The Academic Job Search Handbook [Paperback]

Julia Miller Vick (Author), Jennifer S. Furlong (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 30, 2008

For more than 15 years, The Academic Job Search Handbook has assisted job seekers in all academic disciplines in their search for faculty positions. The guide includes information on aspects of the search that are common to all levels, with invaluable tips for those seeking their first or second faculty position. This new edition provides updated advice and addresses hot topics in the competitive job market of today, including the challenges faced by dual-career couples, job search issues for pregnant candidates, and advice on how to deal with gaps in a CV. The chapter on alternatives to academic jobs has been expanded, and sample resumes from individuals seeking nonfaculty positions are included.

The book begins with an overview of the hiring process and a timetable for applying for academic positions. It then gives detailed information on application materials, interviewing, negotiating job offers, and starting the new job. Guidance throughout is aimed at all candidates, with frequent reference to the specifics of job searches in scientific and technical fields as well as those in the humanities and social sciences. Advice on seeking postdoctoral opportunities is also included.

Perhaps the most significant contribution is the inclusion of sample vitas. The Academic Job Search Handbook describes the organization and content of the vita and includes samples from a variety of fields. In addition to CVs and research statements, new in this edition are a sample interview itinerary, a teaching portfolio, and a sample offer letter. The job search correspondence section has also been updated, and there is current information on Internet search methods and useful websites.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"If one needs a guide, this is the best."—The Nation

About the Author

Julia Miller Vick is Senior Associate Director and Jennifer S. Furlong is Associate Director of Career Services at the University of Pennsylvania. They are coauthors of the Chronicle of Higher Education online column Career Talk.

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press; 4th edition (June 30, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812220161
• ISBN-13: 978-0812220162
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #20,451 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #35 in Books > Business & Investing > Job Hunting & Careers > Job Hunting

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential guide & companion for those on the market, August 16, 2002

By 

Amanda Wilcox (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Academic Job Search Handbook (3rd Edition) (Paperback)

The earlier in your graduate career you obtain this book the better, since the section on planning your job search gives great advice about positioning yourself as an attractive candidate well before you start applying for jobs. I found the guide an invaluable companion over the seven month period that comprised my job search. The sample vitas, cover letters, and statements of teaching philosophy were especially useful, as was the extensive section on interviewing at conferences, on campus, and by phone. The tone was reassuring but realistic, and the advice was helpful both in conceptualizing aspects of the search (e.g., think of the interview as a conversation in which the evaluative aspect is made overt) and as a series of friendly, pragmatic tips (e.g., don't check luggage when flying to an interview; bring an escapist novel to read at the hotel). The book also contains sensible discussion of how to negotiate an offer, how to handle illegal or simply bizarre interview questions, what to wear, issues surrounding dual-career marriages, and after you've gotten a position, how to handle your new academic responsibilites and secure tenure. I recommend this book to everyone who aims at an academic position, and in the future, I will recommend it to my students!

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential guide to the academic job search, August 30, 2008

By 

Laura Malisheski "Career Counselor for PhDs" (Cambridge, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Academic Job Search Handbook (Paperback)

The Academic Job Search Handbook is the essential guide for anyone pursuing an academic career. Now in its 4th edition, this book is recognized amongst graduate career professionals not only as a classic in our field, but also as an up-to-date guide book to preparing for and applying to faculty positions. Through straightforward advice coupled with sensitivity toward individual and field-specific differences, Julie Vick and Jennifer Furlong provide extensive coverage of the academic job search fundamentals, including many examples of successful CVs, cover letters, and other application materials. The recently expanded chapters on a variety of special circumstances (e.g. those who are pregnant or new parents on the job market, dual career couples, or older candidates) provide real-life success stories that encourage all applicants to capitalize on their own personal strengths while offering specific strategies to help ameliorate potential concerns of search committees.

As a career counselor for graduate students and PhDs, I experience, through my clients, the enormous anxiety inherent in such a competitive job market. The Academic Job Search Handbook provides an indispensable touchstone to help turn unproductive angst into thoughtful, confident action, through concrete and specific advice. I recommend it to all those aspiring to and navigating an academic career.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for your last 2-years of grad school, April 20, 2000

By 

Marty (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Academic Job Search Handbook (2nd Edition) (Paperback)

This book provides a wealth of information that orients graduate students who are unexperienced with the academic job market with the intricate process of securing an academic position. It doesn't provide discipline-specific information, but it DOES give an overall plan and breakdown of what you can expect during your job search. I found the sample curriculum vitaes and cover letters invaluable guides.