Faculty Job Search Reboot 2.0: Updated Resources

By Jackie Caemmerer, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, and Kai Zhuang Shum, Ph.D., University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Welcome to the 2025 job application season! Some of our most popular blog posts are related to faculty job search guidance. For that reason, we wanted to bring some of those posts to the top of our blog list during the fall job announcement season. Below, we have linked job-related blog posts by the SSSP ECF. These links align closely with a past blog, Faculty Job Search Resource Reboot, written 4 years ago. 

Previous ECF Blogs: Application Guidance 

• Fall is in the air: It’s hiring season for academic positions 
• The job search - what not to do
• Archived webinar - Demystifying academia: Faculty roles and opportunities
• Making the most of your CV: Talking about yourself in bullet points
• Tips for writing an academic cover letter
• Faculty job search resource re-boot

Previous ECF Blogs: Interview Guidance

• Virtual first round interviews: What to expect and how to shine
• So you have been offered a virtual interview! Now what?
• Congratulations, you’ve been invited to campus! Now what?
• Preparing a job talk: Maximizing your impact during campus visits

Previous ECF Blogs: After the Interview – Negotiation Guidance

• Starting off on the right track: Negotiating a faculty job offer

Previous ECF Blogs: Switching Institutions Guidance

• Should I stay or should I go?

Book Chapter: A Comprehensive and Cohesive Resource

Sullivan, A.L., Ardoin, S.P., Maki, K.E., Harper, E.A., Kulkarni, T. (2021). Obtaining your first academic job. In R.G. Floyd & T.L. Eckert (Eds.), Handbook of University and Professional Careers in School Psychology. Routledge.

Virtual First-Round Interviews: What to Expect and How to Shine

By Jackie Caemmerer, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, and Kai Zhuang Shum, Ph.D., University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Contributors: Melissa Bray, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, Sandy Chafouleas, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, and Randy Floyd, Ph.D., University of Memphis

After you submit your faculty job application (read some of the posts linked below for advice in that process), there is often a pause, and the waiting begins. After the search committee has reviewed all the applications, they typically invite a short list of candidates to a first-round interview, which more recently has become a brief virtual interview. After the committee completes all their first-round virtual interviews, they will make decisions about which candidates they will invite to a full 1–2-day campus interview (or perhaps a much longer full-day virtual interview).

We provide some suggestions below to help you prepare for your first-round virtual interview (congrats on making it to the short-list!). These suggestions are an amalgamation of our experiences and suggestions from 3 senior faculty with a lot of experience leading search committees: Drs. Melissa Bray, Sandy Chafouleas, and Randy Floyd.

Preparation Before the Interview

• Know the Department and Program and Prepare to Make Yourself Useful: Read faculty bios, recent publications, and program initiatives. Pay close attention to how school psychology fits within the department (e.g., connections to counseling, special education, or clinical psychology). Be prepared to clearly explain how your skills and interests align with current faculty and how you could contribute right away by easing the workload or adding value to ongoing work. Candidates who enter the interview thinking,  “I will just be myself” and “They will either like me or not, and I have no control over that,” are not likely to be successful. Instead, saying, “I think that there are a lot of ways I could fit in and contribute to your strong program” is much more likely to yield positive outcomes. 
• Highlight How You Fit the Call: Review the job announcement once again (pay special attention to the required and preferred qualifications) and all of your application materials. Prepare examples that directly address the position’s listed needs (e.g., practicum coordination, licensure, research, or teaching needs) and what you can contribute to their program, college, or university.
• Prepare Your Responses: Be ready to briefly explain your research trajectory, teaching philosophy, mentorship experience and style, and your current licensure status or eligibility for licensure in the state in which you are applying. Questions often begin with the directive of “Tell us about yourself,” and often include a question about why the candidate is interested in the specific institution and program. Practice a clear and brief introduction and prepare your best “canned” answers to common questions. Practice, practice, and practice providing very concise answers!
• Prepare Questions for the Committee: Show genuine interest in the position with a list of thoughtful questions (e.g., collaboration opportunities, practicum sites, support for research, or how the program engages with local schools and communities, and their timeline for the next steps in their job search).
• Set Up Your Tech & Space: Test your internet connection, camera, mic, and sound quality. Find a quiet location where you can complete the interview (in your home or otherwise). Choose a neutral background with good lighting (there are plenty of guides out there on how to present yourself favorably in an online presence, so at this point, become an expert!). Develop a backup plan in case your first choice of technology does not work (desktop, laptop, tablet, or phone). Have a copy of your CV, the job ad, and your list of questions for them nearby.
• Check your Time Zones and Sign on Early: If you applied broadly to jobs in different parts of the country, the search committee may be in a different time zone than you. Double and triple-check the time zone for the interview time slot, so you show up at the right time. Be prepared to sign on a few minutes early so you are ready when the committee wants to admit you into the virtual meeting.

During the Virtual Interview

• Pay Attention to Virtual Etiquette: Greet the committee, maintain eye contact (look at the camera, not the screen), make sure your background is clear of distractions, mute when not speaking (if it’s a panel), and pause before answering in case of a lag.
• “Embrace the Awkward” – Online interviews can feel scripted and unnatural. The committee may have a standard set of identical questions that they must ask everyone. Accept the discomfort, do not forget to smile, and avoid rushing. Use the time to elaborate with examples and anecdotes that show your strengths. If you can, enter the interview anticipating that you will need to show ample flexibility and patience because there may be technical problems that you cannot prevent.
• It’s Time to Shine: You’ve prepared for the typical questions. Make sure to highlight your fit, share your “academic story”, and ask your questions with confidence! Remember that time is limited, so you want to be concise in your responses while leaving the committee with 3-5 takeaways that will make you stand out.
• Express Enthusiasm: Thank the committee for their time and reiterate one or two reasons you’re excited about the role.

After the Virtual Interview

• Follow Up Immediately: Send a concise thank-you email highlighting a specific part of the conversation that stood out to you. Keep the message brief, express appreciation for the opportunity, and email each person who participated.

Our senior contributors, Drs. Bray, Chafouleas, and Floyd also shared some helpful general suggestions for those applying to school psychology faculty positions in the current academic context.

General Advice for Success in the Job Search

• Be Open and Apply Broadly: If your situation allows, apply to positions broadly to increase your chances of success. Avoid limiting yourself geographically (if possible) and consider post-doctoral positions as well. Be open to a variety of possible positions, even if they do not match your ideal position exactly. Your first job is not always your last, so get the experience in creative ways.
• Tailor Your Job Materials to Match their Criteria: Very carefully attend to the position criteria in the job announcement, both the required and preferred qualifications, and align your materials with what the committee is looking for. The committee members may be reviewing many applications with limited available time, so make your job materials easy to follow. Clearly explain and showcase your research, teaching and mentorship, and service accomplishments thus far.
• Demonstrate Your Future Potential: Make sure your materials reflect a strong trajectory - it's not just what you have already done but the promise that you hold for long-term success.
• Prepare for Uncertainty and Some Disappointment: Many of us who have spent most of our careers as university professors can attest to this period being one of unprecedented changes and uncertainty. Job applicants should consider that university leaders may be feeling something akin to inverted reality right now. Our standard scripts for communicating with applicants and our expectations for new faculty when they join us may have recently been revised—or we have yet to articulate those revisions because we don’t know what is ahead for us. Furthermore, some standard interview questions that we have asked for years (e.g., “What are some of your contributions to DEI efforts?”) may now be prohibited by state laws and federal guidelines. Faculty members may appear evasive in answering candidates’ questions about their institutions because they truly do not know what those answers are currently or what they are likely to be in the near future. 
• Be Optimistic and Trust that You (and Higher Education) Have Versatility: The key question when deciding on the next phase of your career is to ask what priorities are most important to you at this time. The act of securing the job, committing, and settling into some new roles is the key feature of an early career. Then, you can determine if you have the well-balanced life you want, and you can potentially re-prioritize and shift to a new setting and some new roles at a later point. Your broad school psychology skill set will allow for that. Universities certainly provide numerous opportunities for career growth and for changing one’s focus within that setting across time. Even during this challenging period for higher education, it is important to remember that universities are highly malleable and adaptive institutions. With time, they will adjust to changing conditions. We feel confident that university faculty positions will continue to offer rewarding careers for many future generations of scholars in school psychology.

Recruiting and Retaining Racially and Ethnically Minoritized School Psychology Scholars

Geremy Grant, Ph.D., Taylor Martin del Campo, Ed.S., Aleah Hayes M.S., and Lindsay Fallon, Ph.D.

School psychology scholarship has long-been a predominantly white space (Malone, 2024) with limited research centering the strengths, ideas, lived experiences, cultures, traditions, and values of individuals holding racially and ethnically minoritized identities. With much of school psychology research grounded in positivist principles (Sabnis & Proctor, 2022), there has been little valuing (and subsequently opportunities to publish) research centering epistemologies and methods that veer from this tradition. This has implications for the ability of school psychology scholarship to advance the practice of school psychology meaningfully; put simply, the field’s scholarship represents some but certainly not all.

Creating a more inclusive and welcoming profession for school psychology scientists and practitioners must first come with naming barriers that researchers and trainees with minoritized identities experience in school psychology training programs. Leveraging this knowledge to then implement strategies to support recruiting and retaining racially and ethnically minoritized scholars can promote a stronger, more vibrant workforce. Much of this work starts within training programs and practica sites, and may include actively dismantling long-standing barriers to access and reimagining training spaces to center the needs and experiences of minoritized individuals.

Recently, the Early Career Forum co-hosted a virtual panel on this topic with APA’s Division 16. The authors herein participated on the panel (Panel: Grant, Martin del Campo, Hayes; Moderator: Fallon), and below, challenges and opportunities discussed in this session are presented below.

