Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
Preparing for the Search
Figure yourself out
· Engage in ongoing self-assessment to clarify your career goals. Best to know what you are looking for before you start looking. Determine what type of position will be the best fit for your skills, interests, and values.
· Figure out your brand(s): Make sure your current work is in line with your career goals
· Determine how you want to spend your time:
o Research vs. Clinical vs. Teaching/advising vs. Administrative. Note that “percent time” may be counted differently at various institutions (e.g. 1 ward month= 4-10%), so best to think in terms of maximum weeks on wards/clinic half-days.
o Full vs part time
· Prioritize other components of your dream job; distinguish between needs/wants.
o Geographic preferences
o Mentorship/collaborators
o Research support: funding, statistical/programming
o Administrative support: grant support, secretarial staffing
o Clinical settings: patient population, outpatient vs. inpatient
o Position for spouse/partner
o Work environment (traditional academic, government, industry, consulting, private vs. public)
· Generic Job comparison:
Clinician Investigator / Clinician EducatorProtected time / 50-80% / 10-30%
Salary support / Partial or full for 2-5 years / Partial/full indefinitely
Revenue generation for salary / Obtain independent funding for most of salary (i.e. ,grants) / Significant portion of salary through clinical revenue
Retention/Promotion Criteria / Academic productivity (papers, grants) / Teaching accomplishments/awards, clinical productivity; academic productivity less important
Tenure track / Usually tenure track / Usually NOT tenure track
Prepare the Documents You May Need
· Cover Letter - State specifically the qualifications, professional goals, training, expertise, and research background you have that matches their requirements.
o Draft a skeleton letter, then customize/update your letter for each specific job announcement/institution—show how you are a good match for their explicit/implicit needs.
o Make it personal, but concise and focused clearly describing what you want.
o Have your mentor and/or senior faculty who has served on a search committee review it
· Curriculum Vitae – Be certain to highlight your accomplishments that closely match the requirements for the position. Harvard Medical School has very detailed instructions on the format for CVs used for promotion: (http://cv.hms.harvard.edu/). Have someone you trust and knows your work review it.
· Teaching Statement/ Portfolio – For clinician-educator jobs, Describe relevant courses you have taught, positive student evaluations, professional development experiences, and qualifications to teach certain courses.
See who is hiring
· Networking/Personal Contacts
o Talk about your goals/objectives/research with as many faculty and fellows as possible
o Network at national meetings by visiting posters/talks by faculty at institutions that you may later consider
o Publications and websites: Academickeys.com , Academyhealth.org, APHA.org, SGIM.org
o Review ads in major medical journals
o Cold contact of GIM division chiefs
o Cold contact other research group chiefs in relevant areas (med school/public health depts—e.g. health policy, health behavior, primary care)
· Websurfing: Visit the webpages of institutions that meet your geographic preferences
o Is there a Division of General Medicine? Do they do research, education, or both? Are they focused on primary care or hospital medicine? Are there other areas of expertise (e.g, disparities, informatics, EBM, quality improvement, etc.) there?
o Visit faculty profile pages and review papers published by faculty. What types of work are they publishing and in which journals?
o Are there other divisions/departments/centers that may be a good fit? (e.g., public health, health policy, health behavior, social sciences)
Generate a short list of potential institutions
· Consider all places that meet your geographic preferences, are actively hiring, have potential research interest compatibility, have adequate cadre of senior faculty that could mentor you (so if one mentor leaves, you are not stranded), and, if applicable, likely will have adequate job opportunities for significant other (see The Two-Body Problem below)
· Create a “grid” to keep track of your contacts with headings: institution, dept/division, contact person(s) with contact info, date/method of contact, f/u planned. You may also include a column for notes on networking/referrals, questions needing follow-up, etc.
Choosing and Preparing Your Referees
· Choose people who know you well and are: experts in the field, have an impressive title, and/or are able to make positive statements about your teaching/research skills
· Provide a package of material to update your references on your qualifications
· Prepare a “guide” to inform your references of the hiring committees that might be in contact
The Two Body Problem
If you have a significant other/partner that will also be employed this process can be particularly stressful. Compromise between you and your partner is key, but should not stop you from finding the ideal position for both of you. Unless you both have guarantees locally, you should probably cast a fairly wide net (i.e. consider more institutions in several regions). This is especially true if your partner is in an occupation/specialty with limited job opportunities and timing of interview that may be out of sync with yours.
Many institutions know ahead of time from discussions with your references or other contacts (spies?) at Harvard that your spouse/partner will also need a job and may be skeptical about how likely it is you will accept a job there. Some institutions may offer to help your partner get a position, but this is not a sure bet and your partner may want to be hired on his/her own merits. Bring up the spouse/partner issue after or late in the first interview if you have this luxury.
Prepare and practice your Job talk
· Introduction: Origins of research interests/agenda, significance of research questions
· Description of Current Research: Choose related projects, attempt to tell a story
o Describe at least 1 or 2 projects in detail: describe your role, results, conclusions, implications
o Discuss remaining project(s): pertinent findings
· Future Directions: 5 year plan, suggestions for potential K awards
· Limit talk to 30-40 minutes to allow for late-comers and questions
· Practice as often as possible to audiences NOT involved in your research to get questions that you may encounter on the interview trail.
General Job Search Timeline for Academic Jobs
· Late first year and throughout fellowship: Network to make contacts
· June-September: Self-reflection on career goals, update CV, draft cover letter, develop list of potential employers and discuss with mentors/colleagues.
· October-November: Send out cover letters. Most places are not ready to process letters any earlier than this, but several top and second tier places are. Having letters out by this point also makes it likely that you will have at least one opportunity to go for a “warm-up” interview prior to major interviews
· December and ongoing: Schedule interviews
· Jan-May: First and second interviews. Consider keeping your teaching/class load light to accommodate the time away for interviews.
