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Finding a Job

Finding a Job. Pizza Seminar October 30, 2006 Dr. TJ Murphy. Overview. This talk will offer details about the job search process: what kinds of jobs are available (academic and non-academic) places to look for job ads anatomy of an academic job ad

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Finding a Job

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  1. Finding a Job Pizza Seminar October 30, 2006 Dr. TJ Murphy

  2. Overview This talk will offer details about the job search process: • what kinds of jobs are available (academic and non-academic) • places to look for job ads • anatomy of an academic job ad • putting together competitive application materials • the timeline • how a search committee might work • post-degree professional development opportunities Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  3. Academic Doctoral Institution Master’s Institution Bachelor’s Institution Two-Year College jobs tend to require teaching, research, and service Non-Academic Actuarial Science Pixar Google National Security Agency jobs tend to require mathematics combined with some other area What Kinds of Jobs are Available? Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  4. Places to Look for Job Ads • www.ams.org • www.siam.org • AMS Notices • MAA Focus • Chronicle of Higher Education • company websites (e.g., pixar.com, google.com) Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  5. Anatomy of an Academic Job Ad • Tenure-Track at Southwestern • http://www.ams.org/cgi-bin/eims/eims-display.pl?JI=pKK6pBKA3r6B • Post-Doc at Baylor • http://www.ams.org/cgi-bin/eims/eims-display.pl?JI=pKK6A86A3pAr Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  6. Putting Together Competitive Application Materials • cover letter • curriculum vita (CV) • teaching statement • research statement • letters of recommendation • AMS Cover Sheet Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  7. Cover Letter • Point out very specifically how your background, experience, and career goals match the qualifications in the ad. • Why should they pick you over the 200 other applicants? Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  8. Curriculum Vita • use someone else’s CV as a template • name and contact information at the top • education • positions held • honors and awards if any • work experience, in categories that make sense for the experiences you have had Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  9. Teaching Statement Things to include: • philosophy of teaching • What constitutes good teaching? • How do students learn? • description of courses you have had teaching experience with, including what your responsibilities were • teaching evaluation scores, with examples of students’ comments • professional development experiences you have had • TA course (Math 5950) • Endorsement for Preparation for Teaching Undergraduate Mathematics: 6 hours of Pedagogy courses such as 5253, 5263, or 5990; plus teaching a class Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  10. Research Statement explain • the research you have done • and what you plan to do • short term • long term • how it contributes to the knowledge base (past and future) • If your research is likely to lead to external funding (e.g., grants from NSF, NASA, NIH), be sure to note this! Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  11. Letters of Recommendation • Letters should be from people whose names will be recognized because their work is impressive or who have a title. • your advisor • a department chair, dean, vice president • someone who has seen you teach, especially if that person is someone whose name will be recognized or who has a title. • experts in your field -- go to conferences and get to know these people! Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  12. AMS Cover Sheet • get from ams.org • see also Mathematics Subject Classification Codes • note the box to check if you are interested in being considered for a post-doc or other temporary position Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  13. The Timeline • Job ads seem to be appearing by September-ish and continue into April-ish. • Applications are tending to be due as early as mid-October. • Joint Mathematics Meetings in January • AMS Employment Registry • possible employers like to set up appointments even outside of the Employment Registry • Phone and on-campus interviews tend to be mostly in the spring. • It can be weeks and weeks after an interview before you hear anything. • Note that the timeline means that you need to be mostly done with your dissertation research early in the fall of the year you plan to graduate. Then you spend that year looking for a job. Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  14. How a Search Committee Might Work • Members of the committee read the applications and form an impression of the candidates. • People outside of the committee may be asked to read the files and comment as well. • The committee makes recommendations to the department about candidates to interview. • Interviews are scheduled (spring?). • People you met with rate you on your impressiveness and potential, as well as your “fit” as a colleague. • Other candidates come for interviews around the same time but on different days. • After the candidates have been interviewed, the department will rank the candidates and make an offer to their top choice; if the top choice declines (usually after a week or more), the department will move down the list. Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  15. Anatomy of an On-Campus Interview • meet with people • search committee • chair • dean • vice president • benefits office • other faculty groups • groups of students • give a seminar-type talk about your research (50 minutes) • give a talk to undergraduate majors? • teach a class? Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  16. Finding a Post-Doc Position • some Post-Doc positions are specifically advertised • others, like at OU, use the same candidate pool as the tenure-track positions • note the box on the AMS cover sheet Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  17. Post-Degree Professional Development Opportunities • the institution’s Center for Teaching • Project NExT • New Experiences in Teaching • is a professional development program for new or recent Ph.D.s in the mathematical sciences. It addresses all aspects of an academic career: improving the teaching and learning of mathematics, engaging in research and scholarship, and participating in professional activities. It also provides the participants with a network of peers and mentors as they assume these responsibilities. • The hiring department must agree to provide funding for you to attend three conferences (and pre-sessions): MathFest, JMM, MathFest. • Applications tend to be due in April. Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

  18. www.ams.org employment information job ads www.siam.org employment information job ads www.careercornerstone.org information about non-academic jobs http://archives.math.utk.edu/projnext/ New Experiences in Teaching program for new faculty explanation of process for applying to be NExT Fellow www.math.ou.edu/~tjmurphy examples of application materials Relevant URLs Finding a Job -- Pizza Seminar -- Murphy

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