Month: October 2013

David D. Perlmutter. “Know the Vital Players in Your Career: The Head of the Tenure Committee.” Chronicle of Higher Education, October 18, 2013, pp. A42-43.   In every department, certain figures can profoundly affect your progress Brian Taylor for The Chronicle Enlarge Image By David D. Perlmutter From my own experiences as a faculty member at seven colleges, and from the hundreds of informants I have for this column, I can attest that tenure criteria differ widely. So does how specifically those criteria are defined and how rigorously they are applied. At some institutions, for example, the requirements are exhaustively laid out, as in "16 articles in Tier 1 journals from among the following listed below," or "teaching evaluation median should be no less than 4.0," and so on. Elsewhere the tenure guidelines are "know it when I see it" inexplicit—as in "the candidate must be a good teacher and a productive researcher." What all tenure-granting colleges and universities have in common is that the process is run...

David D. Perlmutter. “Know the Vital Players in Your Career: The Chair.” Chronicle of Higher Education, September 16, 2013. [online] In every department, certain figures can profoundly affect your progress in academe Brian Taylor for The Chronicle Enlarge Image By David D. Perlmutter One difficulty in dealing with the "human factor" in academic careers is that we often don't understand the motivations and circumstances of people around us. In talking with graduate students and new faculty members, I frequently encounter some version of the following lament: "And then he did this to me for no reason. ..." (more…)...

David D. Perlmutter. “Week One on the New Job.” Chronicle of Higher Education, August 13, 2013, pp. A30-31.   What to do and what not to do Mark Shaver for The Chronicle Enlarge Image By David D. Perlmutter During my initial week on the tenure track, I set an example of incompetence that, to my knowledge, no other assistant professor has emulated. I lost the key to my new office—twice. I still remember the moment I opened that door for the first time and scanned the room, bare except for a desk and a computer. I had never in my life been in possession of an entire, unshared room called "my office." (more…)...

David D. Perlmutter. “The Good Hello.“ Chronicle of Higher Education, July 19, 2013, pp. A30-31.   A primer on post-hire etiquette at your new position Brian Taylor for The Chronicle By David D. Perlmutter As of this writing I am in a new position at a different university in a different state. By academic standards my transition has been a whirlwind: I signed a contract a few months ago; my last day at my old office was June 30; my first day on the job here at Texas Tech University was July 1. (more…)...