Challenges

The panelists discussed several challenges, many of which highlight systemic issues in training programs and higher education.

1. Lack of Visibility: The underrepresentation of minoritized school psychologists leads to a general lack of awareness regarding their role and impact, making it difficult for potential students of color to see themselves in the profession. This disconnect can discourage interested individuals from pursuing a career in school psychology.
2. Imposter Syndrome: Minoritized students may struggle with feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt, questioning whether they truly belong in the field. This can be triggered by negative experiences in predominantly white spaces or a lack of representation in fieldwork and academia.
3. Limited Access to Resources: Financial barriers often restrict access to current research and professional development opportunities, making it challenging for individuals to access training in school psychology. This lack of access can hinder their ability to provide effective support to students, particularly those from marginalized backgrounds.
4. Tokenism: In efforts to increase diversity, minoritized individuals may find themselves only being recognized superficially, without being given real or meaningful opportunities to highlight their individual strengths. This can create frustration and a sense of being exploited instead of being genuinely valued within their institution.
5. Professional Development Gaps: Professional development offerings may not adequately address the unique challenges faced by minoritized school psychologists, leaving them along with other staff members without the tools necessary to navigate their environments effectively. This gap can lead to feelings of disconnect and inadequacy in their roles.
6. Disproportionate Workloads: School psychologists of color may be tasked with additional responsibilities related to diversity initiatives or disciplinary actions, often without proper training, recognition, or compensation. This can create a sense of imbalance and unfairness in the workplace, contributing to burnout.
7. Limited Mentorship: The absence of mentors from similar cultural backgrounds can result in a lack of guidance and support for minoritized students. This can impede their professional growth and decrease their confidence in navigating academic and career pathways.
8. Systemic Barriers: Institutional policies and practices may not consider or support the specific needs of minoritized students, leading to environments that can be unwelcoming or hostile. These systemic barriers may hinder students’ academic success and overall well-being.

Opportunities

The panelists also described opportunities, naming specific action steps to take to address the aforementioned challenges.

1. Enhance Visibility: Programs should actively promote the successes and contributions of minoritized school psychologists through outreach initiatives, social media,  community engagement, and inclusion of their work in coursework/curricula. Highlighting diverse role models in educational settings can inspire prospective students of color to consider a career in school psychology.
2. Mentorship Programs: Establishing formal mentorship programs pairing experienced school psychology researchers and practitioners with students of color can provide valuable support. These programs can help mentees navigate academic challenges, build confidence, and develop a professional network that fosters growth. It is of the utmost importance that all mentors embody the principles of social justice, adopt a stance of cultural humility, and engage in lifelong intentional efforts towards cultural competence.
3. Resource Centers: Campus cultural resource centers should be leveraged to provide tailored support, mentorship, and resources specifically for students of color. Often, these centers facilitate workshops, networking events, and social gatherings to create a sense of community and belonging. School psychology faculty should learn about these opportunities and share resources with prospective and incoming students.
4. Climate Surveys: Regularly conducting climate surveys and facilitating town hall meetings allows institutions to gather feedback from the experiences of program members. This input can help identify areas for improvement, promote transparent discussions between faculty and students, and ensure that the environment of academia is supportive and inclusive for all students. 
5. Community Building: Institutions should prioritize creating safe spaces and forums where students of color can connect with each other. These spaces may include support groups, social events, and online platforms to facilitate ongoing dialogue and relationship-building among peers. Programs should also utilize existing organizations to broaden students’ support networks beyond the institution they are enrolled in (e.g., the Black School Psychologists Network; APA Division 45- Society for the Psychological Study of Culture, Ethnicity and Race; NASP’s Multicultural Affairs Committee and Diversity Communities; Association of Black Psychologists; Society of Indian Psychologists; National Latinx Psychological Association; Asian American Psychological Association; AMENA Psychological Association)
6. Intentional Marketing: Graduate programs must clearly articulate their commitment to belonging and justice in their marketing materials. This includes showcasing faculty work on these topics and actively promoting the program’s inclusive values and action-oriented work to attract prospective students.
7. Celebrate Achievements: Institutions and programs should create celebratory events to acknowledge student and faculty accomplishments, big and small. Recognizing milestones fosters a sense of value and belonging, motivating individuals to continue striving for success.
8. Open Access Resources: Advocacy for open access journals is essential to ensure that all school psychologists, regardless of funding, can access current research. Encouraging institutions to support this model can help bridge the gap in resources available to practitioners.
9. Training and Professional Development: All faculty and staff should receive training in cultural competence and inclusivity to better support minoritized students. This approach ensures that the entire academic community is equipped to create an inclusive environment that recognizes and values diversity.
10. Collaborative Initiatives: Institutions should focus on building coalitions with other organizations to share resources, exchange best practices, and develop unified initiatives aimed at supporting diversity.

Enhancing the field’s scholarship begins with active, meaningful efforts to redesign training environments to welcome and value individuals with racially and ethnically minoritized  identities. Below we share additional resources to continue engaging with this topic and taking action to create such professional spaces.

References and Additional Scholarly Resources

Aguilar, L. N., Mojica, K., Lim, H. S., Ruiz-Montoya, M. D., Palmer, J. T. S., Serratos, C. B., & Soto, J. M. (2024). Surviving and thriving in school psychology through community building and storytelling: A collaborative autoethnography. School Psychology International, 45(3), 280-318.

Graves, S. L., Newell, M., Harrell, F., & Wells, T. (2021). A mixed data analysis of graduate student mentoring for faculty careers in school psychology. Contemporary School Psychology, 25(1), 99-108.

Kim, E. K., Jackson, K., Han, K., & Cummings-Barkley, B. (2024). Recruitment and retention strategies to diversify school psychology graduate programs: A systematic review. School Psychology Review, https://doi.org/10.1080/2372966X.2024.2391731

Malone, C. M. (2024). Moving School Psychology Beyond the Clouds of Injustice: A Blue Sky Discussion. School Psychology Review, 53(3), 324-340.

Parker, J. S., Haskins, N., Coleman-Chatman, T., Duru, C., Ramirez, D., Chae, N., … Nortey, A. (2023). Dismantling the imposter syndrome: A case study of early career women of color in school mental health fields. The Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 49(1), 3–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/01933922.2023.2281670

Proctor, S. L., & Romano, M. (2016). School psychology recruitment research characteristics and implications for increasing racial and ethnic diversity. School Psychology Quarterly, 31(3), 311-326.

Sabnis, S. V., & Proctor, S. L. (2022). Use of critical theory to develop a conceptual framework for critical school psychology. School Psychology Review, 51(6), 661-675.

Sabnis, S. V., Tanaka, M. L., Beard, K., & Proctor, S. L. (2023). Women of color and the hidden curriculum of school psychology doctoral programs. Journal of School Psychology, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2023.02.004

