Searching and applying for a job can be one of the most exciting and stressful times for a student. As a Ph.D. candidate, you can either join the industry or academia as a faculty member. In this talk, I will provide a walkthrough on how to navigate the academic job market. As a recent faculty hire, I will share my experience and tips from searching for openings, document and interview preparation, to finally negotiating your package. Presented at the "What's Next? Career Talk" session organized by RIT Doctoral Student Association Date of Presentation: 01 September 2022 Location: Virtual

1. Preparing for the
Academic Job Market:
Experience and Tips from
a Recent Faculty Hire
Anthony Peruma
h t t p s : / / w w w . p e r u m a . m e
September 01, 2022
D o c t o r a l S t u d e n t A s s o c i a t i o n , R I T

2. About Me
Experience/Qualifications
Assistant Professor
University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, USA
Ph.D. in Computing and Information Sciences
Rochester Institute of Technology, USA
Masters in Software Engineering
Rochester Institute of Technology, USA
10+ years of industry experience
Research Interests
Program Comprehension - Identifier Naming
Software Quality - Test Smells
Software Refactoring
Software Maintenance & Evolution
Empirical Software Engineering
https://www.peruma.me
https://twitter.com/ShehanPeruma

3. Agenda
01
02
Application
Proces s
03
I ntrod u ction
Summar y
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

4. Life after your Ph.D.
Preparing for the stage of your career
Your time as a Ph.D. student will end...
It might take 3, 4, or even 6 years…
but it will end!
So, what's next?
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

5. Industry vs. Academia
Industry
• Work in either research or
engineering
• Research based on the
corporate vision
• Possibility of applying your
research in real-world
settings
• Higher salary than academia –
can include stock options
• Suitable if teaching is not your
passion
Academia
• Freedom to decide on your
research direction – You get to
set and work on long-term
research goals
• Less pressure than industry –
no client issues/deadlines;
corporate red-tape/policies
• Disseminate your research to
the classroom and industry
• Mentor and grow the next set
of scientists/professionals
• Funding can be a challenge
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

6. Stages of the application process
02
01
06
04
03 05
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

7. Finding Job Postings

8. Where do I find academic job advertisements?
https://www.higheredjobs.com/faculty
https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs
https://cra.org/ads
https://jobs.chronicle.com
https://careers.insidehighered.com/jobs
#AcademicJobs
#FacultyJobs
#AcademicTwitter
Email distribution lists
o Check couple of
times a week
o Use filtering to narrow
your search (e.g.,
location, tenure
track..)
o Watch out for cross-
posts and outdated
listings
o Keep a sheet to track
applications
Date applied
Required
documents
Recommenders
Status (rejected,
submitted, etc..)
o Apply to many places
as possible
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

9. Application Package

10. Typical application package
Teaching Statement
Teaching Experience
• Teaching Assistant
• Guest/Full-Time Lecturer
• Industry/Community Talks
Teaching Methodology
• Describe your techniques
Mentoring Experience
• REU/Undergrads/Masters
• Mention some key achievements
(e.g., papers..)
Potential Courses
• What new courses are you
proposing?
• What existing courses can you
teach?
Curriculum Vitae
Typical Content
• Short Bio
• Education Qualifications
• Employment History
• Skills
• Research Publications
• Include a link to your Google
Scholar profile
• Mention how many are CORE
A/B/C
• Teaching Experience
• Mentored Students
• Service (Internal/External)
• Academic Talks/Presentations
• Awards/Accomplishments
Research Statement
Research Vision
• Brief overview of your research
area and its importance
Research Experience
• Elaborate on your research
• Your long-term goal
• Significant achievements and
publications
Future Research
• Long-term and quick wins
• Funding – Government (NSF),
Industry, Internal…
• Collabration – Faculty/Labs in the
new university
Diversity Statement
Importance
• Why is diversity, equity, and
inclusion important to you?
Experience
• Working with and mentoring
individuals from
underrepresented groups
• Key achievements
Inclusiveness
• How do you plan on supporting
inclusiveness in research and the
classroom
• Utilize resources available in
the university/government
(e.g., REU)
References
Should be someone who
knows your work
• Advisor
• Frequent collaborator
The more references the
better – spread the load
Send them your CV and
Statements
Cover Letter
Typical Content
• Mention the position
• Your approx.
graduation date
• 2-3 sentences about
your research area
• 2-3 sentences on your
teaching experience
• Why you’re a good fit
for this position
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

