Bobbie Dawn: The Academic Job Interview: Questions Asked in Academic Job Interviews

These are questions that were generously shared with me through the Instructional Development Center at my school, Trent University, and they were compiled by Dr. Nanda Dimitrov, University of Western Ontario.

Previously, I posted part 1 and part 2 of this "Academic Job Interview" instruction. Now, the post everyone has awaited, the third and final part. You can look forward to discussion about how to answer these questions and I welcome comments and stories from my readers about their experiences in academic interviews or otherwise.

Questions about Department and Community Involvement:

Institution ___ is dedicated to providing a liberal arts/spiritually based/ holistic education. How would you describe yourplace within that vision?
You’ve seen our mission statement. How would you see yourself contributing to our mission and campus atmosphere?
We have instituted a community service requirement for all undergraduates - how would you see yourself interface with such a program?
Could you tell us about your long-range plans and commitment to this department?
What is your opinion on single sex education? (if it is aWomen’s University/ College)
How will you fit in as a department member and what kind of contribution will you make to our community?
Why do you especially want to teach at University ___? How do you see yourself contributing to our department?
Apart from the obvious financial reasons, why would you like to join the Faculty of Y at University X?
We conceive of our campus as one large community. What non- or extra -academic activities would you be interested in sponsoring or participating in?
What is your perception of the responsibilities of a full-time faculty member in a University / College? …To the department? …To the division? …To the University / College as a whole?

Questions about Career and Personal Choices:

Describe your goals and plans for professional development as a University / College instructor?
Where do you see yourself professionally in 5 years? In 10 years?
What are some of the specific things you would like to address/learn in your own professional development? How is this connected to your work as an academic?
What about our position is particularly attractive to you?
What do you do when you are not working? (Modern equivalent of “what are your hobbies?”)
How long do you plan on staying at University ___?
What is the last book that you read for fun?
How do you feel about living in ___ city?
I understand that your partner is completing his/her Ph.D. What if you receive job offers in different locations?
What kind of salary are you looking for?
Why have you changed jobs so frequently?
If you get more than one job offer how will you decide between them?
Who else is interviewing you?
How did you go about researching / preparing for the interview for this position?
What questions do you have for us?

Resources:

The Chronicle of Higher Education
Chronicle Careers
Mary Dillon Johnson
“The Academic Job Interview Revisited"
http://chronicle.com/jobs/2004/10/2004101501c.htm

The University of Georgia
Teaching Assistant Resources
“Job Search”
http://www.ctl.uga.edu/o_taresources/jobsearch.html

University of Maryland College Park
Department of American Studies
Mary Corbin Sies
“Academic Job Interview Advice”
http://www.otal.umd.edu/~sies/jobadvice.html

Michigan State University
University Teaching Assistant Programs
K. M. Johnson
“Talking about Teaching in the Interview”
http://tap.msu.edu/workshops/2007/oct.htm#101807

The University of Michigan
Division of Student Affairs
The Career Centre
“Interview Questions - Academic Job Search”
http://www.crlt.umich.edu/gsis/Interview_QAcademic_JS.pdf

University of Pennsylvania School of Arts and Sciences
Department of English
Michael Gamer and Anne K. Krook
“Job-Interviewing Handout”
http://www.english.upenn.edu/mgamer/interview.html

San Francisco State University
Department of Mathematics
Julia Aguirre
“Academic Interview Preparation Resource Document”
http://math.sfsu.edu/hsu/interviewprep.doc

The University of Texas at Austin
Trina Sego and Jeff L. Richards
“Ph.D. Interview Preparation Guide for Positions in Academia”
http://advertising.utexas.edu/JR/InterviewPrep.html

The University of Western Ontario
Teaching Support Centre
Graduate Career Day Handout October 2007
“Entering the Academic Profession”
http://www.uwo.ca/tsc/future_professor.2007-2008.html?id=79