Starting Off on the Right Track: Negotiating a Faculty Job Offer

Courtenay A. Barrett, Ph.D. and Katie Maki, Ph.D.The season of faculty searches is well underway, with on-campus interviews back in full swing even as additional positions continue to be posted. Getting an offer for an academic position is certainly thrilling, but for early career scholars, the negotiation process can also be daunting. There are many factors to consider when negotiating a start-up package (e.g., salary, start-up funds, graduate assistant support), but prioritizing those factors can be challenging and knowing which factors the university or college may support is often not clear. In addition, the process can vary from one institution to the next, and even within an institution. Simply put, context matters. To help demystify the negotiating process, we asked three senior scholars who are currently in administrative positions and engage in the negotiation process with incoming faculty: Randy Floyd (University of Memphis), Jeff Braden (North Carolina State University), and another administrator who responded  anonymously. Describe your institution (e.g., R1 institution, public vs. private) and role (e.g., department chair, dean) that influences how the negotiation process generally unfolds. Randy Floyd (RF): I am almost three years into service as a Chair of a Department of Psychology with 32 full-time faculty members. It includes APA-accredited doctoral programs in School Psychology and Clinical Psychology, a NASP-approved MA/EdS program in School Psychology, a doctoral program in Experimental Psychology, and a master’s degree in General Psychology. Our undergraduate majors include about 800 students. It is my 22nd year in this department, and I served as an Associate Chair for more than 5 years before entering this role. After decades of striving, my university achieved Carnegie R1: Doctoral Universities – Very High Research Activity status in 2022. The push toward this designation and newfound status have increased our emphasis on both (a) ensuring that new faculty have the necessary supports to achieve high levels of research productivity and grant funding during the pre-tenure period and (b) applying more structure to the distribution and spending of start-up funding.Anonymous (AN): I am at an R1 University. The Dean has a formula that she uses for salary. The Department Head provides that offer to the candidate and the two of them negotiate. But essentially the Department Head is a middle person. All communications then go to the Dean.Jeff Braden (JB): I am at an R1 University. I was Dean of Humanities & Social Sciences at NC State; our School Psychology program is in the Psychology Department (which I think makes startups much easier to negotiate).How does your institution negotiate with potential faculty to establish the details of an offer? With whom do candidates negotiate (e.g., department chair, dean)? RF: This question is very important because which unit leader you negotiate with might very much shape your experience during negotiations. It’s usually the department head (a.k.a., department chair) or college dean who will make the offer and facilitate negotiations. I sense that deans are more likely to manage the negotiations in colleges of education (or the like), and department heads/chairs are more likely to handle the negotiations in colleges of arts and sciences (and the like). From my experience, department leaders will know potential teaching and service responsibilities better as well as expectations for your research area better (and what your research needs might be) than a dean will. On the other hand, deans will have broader knowledge of the needs of new faculty (e.g., peer support across the college as well as benefits) as they engage in negotiations numerous times each year, whereas this is not likely to be the case for most departments. In my department, candidates negotiate fully with the department chair (my position), and I consult with the college dean (of the College of Arts and Sciences) as needed. Following the full interview (and before an offer is made), I discuss general parameters of the potential offer with every candidate, and that sets up the discussion of specific requests after I make the offer.AN: They negotiate directly with the chair, but the chair just communicates the request to the dean.JB: The department head (chair) negotiates the terms of the offer unless there's an issue requiring work with the provost's office (e.g., a trailing spouse seeking employment in another college). A salary range may be submitted/approved when the job is posted by HR (but usually not). If a range is posted, department heads are not allowed to exceed that range.What’s negotiable (e.g., salary, start-up funds, spousal accommodations, moving expenses, etc.)? How do you determine what to accommodate versus not? How are these decisions made? RF: I suppose that any item can be negotiated. Salaries are not fixed (but there are narrow bands), and start-up funds vary based on research program costs and the professional developmental stage of the candidate. I also try to (a) anticipate needs (e.g., for moving) up front and (b) accommodate other requests (e.g., for supervision for licensure). Applicants should know that there are real financial constraints on unit leaders based on money budgeted for the position at least a year before. I asked for and received a $2000 laptop as start-up in my first faculty position (in 1999), and I had the sense that this was a costly expense to that department based on my conversations with other faculty. Now, I routinely offer research supports totaling more than $50,000 to incoming tenure-track faculty. Other constraints on unit leaders are social and structural within a department or college. Salary compression and salary inversion often weigh heavily on the minds of unit leaders when hiring new faculty. They usually don’t want to anger their existing faculty and increase the probability of their leaving as a result of hiring new faculty at higher salaries, so knowing the salary range of existing faculty (which is often publicly available online) is helpful. If spousal accommodations are needed, I hope that candidates share this need early during negotiations, as securing another hire is challenging for most universities. Positions usually cannot be created de novo based on a candidate’s request. Lots of coordination (and often luck) are needed to identify job openings that can be filled by a spouse.AN: Salary, start-up, course assignments for first year, summer salary for first and second year, possibly spousal hire but this is really difficult. Moving expense are not negotiable.JB: Because we are a state institution, we cannot use state funds for moving expenses (and, thanks to a change in federal law during the Trump administration, any moving expenses we give must be reported/taxed as income). Our policy was to offer $3K in moving (from our private funds) for every tenured/tenure track faculty member. Everything else is negotiable, but limits are largely determined by norms/averages. It's difficult to accommodate trailing spouses because of the costs; our provost would pick up some of the salary and benefits if the spouse would be hired as a T/TT faculty in a different college.What advice do you have for early career faculty throughout the negotiation process? What are some common mistakes candidates make? What do candidates typically fail to ask for, but should? RF: The best employers want you to succeed, and that should be evident throughout the process of interviewing, job offers, and negotiations. It is important that candidates get a sense of the offer and negotiation process during the interview. It is totally okay for candidates to ask the faculty engaged in the search—especially the search committee chair or faculty in the school psychology program—about (a) what unit leader will issue the offer and engage in negotiation and (b) what new faculty need to be successful in the unit. Candidates should ask about office space, storage and lab space (if applicable), shared space, graduate assistantship supports (including teaching assistants and research assistants), and the like during the interview. In particular, it is useful to know how graduate assistantships are funded (through the department or college or through a university-wide central pool) and how much each “costs” the unit. This information will reveal how costly such positions are and allow candidates to weigh these costs against other requests. For example, one question may be whether it would be better to have a 20-hour-a-week research assistant (costing the department $35,000 in stipend and tuition) throughout the year or the same amount of money for participant payments, travel to conferences, reimbursement for licensure, and the like. When directed to the right person (e.g., a faculty member hired in the past 3-4 years or a seasoned program director) and timed right, a question like “If I was to be so fortunate to receive an offer from you, what would you recommend that I ask for in my negotiations?” might facilitate rich conversations.Candidates should be prepared to have a sense of costs of items—computers, software, furniture, specialized equipment, and the like—and be prepared to provide an itemized list of them. School psychology researchers vary in the costs they incur when conducting their research, and when entering highly research-intensive universities, candidates should ask for supports to complete two or three studies in full across the first several years. If these studies can be tied to grant application programs, that’s even better.Rationales may be needed to justify requests. For example, a candidate asking for graduate research assistantship support should describe in some detail how the graduate assistant will aid them in completing projects (e.g., collecting data from the field, entering data already collected, coding articles in a meta-analysis). A candidate might also strengthen a request for meeting space (even if shared) by providing a rationale that they need that space to connect with community partners to support their research program.It is important that candidates entering a faculty position for the first time not focus too much on tangible purchases (e.g., computers and conference tables) and insufficiently consider professional development and travel supports that can propel them forward in their careers. Attending workshops focused on research and analytic methods or grant-writing skills might yield major dividends and also aid them in developing research partnerships. AN: Talk with another faculty member who is senior but that is not part of the negotiation process. Also talk with someone who might have just done their negotiations last year. Try to find out what other people were given. Don't ask for a grad assistant in year 1. You won't be ready for a grad assistant in the first year. Ask for a grad assistant in year 2.JB: I would strongly recommend asking the dept. head "What do you typically offer to candidates as part of the hiring package?" A common mistake is to argue for things you don't need, especially for start-up packages (e.g., money, space). Be clear about what you will need to get your research on track to earn tenure (that's what we all want), but work with the department head about how you get it (e.g., shared lab space, centralized computer software can yield the same result for less cost). Be sure to negotiate a reduced course load to start. Our typical load is 2/2; we usually offered a 1/2 the first year, and a 1/2 after reappointment (typically after the third year).How has the negotiation process changed COVID (e.g., working remotely)? RF: All of my negotiations have occurred since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As our interviews have been conducted remotely, we have invited those offered the position the opportunity to visit in person after the offer has been made, and negotiations have often continued after the that in-person visit.JB: For a while, everything (including the interview) was mediated via videoconferencing. That dramatically reduces your opportunity to read nonverbal behavior, which is critical for monitoring the impact you're having on others. If you are in a remote interview/negotiation process, make sure to slow things down and do lots of checking in.How do or should considerations of equity come into play? RF: Some universities appear to have standardized salaries for new hires based on a formula and determination of the candidate’s qualifications, but there is notable variability across universities—usually with consideration of existing salaries. Candidates these days should study online reports from university systems focusing on gender equity (if available) as well as directly address patterns of inequities that appear evident in existing salaries. An applicant might say, “I noticed that women in this department seem to be paid notably less than men, and I am wondering if there is an actual disparity across genders and, if so, how the university is addressing this disparity.” Many applicants for faculty positions will be completing internships or post-doctoral fellowships when they receive an offer, and they may have accumulated substantial debt during these years of education. Thus, it is important that unit leaders know that (a) new hires will likely incur significant expenses during their transition to their new place of employment (that they probably will need to put on credit), (b) they may need to pay for health insurance out-of-pocket during the transition, (c) the first payment in the new position may come more than a month (and sometimes 6+ weeks) after beginning the position, and (d) finding a stable living situation (especially a house) likely means that the new hire will settle in to the new position and not leave after a year or two of employment. For example, with these points in mind, my department provides a “moving+” stipend provided early in the summer before the start date that is designed to cover the costs of moving per se, contribute to down payments (on apartments or houses), and aid in bridging the financial gap between positions. Otherwise, moving expenses at my university are unfortunately reimbursed in the first paycheck rather than through a stipend paid to the new hire that is used to pay for expenses when they occur. My department has also implemented a diversity science scholar program that provides summer monies (roughly a month’s pay, based on the new faculty’s salary) during the first three summers for those faculty engaged in diversity related research. This initiative promotes excellence in research in diversity science and may increase representation of faculty of color in our programs.JB: Equity in salary is pretty straightforward, and most institutions are aware of (and avoid) obvious inequities at hiring (not least because failing to do so will cause problems later). More problematic are expectations for service; if you are from an underrepresented group, you might ask for a reduced teaching load to compensate for the additional work you may be asked to do with underrepresented students and expectations for serving on committees. If not, be sure to negotiate with your department head her/his help in keeping committee assignments in line with others seeking tenure (minority faculty are often sought after for committee service). Finally, be aware of cumulative equity as your career moves ahead. Males tend to be more assertive in seeking salary increases, either by interviewing elsewhere or negotiating with their department head. Over time, failing to assert yourself in annual salary exercises can lead you to fall further behind--so be sure to ask your department head if your increase is consistent with others hired in the same year.Is there anything else you think early career scholars should know to help them navigate the negotiation process and set themselves up for success in their faculty position?RF: Good advice can be obtained from graduate school advisors and mentors, summaries of faculty salaries, and other online resources, but expectations and supports that seem standard at some universities and in some states and regions may not apply universally. For example, salaries vary greatly across states and regions—often relative to cost of living. I encourage candidates to make requests during negotiations based, in part, on the information they have learned from their interviews and other university- or state-level sources, including data from online cost-of-living calculators. Unit leaders expect it, and we appreciate when it is reasonably consistent with the culture of the department and when it has the potential to move the unit forward.Once the offer is made, candidates should stay fully engaged in the process and prepare for a rapid series of exchanges, with gaps in communication not extending beyond 2-3 days. This often means a lot of emails, calls, and Zooming.Candidates should prioritize their goals and professional needs—stressing those necessary for them to be successful—and include some “reach” requests that would make their lives easier or enhance a specific skill set but are not crucial to their development. They should ask for more than they expect to receive and also know when to accept the unit leader’s denial of a request and move on. I suspect that the status quo in university negotiations is three exchanges (e.g., offer made by employer, counter by candidate, and revised offer by employer) before resolution. These exchanges can give the candidate a good sense of the set point for negotiations and indicate that extending these exchanges beyond this series might not be fruitful.Within limits, candidates should be mindful of their own personalities and exercise creativity in responding to features of the offer, as there may be more wiggle room than presumed. For example, a unit leader might be very willing to alter a faculty’s teaching schedule from 1 course a semester for the first two years to no teaching during the first semester, one course during the second semester, one course during the third semester, and two courses during the fourth semester. That alternative arrangement still includes four courses spread across two years, which is the expectation of the unit leader, and if it is better for the candidate and it works for the unit, it’s a win-win situation for both!Candidates should expect a lot of variation across negotiating tactics and styles, and that variation may depend on whether they are discussing salary, teaching and service responsibilities, supports, and so on. Some unit leaders will want to discuss each feature (e.g., salary versus teaching) in sequence, and others will lay all the major features on the table from the beginning. Some unit leaders will offer candidates more than they considered, and other leaders will want candidates to make the first requests. Candidates are often told to “get it in writing,” but they should not expect to have each negotiated point offered in writing from the beginning. However, before agreeing to accept the position, they should review an offer letter carefully and ensure that each key element is represented in some way. Otherwise, candidates (and unit leaders) may forget that part of the negotiations, or the unit leader may no longer be in that role after a few years, which means that the promise may not be fulfilled.AN: Talk with others at the institution about what others are getting.JB: Ask the department head what mentoring is available to you to help you (a) learn about and negotiate the program, department, college, and campus environments, and (b) advance your research. Often, a "local" mentor can help with the first issue, but an external mentor may be needed for the second. Don't be afraid to ask for both... and to ask your college and provost office what opportunities are available to support your development.Thank you to our senior scholars for providing their invaluable insight into the negotiation process. We appreciate their time, energy, and commitment to mentoring the next generation of school psychology faculty. We also want to recognize that scholars may encounter different processes, expectations, and resources, including within different settings and types of institutions not represented among our respondents. As our contributors’ responses illustrate, there is considerable variability in this process. For example, although it could be helpful in some contexts to negotiate reduced load in some areas (e.g., teaching) if you will take on other activities (e.g., service, leadership), negotiating for reduced load could also inadvertently set the expectation that you consistently avail yourself for such invisible labor beyond the parameters negotiated. Other tactics could include finding administrative and senior scholar support to protect yourself from an overwhelming amount of service as an early career scholar. Regardless, it is important to seek support as you advance through these processes given the importance of context and the nuances from one to the next. We hope our early career scholars learned a lot and feel more confident negotiating a start-up package that will position them for success in the future! Dr. Floyd would like to thank Dr. Emily Srisarajivakul and Dr. Ryan Farmer about an earlier draft of his responses.What other suggestions do you have for early career scholars who are negotiating position offers? Comment below. 

