@Johnath00165665, this is my take on what we informally call 'chalk talk' in faculty interviews in ChemE. I believe it is pretty representative of research active eng departments. I also note that this is a personal reflection unrelated to my job as chair (1/n) @AcademicChatter
1. Understand the purpose of the chalk talk. You are pitching several things at once:
I] Big picture: where will your research program be when you go for tenure
II] Medium: what are the science problems you will address to get you there
III] Granular: show some details (2/n)
I] Big picture: where will your research program be when you go for tenure
II] Medium: what are the science problems you will address to get you there
III] Granular: show some details (2/n)
In the big picture context we want your vision for where you fit in the research landscape of your field. Then convince us of some interesting science problems you will solve. Convince us these are problems worth solving. As you get into the weeds (a little bit) ... (3/n)
make sure you show some details about how you would execute these projects. One way to think about it is we are looking for some vignettes that look like they could be translated into successful proposals. Make the case that your group is uniquely qualified to do this work (4/n)
2. Format. Usually 60-90 minutes. We generally prefer a small number of slides that stimulate lots of Q&A. I have almost always seen 3 projects presented with ~3-4 slides each. Less is more here. Do a 'big picture vision' slide and then jump in... (5/n)
don't do too much background - only bare minimum needed to follow your work. You will be interrupted with a lot of Q. We want to understand how deeply you've thought about your ideas, how you respond to critique (of the ideas), and how well you make the case for your plans.(6/n)
You are usually expected to discuss teaching interests at the end of this and make sure you do so. Most people seem to discuss potential funding sources, which is not a bad thing to do but don't spend too much time there. (7/n)
3. Norms. It is important to ask for clarification if you need it. We want candidates to give successful interviews and in my dept. we often provide some general guidelines about the expectations. Candidates frequently ask us clarifying questions as well. (8/n)
The worst thing is when there is a mismatch between what the candidate does and what the faculty expect so just ask if needed. (e.g., even though it is called 'chalk talk' we want actual computer slides that walk us through your vision. (9/n)
4. Conduct. You get all kinds of interesting questions, most faculty are not in your field and may phrase things differently, etc. Feel free to clarify the question if needed. Questioning might be more vigorous than you are accustomed to, but this is normal and (10/n)
almost always a good thing. You want to engage, discuss, provoke new ideas, etc. It is research after all. Do not take it personally and focus on the science questions. Stay positive and upbeat and show enthusiasm for your ideas. (11/n)
We also expect that the information on the slides is just a slice of what you know about the project, so as required be prepared to do a deeper dive on any of the subject matter. (12/n)
5. Final thoughts. Try to practice several times with people in your home department and try and to get other faculty in to come to the talk and give you feedback. It can be a nerve wracking experience but it gets easier each time you do it. Good luck! Send Q or comments(13/13)
