go.
I see this all the time, more senior faculty whining that the new juniors are making more money starting off than they are making currently.Salary compression is a fact of life so deal with it. Starting salaries six years ago or ten years ago are nowhere near what new faculty are making or demanding in some cases for a number of reasons. Inflation for one and two raises not keeping up with yearly increases in cost of living. If you want a higher salary you should definitely move because in this fiscal climate it would be a long shot getting your department to increase your salary to the point that you think it should be.
Regarding this post: "I have accepted an offer, but have yet to receive a contract, and it's been well over 2 weeks since making a decision...." If I have signed and returned an offer letter and some other paperwork, does this mean that I will then also get a formal "contract" - or is the offer letter the contract? I'm ABD, just starting out, so haven't done this before. Thanks.
^I'd be curious who signed the letter. Dept. Chair, Dean, President, HR employee(s)? That information is important to know how binding your signature is.
A signed and counter-signed offer letter *is* the contract at many places. Others have a separate contract, which should spell out essentially the same items (salary, course load, course relief, if any, summer $$, if any, etc.).
Who put the GA So offer comment? They are doing more interviews for the policy position. What position are you referring to?
The wiki says Hawaii is doing phone interviews--is this referring to the calls to confirm continued interest? Or have they moved further into actual phone interviews?
So U of Hawaii called some of the people who received "continued interest" calls to schedule phone interviews for Feb 11? I'd heard they weren't planning phone interviews...
Sadly, there is no spring market. I was advised to take a job in the fall market that was not a good job, because the spring market did not look like it was going to pan out. I was skeptical before accepting, but now am kind of glad I did. I feel for those who had hoped there would be a spring market.
To those who are worried about there not being a spring market there is good news. A friend told me that Pace University will be conducting phone interviews next week. So there are some jobs still available.
There were quite a few early-Jan jobs that are moving quickly (most skipping phone interviews). Not too bad--unless of course you are not hearing anything...
Jobs with an August start date were posted as far in as the early summer last year. They weren't plentiful, but some were there. Frankly, they might not be at ideal places, but they're jobs, so if you want one, you should probably apply.
True, Missouri-Columbia has just announced a tenure track position with teaching/research interests in public policy/public management/nonprofit managenment.
Hey, just a general word to the wise after concluding a search: In your cover letter, specify the exact position you're applying for. Don't apply for "your institution's position as assistant professor". If the instititution has multiple searches, someone can easily send your application to the wrong SC. Once it's in the wrong pile it can get buried for good.
578 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 400 of 578 Newer› Newest»Jack Sprat would eat no fat, his wife would eat no lean...
You know the rest.
Or...to each her/his own.
UC-Denver is conducting campus interviews right now.
Prestige is great, of course, but it is often accompanied by the unfortunate tendency among some of the better schools to make crappy offers or even mistreat junior professors based on the rationale "We are so desirable, everybody wants to come here, so we can do whatever we want". This strategy works up to a point, but there is an increasing number of up and coming institutions that realize that by doing the opposite is precisely how they can scoop some good candidates that may "belong" in R1, but decent offers from lesser though not stellar places could sway them when considering secondary factors such as cost of living, expectations, etc.
While I'll grant you that we're not as well coddled at prestigious R1's, I'll also say that the extent to which we suffer at them is greatly overstated.
Any updates on U of kentucky, NYU, and U of maryland? Thanks!
On Job Wiki U of Georgia and University of Illinois–Chicago are posted to do campus interviews. Is this true? Any further news on them?
Georgia brought in two candidates, both Ivy-league educated economists. Interviews complete.
Internal candidate got MPA director job at Indiana-Bloomington.
I thought it odd to do a national search for an MPA director.
This is unrelated to previous comments, but I'd like to post some advice to doctoral students: SHUT UP on facebook and twitter. It does you absolutely no good to rant about your financial troubles, tell us about your marital problems, or share your medical diagnoses. Get a clue.
First on Indiana,
Did they really even bring anyone in for the MPA Director?
On the last comment...
Yeah...yikes...watch what you put up on FB. If I am hiring someone, I ma likely to check it out if I can.
The advice of not putting your dirty details online for all to consume is sound. It's impressively ignorant to simply wave it off and/or blame the messenger. And if that exchange was too much for you, academia definitely isn't for you. In fact, I don't see how you can work anywhere if you can't handle a disagreement.