Tips for Writing an Academic Cover Letter

By Lindsay Fallon, PhD, University of Massachusetts Boston Contributors: Robin Codding, PhD, Northeastern University; Anisa Goforth, PhD, University of Montana; Tyler Renshaw, PhD, Utah State University; Amanda L. Sullivan, PhD, University of MinnesotaWhen applying to faculty jobs, it’s important to craft a compelling cover letter. A strong cover letter conveys your story, integrating your experiences, skills, interests, and accomplishments. It is your opportunity to share with the search committee why you are a great candidate for the position, linking your story to the requirements and responsibilities of the position. A cursory search for tips about how to write a strong cover letter yields suggestions such as writing in a manner that is clear, concise, and free of jargon. Yet there may be more to it than that. Below, we share guidance from four tenured university faculty members who have chaired search committees. They offer advice about what to do and what to avoid when writing an academic cover letter. We follow their advice with resources for continued reading and learning to support writing a strong cover letter, with the hope that such a cover letter will promote your chances of landing an interview with the search committee when combined with the other advice offered in our other ECF posts on the job search process.What is important to include in an academic cover letter? RC: An academic cover letter is usually the first impression you give to the search committee. This letter gives you the opportunity to indicate how your professional experiences and goals align with those advertised in the job posting. It is your opportunity to tell the story of what you have done and how you will contribute to the university, college, department, program, and profession. The cover letter also gives you the opportunity to explain and summarize the experiences listed in your CV and tie them to the position you are applying for.AG: ​​ The academic cover letter is my first opportunity to get to know the applicant. As someone who has chaired or been a member of a search committee in our Department of Psychology, it is an incredibly valuable way to get a full picture of the applicant. It is an opportunity to understand their passion, their vision, and their experiences. It is so important that I often begin my review of an applicant with the cover letter.Thus, I recommend that the academic cover letter convey the applicant’s story. This story moves beyond what is listed in the CV, but highlights the major themes of their academic and professional life. The thematic approach to storytelling is really helpful for me, as a reviewer, as I can see how their clinical work (e.g., internship, post-doc), research expertise, and teaching experience tie together, and how this would contribute to our program’s needs.Take for example an applicant who is seeking an academic position after internship or post-doc, in which they conducted their dissertation research related to progress monitoring and reading interventions. During practicum and internship, the applicant had the opportunity to implement CBMs and reading interventions in the schools, as well as to provide consultation to teachers. In the cover letter, the applicant could discuss the theme of “importance of academic assessment and intervention for students,” and highlight their dissertation research as well as their clinical experiences within this theme. Perhaps the applicant didn’t have graduate-level teaching experiences in this area, but they could indicate their excitement about teaching related courses. They could also highlight their vision for their work in the next few years that ties to this theme. Thus, the theme (i.e., academic assessment and intervention) guided the applicant’s broader story.TR: ​​Sometimes position announcements will say what they’d like you to include in the cover letter. If they do, make sure to at least cover that content. I also think it’s important to cover three main topics, regardless of what else might be included: (a) describe your training background and work history in the field, (b) talk about how you meet the required and preferred qualifications for the position, and (c) say why you’re personally excited/interested in the position. I suggest leading with (a), spending the most time on (b), integrating (c) throughout your discussion of (b), and then strongly emphasizing (c) again at the end of the letter. AS: To me, the cover letter is a crucial part of the application materials because it gives each candidate the opportunity to describe exactly why they are a great fit for the position.  Be sure to respond to each specific posting rather than using a form letter for all applications. This may just be my own preference, but I don’t think generic letters serve candidates well because they generally mean that committee members have to infer why the candidate may be a good fit when a candidate’s fit with required and desired qualifications isn’t clear. One thing I observed several years ago—and that’s been repeated many times since—was that committee members will come to wildly different interpretations of the extent to which given criteria are met if the candidate doesn’t make it explicit, especially if the details are basically buried elsewhere in the application materials that can include dozens if not hundreds of pages of materials per candidate. It’d be great if every committee member had the time and inclination to pour over every word of the application materials, attending to every detail, but that’s simply not the case. Instead, cover letters are a great opportunity to shape readers’ interpretation of your qualifications, particularly those that are more subjective (e.g., criteria related to potential contributions or leadership), and to make them want to spend the time to really engage deeply with the other components. So as a candidate, you should take the time to tailor your letter to each position’s required qualifications and specified roles. Tell the search/hiring committee why you're a strong fit for the position—and be as direct and explicit as possible. Don't hope or assume they'll make certain inferences from the materials as a whole. Use the cover letter to tell them exactly why.How might an individual convey they are a strong candidate for the position within the cover letter?RC: Provide context for the accomplishments and experiences listed in the CV and align those with the job posting. Including and highlighting (using bold or italicized font for example) words from the job posting as opening sentences for each paragraph of the cover letter ensures that you are addressing the key responsibilities that are posted.AG: My biggest recommendation is to look closely at the position announcement and align the cover letter with each of the points in the announcement. As a search chair, we work very hard to write those announcements—often hours of deliberation with our colleagues, administration, and current students! Sometimes we’re very specific—we are looking for a particular area of expertise, while other times, we write it purposefully broad. If there are specific requirements, it is helpful to indicate that within the cover letter.For example, as a program in the Department of Psychology that is APA-accredited, we often require that the applicant be eligible to be licensed as a psychologist in our state. We don’t necessarily require them to be licensed immediately, but that they are eligible (side note for those interested: some programs like ours provide post-doctoral supervision in order for our faculty to be licensed). Thus, it is helpful if the applicant has done some homework by looking at the Board of Psychologists licensure rules and indicates whether they are eligible in their cover letter.TR: I appreciate when applicants just tell you—straightforwardly—why they believe they’re a good fit for your position. The cover letter takes care to clearly connect the dots, so the search committee doesn’t need to spend time deliberating about the goodness of fit. This includes both (a) outlining how you meet the required/preferred qualifications in the position announcement as well as (b) talking about how you see your background or interests or expertise as adding value to the current faculty/program. I think the tricky part here is being straightforward while preventing arrogance or misunderstandings. Job ads and websites can only tell you so much, and they don’t provide insight into program history, culture, or context. So, there’s always a chance that what you think about your goodness-of-fit or value-added is wrong (because of incomplete info or bad assumptions). I suggest using first-person phrasing that conveys how you are seeing the situation, as opposed to telling them how it is. Starting sentences with “I believe …” and “I hope …” can be helpful. For example, instead of saying something like, “Your program could benefit from my expertise in X and Y,” you might say something like, “I hope I might add value to your program by X and Y.”AS: I recommend explicitly addressing how you do or could fit each of the minimum requirements/qualifications and as many of the desired/preferred qualifications as possible. Candidates often prepare a general cover letter or template to be tailored for specific positions. How would you go about developing a cover letter that can be used for multiple applications? How would you tailor letters for specific institutions when applying to multiple positions? In particular, which areas of the letter should be tailored? RC: A template is a great idea! The basic cover letter begins with the opening paragraph that describes why you are an excellent candidate for the position. Then, for a traditional academic position, the three following paragraphs might describe research, teaching, and service, with the goal of explaining and highlighting the contents of your CV. The closing paragraph might add an anecdote that you did not already discuss that once again emphasizes why you are an excellent match for the position. The order of the three traditional paragraphs might change according to the type of academic position you are applying for and the job posting can serve as a cue for which aspects of your experiences and aspirations you should emphasize.AG: If the cover letter is the applicant’s story in which they share their passion, their vision, and their experiences, then that should be the foundation for applying to any position. That is, the most important thing is for the applicant to reflect on themselves first, and develop a draft of a cover letter that aligns with their vision and experiences (maybe even before they look for specific positions). Then, when new positions come up, the question they can pose to themselves is: Does this position align with my passion? My vision? My experiences?If so, then the next step is highlighting experiences that align with that specific position (that is, making it specific to the job announcement). For example, if the applicant’s research expertise is related to equity and inclusion among minoritized students, and the job announcement emphasizes the ability to teach a course on cognitive testing, then the applicant could highlight in their cover letter their experiences with conducting cognitive testing on internship/post-doc (their clinical experiences), their enthusiasm in teaching this particular course (even if they didn’t teach it before), and how they might incorporate discussions and assignments on equity and inclusion in this course. That way, the applicant is integrating their passion/vision with the needs of the position.TR: I think my response to Question #1 applies here as well. I suggest all cover letters hit on three big things: (a) your training background and work history, (b) your fit with required and preferred qualifications, and (c) your reasons for being excited/interested in the position. Part (a) could be standardized across letters, whereas part (b) is likely to be semi-tailored and part (c) should probably be highly-tailored. I think this three-part approach is amenable to a template that could be adapted for multiple positions/applications.AS: I recommend tailoring sections to the qualifications as much as possible. So you might have a template that sets up a format and includes boilerplate language about your experiences/training and general statements to convey interest and fit at the beginning and end of the letter, but the main content should be tailored to the position and program/institution/organization. Consider including headings that align with the requirements or roles to make it really easy for reviewers to evaluate fit. Basically, make it easy for readers to locate details and leave nothing up to chance. When I think back on the various committees I’ve served on, a common experience is spending far too much time debating whether individual candidates meet specific criteria, even seemingly discrete or objective ones not up for differing interpretations, because it was unclear or unaddressed in the letter or represented in a single entry in a CV that could (and was, for some) easily missed. As an applicant, I wouldn’t want to leave it up to chance, so I recommend others be as explicit as possible about such things. What is something (or a few things) to avoid when writing an academic cover letter? RC: Making the cover letter too generic is a mistake given that for many search committees the cover letter is reviewed first and could be used to rule out candidates. Another mistake is failing to explain an accomplishment on your CV that is not obvious. For example: Why was that research team important to your research trajectory? What did you gain from the clinical experience that will be used when supervising students? How did that fellowship impact your professional values or build a specific area of expertise?AG: ​​I am having difficulty answering this question because I think there are differences in opinion about what should or should not be included. I have heard colleagues mention that it is not appropriate for applicants to include personal information in their cover letter, but I also believe that sometimes, personal information can be helpful. For example, some may argue that including information about family or personal life is not appropriate; however, I have also appreciated when an applicant indicates that they are applying to a particular position because it is located in an area where their family is from. As a committee member, that’s helpful for me to consider their commitment and interest in the position. On the other hand, it can feel uncomfortable for a reviewer to read deeply personal information that is shared in this professional context, such as the applicant’s history of suicidality. Overall, my recommendation is to reach out to a trusted mentor to have this discussion.  