Resources to help continue improving your own professional development as a faculty member.
The role of faculty extends far beyond the classroom. It’s a delicate balance of innovation, dedication, and a commitment to lifelong learning. Successful faculty members don’t just teach—they inspire, lead,…
Interviews are no walk in the park. After serving on dozens of hiring committees for part-time staff, tenure-track faculty, and management positions, I’ve seen my fair share of candidates—some seasoned…
Like most faculty, I first started seriously writing while I was in graduate school. At the time, I was working full-time during the day and working on my studies in the evening. I did not have the luxury of dedicating huge portions of my day to writing. What I did have was an academic goal and a graduation deadline. With this realization, I utilized two techniques that worked extremely well for me. The first technique was mirco-writing during the week. I began writing whenever I could in increments of 5 to 15 minutes. I did this before going to work, during my coffee and lunch breaks, and before bed. Every spare, and sometimes odd, minute during the day counted towards my writing productivity. A sentence here and there eventually adds up to a paragraph and then a page. This meant that I took my notebook or laptop everywhere. The second thing that helped me was to be intentional about writing and making it a part of my daily routine rather than a chore. I tend to do a lot of my writing early in the morning when my family is still asleep. I typically wake up at 4am, grab breakfast and then get to my computer to begin writing. Some may prefer to write in the evening, at a coffee shop, or library. The time and location do not matter as long as writing becomes a part of your daily schedule. So start taking advantage of every spare minute and make writing a daily habit. You may be writing in sound-bites, which may feel different at first, but you will be writing and doing so regularly.
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This is the third in a series of articles to help you prepare for the teaching job interview. In the last two articles, I discussed how you can prepare for the Writing Assignment At Teaching Job Interview and how to Prepare For A Teaching Interview.
In this article, I’ll share four things to help you prepare for the teaching demonstration.
Teaching Demonstration
Most applicants applying for a teaching position seem have some teaching experience either as a Teaching Assistant (TA) in graduate school, or as an adjunct faculty, or as a trainer in the industry they’ve specialized in. If you happen to be one of those, you’re fortunate enough to have some classroom or instructional experience.
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In a previous article titled Preparing For A Teaching Interview, I discussed six things you can do to prepare for an interview. However, the interview itself is only one aspect of the hiring process at many colleges and universities.
Hiring committees for a full-time teaching position often require candidates to also complete a written assignment and a teaching demonstration. At my college, we require candidates to do the writing assignment, job interview, and teaching demonstration on the same day. In some disciplines, candidates may also be required to perform a skills demonstration. In this article, I will discuss the writing assignment.
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So you’ve decided to teach! You’ve turned in your application, some secret group mulled over your application, CV, reference letters and decided to invite you for an interview.
Congratulations!
You are one step closer to becoming a professor, but don’t begin celebrating just yet. You still have some homework, lots of preparation, and a hiring committee to impress in person. In this article, I’ll share a few tips to help you better prepare for your teaching interview.
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I’d like to dedicate this particular post to a former student of mine, Tracey Anderson, who left a comment with a question on episode 10 of the FacultyWorkshop Podcast. The title of that episode was “Setting The Bar: How High Should Your Expectations Be?”
Tracey is currently finishing up her masters degree in Leadership and Management, and is planning on continuing her education and earning a PhD in Organizational Leadership and Management. Tracey has been through a lot of challenges thought-out her life, but she has always maintained high standards for herself and persisted in achieving her goals. Over the years she’s learned a lot and gained some valuable experiences. She also has a passion for wanting to help others, which is why Tracey would like to teach a class on leadership and motivation to students, to help them discover their full potential. However, she’s not sure how to get to that point or where to start.
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Whether you are looking for your first faculty position or a different one, a job search is a full-time job in itself if done correctly. Opportunities within academia have to be actively pursued on a daily basis.
Why? The answer is simple. Supply and demand!
Universities are awarding more graduate degrees than the market can handle. In 1957, U.S. institutions awarded a total of 8,611 doctorate degrees. In 2012, they awarded a whopping 51,008. That’s a 492% increase within half a decade.
We have seen a 64% percent increase in doctoral degree program completers within the last thirty years alone. The competition in the job market is extremely tough, and you, as a job seeker, need to understand that a college degree, even a PhD from a respected university, does not equal a guaranteed job offer any more. There are simply more qualified job seekers within the academic market than full-time positions.
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