I'm assuming it's not the disagreement, per se, but rather the "SHUT UP" and "pull the stick out of your ass" that the reader finds unnecessary.
Call me crazy, but I agree. Where I come from we handle disagreements with tact and talk to each other like civilized adults. That said, as someone who's been in the academy for several years (just got tenure and promotion) I've learned to ignore the self-righteous blowhards...it can be done. Don't give up on academia if it's what you really want to do.
"I've learned to ignore the self-righteous blowhards...it can be done."
Yes, and the best revenge is to outpublish these motherf****s 5 to 1.
Many in academia forget that it is just a profession, and as such it doesn't entitle anybody practicing it to anything other than doing their job well while keeping their self-righteous opinions to themselves.
Sooo... yeah. Back to the what this thing's actually about.
Yes, Indiana brought in outside candidates to interview for the MPA position.
Did Arkansas State make an offer yet?
^^Poliscijobrumors reports that interviews are completed at Arkansas State. My guess is they have moved or are really close.
polisci job rumors reports...
Stéphane Lavertu to CU-Boulder
RWJF interview offers have been extended to those selected as finalists. Congrats to those who received emails.
What is going on in Indiana? Didn't they finish interviewing a month ago???
Perhaps that last person could be more specific? As other posts have reported, Indiana is hiring for multiple positions and the interviews will continue into the spring.
^^^^^Re: Arkansas State
Is there a definite offer out or has nobody heard anything?
anyone know who got the GA Southern offer? Did they take it?
For those interested, it's rumored that the finalists for public management research conference 2011 (aside from Maxwell) were Arizona State, NYU (Wagner) and Washington (Evans).
And the finalists for winners of WWII were Japan, Germany, and all other bad guys.
I know of 1 individual from the Askew School at FSU that was invited to campus.
^In reference to GA Southern
Re GA Southern: from FSU? Seriously, GA Southern is slumming this year. You can't tell me they actually offered it to the person?
NYU and ASU as potential hosts to PMRC? Seriously? Well, if so, I guess they gave it a whirl. My money is on it having been solely between Evans and Maxwell at the end of the day...Evans should get it next time around.
What's wrong with FSU? They have somebody on faculty there.
It was solely between Maxwell and Maxwell, judging by the committee.
I know the interviews are done, but has GA Southern decided who they're hiring?
Maxwell is hosting PMRC. They announced that in October. This is old news, and far from a rumor.
Any news from U of Kentucky? did they make the offer?
Thanks, 5:53, we know that. This is about which institutions bid for the conference. I also heard secondhand that UW-Madison put in a bid. But I'm fine with Syracuse doing it.
5:53...past tense, past tense. We know it's Maxwell.
Could we get back to the job market please? A number of offers have been made. Yet there is nothing on here about it. South Carolina made an offer a while ago for their budgeting position. Kansas has made two offers, one is listed, the other went to a current assistant professor. Any ideas on who these offers went to?
Kansas hired Silvia from Indiana.
Indiana Univ sent me a rejection letter a couple of days back for an assistant position in pm. They indicated that they had hired ...but it might just be boiler plate language. don't know
If I might make a request, it seems like many people are looking for info and while some of it is being passed along here, might I request that everyone check out the wiki page and update it with whatever they know? I have been trying to keep it updated as possible with what info I have, but short of my updates, it seems little is being posted there
Yeah, good idea. Ideally there would only be just the wiki.
The problem is that we can't update the wiki anonymously anymore.
Kansas has made two hires thus far.
why can't you anonymously update the wiki? it looks to me like I just did a few minutes ago
problem solved...i added a link to the wiki that will link you through anonymouse to edit the page without your IP showing up in the history. for those worried about your identity, its safe once again
Anyone know who they offered the UC-Denver position to?
^^ Thanks! I just filled in what I know on the wiki
Wiki reports WKU has completed interviews. How many did they bring out? Has an offer been made?
Any news on Northern Illinois?
Who did North Carolina State give an offer to?
With the exception of UT-Austin, is there any information about positions at the UT schools?
So GW had two jobs posted whose deadlines are today (12/20). Is this just so they have everyone's file by the time they return in January? Does anyone have a sense of when they would meet to select a shortlist?
I've been told that UTSA is done interviewing, but I am not aware of any actual offers made yet.
apparently Washington St has started calling people for flyouts in Jan
^ Washington state is moving that fast? The application deadline was 12/1!