TR: Here’s three things that come to mind. And the first two are mostly derivative of my responses to previous questions. First, strive to prevent coming off as arrogant or overconfident. Watch how you phrase things; be sensitive to the fact that you are unaware of program context, culture, and history. Second, don’t forget to go beyond the basics. Yes, it’s necessary to outline how you meet the requirements listed in the job ad. But don’t stop there. Also talk about how you might add value to the program; give reasons for your enthusiasm about the position; talk about potential collaborations, etc. Third, don’t submit a cover letter with inaccurate (or failed-to-update) information about the position/program/university. This sometimes (accidentally) happens when using a template and submitting to several positions. Search committees literally cringe when they see another program/university named or described in your cover letter for their position. So, triple-check your letters for accuracy prior to submitting!AS: Be sure to fully read the posting and any specifications for the cover letter. It’s always surprising and disappointing when applicants clearly did not read the entire posting, particularly when explicit directions about desired content are provided. That makes it the job of the committee harder and can be disqualifying, particularly when committees use standardized procedures or rating systems. Do not submit the kind of vague, brief letters that might accompany a resume in non-academic job search. Be sure to proof and to verify the institution’s name. It's woefully common for applicants to submit letters prepared for other jobs and that undermines the application. It’s not that committees assume folks aren’t applying elsewhere, but attention to detail matters--your application materials will serve as an example of how you conduct yourself professionally and for many people, might be your first impression on them. Don’t name drop excessively or tout status at the expense of substance. That is, listing off senior scholars you’ve worked with or the rankings of programs you’ve attended won’t generally advance your application whereas discussing how the experiences you’ve had contribute to your preparedness to thrive in the position will. In the case of a letter writer waxing poetic about the brilliance and success of their advisor, a former search committee memorably commented that they wished we could just hire the advisor…needless to say, that enthusiasm did not confer to the letter writer.What might you include in a cover letter when you’re also submitting separate research, teaching, diversity, etc. statements? In other words, how do you differentiate what you write in the cover letter?RC: The cover letter is like an abstract of what is to come – hit all the main points and be sure to emphasize the most important aspects that will be unpacked in more detail in the individual statements.AG: ​​I like to think of the cover letter has the broad story of the applicant’s experiences, and the separate research, teaching or diversity statements as an opportunity to provide deeper and richer stories. That is, the cover letter is the summary and the individual statements contain the details.TR: I think my responses to Questions #1 and #3 applies here, too. I’d suggest covering those three big topics no matter what. It seems that research, teaching, and diversity/EDI are mentioned in the required/preferred qualifications for most positions. So a summary or highlights on each area is nice to include within the cover letter. But I guess it depends on the ask for materials. If the application requires separate statements on specific topics, I’d suggest keeping that content briefer in the cover letter—and referring to the other statements for more. But if they don’t ask for separate statements, I’d suggest hitting on all those topics at length in the cover letter.  AS: As indicated in my responses above, I think the letter should be oriented around the specific criteria and directions in a posting, which can introduce or complement the narrative provided in statements. The statements can be general or the same for every/most application but the cover letter should be tailored.Many institutions do not specify requirements for content or length. How detailed should a cover letter be? How can one ensure that the most important information stands out to readers?RC: Two pages is about right for the cover letter. One page could suffice if you are an early career professional. Three pages is too long if you are also writing separate statements. If you are not asked to write separate statements and instead only a cover letter, then your cover letter could be 3 to 5 pages. If you are only asked to write a cover letter, then you will want to have longer or more paragraphs highlighting teaching, research, service, as well as how you consider and actualize equity, diversity, and inclusion throughout your professional activities. The exact point of the cover letter is to ensure that the most important information stands out & is connected to the job responsibilities requested in the posting. AG: My recommendation is that if the institution only requires a cover letter (so no research, teaching or diversity statement), then the applicant can go a bit longer on the cover letter length (approximately 3 pages max). If the institution does require a cover letter and separate statements, then I would suggest 1-2 pages of the cover letter, and then 1-2 pages each for the statements. Again, I would recommend that there is a continuous theme across each of the statements and that the cover letter summarizes those themes.TR: I think this depends on the ask for materials and the need for separate statements (or not). If there are separate statements for research, teaching, and EDI, I’d suggest a 1–2 page (single-spaced) cover letter. In this scenario, I see the cover letter as more of an executive summary. Then you can dig into the details in the stand-alone statements on each topic (also usually 1–2 pages). If there are not separate statements for any given topic, then I would expand the length of the cover letter accordingly to ensure good coverage of the big topics. Also, pro tip: if your cover letter is long (>2 pages), don’t be afraid to use section headings! Headings can give some organization and breathing room in letters that cover a lot of ground.AS: Length should depend on how many unique points need to be made relative to the posting--that is, how many criteria, roles, etc. does the posting specify? Some letters will be brief when a posting delineates a few unique criteria or expectations for the role. Others are more extensive and the letters should be as well. I’m not too concerned about length because I think candidates do themselves a disservice with overly brief letters and that some job postings might necessitate long ones (3-5 pages). Basically, content matters more than length to me. What is something you wish you knew when you wrote your first cover letter for an academic position? RC: I wish I had (a) developed a template that could be adjusted annually and then tweaked for the academic position that I was applying for; (b) spent time in graduate school thinking about and practicing how to summarize my CV so that I could tell a good story about my work. I also wish I had considered the importance of the cover letter and given myself adequate time to carefully craft the letter. The cover letter (and corresponding statements) requires more time than you might think to construct well and I was up way too late at night finishing it, unfortunately often at the last minute.AG: I wish I had known that the cover letter is simply one piece of the larger puzzle about finding someone who will fit within the program or department. I think it’s important for any applicant to realize that they may not be invited for an interview not because of the quality of their work or their experiences, but simply because the program/department is looking for something very specific. It is a deeply personal experience to apply for a job; yet, the decisions may have nothing to do with the applicant’s ability or quality of experiences. Having a mentor to guide the process of writing a cover letter, and navigating the application process, is incredibly important.TR: I wish I would’ve known it was permissible—and a good idea—to solicit feedback from mentors and peers who are experienced with the application process. I really can’t recommend this enough. I suggest getting feedback about both the content and structure of your cover letters prior to applying. And I suggest asking both (a) mid-to-late-career faculty who’ve been on several search committees (and therefore have read lots of cover letters) as well as (b) early-career peers who’ve successfully landed an academic position (and therefore have recently written cover letters). If you’re applying to several positions, it’s probably unrealistic to ask for feedback on every letter. But at least getting feedback on an exemplar or template letter can be extremely useful for gauging how well you’re communicating.  AS: In addition to all of these great suggestions, I wish I’d known how important it was to be my own strongest advocate in the letters. There’s a fine balance between humble and undermining, and for many of us, this can be tied up in our cultures and the racialized, gendered nature of academia. Yet, we have to be our own champions in these letters (as well as the interviews that hopefully follow), no matter how uncomfortable it may be. This often comes through in active voice and action verbs. Consider for example, “I was afforded the opportunity to lead,” versus “I spearheaded/initiated/convened…” Basically, I had to learn to write like I believe in myself even when mired in imposter syndrome and self-doubt. It’s not about arrogance but rather being appropriately descriptive of your experiences and potential. ConclusionThis final point by Dr. Sullivan is so important, especially for those who have felt silenced or undervalued in systems that often espouse a white-dominant, patriarchal hegemony like higher education. Learning to write like you believe in yourself using action verbs and an active voice will appropriately convey that you are an excellent candidate for the position with humility. As Dr. Renshaw writes, your cover letter “connect[s] the dots” for the search committee and is an opportunity to explain how you will add value to the program. Dr. Codding echoes this by encouraging you to describe the impact of your experiences and accomplishments to extend what is listed on your CV. Dr. Goforth shares that your cover letter can offer a brief preview of the rich details you might provide in supplemental materials (e.g., teaching and research statements), recommending you work closely with a trusted mentor to navigate the often opaque process of applying to academic positions. We hope the suggestions above are of value to you as you apply for faculty jobs and encourage you to read the additional resources listed below.What questions do you have about preparing cover letters?Cover Letter ResourcesHow to Write a Successful Cover Letter from Inside Higher EdCover Letters for Academic Positions from University of IllinoisAcademic Cover Letters from Purdue UniversityAcademic Cover Letters: 10 Top Tips from The GuardianGeneral ResourcesFall is in the Air: It’s Hiring Season for Academic Positions!Making the Most of Your CV: Talking About Yourself in Bullet PointsThe Job Search – What Not To DoCongratulations, You’ve Been Invited to Campus! Now What?So You Have Been Offered a Virtual Interview! Now What?Preparing a Job Talk: Maximizing Your Impact During Campus VisitsShould I Stay or Should I Go?

