Jobs other than tenured track for older student?

[waitinginvain?]

Hi everyone. I've posted a questions about whether or not to drop out of grad school, due to my personal problems and lack of money. A few people have told me that I probably won't get a tenured track position because of my age (50). I really had no hopes for that anyway. But are there other jobs at maybe community colleges for older people with MFAs? Does anyone know? My degree would be in dramatic writing--writing for the stage and screenwriting. Thanks for helping.

[juilletmercredi]

Well, this is a tricky situation...I have heard second- and third-hand stories of older academics getting tenure-track positions after completing their terminal degrees later in life, but it is true that many academics will engage in age discrimination.  They'd rather hire a young assistant professor who they perceive will have a longer time in the field/at their institution, and whom they won't have to replace soon.  It's particularly sticky in the arts, which is an oversaturated field anyway.  There are plenty of MFA graduates of all ages competing for tt jobs, and even getting such a position at a CC is difficult.

 

So are there jobs?  Yes, there are.  But the competition for them is stiff, and there are no guarantees there either.

 

Disclaimer: I am not in the arts.

[Seeking]

While the above may be true to a fair extent, a lot depends upon where you are getting your Graduate degree from - how the program is ranked in your particular specialization - and also on how well you are able to network with the potential members of selection committees in your field.

 

If you feel you can network well and if you are in a well-ranked program, you have a fair chance of getting selected - provided you get some peer-reviewed publications and also produce some fine samples of dramatic pieces for a few well-acclaimed performances while you are getting a PhD.

 

Of course, you also need to have some teaching experience at least on a part-time basis while doing a PhD. If you can do all this while researching on your dissertation, you should be able to get even a TT in a good institution. 

 

It's a good idea to keep on producing dramatic pieces while doing PhD, so that you will always have the option to go into the performance world while you wait to get an academic job.

Edited January 8, 2013 by Seeking

[SeriousSillyPutty]

I knew a physics grad student who started teaching part-time at a community college while he was working on his PhD... but it was after he finished his classes, which is essentially like earning a master's. Physics teaching is, of course, a less saturated field.

I have no idea how an MFA works. Is there a portion dedicated to independent work, or is there coursework the entire time? It seems like networking and getting experience during the program would be especially important, if you wanted to hit the ground running after graduation.

[Graham17]

Hi everyone. I've posted a questions about whether or not to drop out of grad school, due to my personal problems and lack of money. A few people have told me that I probably won't get a tenured track position because of my age (50). I really had no hopes for that anyway. But are there other jobs at maybe community colleges for older people with MFAs? Does anyone know? My degree would be in dramatic writing--writing for the stage and screenwriting. Thanks for helping.

Sorry, but I was just wondering about the whereabouts of the photo used in your avatar.

[EastCoasting]

A friends husband started his position at a community college in his 50s (though he had previously taught as a lecturer for years) and is now up for tenure at age 60.

[waitinginvain?]

Thank you everyone. I should aggressively pursue publication and theatrical productions to increase my chances for employment. 

Graham17, I found the picture on Google images. I just searched "circus." There are a lot of them on there. I hope I'm not committing some sort of crime by using it!