Fri, November 8, 4:00 to 5:45pm, Hawai’i Convention Center, Mtg Rm 322 B
If you are on the job market and will be at American Studies Association – attend this session!
Graduate Education Committee: Strategies for Survival and Success in the Academic Job Market (co-sponsored by the Students’ Committee)
This session will provide graduate students and those on the job market with strategies for best positioning themselves for careers in disciplinary and interdisciplinary departments. The session will deploy a hybrid format, merging an interactive workshop and a roundtable discussion. During the first 30 minutes of the session, panelists will work in small groups with session attendees to evaluate sample job materials (e.g. CVs, cover letters, and relevant statements). Samples will be provided, but session attendees may also bring their own materials. The remainder of the session will be a roundtable discussion with healthy question and answer session. The moderator will prepare a list of questions and distribute them ahead of time. Questions may include:
• How does one make their interdisciplinary work legible to disciplinary academic departments?
• When should graduate students begin publishing?
• How many publications does one typically need to appear marketable to your institution?
• How much should one focus on teaching different courses in diverse formats (i.e. online, hybrid, face-to-face) while in graduate school?
• What makes a cover letter, teaching philosophy, or diversity statement stand out?
• Are there advantages/disadvantages to being on the job market ABD?
• What are some DOs and DON’Ts of cover letters and interviews?
The panelists for this session come from a variety of disciplinary and interdisciplinary backgrounds (e.g. American Studies, English, Anthropology, and Ethnic Studies). Moreover, they have experience at a range of institutions, from SLACs to research universities and are at different stages of their careers.
Chair: Lee Bebout, Arizona State University, Tempe
Panelists:
Annie Isabel Fukushima, University of Utah
Ben Chappell, University of Kansas
Annie Isabel Fukushima 