Heck, *somebody's* got to move faster than a glacial pace. Might as well be them.
That "glacial" comment did not come from somebody who actually has SC experience, else they'd know better what's involved.
As someone who has been on a SC i testify that the only reason things move slowly is poor organization and simple laziness.
It cracks me up how academics cling onto sense of self-importance by claiming non-stop how overworked and overstressed they are.
Neither is true in comparison with other typical middle class professions.
Beg to disagree. Now go back to your cave, you grumpy troll.
some of us are just happy to hear from committees, regardless of how fast they work.
Never been on a SC...but it cannot be terribly fun. Perhaps I haven't been in the biz long enough to be so bitter...and hope I never am.
Hi all - SUNY Albany is continuing its search into next semester. We are still accepting applications and our scope is now broadened to public management generalists. The ad is still posted on PublicServiceCareers.org. If you already applied and have not received a rejection letter, your application is still being considered. Get your materials in ASAP! Happy holidays!
Cleveland State has made calls for flyouts
Ohio State made an offer for the Public Management Asst. Prof position. The person has received multiple offers and I don't think he/she will take the OSU offer. I will not, in the interest of privacy, disclose who got the offer.
Anyone know why Roosevelt reposted?
This is what I know about Roosevelt. Someone was offered the job and they turned it down. From what I gather form this person is that he/she did not get a good vibe from the department. They must of had a really shallow applicant pool to repost the position instead of offering to the next person on the list.
Was the previous comment meant to ask about Rockefeller/SUNY Albany?
Nope....I'm a big girl that can spell. I was asking about Roosevelt.
I wanted to know about Roosevelt too but would also like to know about SUNY Albany. What happened?
No offense, but people are seriously wondering about the Roosevelt job?
What/where is Roosevelt?
It's got to be better than the WKU job. I hear that job is the pits.
Roosevelt is in Chicago.
Villanova is calling candidates to see if they are still available/interested. They said the committee will meet at the end of the month to decide who to bring out for interviews.
Well, there you go. Many people would work in a shady university if it was in Chicago (myself included), no problem. Well, preferably a private one.
Speaking of Chicago, what's the situation in UIC?
So, who got the Minnesota job? Congrats...looks like a great gig!
UIC filled the position.
I know that, but with whom?
Any news with University of Iowa, the public finance economics?
any news from NYU Wagner? did they conduct interviews? OR positions are filled? Thanks!
NYU Wagner has not started interviews.
Which of the policy/pa jobs on the market this year would be career-suicide if taken? Basically, which job will you most likely never be able to leave?
Unnecessary, inflammatory, post.
You can "leave" any job if you are good enough and produce good enough work. Of course, there is always the snotty crowd convinced that merely existing at a certain place destines them to greatness (or failure). That is a sad, sad, sad coping mechanism.
^ Well said.
Few new jobs are posting, even for VAP positions. Is this likely to be the pattern for the rest of the spring market, or is it too early in the semester for schools to post?
Too early for most places. Hiring decisions/modifications won't be made until there's at least one faculty meeting. And of course there will be a lag between decisions and action.
During the holidays someone stated that Cleveland State scheduled flyouts. For which position(s)?
Any words on jobs outside the U.S.?
according to the polisci blog the cleveland st position w/interviews is the finance/budget position.
DePaul apparently has chosen its candidates for campus visits
duke has made an offer: does anyone know to whom?
Indiana is interviewing policy people this week.
anyone know who got the offer from Shippensburg?
anyone know what's going on at Virginia?
What's going on with the Ball State search?
I received an email today from Ball State asking if I was still available and interested.
Someone asked about this above...
GW (open rank, open field search) finished first round of reviews and is requesting more info from those still in the mix.
I got an email with a form to fill-out concerning teaching certain courses. I filled it out and faxed it. I was assuming that every candidate in the pool received an email.
NYU-Wagner has a full slate of candidates.
RE: GWU, they said the first round of reviews was complete - but no idea how many people were asked to provide more info.
Man, I'd give a kidney to be able to work at GWU.
^ Say so in your app letter.
Ball State and Oakland Univ. are inquiring of select candidates for campus visits.
Did NYU interview at ASSA meeting? Public finance or program evaluation position?
^ Yes. Both.
NYU Wagner has scheduled interviews for both the public finance and program evaluation position.
how about GWU? any invitation for interviews/fly-outs?
Who did WKU offer a job to?