So You Have Been Offered a Virtual Interview! Now What?

By Lindsay Fallon, University of Massachusetts Boston & Bryn Harris, University of Colorado Denver Being on the academic job market is a unique experience. It is an opportunity to share your strengths and what you might offer in your application materials. If an interview is offered, it is an opportunity to learn more about how the position will fit with your strengths and interests. Interviews are also a time when you might gather information to decide if the job is located in a place you can see yourself living. Prior to COVID-19, it was common for a phone interview to be followed by an on-campus interview. In the past year and a half, it has become increasingly common to have virtual interviews in place of campus visits. Although our past advice and resources for making the most of job talks and data gathering about potential colleagues and institutional characteristics still applies, a lot of the advice about the social dimensions of the process is complicated by reliance on Zoom and other platforms for talks, interviews, and meetings, as well as loss of much of the incidental and formal social interactions (e.g., meals with the search committee and potential colleagues). For example, the lack of spontaneous conversations with faculty, students, administrators, and others makes advanced preparation of your questions for prospective colleagues and students especially important. But what else can candidates do to prepare?As virtual interviews are a relatively new practice, we asked three early career faculty to share their perspectives about the experience of interviewing from a distance. (To give these faculty the opportunity to speak freely about the process, we are not sharing their identities.) These early career scholars represent an array of professionals applying to diverse academic positions at various stages of their career (e.g. graduate students, assistant professors). Following their responses to our five questions, we offer additional resources to help those on the virtual job market succeed when interviews are virtual. Please briefly describe what it was like to engage in a virtual job interview for a faculty position. 

• ECF 1: The event was completely virtual. I was sent a schedule of events, similar to an in-person interview. I did all my meetings/interviews on a single day. I was also sent a small care package that had information about the city, university, college, and department, along with a small gift (coffee mug). There were separate Zoom links for each event, so the day flowed smoothly. 
• ECF 2: I felt way more comfortable when I delivered my job talks because I was able to see my notes on the side and was able to be in my own room. Also because I only applied to positions overseas, it makes it so much easier for me, so that I don't have to travel abroad for interviews. But it was also difficult for me to read other people's reactions for me most of the time. When I gave my job talk, I had to do screen sharing and could only see my PowerPoint (rather than the audience) most of the time, which felt a little unnatural and makes me constantly wonder if the internet is still working. However, I also felt more prepared when doing a virtual job interview. 
• ECF 3: I had several virtual interviews and they all were slightly different. All institutions gave me a few days to choose from so I could schedule around them. Most were over 2 days and consisted of meetings with the hiring committee, students, various stakeholders at the university, job talk, and a teaching demonstration. One institution spaced out the two days over a week apart while the rest were back to back or at the very least in the same week. Interviews were conducted using various platforms as well so I had to download and test each to make sure that I was set up and things worked properly.

What surprised you about engaging in a virtual interview? 

• ECF 1: Nothing really surprised me during the interview. It felt very similar to in-person interviews, except I was at my apartment. 
• ECF 2: I actually felt more comfortable with the virtual interviews. I was worried about others not being able to get to know me through virtual interviews compared to the in-person interviews when we got to be there all day. I was able to take multiple real breaks in between each interview activity by signing off from the computer. However, if it was a full-day in-person interview, I think I won't be able to take real breaks, which could interfere with my performance in the afternoon interviews. When difficult questions were asked during the job interviews, I think I get more mental space to calm myself down and think about the answers, as I felt the audience would not be able to scrutinize my body language or my facial expressions, which made me feel calm to think through the questions.
• ECF 3: There was not much downtime during virtual interviews. Meetings were back to back and I did not have time to step away for a snack or to use the bathroom. Having the interview days spread out over a few weeks was also a surprise as generally they happen back to back. In all of my interviews, I had quite a significant turn out of other faculty and students. During in person interviews it was generally just program faculty and the students who I was directly teaching. I was unprepared for the larger turn out.

Do you feel as though you gained the information you needed to make an informed decision by engaging in a virtual interview? 

• ECF 1: Yes and no. I think I gained enough information about the college and program, but I would have liked more opportunities to engage with faculty outside of the interview. I also interviewed in 2019 in-person, and a big influence on my decision-making were the interactions that occurred during meals. It was hard to understand the non-academic life at the university. I had already lived in the [region] for 5 years, which made me more comfortable accepting a position without visiting. 
• ECF 2: I felt I was not able to get as much information as I would like to. For example, I want to know the collegial dynamics of the department, but it is difficult to tell when everyone is online and is in separate "boxes." However, I feel that I had more opportunities to talk to each faculty one-on-one to gain more information about their experiences.
• ECF 3: I did not feel virtual interviews were enough for me personally. Any institutions that were contenders for me or I had an offer from, I made it clear that I needed to visit the area prior to making any decisions. It is difficult to move to a new area with no idea what it might be like and if you could make a life there. As much as we get to know people virtually it is also not the same as meeting them in person. If you are able to, I believe it is worth a visit even if it comes out of your pocket. I had help with some expenses and others were funded fully myself, but helped me make final decisions.

What advice would you give to others engaging in a virtual interview? 

• ECF 1: Ask questions that will help you learn about what it is like to live in the place. All the people that are part of the interview already decided to live there. What are things about the university/city in which a new person may find difficulty to adjust? 
• ECF 2: First, congrats on getting the interviews! Even though virtual interviews might not be ideal as in-person interviews as they might sound, it actually has several advantages for us as interviewees, such as being able to take multiple breaks in between and feeling more comfortable at home/in a private office. Ahead of the interviews, I would suggest having a few backup plans (e.g., providing phone number to call in, if the internet is down, etc.) and share and discuss with the administrative.
• ECF 3: I made the mistake of scheduling pieces of interviews while I was at work and I would not recommend this. It is difficult to adjust from one to the other and running to an IEP meeting or evaluation between interviews was stressful. Block those days out as if you are traveling there in person so you don’t have any added stressors. Also, make time to get time with the students away from any faculty. The students are very insightful and will be very honest about their programs and faculty. 

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

• ECF 3: Virtual interviews can be challenging and exhausting. Make sure to take all the time you need to ask the questions you want answered. Reach out after the interviews if need be to gather more information. Institutions also would prefer in person and I found they were very accommodating to make extra time for me when needed.

The Professor Is In provides additional recommendations for candidates while (the other) APA and Case Western Reserve University provide guidance to search committees on making these informative, productive experiences for all involved. Happy interviewing! Have you participated in a virtual interview? What went well? What could have been improved? What additional questions do you have about virtual interviews?

Faculty Job Search Resource Re-boot

The faculty hiring season is heating up after a protracted freeze. The ECF has provided several blogs and resources that might be helpful.

• Fall is in the Air: It’s Hiring Season for Academic Positions!
• Archived Webinar – Demystifying Academia: Faculty Roles and Opportunities
• The Job Search – What Not To Do
• Should I Stay or Should I Go?
• Making the Most of Your CV: Talking About Yourself in Bullet Points
• Congratulations, You’ve Been Invited to Campus! Now What?
• Preparing a Job Talk: Maximizing Your Impact During Campus Visits

There are a variety of places you can learn about available positions. These include: 

• APA Division 16 Jobs page
• APA Monitor’s PsycCareers
• NASP Career Center and Communities
• Psychology Jobs Wiki
• The Higher Education Recruitment Consortium (unique dual-career search feature)
• The Chronicle of Higher Education - Jobs 
• Listservs of the Trainers of School Psychologists and the Council of Directors of School Psychology Programs
• Twitter and other social media
• Faculty, advisors, and mentors

We’ll likely see a combination of in-person and virtual interviews this season. Our past blogs provide general information on processes to expect during campus visits and you can find info specific to virtual processes blogs and articles from The Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Ed, and Interfolio. Plus, there’ll be more on this from us in the weeks to come. What resources or sites have you found helpful in preparing for the faculty job search? Share them below. 

