Thread by @arunrichardc

As the tenure track application season begins, I’m sharing my process from last year for a successful application.🧵. My result: 71 applications > 6 phone interviews > 2 campus visits > 1 TT asst prof offer.
P.S. I don’t have CNS papers or K99. @AcademicChatter #AcademicTwitter

This process was for research-oriented schools within the US, but could be useful to get a general idea for any tenure track position. PUI jobs may have different requirements. My applications were to departments ranging from chem, biochem, bioengineering, or materials science.

For my job search, I performed weekly searches on Nature Careers (nature.com/naturecareers/…) and Science careers (jobs.sciencecareers.org/searchjobs/), and occasionally on other websites such as Biophysical Society jobs (biophysics-jobs.careerwebsite.com).

.@Chemjobber and others also curate a list of positions on online sheets that anyone can use.

https://twitter.com/Chemjobber/status/1458118746543988745?s=20&t=NUIIFNi_vQDChgff1tVCEw

Bookmark all relevant job postings, even if unsure you’ll apply. Sometimes, there may be separate job listings from the same university/dept, bookmark them individually as they may require separate applications. I made a spreadsheet with the details below for convenience.

Categorize job listings into "very relevant" and "less relevant" so you can focus more on those that are very suitable to your research and teaching experience.

Apply early! Even if the deadlines are far out, apply immediately to jobs that are a good fit for you. Committees may start looking at applications as and when they come in.

Look at the requirements for the job postings. They usually require some combination of the following documents:
CV
Cover letter
Research Statement
Teaching Statement
Diversity Statement
Reference letters (typically 3)

Different universities ask for these documents with different page limits, sometimes with an additional executive summary in the research statement. As you start looking at different job listings, you’ll get an idea of what different formats are required.

Prepare multiple versions of the statements. I had 2-, 3- and 5-page research statements prepared. If there were no page limitations, I used the 5-page statement. I also had 2-page, 3-page and a long form CV ready.

There are some common websites that universities use for application process such as Interfolio. Save all login info and passwords of the different application pages if needed.

Cover letter: On the advice of my mentors, I kept my cover letter under 1 page. If its any longer, the reader may be bored by the time they get to page 2. Tailor cover letter to each position, adding any specific information that is pertinent to that university/dept.

Cover letter para 1: Indicate the position you’re applying for and why it’s suitable for you. In most cases, departments will look for a specific field of expertise. Mention how your research experience matches what they look for.

Cover letter para 2: Summary of research background and experience. Add PhD, postdoc, other experience (in my case, industry experience) with specific research descriptions. What were your roles? Did you lead projects?

Cover letter para 3: Academic achievements – publications, patents, citations, grants. Did you initiate collaborations? Managed lab budgets/ordering? Have you written grants? Include grants details if applicable, with project budget and period.

Cover letter para 4: Teaching and other activities – outreach, service, peer-review, mentorship. Include any significant contribution to student development, courses you’ve created, or educational activities. This is also where you can include diversity initiatives.

Cover letter para 5: Close the letter with a sentence summarizing your experience and suitability for the position. If you have any detours in your career path, indicate how that makes you a unique candidate. What makes you better than all the other applicants?

CV breakdown 1: Have a summary of your publication/patent record upfront in the 1st page of your CV. You can indicate how many publications you have, how many of those are first author, corresponding author, etc. Indicate grants you’ve applied for or plan to apply.

CV breakdown 2: Summarize your teaching experience as bullets for each course or institution, including experience as a TA. If you’ve mentored undergrads or grads in the lab, include details of the student achievements under your mentorship (publications, presentations, awards).

CV breakdown 3: In your publication list, indicate if the work was highlighted in other magazines or press releases. Add other details such as conception of the project or if you’re co-corresponding author.

CV breakdown 4: Include a professional & outreach activities section. Add contributions to departmental activities such as organizing seminars, judging poster/oral presentations; academic activities such as peer-reviewing, guest editing; volunteering for K12 programs, etc.

Some applications ask for past research or research accomplishments, either as part of the research statement or as a separate doc. Prepare 1-pg and 2-pg docs for this. When not asked & there is no page limit, I added a 1-page summary of past work in my research statement anyway.

In research accomplishments, highlight important work from your prior research, summarized chronologically (PhD, then postdoc, etc) or segregated into topics. Indicate journal and publication year where relevant; this is a space saver instead of a long reference list in this doc.

I also had an accompanying overview figure to give the reader a quick summary of my past work. This figure also included the “accomplishments”, for eg: number of 1st author or corresponding author papers.