I'm dying to know about GWU too (would also give a kidney). If anyone hears of any fly-outs, please let us know.
Went to the first guy who gave the kidney.
To those with SC experience: Aside from the obvious fact that you can't always bring in candidates in a particular order due to scheduling issues, are candidates generally brought in in order of preference? Or is there no general rule-it's variable by school/department?
From my experience on search committees, there is no order--just logistics. Your ideal is that all of the candidates are good and it ends up somewhat like choosing which of your children is your favorite child. The thing that the SCs in my experience have sought to do is limit the distribution of time so that you can make a quick decision--if the last candidate is two weeks after the second to last, this can drag out the process.
I'll see your kidney and raise you an eyeball.
We're definitely not nice or egalitarian enough to consider candidates "children" that we love equally, but nonetheless we can rarely schedule in order of preference. If nothing else, the most desirable candidates have fuller schedules.
Washington State University is meeting this week to decide on the public policy opening
Does anyone know what's going on with the UNF search?
UNF is conducting phone interviews.
What effect do you think Obama's spending freeze will have on job openings next year and the year after?
I would anticipate a hit on soft money (grant funded) positions and positions associated with grant funded research centers but virtually no other impact since the federal government does next to nothing else for universities.
What happened with the Arkansas State job? I know there have been interviews for the theory job, but the PA/policy job keeps getting deleted. What's the story?
any updates on GWU?
Univ of Central Florida is doing telephone interviews
don't know what happened to the arkansas state job, but back in nov i had a run in with the dept chair over whether or not i submitted everything. he emailed said they were still waiting for my cv...funny his email was a reply to my original one, on which you could clearly see the attached cv. politely said my apologies, reattached it and sent it back. he responds that they are still waiting for my app through the university system. i apologize and give him the confirmation number their system gave me weeks before. he responds it isn't the correct number. so i log back into their system, confirm the number and respond for him to check with hr becuase it's there and the info is correct.
i think the department is messed up and controlled by idiots. had already decided i wouldn't go for an interview by the time he emailed back again and said i needed to resubmit the computer app through their hr cause i did it wrong. incompitent idiot.
Anyone know if USC has conducted interviews for the Flournoy Professorship in State Government?
^^I want to hire you! You sound pleasant. Regardless of their incompetence, you end up sounding like the jerk here.
^^^In defense of Ark State, at least the director is following up with applicants and trying to raise the number of complete applications in the pool. Most departments don't bother.
you can tell me i sound like a jerk or that at least they were trying to raise the number of full applications, but remember this....mine was complete from the start
6:02, you can't tell someone else they sound like a jerk and not end up looking like a jerk yourself. Let it lie, dude. Job searching is stressful enough without the flaming.
anyone heard from GWU?
I was really hoping to get the Arkansas State job, even if it is in rural Arkansas. It seemed like a decent place to be.
Western Carolina University is looking for an International/Comparative Assistant Professor. Open field. Since they have a Masters in Public Affairs, there might be an opportunity for a International PA/Policy type.
Who got the indiana-bloomington public mgt position?
I don't know. Kristin Seefeldt got the policy analysis position at SPEA.
is GWU interviewing people now? anyone can confirm?
Yes. They have started to contact people about on-site interviewing.
I have accepted an offer, but have yet to receive a contract, and it's been well over 2 weeks since making a decision. In the meantime, I have received emails from schools asking if I am still interested, which doesn't necessarily mean they want to interview, but is better than nothing. What's your advice? Do I still interview if asked, or do I just wait for the contract and take myself off the market now?
Interview.
^Ditto. Nothing's a done deal until the contract is signed.
how common is it for a school to ask the candidate to pay for their flight to the interview and get reimbursed after the interview?
I don't think it's the norm, but it is not unheard of. Probably 20-25% of schools do this from my experience.
Some universities operate under decades-old bureaucracy that mandates up-front payment. I'd agree with the 20-25% estimate. (Note: The most put-together departments circumvent this by using the Chair/Dean's or other senior faculty's credit cards to make the purchase.) Absent this, the key is how professional the school/department is about getting your money refunded. For my first job, I had to go through a woman who ran the show and made everyone as miserable as possible when she had to do her job with any modicum of timeliness. I took the job, but later realized she was a harbinger of administrative headaches to come. I left.
i've only had to pay my own costs once....and the school didn't reimburse me for everything (I think they still owe me like $35...not much, but given i didn't get the offer it was a little annoying). So just be aware that you could end up getting hosed in the end.