Making the Most of Your CV: Talking About Yourself in Bullet Points

By Ryan L. Farmer, Oklahoma State University Assembling a curriculum vitae (CV) can simultaneously be exciting and daunting. Okay, maybe exciting is an exaggeration. But some folks—myself included—really enjoy updating their CV. Why? Well, it’s an opportunity to reflect, to think about what I have accomplished, and to compare what I have done with what I would like to do. In this way, I use my CV as a self-evaluation of my progress. Whether you want to use your CV in this way or not, there’s no denying that the CV is used as an evaluation tool by others. Whether you’re applying for an internship, a postdoctoral fellowship, an academic position, a clinical position, or going up for promotion or tenure, the CV plays an integral role in documenting your professional identity and activities. In fact, the CV is one of the first documents that hiring, search, and tenure and promotion committees will look at. Just because the CV is used as an evaluation tool doesn’t mean it doesn’t serve other purposes; you can use your CV to inform and persuade others. It can also serve as a reflection of who you are as a professional. A well-formatted, informational CV can go a long way. In comparison, a sloppy or uninformative CV can make a committee’s job harder, which can mean losing the position or not getting a promotion. So why are we here? The goal is to talk about some standard CV guidelines (not rules), to talk about different ways to document your professional activities, and to share some ideas and templates. First off, a CV is different from your more traditional resume in that it’s longer and more comprehensive. Some would say, there are no length or space restrictions. Secondly, the traditional CV isn’t the only game in town (though it is by far the most common). There are two general types of CV: The traditional CV and the narrative CV, which was developed by the Royal Society & UK Reproducibility Network. The primary distinction between these formats is the former encourages listing activities and products with brief descriptions while the narrative format uses a series of prompts to evoke a narrative response about one’s professional activities and products. The purpose of the narrative format was to de-emphasize the notion of performance indicators (e.g., publication count) and to build a more comprehensive narrative of a person’s professional work. While this is a noble goal, it has not been readily adopted by many programs at this time and so our focus will be on the traditional CV in this blog post. General AdviceWhen developing your CV, remember that your ultimate goal is to communicate your professional activities and details to someone who may not be familiar with you or your work. As a result, being straightforward, well-organized, and focused will help you in achieving your goals. Additionally, while the CV is pretty structured, you should focus on you and your goals. Both the content and the order of the content are flexible, and so you should design your CV to highlight aspects of your professional work that are relevant to the situation. Treat it as a dynamic document that can be reorganized for particular uses. If you’re applying for a research position, you might lead with publications, presentations, and grants. In contrast, if you’re applying for a clinical position, you may want to highlight your clinical license(s) as well as your past clinical positions and field-based or applied experiences. Finally, those applying for predominately teaching positions may want to highlight their past teaching experiences and the courses they’ve taught in the beginning while moving research activities and publications to the end. There is no right or wrong way to build your CV--just make sure it fits your purposes.Also remember that your CV is an evolving document, and so frequently updating the content is crucial to communicating accurately. While it may be feasible to update after a long period of time, you may find it more difficult to recall details. What was the name of that committee? What presentations did I do, again? Many folks update monthly, though, for major products (e.g., a publication), I strongly encourage dropping the details in as soon as you have them. For me, I am sure to forget something I’ve done—a local presentation, an open-source document or figure, or a science communication effort—if I try and do it in batches later on. Before I jump to some basics, I wanted to provide a few wonderful links. Dr. Sara Hart provided this wonderful PowerPoint on CV basics. Some other folks offered their insights, examples, and a bit of humor that folks may find useful.[embed]https://twitter.com/rfarmer27/status/1373733643978432515?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw[/embed][embed]http://twitter.com/SMasonGarrison/status/1374135934493601800[/embed][embed]https://twitter.com/madDoctorAlex/status/1374135236871782406[/embed]When writing a CV, it’s crucial that it appears clean and polished at the end. One way to do that is to ensure that your formatting is thought out and consistent throughout the document. Pick a font (at max, two) and use them strategically. All of your text at a given level (e.g., body) should be in the same font and at the same size. It’s okay to vary up your headers a bit (different font or font size) to help others navigate your document. But for the love of all that is good in this universe, don’t treat this as an abstract art exhibit. While it’s the content that matters, how we present that content may bias reviewers.Screen capture of a CV that uses three different fonts across three sections. The third font is illegible. Another good thing to consider here is the readability of fonts. While it’s not wise to vary up the fonts across your document, at least the fonts in the first two sections (Education and Certification & Licensure) are easily read. Fonts.com argues it’s “all about legibility” in design, and I argue that this is true for CVs as well! Keep it clean and make it easy for others to read. Fonts.com provides wonderful information about selecting fonts. Like Fonts.com, Adobe Fonts lets you search and filter by type of font. However, there’s still a lot of options and it may not always be evident which ones will translate well to print or a pdf document. These excellent blog post from The Paper Mill Store and Practical Typography discuss many of these issues and offers suggestions for fonts. You won’t be surprised to learn that Times New Roman is amongst those suggested. If you’re not feeling adventurous, no one will judge you for sticking with the classic. In general, you want to avoid stylized, cursive, and impact fonts as those tend to be harder to read. Another CV basic is the margins of your document. Arguably, this is a preference to some extent. Those who want to read more can do so here at Practical Typography. That said, I’m a big believer in not trying to fix something that isn’t broken. The defaults in your word processor are fine. That said, you want to keep it consistent throughout your document. The last big decisions you’ll have to make are how to use spacing, tabs, tables, and horizontal rules to organize your document. There are wonderful resources for learning about the details at Practical Typography, but you may want to look at examples from others in the field and see how they’ve managed these elements. Find something you like or mostly like and tweak it. The best advice I can give here is to keep it consistent throughout your document; this may require slightly more planning upfront, but it’s worth it in the end. Okay, enough of the nitty-gritty. Let’s talk content!The ContentFor the most part, there are a number of standard sections and you can find a plethora of ways to organize and format these sections online. Note that some universities or committees may request specific breakdowns, such as the Boyer categories or institution-specific (e.g., Scholarship, Service, Outreach) categories. As such, the following should be taken as general advice, and readers should check with their institutions to see if there are specific requirements.

• Education
• Clinical experiences (e.g., practica, clinical positions)
• Professional experience (e.g., professional, non-clinical positions)
• Teaching experience (e.g., courses taught, teaching positions)
• Publications with subsections
  • Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles
  • Book Chapters
  • Reviews (e.g., test reviews)
• Presentations with subsections
  • National
  • International
  • Regional
  • Local & University Presentations
• Funding
• Certifications & Licensure
• Honors & Awards
• Membership and Professional Affiliations
• Service with subsections
  • National (e.g., NASP, editorial boards)
  • State & Regional (e.g., state associations)
  • Local & University (e.g., committees, organizations)
    • You may need to break this down further to document service at the department, college, and university levels, depending on the expectations of your promotion committee.

Since we don’t want to reinvent the wheel, we’ll only cover these briefly with a few pieces of general advice. For instance, what if you don’t have content to go under each section? Some good advice I’ve gotten is to simply exclude a section or to combine sections. For instance, early career researchers may not have a ton of publications, and so dividing them out in subsections may look a little odd. So long as you’re candid about your content (e.g., specifying that a publication is a chapter versus a peer-reviewed publication), this shouldn’t be a problem. Another piece of general advice here is to add totals at the top of each section (and maybe subsection). Yes, we know that counting publications is a pretty poor way of accounting for a person’s contributions (e.g., Büttner et al., 2020), but unfortunately many of the committees we’re submitting CVs to still operate under this paradigm, so let’s make the process clearer when we can.While how you document this information is a bit of a personal preference, there are a few standards you should be aware of. For instance, reverse chronological order (i.e., newest at the top) should be used whenever possible to highlight what you’ve been doing most recently. Whenever possible, use APA style to format information. While APA doesn’t offer styles for everything (e.g., funding) you might want to include, they offer a great deal of information about how to document publications, presentations, podcasts, and so forth that may be useful. A lot of the standard approaches to building a CV have been around for a good long while, and that may make it difficult to figure out how to include other types of content. For instance, it’s surprisingly hard to find a good, authoritative source on how to document awards and funding. One great source is Walden University’s section on documenting grants. For instance, they recommend this general format:

• Current Research
• Grant # (PI Name)
• Name of Funding Organization (no acronyms)
• Amount of Award
• Period of Grant Award
• Title of Project
• Role on Project (if not PI)

Certainly, the key elements are there and it may be worth documenting your funded (and unfunded) projects in this way, especially if you want them to stand out in your CV. A more streamlined approach, however, might be to approximate an APA format for the funded project. Something like this.

• Name of Funding Organization (no acronyms). Amount of Award, Period of Award. Title of Project & Grant # (if applicable). PI Name. Role on Project (if not PI). 

