Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Essential guide & companion for those on the market, August 16, 2002
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!
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22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Essential guide to the academic job search, August 30, 2008
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.
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Perfect for your last 2-years of grad school, April 20, 2000
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.
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