Once I was a job candidate a school very much wanted to hire. During my fly-in, they asked me to pay for my expenses and save receipts - including every cup of coffee! It just went on and on, one thing after another (don't get me started on the office setups or...), and I could tell this institution had administrative problems. So I declined their offer. Somebody was smart enough to follow up and ask me for some frank feedback, which I gave them. So this story had a happy ending because I've heard from their subsequent hires that they fixed these issues and made candidates feel much more welcome since.
I don't mean for this to sound petty -- it's just that I think some institutions are in serious denial about what kind of signals they send job candidates.
How long does it take on average to get reimbursement for travel expenses? I have been waiting for three months and I just wondered if that was the norm.
^^ Exactly. It's easy for us to sound like whiners, but when we know many of our colleagues are getting the star treatment, these signals really don't help hiring institutions rope in candidates.My "favorite" experience:No pickup at airport, no agenda, and no escort between meetings. I spent the entire day disoriented, lost, or both.
^^ 3 months is insane. 1 month tops.
I have been waiting for just over three months for my travel reimbursement. The truth is many schools treat candidates especially those of us who are not "stars" (whatever that means) as second class citizens. Is it because they already know who they are going to hire and they are just going through the motions? I have been on a number of interviews and based on behavior during and after my visit if I was offered a job I would definitely turn them down. Some search committees need to realize that they are dealing with human beings and we expect to be treated with some dignity if nothing else.
I wouldn't even go to an interview that asks me to pay for my ticket upfront. This tells you everything you need to know about the institution - "upfront". Not to mention that nobody has the cash flow to fly all over the country.
These stories are awful! But just a gentle reminder that any blame here should be assigned to PEOPLE, not institutions.
It is people who are schooled (or not) in the basic good manners of a host, not institutions. I've had gracious, generous and thoughtful hosts on flyins, and I've had boorish hosts, self-absorbed hosts, and whiny hosts. It is pretty easy to figure out what it's going to be like to work with these people.
And if you forgot to send a timely and gracious thank you letter to the dean when you returned home, don't complain at all.
Correction: Seefeldt got ONE of the policy analysis positions at Indiana. There are 3-4 policy positions open. This fact has already been posted to the blog.
The public/nonprofit position is still open and search committee still active.
You are stupid to turn down an interview in this market because they ask you to pay for a flight up front. I've found that this is the norm. Of the 7 campus visits I have had this season, only two paid for my flight up front. All of the others reimbursed me. I'd say 3-4 works in the expected time frame for reimbursement. Just use money from your savings--you can't spend it while it is in their hands! Then when you get a couple checks back, put it back into your savings account and you have a pretty nest egg...
I've been a regular contributor to this blog as a search committee member and junior professor, but now I am the one who needs the advice. If this isn't the right forum, please suggest other places where I might get an answer.
The problem is massive salary compression. The new hires 3-5 years junior to me and my colleagues are getting paid 25% more than my CURRENT salary. Some are earning more than my department's associate profesors. This is not a merit issue, it's the market.
First question: is this the experience of other "senior" juniors in PA/PP?
Second question: what would you do? I have filed salary appeals (we're in a hiring freeze). I really can't conscience a fake try at the market. I am confident I could get an outside offer and leverage more pay from it (in fact my dean openly advocates this practice) but I find the practice unethical.
To make one thing clear, I like this job and don't want to move.
Hi,
Does anyone know if the UT Dallas Public Mgmt position got filled or not?
^^ I had a similar issue a year ago. I ended up telling the dean what you say (love it here, don't want to go on market, etc.) But then I said I will if I have to. I was given a merit raise. That being said, we aren't under a hiring freeze, haven't been furloughed,etc.
^^^ Oh, and as far as I can tell salary parity is an issue across the board, though assistants getting more than (productive) associates would be an extreme.
i also know a guy who argued that he should be given a raise, but didn't have a back up offer someplace and so the department let him go instead. my recommendation, if you're going to go for a raise and don't want to go on the market for an offer first, make sure your publication record is equal to or better than those in the department who are getting paid better.
Indeed. Never bring a knife to a gunfight.
University of Hawaii is making calls for their short list candidates
^Damn, that was fast. Hawaii must already have someone picked out, then...
