About three years back, I had posted some tips for job applicants on my old blog, which I am reposting here for convenience. After having been on search committees yet again, I am compelled to write up some additional thoughts. The tips in the earlier post are still valid. This time, I may be a bit more pointed and direct about just a few items. interview etiquette - thank you notes I know that no one really gets consistent instructions about interview etiquette anymore. ... Read more …

I am very happy to be back with my IASSIST colleagues this week at IASSIST 2021, even if it is virtual rather than in sunny Gothenburg, Sweden, as we had hoped to be last year. My own presentation on May 20 has been “flipped” so that there will be more time for interactive discussion during the live session. I am encouraging anyone with interest in the development of our graduate specialist program to view the slides and videos linked below. ... Read more …

The image above is a wordcloud based on the word frequency in the personal statement that I used for promotion—my career in feline form. I was inspired by my colleague Francesca Giannetti’s post about the personal statement she used for her !successful! tenure applicaton at Rutgers. In her post, she discusses the benefit to be gained from sharing one’s own articulation of how one has built a professional identity in a new area of services. ... Read more …

Having been involved in several hiring committees over recent years, it is sometimes a bit frustrating to not be able to give advice to applicants. We cannot do that in individual cases as a matter of HR policy. The decision-making process is confidential. But I hope that by offering some general observations I have made after reviewing many applications, that this might be of help to future seekers. We are, after all, trying to find the person who will provide the best job performance, not perform the best in the application process. ... Read more …