· April-June: Review job offers/negotiate. If you are fortunate to secure an early decision (Dec-Feb) then do it to reduce the worry and time expended on the job search and increase the time spent on finishing fellowship projects and preparing for your transition.
Distributing your Cover Letters and Scheduling Interviews
· Email Division director with your cover letter and CV attached, then follow with a hard copy in the mail.
· Use caution when answering your phone. Use voicemail or “I’m in a meting now can I call you back” to your advantage. First impressions are important and may shape subsequent interactions with potential employers. You may get an unexpected call from a program director/division chair/search committee member without warning. They will assume you are quite familiar with their institution and have some specific questions and assume you are brilliant and savvy unless proven otherwise. If you have been on call, lacking sleep due to a sick child, or just in a generally bad mood—this will come across in your conversation. You will be at a tremendous advantage if you have a even a few moments to review info about their institution and formulate your thoughts. Also be sure your outgoing VM message on your “contact” phone is professional. Don’t answer calls from unidentifiable numbers unless you are in a quiet place with at least 5 minutes available to talk.
· Schedule your flights to arrive early afternoon/evening before the interview. The interview circuit can be exhausting particularly since you are often scrambling to catch up on your work between them. The interview days are long, sometimes 7am to 9pm with the expectation that you’ll be brilliant and engaging throughout. Arriving early will allow you time to relax, exercise, have a nice meal, practice your talk, review your notes/questions and get a good night’s sleep beforehand.
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
The Interview
Before You Go:
· Prepare an overview of your research goals, sources of funding, teaching, and other related skills
· Develop and practice an easy to understand description of your research and practice the talk that you will present
· Clarify all of the logistics and find out the schedule and interviewers with whom you will meet so you can review their bios/papers.
· Prepare a credentials folder to give your interviewers if requested.
· Research the institution and the department, learn their teaching and research priorities
· Review the research published by those you will meet or who would be your colleagues.
· Try to discover the culture, strengths, and weaknesses of the department
· If possible, have a faculty member that knows your work contact someone on the search committee to put in a good word for you—this personal touch helps a great deal.
Typical Faculty Search Committee:
· Members read applications and rate the candidates according to pre-established criteria.
· People outside the committee may also be asked for comments on candidates’ applications.
· The committee recommends the candidates
· After the candidates are interviewed, their qualifications and the quality of their interviews are evaluated and recommendations are made.
· Often top candidates are ranked in order of preference.
Typical Interview Day Format:
· Presentation on your research.
· Meet the department chair and/or dean, faculty, administrators, a representative of human resources, and students.
· Tour the facilities
· Perhaps lunch or dinner with committee members
Questions you may be asked:
· Where do you see your research going in the next five years (5 year plan)?
· What is the significance of your research?
· Describe your teaching experience and interests.
· What is your mentorship style/approach to mentoring?
· What interests you most about the position/department/institution? How would you complement the department?
· Be prepared for illegal questions (i.e., age, family plans, marital status, etc.) and have a game plan for how you will address them.
· What would you propose for a K award?
Questions for the Search Committee:
· What is the vision for the Department/Division in the next 5 years?
· What specific role are you hoping to fill with the position(s) you are seeking to fill?
· Thinking back to the most successful jr faculty in your program, what factors have contributed most to their success?
· What challenges exist that may impede a junior faculty member being successful at your department?
· What is the training environment for students/residents/fellows (How many? Are they happy/successful? Do they stay with the institution?)
· What are the expectations for clinical time/teaching/research commitments?
· What are the expectations for obtaining grant support?
Make the Most of the Interview:
· Give specific examples of your accomplishments
· Respond to all questions with information that is positive and upbeat
· It is perfectly acceptable to brag about your accomplishments
· Clarify that you understand the question before you respond
· Be prepared to:
- give a snapshot of your background
- respond to “why do you want to work at this college/university”
- tell them why you will be a great researcher/teacher
- discuss your strengths and weaknesses
- convince them that you like their geographic area
- ask good, relevant questions about all aspects of the position (i.e., research, teaching, patient care)
- Think about how you can “be a team player, but on the right team”
· Get business cards - take notes as soon as possible to chronicle the people you meet
· Have a list of questions and don’t be afraid to ask different people the same questions
· Be cautious in social situations – not the time to let down your guard! Recruiters will try to show you a good time and you will be temlpted to indulge in drinks and food offered, especially if yu have already given your job talk. Though you want to show you can relax and be collegial, show some restraint with indulging in alcohol to prevent the potential for “over-sharing”. You do not want to reveal things about your views/opinions/religion/politics that you did not intend. In fact, you may learn about problems from potential colleagues as alcohol lowers their defenses!!
· By being observant, you may gain some insight into the quality of life in the department
Second Interviews:
· Do not go unless you would accept a reasonable offer from the institution
· Do not negotiate unless the job has formally been offered
· Attempt to meet with people you didn’t meet at first interview or those you may want to talk more in depth with regarding potential collaborations and/or mentoring relationships
· Consider bringing your spouse and looking at real estate if very serious about the offer
After the Interview:
· Send thank-you notes
Negotiating Offers for Faculty Positions
Following the campus visit, you know that you will either be offered the position or receive a rejection letter. You may suspect in advance that you will likely be offered the job—perhaps it was intimated during the on-campus interview that you were the favored candidate, or you’ve heard from your adviser that he/she was contacted as a reference. Sometimes a job offer will even come while you are still on campus for the interview. But most job offers come after the campus visit, and they are delivered verbally, through a phone call placed by the chair of the search committee.
Five Building Blocks of Successful Negotiations