Documenting Non-Traditional ContributionsThere don’t seem to be any hard and fast rules here, so find a format that works for you and—you guessed it—be consistent. Similarly, there’s little guidance out there on how to document more contemporary contributions to science and practice, such as the creation of software, leading national book or journal clubs, engaging in science communication, and so forth. One option is simply to create subcategories, or a new section, called Public Scholarship to capture some of these activities. This can be a bit imprecise as some are more like traditional scholarship (e.g., an open data set) while others are not (e.g., science communication). I have taken the route of creating a Public Scholarship section and specifying that it is not peer reviewed. Under that, I list subsections for podcasts, science communication and white papers, and blog posts (like this one!). That said, I’m not claiming my approach is right. Some authors have started thinking and working on these issues. Recently, Acquaviva et al (2020) helped to define the notion of Social Media Engagement as an aspect of Public Scholarship both in terms of including social media outreach and activities in the promotion and tenure process, but also in offering guidelines for how such content might be documented. For instance, documenting engagement in social media overall is relatively straightforward, and may look something like this:

• Twitter: @rfarmer27. 2019 to present
• 897 followers. 37,100 impressions.
• 87 tweets. 

or

• Facebook: EBSPsych. 2018 to 2020
• 7,382 followers. 27,000 user reach.
•  https://www.facebook.com/EBSPsych/notifications

Acquaviva et al. (2020) offer more specific guidance for individual social media efforts, but I don’t wish to repeat them here. I strongly encourage folks to check out their work for more details. In addition to how we document public scholarship, I want to talk a little about how we might verify these contributions. For instance, when creating and uploading digital presentations, podcasts, or static images (e.g., infographics), users might consider Figshare or Open Science Framework (OSF). Figshare may be ideal for individual files or presentations whereas OSF more appropriate for projects that consist of several files. The benefit of these services over personal repositories is the ability to generate digital object identifiers and static links. An alternative for video recordings is YouTube, which also provides a permanent link. In addition to details for describing and accessing the content, scholars may want to provide metrics for these materials, such as the number of participants, the reach, and so forth. This said, these guidelines are very much in their infancy and there are a number of ways to document these types of activities. For instance, Dr. Garrison offered a few screen-captures from her CV demonstrating how she documents her contributions to online forums, software packages, and even skills![embed]https://twitter.com/SMasonGarrison/status/1374135407760318467?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw[/embed]Documenting Transparency & Open Science EffortsAdditionally, we might go about documenting various transparency efforts on our CV as an indication of our contributions and as indicators of scientific rigor. Some of you may be familiar with open science badges. It’s relatively straightforward to include these badges and relevant links right into your CV to highlight your transparency efforts. Consider this example from my CV.We’ve documented that we have open stimulus materials (in this case, a survey) and a hyperlink to the OSF project where those details can be found. It would be relatively little effort to modify this to specify that we’ve posted open data, open code, or that we pre-registered the project. We didn’t, so we don’t have those elements here. These badges are available with attribution to the OSF and can highlight these efforts. It might be virtue signaling, but it’s also an indication that you value transparency in your work, and it just might be viewed fondly by your committee! ConclusionFrankly, there’s so much content here that it was hard to select what to include. I tried to be responsive to questions we received following our blog post on science communication, to address common concerns, and to provide a plethora of resources. Toward that last point, we’ve assembled an OSF project on CV construction. If folks want to contribute by adding resources, examples, or templates, please contact Ryan Farmer at r.farmer@okstate.edu or request access as a contributor via the OSF project page. What other recommendations do you have for making the most of CV prep? What tips or tricks make the process less arduous? Let us know what we missed and how we might expand on these and related topics!

The Job Search - What Not To Do

Here at the ECF, we have addressed the academic job search process, from providing a general overview of the process, to planning for your campus visit and job talk, and deciding whether to return to the market. As both job seekers and search committee members, we’ve been involved in numerous searches. Our previous posts have been geared toward providing advice on how to present your best self in the application process, but there’s another side of things: what you shouldn’t do if you want to advance in an applicant pool and wow prospective colleagues during a visit. With the hiring season in full swing, we wanted to take this opportunity to reminisce about some of the most memorable aspects of interviews and campus visits--those dreaded faux pas that get folks knocked out of the running.Don’t forget to proof your materials. Proof and proof again. Don’t be shy about enlisting assistance. If nothing else, be sure you check the university name in your cover letter. It’s not uncommon to be applying to several positions at a time, but it doesn’t go over well when candidates forget to change the university name in a form cover letter. Don’t be afraid to ask questions.It’s disconcerting to speak with a candidate who has no questions about the position, institution, or other aspect of the job. Although rare, it does happen. Not only is the search committee interviewing you for the position, but you also want to ascertain if the position is a good fit for you. One way to do that is to come prepared with questions about the position, program, department, college, and university. I’ve never minded having an applicant pull out a list of questions--indeed, I appreciate it because it communicates their interest and investment in the process. Don’t let your nerves get in the way of asking questions both for your own understanding of the position, but also to convey to the committee that you are genuinely interested. If you don’t inquire about the position, you may inadvertently send the message to the search committee that you are not serious about their position. Don’t make them wonder why you applied to their program.It’s common for us to ask, during interviews/meetings or meals with candidates, what drew them to our position, what they might be looking forward to, etc. It’s not very encouraging or endearing when the candidate can’t think of anything (e.g., I haven’t really given it much thought. I just don’t want to have to work in schools. I just really want to live in this city. I’ll take any job I can get if I can live here. I only applied because my advisor told me to.). Perhaps candidates get nervous and blank when asked these questions, but that makes it all the more helpful to prepare questions in advance.In this vein, be sure to keep the universities you are interested in separate in your mind as you prepare your materials and interview. It’s embarrassing for all involved when a candidate discusses people and contributions of another program/institutions not knowing those people and contributions don’t apply to us. It’s happened more than I’d like to admit.Don’t expect your advisors’/mentors’ successes to carry you. It’s great to talk about what you’ve learned from mentors and how you hope to extend past work in the future, but avoid excessive name dropping. It’s really hard to get a sense of a candidate who talks almost exclusively about their mentors’ work in both the job talk and other interactions. For instance, I get really worried about a candidate’s potential to develop a viable research agenda or show any independence when they only discuss projects where they’ve had a minor role or everything they say revolves around the mentor and not themselves. We’re not hiring the mentor. Show us who you are and what you bring to the table.Don’t be undermined by your own hubris. Recently, during a series of phone interviews, the committee asked what I thought was a softball question at the beginning of each interview, Why did you apply for this position? Respondents generally mentioned the fit of their scholarship with the posting’s research and teaching expectations, research environment, potential collaborations, etc. The applicant that most stood out stated that coming from the #X department in the country, our #Y department was close enough in rank to be a viable option for them, and we’d be lucky to have them as a soon-to-be grad of a higher ranked department. Given committees are generally looking for individuals who’ll not only be contributing members of the institution but be pleasant colleagues as well, such a response doesn’t bode well for the latter. Don’t forget to give the committee insight into where they can expect from you in the future. I suspect it’s fairly common for search committees to inquire about candidates’ aspirations and research goals, so it’s problematic to receive one of these responses to a question of where someone wants to be in 5 or 10 years: "I’ve never thought about that," or "I’m just trying to get through my dissertation/current project then I'll think about what might come next," or "I’m on a lot of projects/papers with my advisor and hope to be publishing those for years to come."Expect this type of question and prep for it! During a recent search, we were really impressed when a candidate was able to speak about the line of research she hoped to undertake, funding targets, and how she might leverage the collaborative opportunities and resources of our university to bring it all to fruition. That said, sometimes a detailed 10-year plan can be problematic -- as in the candidate who listed off accolades (i.e., honors, awards, appointments) they hoped to receive year-by-year but couldn’t really speak to any kind of program of research or other contributions to the field they’d like to make. Before you get to the phone interview or campus visit, it’s best to think about your short- and long-term plans and potential contributions to the program or institution.Don’t forget to leave the best impression possible before, during, and after your campus visit.Related to the point above, there may be many “downtime” moments throughout an interview day. These may seem like less formal opportunities for friendly banter, but they are still opportunities for you to leave an impression on your search chair and committee -- either favorable or not so much. Remain friendly but professional. Also, communication before and after your campus visit will leave an impression on the individuals ultimately recommending your hire. Be cordial in email and phone communication. Finally, consider emailing brief thank you notes to the search committee. It doesn’t take long and is often appreciated.Don’t be hard to give an offer to.When an institution decides to give you an offer, this is a big step. While it is important to take time to consider your fit, as well as possibly make a counteroffer, it is important to be respectful of the institution’s time and needs. As eager as you are to have a job, the institution is equally eager to fill their position with a good match. When given an offer, try to make your intentions known to take the position and your counteroffer requests within 1-2 weeks. If you are not going to take the offer, let the institution know as soon as possible so it can move on. I have been in positions where I have made offers to candidates, I was excited about, only to have them request weeks and weeks of time to consider the job. Certainly, we understand this is a huge decision and more time may be needed, but please don’t string us along if you have little to no intention of accepting an offer. Relatedly, I have had candidates make it to the offer stage who made counter offers that were way off base for our institution (e.g., $15,000 above offer; $50,000 in start-up without a clear plan for how funds would be used to support their scholarship). In the end, do your best to be gracious and tactful.Don’t give up!One of the best things about the school psychology academic job market is there are a number of job opportunities. It is not unsurprising to have over 40 announcements to come out each year; however, this does not guarantee you will get an offer. There are a number of qualified candidates not only looking to join academia, but also those interested in changing institutions for any number of reasons. Everyone has their own story as to how they ended up in academia, and not all of them start with landing their dream job on their first try. If your job hunt does not go as planned, consider academic or research post-docs, visiting professorships, or taking the job that might not check all your boxes, but gets you into the game.Do you have other recommendations for mistakes job seekers should avoid? Share them here.  

Straight talk about faculty careers: Opportunities and strategies for success. (NASP 2019 Handout)

Access the handout here.Citation: Sullivan, A. L., Harris, B., & Gadke, D. (2019, February). Straight talk about faculty careers: Opportunities and strategies for success. Symposium accepted for presentation at the annual convention of the National Association of School Psychologists, Atlanta, GA.Description: This symposium provided an overview of faculty roles in school psychology and strategies to prepare for such roles as a graduate student or practitioner. The session was geared towards prospective faculty, including practicing school psychologists and graduate students, who would like to learn more about the diversity of faculty/graduate educator career options and opportunities in school psychology.