ProfDag

Thank you both so much! I took the approach suggested by @fuzzylogician and I got a very good reaction! I even got an on-campus interview. I just want to state that I am a woman, bisexual, first gen college student from a conservative, religious family and a racially tense area. I'm not saying I don't care about diversity or understand it is often invisible. I'm also not saying I don't see it on my campus. I'm saying I don't see it much in my personal classroom. It also doesn't mean I don't teach to it; in the interview, I addressed several specific instances where I've taught and engaged students with diverse case studies and topics. I just find the question as it is framed in interviews misleadingly non-specific. But I believe many things about getting hired in academic and non-academic settings alike are misleading. I believe they often ask questions about one thing when they actually want to hear about something else. Diversity is one of those areas. Like right now on my campus, diversity is explicitly reserved for conservative politics; but before it was mostly focused on LBGTQ+ issues. It's like trying to hit a moving target especially interviewing in a subject area that often directly addresses diversity alongside current events and social climates. The place I was interviewing for is near where I grew up and diversity is a tangled mess of conflicting ideas there which is also difficult to address in an interview. On a different note... I'm not sure if I should do the on campus interview, not because I don't want the job but because they implied that they were hiring for Fall at the end of the interview. Even though my application specifically states I cannot start till spring and the job announcement stated they were looking for both Fall and Spring, I'm worried they aren't aware of that fact. Is it possible they just do the hiring for the full year at once? Should I mention this to them when we're making arrangements? Or should I trust that they are aware of my possible start date?

So I'm prepping for my interview and there is one question that I know almost all schools will ask and I'm very hung up on it. "What is your experience with diverse student populations?" I struggle a lot with this question because I think it's unfair in some respects. Particularly, I feel like it forces candidates to justify something that isn't in their control; the overwhelming white upper-middle classness of R1 universities. I have only taught at R1s and there is almost no diversity! Because I can't directly address the question to my experience, I feel like I try to either justify that lack of experience or use my own personal identity as a proxy for experience with diversity. I am not sure what they're looking for with this question especially when so few R1s are extremely or notably diverse. I've even considered being up front about the fact that I believe it's an unfair question but that simply sounds too negative. My best approach (so far I think) has been to say that diversity is important because it teaches students to be open to points of view they don't necessarily agree with and that my courses are good at giving students the critical thinking skills necessary to have those conversations. Has anyone else had similar struggles with this question? Does anyone have more insight into what kinds of response they're looking for?

I don't have a horror story to contribute but I can tell you one thing that has made a huge difference for me: Find out how much the lead instructor in the course you're TA'ing has your back. This may not be helpful once a problem escalates to the level of aggression or violence but it is a good way to know how much authority you can reasonably exercise. The first professor I worked under really emphasized that even if we made a mistake, she would stand behind us and our word on the situation would be the final word. Any disagreements she had or corrections to be made would be between just her and the TA. If your professor is well known for throwing TA's under the bus when things get rough, you definitely need a plan to stay firm and justified in any tense situations with students. Sometimes it's ok to defer to the lead instructor if you don't feel you have the authority or experience to handle the problem; You're a TA after all, and shouldn't have to deal with further abuse and demoralization from your students. You have your stipend which demoralizes you enough >< I've been pretty lucky but during one of the more tense moments in my career (so far) I was grateful that the lead instructor hung back while I was talking to my upset student. He stood near the door and didn't comment to show he respected my authority but also to show if things got ugly he was there. Afterwards, he came up to me and told me I handled the situation well. This feedback helped me handle similar situations later on. So definitely look to your lead instructor in tough spots. When possible, gauge their level of support for your authority going into the course.

I love how supportive everyone is in this thread. @spunky asked something I've been wondering about as well so thank you! Different question: I got a preliminary interview for a place that is exactly where I want to start (small, liberal arts, teaching focus, etc.) but the leading member of the department believes strongly in a theory I vehemently disagree with. Everyone in an academic department is, of course, entitled to their opinion/niche and I wouldn't worry about working with someone that doesn't agree with me. However, I've heard you should be careful with how you talk about those theories during the interview process. Have any of you had the experience of interviewing with someone who is quite different from you in academic theory/practice? What are some good ways to be respectful while also expressing your own theories even if they contradict or clash with the hiring committee members?

All the conflicting job hunt information is confusing and overwhelming to me but thank you @Eigenand @spunky. I'm glad to know I was doing the right thing.

So I see this a lot in the business world; the idea that you should send a follow-up e-mail after submitting your application to introduce yourself and check in on your application. Is this acceptable and/or encouraged in academics? I feel as though it would be a nuisance to the hiring committee or make them look less favorably on you because you're in a sense wasting their time with formalities that don't mean anything. Am I simply reading my own feelings about follow up e-mails into the academic hiring process?

Thank you so much @Eigen and @TakeruK! That makes me feel a lot less like it's a waste of time! I have one academic website that tracks when people look at my publications but even just being able to track web traffic would be helpful. @Eigen what do you showcase on your website? I'm definitely more interested in adding content than I am in adding my CV but I figure you add that once and it's done. So any advice for next steps would be much appreciated! I definitely felt like last year I just wanted to *have* a portfolio as you put To both of you, what website tools or platform do you use? I made a Wix account but I'm not sure how I feel about the platform itself. I don't know a lot of coding or anything, just very basic HTML.

I started applying last year mostly because my advisors were pushing me. I mean I planned to defend this fall (and I haven't gotten off track!) but for some reason they thought looking for jobs should be a priority even though I believed it was a waste of time. I got absolutely nothing from it except the sense I have no idea what I'm doing. I have a portfolio this time so I'm going to try and improve it. The first application I want to put in is due 6/14 and I want it to go well. Mostly, I'm annoyed I spent so much time cluelessly chipping away at something even though I knew it was pointless and not where I was in my process. I do so much better when I do stuff in my own time and I'm hoping my approach to applying for jobs this year will reflect that. Does anyone know if things like linkedin and having a website actually help in the hiring process? I don't want to waste more time when I could focus on producing the best portfolio possible.