In the research statement, I had these sections:
Executive summary (only if asked)
Overview and vision
Research plan (split into focus areas and projects within each)
Funding strategy
(more details for each below).

Research breakdown 1: A few applications required an executive summary as part of the research statement. For this, I summarized my past research experience with publication details, teaching experience and future research plans. I also included details of funding strategy.

Research breakdown 2: In the “overview and vision” paragraph, I provided the context for my work and challenges it addresses in my field (what has been done vs what I would do). When space allowed, I had an overview figure describing future research projects.

Research breakdown 3: If you’ve written grants, you can use portions of that text for your research plan. I split my plan into 3 “focus areas”, each with 1 or 2 “projects”. For each section, I had 2-3 sentences of “outcome and impact” to discuss the significance of the work.

Research breakdown 4: Include big-picture figures for each focus area or project to give details to the reader.

Research breakdown 5: In funding strategy, I added details of grants I had applied (pending review) & those I planned to apply. Included the funder (eg: NIH), grant type (R21/R03), award budget (total grant $) & project period (yrs of funding). Indicate if you’re PI/co-PI.

Teaching statement: I had an essay-type statement with subheadings to highlight different aspects. I included classroom teaching experience, teaching awards, mentorship in lab, my commitment to student skill development, my perspective on teaching and future teaching plans.

Teaching statement breakdown 1: Are there specific teaching moments that gave you the skill to teach effectively? Things you learned on the way? You can include specific examples of how you taught students and some achievements students performed with your support.

Teaching statement breakdown 2: I looked-up the dept I applied to and picked specific courses I could teach. I mentioned the courses and course numbers to show I’ve done my homework. Also indicated any new courses I wish to start (making sure it doesn’t already exist).

Teaching statement breakdown 3: I mentioned the routes students can take to join the lab – PhD program or other multi-department entries. I also mentioned undergrads can join the lab for independent study or for their Senior Honors thesis.

I had three letter writers – my postdoctoral advisor, a frequent collaborator at my university and a collaborator at a different university. I didn’t get a letter from my PhD advisor for any of my applications (he was sick), and I don’t think it was considered a negative.

I gave my letter writers a deadline that was a week before the official deadline, that way I had enough time to remind them if the letters weren’t in.

Once I had all the documents ready, I read, re-read and checked all the files before I uploaded them. Especially the name of the university and the department I applied for (it’s easy to miss changing the name of the univ in the cover letter).

For phone interviews, there were some common questions in all univs.
-Initial plans to get research activities off the ground
-Instrumentation reqd
-Potential collaborators at interviewing dept
-Why you’re a good fit
-Teaching experience
-Experience mentoring a diverse population

Some homework is good for the phone interview – I looked up the faculty and noted who my potential collaborators could be (some may be in the hiring committee in the phone call). Also looked at the core facilities to find out what instruments were available for sharing.

I also mentioned the grants I had applied for and any scores I got on the grant reviews. Discussed future grant plans as well.

Some Zoom interviews allowed a short presentation (5 minutes) of research accomplishments and future research plans. Give a big picture overview of your field, 1 slide each for PhD work, postdoc, funding strategy and future research plans. Keep it brief!

Don’t hesitate to ask the search committee chair if you’re unsure what the phone interview will entail. Most of the phone/Zoom interviews are just to get to know you better.

You can also ask them questions during the phone interview:
- Courses they expect you to teach
- Typical teaching load and whether new faculty hires get a semester off teaching when they begin their new position
- Student support (TA vs RA)
- Timeline to expect a response

Campus visit: I had two campus visit interviews, and both had almost similar itineraries spanning 1.5-2 days. It was a packed schedule and it helped to be prepared beforehand with some homework on who you’re meeting and questions you have for them.

Here’s what the schedule had:
- 20-30 min one-on-one meetings with faculty in the department, the college Dean, grants management person
- lunch/dinner with a few faculty
- research presentation (day 1)
- chalk talk (day 2)
- exit interview with department chair.

For one-on-one meetings with the faculty, I found out what their research was, any connection I may have with them (research, common collaborators, met them in a meeting). In most cases, they just said “ask me anything”. So have a set of questions ready for these meetings.

To assistant profs and recently tenured profs, you can ask about the tenure process, support from department, student recruitment and support (how many years of TA/RA), teaching load, etc.

To those in the hiring committee, you can ask about the position, how many candidates they are considering, timeline for them to make a decision. You may be exhausted asking a similar set of questions to multiple people (like I was), but they may have different perspectives.