Okay, me again (and this is the last post, with apologies to those who just want the job news and nothing else). My personnel committee has already rated my research record as superior. I have 2 dozen pubs. I get soft inquiries from other schools pretty regularly. The question is what to do with them without wasting their time in a fake job hunt.
I'm looking for hard evidence from other schools that they are seeing salary compression too and some assurance that I can do something about it.
If you want "hard" evidence, I think this is hardly the place to look. However, with your record, an "I'll get an outside offer if I have to" chat is the way to go.
I see this all the time, more senior faculty whining that the new juniors are making more money starting off than they are making currently.Salary compression is a fact of life so deal with it. Starting salaries six years ago or ten years ago are nowhere near what new faculty are making or demanding in some cases for a number of reasons. Inflation for one and two raises not keeping up with yearly increases in cost of living. If you want a higher salary you should definitely move because in this fiscal climate it would be a long shot getting your department to increase your salary to the point that you think it should be.
Anyone get an invite to Mills College? Valdosta State?
I confirm that Hawaii called the shortlist of 8 to confirm interest...inviting in next two weeks.
^I can confirm, too. I received a call.
I have a flyout interview at Valdosta. No date though, they are waiting for diversity committee approval.
Anyone getting Hawaii calls taking themselves off the list?
Don't count on it.
Any news out of CUNY-John Jay?
Regarding this post: "I have accepted an offer, but have yet to receive a contract, and it's been well over 2 weeks since making a decision...." If I have signed and returned an offer letter and some other paperwork, does this mean that I will then also get a formal "contract" - or is the offer letter the contract? I'm ABD, just starting out, so haven't done this before. Thanks.
^I'd be curious who signed the letter. Dept. Chair, Dean, President, HR employee(s)? That information is important to know how binding your signature is.
A signed and counter-signed offer letter *is* the contract at many places. Others have a separate contract, which should spell out essentially the same items (salary, course load, course relief, if any, summer $$, if any, etc.).
got rejected by mills:(
Poli Sci wiki says J. Brass (Berkeley ABD) got public management job at Indiana.
^^Then it's no longer a public management line...
It is indeed a PM line.
Who might be hiring in budget/finance next year?
I've heard GA Southern has a new offer out
Offer out to Faricy (UNC) for Washington State University
The IU (SPEA) line was public management or non-profit / NGO management.
Spring postings seem especially slow this year, no? Should we expect any new jobs to post or old ones to re-post?
UT-Arlington offer out to Faricy (UNC)
Who put the GA So offer comment? They are doing more interviews for the policy position. What position are you referring to?
The wiki says Hawaii is doing phone interviews--is this referring to the calls to confirm continued interest? Or have they moved further into actual phone interviews?
U of Hawaii is doing phone interviews tomorrow.
NYU interviews are complete.
So U of Hawaii called some of the people who received "continued interest" calls to schedule phone interviews for Feb 11? I'd heard they weren't planning phone interviews...
Sadly, there is no spring market. I was advised to take a job in the fall market that was not a good job, because the spring market did not look like it was going to pan out. I was skeptical before accepting, but now am kind of glad I did. I feel for those who had hoped there would be a spring market.
To those who are worried about there not being a spring market there is good news. A friend told me that Pace University will be conducting phone interviews next week. So there are some jobs still available.
The New School has a short list and should be moving forward soon.
There were quite a few early-Jan jobs that are moving quickly (most skipping phone interviews). Not too bad--unless of course you are not hearing anything...
App State am govt/pub pol offer to Faricy (UNC)
Well, isn't Faricy just the hot commodity this year! We'll wait with bated breath to see which one he picks...best of luck!
Has Indiana moved on the Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development Policy line?
Hawaii is doing phone interviews.
Jobs with an August start date were posted as far in as the early summer last year. They weren't plentiful, but some were there. Frankly, they might not be at ideal places, but they're jobs, so if you want one, you should probably apply.
Univ of Central Florida is setting up campus visits
Missouri position announced!
True, Missouri-Columbia has just announced a tenure track position with teaching/research interests in public policy/public management/nonprofit managenment.
In answer to 2/11 10:09's query, I believe interviews are scheduled for that IU position.
Hey, just a general word to the wise after concluding a search: In your cover letter, specify the exact position you're applying for. Don't apply for "your institution's position as assistant professor". If the instititution has multiple searches, someone can easily send your application to the wrong SC. Once it's in the wrong pile it can get buried for good.
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