Steps to becoming a professor

For those of you who don't know, I'm in the process of applying for faculty positions this year, which is about a year-long process.  It's the primary reason my blog posts have been infrequent since I spend every free minute, or so it seems, applying for jobs.  I just thought I would share the process since it's a bit obscure.


Late Summer/Early Fall: Application writing
Towards the end of summer, in anticipation of job openings being announced in the fall, I began to prepare my Research Statement and my Teaching Statement.  The Research Statement is a major time investment and although it's short, five to six pages, it represents a good deal of work and thought.  Essentially, this statement gives committees a glimpse at the major projects and future direction of your lab.  In essence I was writing a proposal for about five or six Ph.D. or postdoctoral projects that would start immediately and a direction that my lab would take over the course of the next ten years.  I felt very accomplished when this was finished, however it turns out it was only the beginning of the work for applying to a faculty job.  The Teaching Statement is much shorter, usually a page, and describes previous teaching experience, general philosophies on teaching and learning, an example course you would want to build, and any existing classes at the specific university that you could teach. 


Fall (August-December): Applications
With a glut of Ph.D.'s on the market, getting a faculty job is certainly not a sure thing.  Even worse is the excess of Ph.D.'s has lead to higher and higher requirements for entry level (assistant) faculty jobs.  The competition I face, for a limited number of jobs, includes people who have spent many more years in postdoctoral training and therefore have a larger publication record.  In light of this, the current dogma is that people should apply for at least 20 faculty positions.  This stage of the application process includes an extensive amount of research on 1) Finding open faculty postings in the country (and internationally in some cases). 2) Doing extensive research about the department, University, and surrounding area to determine who you would collaborate with and how you would fit in.  3) Tailoring the application and applying.

The Dead Zone: Between the application and a possible interview
The time following the submission of an application is essentially a black hole as far as a candidate is concerned.  You may never hear if your application was received or what stage the committee is in regarding the reviews.  At this point, what typically happens is a committee of faculty members within the department review the large number of applications received and come, somehow, to an agreement on who they will invite for an interview.  I've found out that at most Universities or Institutes, departments are allowed to invite 3-5 faculty candidates to interview for any one position based on University regulations.  Some applications require you request the submission of your three to five letters of recommendation at the time of the application and some only request the contact info for the people who will be your references.  In the latter case you might actually hear from one of these people that they have had a letter requested.  This is a tiny bit of information since it indicates the department is considering your candidacy enough to take it to the next level. 

Spring (January - April): Interviews
I fully expect not to hear any information regarding a possible interview until January.  In fact, I have had one University tell me that they have requested my letters of recommendation and will contact me in January regarding whether or not they will request an interview.  The rest of my information comes from people who have preceded me in the application process by a year or more.  They went through the long agony of the Dead Zone before finally hearing in the early part of the year about the result of their 20 to 30 applications.

I have no direct experience, but I understand that the Interview process involves about two days of involved meetings and seminars.  At the heart of the interview is a departmental-wide seminar where you present your previous work.   Additionally, some departments request a "chalk talk" with current faculty members.  This is a presentation regarding the work you propose to do.  You might also have a lunch with current undergraduate or graduate students.  The remaining part of the interview is filled with short one-on-one meetings with faculty in the department, the chair, and I think the Dean in many cases.  I believe that if you are requested for a second interview or visit it means you will be receiving an offer and on this visit you bring your family to see the city, etc.  The remaining part of becoming a professor, the offer and subsequent negotiations will involve another post all together, one that will have to wait until I (hopefully) have first-hand experience.

Where I am in the process: 
I am in both the application process and the Dead Zone.  I have now applied to 15 schools and am trying to finish up the last 5 to 10 applications in the next two weeks.  This has been an exhausting experience, but also a very exciting one.  Researching various Universities and departments has really helped me to understand the scientific, social network in my field.  However, it's depressing to get very excited about the opportunities a department holds for me knowing there's a slim chance I'll be invited to an interview, let alone given a job offer.  In some ways the Dead Zone is much more tolerable for the departments in which I feel a smaller scientific connection with.  I have had a couple of rejections and a few inklings that some schools are considering my application further.  Given how many places I apply, I expect to get a lot of rejection.  I hope I can learn to deal with it!  I suppose this is a first step in a long career of rejection...it's generally taken as truth that a research professor will experience a great deal of disappointment in obtaining grant money.