Some faculty are very open and honest. Don’t hesitate to ask them more about the position and the institution. They also provided pointers on how to do the research presentation and chalk talks if you have any questions.

In my conversation in the one-on-one meetings, some faculty even hinted at questions that may be asked during chalk talks. So don’t think of the hiring committee or faculty as the opponent. They can be helpful. Some may already "like" you based on your appln & phone interview.

Research presentation style can vary. I had an overview of my field, my focus areas in past work, brief discussion of one project from each focus area, 1 slide each highlighting other works in those areas, and briefly, my future research plans and funding strategy.

In future plans, provide a brief overview of topics in your independent research and any grants you’ve applied for or plan to apply (no details needed since a chalk talk will follow the next day).

I also had some slides titled “What I bring to…”. Here you can include details from your statements - teaching, mentorship, outreach, service. Add specific details on activities that you can contribute to in that specific univ/dept.

Chalk talks: Both universities I interviewed at allowed a powerpoint presentation for chalk talks (I used the board if needed). I had an overview slide similar to the future plans slide in the research presentation, to reel in faculty who may have missed it the previous day.

I had 3 focus areas, and had a slide describing each. I picked one defined project within each focus area, and had detailed slides for those -- why this study, what is the significance, what does it contribute to the field, and what are the model systems/molecules I plan to use.

I paused at every slide or section to allow for questions (there were many!). Whether the chalktalk becomes a full-on presentation depends on the faculty present. I couldn’t judge it until I began.

Some generic questions in chalk talks:
-Which past project is your biggest accomplishment?
-What’s the 1st thing you’d do when you start your lab?
-What are the instruments you would need?
-What are your plans to fund your research?
-Who might you collaborate with at this dept?

The exit interview with dept chair is where the interview ends. They’ll tell you about the dept, the position, specific courses you’re expected to teach, etc. They typically show you the lab space allotted for the candidate (ask to see personal & student office space as well).

Questions you can ask the chair:
-Typical tenure requirements and how long it takes
-Do you get a semester off teaching when you start? (usually, yes)
-Is there support for grant writing?
-TA support for students and for how long?
-Service expected (serving on committees, etc)

The chair may ask what start-up funding you had in mind. I didn’t mention a number in the phone interviews or the chalk talk since I didn’t want to say a lower number than what they had in mind. Get an idea of what the average start-up funding is in your field.

During the exit interview, the chair may tell you what start-up funding they have, but you don't have to negotiate at that moment, that comes later when you get the offer.

After you return home, write a thank you email to all the faculty you met, including specific details where relevant. Eg: some faculty took me out for coffee during their one-on-one meeting to keep it casual and open discussion. I thanked them for their honest opinion.

I got a call from the chair offering me the job. They provided the details of the position – salary, start-up funding, lab space and student support. You are given 2-3 weeks to decide. Don’t hesitate to call the chair with any questions about the position/offer.

The chair of the department that offered me the position was very supportive – he even suggested how I should reframe my start-up budget so that the school will provide the highest start-up money possible.

All the best for your job search! If you get a phone or zoom interview and a campus visit later, don’t forget that you’re interviewing the department as much as they are interviewing you! @careerconversa1 @Chemjobber @ChemBark #newPI #AcademicChatter #TenureTrack

In the diversity statement, I discussed my contributions to diversity and inclusion. Write about what you really feel, and about what your take is on enhancing diversity in science. It’ll show in your statement.

I started with any relevant situation or scenario that acknowledges diversity in life and science. In my case, I did grad school in New York City, one of the most culturally diverse areas.

I discussed how I’ve taught and mentored a diverse population both in the classroom and the research lab. Each student is unique and students come from different backgrounds. How do you understand this and apply it in your teaching and mentoring?

Mention specific examples of your involvement in diversity initiatives or programs, for eg: the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP) for URM undergrad researchers. Have you already mentored URM students? What %? What did you learn?

What initiatives do you plan to be part of in your new faculty position? Find out what programs the interviewing university has and mention how you plan to contribute to those. Indicate any new initiatives you would start, perhaps in association with an existing system.

My former postdoc lab is hiring - I had huge support from my postdoc mentor who helped me write my own grants while I was in his lab, provided critical feedback on my applications, and pushed me to be better. Contact @HalvorsenLab if you're interested!

https://twitter.com/HalvorsenLab/status/1552319153167646720?s=20&t=sw-GJhRb5DG4rOxgH8OD8w