11. Interviews

12. The interview process
Making it to the interview stage is an achievement!
This is a two-way process – the faculty gets to know you better,
and you get to know them (and the institute) better
● After review of
your application
documents
● 30 to 45 minute
online (e.g.,
zoom) meeting
● If your phone
interview was a
success
● Multiple short
1:1 meetings
● A 1-hour
presentation
Full-Day Interview
“Phone” Interview
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

13. “Phone” Interview
● Vision/Mission of the
department
● Unique initiatives in the
department – e.g.,
diversity programs,
student clubs, etc.
● Who in the department
can you collaborate
with?
Why?
01 02 Research
● Keep it short! – Elevator
pitch
● Long-term goal & future
work
● Key achievements
● Sources of funding
● Exposure to grants
03 Teaching
● Experience
● Proposed courses
● Familiarity with existing
courses
● Teaching style
04 Misc.
● Diversity/Inclusion
experience & proposed
initiatives
● Questions from you:
● Tenure requirements
● Teaching load
● Student recruitment
● Faculty mentoring
● Internal funding
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

14. Dining & Tour
A brief tour of the campus
– ask to see what your office
would look like and type of
office furniture & computers
–ask about parking
Lunch/dinner with the hiring
committee – ask questions
(especially if you received
conflicting answers from your
1:1 meetings)
Presentation
A one-hour presentation
highlighting your research,
teaching & diversity
experience, and principles
Attendees will be from
multiple areas – make sure
the presentation is easy to
follow/understand
Meetings
Multiple 30-minute back-to-
back meetings with students,
faculty, chair, dean, and
research executives;
Mostly about research; you
can ask questions about
anything (e.g., cost of living,
relocation, student hire)
You’ll be repeating the same
things in the meetings ☺
Full-Day Interview
Either in-person or online
Tip: if given a choice: opt for in-person; you’ll get a first hand experience of the place you’ll be calling home
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

15. Suggested presentation content
01
Promote Yourself
• Career roadmap
(education & industry)
• Publication highlights
• Teaching experience
• Awards/Accomplishments
02
Intro/Background
• Use language understood
by people not in your field
• Emphasize the importance
of the research problem
03
Ph.D. Research
• Research goal &
contributions
• Overview and key
findings of your
studies
06
Diversity/Inclusion
• Plan on supporting
diversity & inclusion
in research and the
classroom
05
Teaching
• Existing courses you
plan to teach
• Proposed courses
04
Future Work
• Long-term research plans
• Sources for funding and
collaboration
Presentation: 45 to 50 minutes; Q&A: 15 to 10 minutes
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

16. Negotiation

17. You received an offer (hopefully multiple offers)!
Congratulations! You’re almost done!
This can be one of the most stressful parts of the process
01 Compare your salary
Many public universities publish salary details on their webiste – you
need to search for it (not easily accessible); Google search
Compare benefits and tax (income, sales, property, etc.)
02 Startup breakdown
Things to look for: equipment (computers, GPU, etc.), travel (how many
years?), students (how many for how long? equipment costs), summer
salary (how many years?), office furniture, relocation expenses
03 Teaching load
Negotiate for one course per semester till tenure or at least the first
three years – you’re new, and you need to build your research program
You will be expected to teach graduate and undergraduate courses
Salary data:
https://data.chronicle.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/aaup-compensation-survey
https://www.higheredjobs.com/salary
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

18. Negotiation
Do not be intimidated by the negotiation process – this is a regular activity
Let them know you’re evaluating multiple offers
Your requests should be reasonable – provide a rationale
You might need to share the offer letter for it to be matched
Don’t feel bad for rejecting an offer – you need to find the best place to
progress in your career
Politely decline the offers that you’re not interested in – you don’t have to give
them a reason; just thank them and wish them the best in their search
Don’t renege the offer -- it just looks bad for you, your advisor(s), your
recommenders, and your university
Remember – the best offer is the one you accepted!
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

19. Next Steps

20. Congratulations!
You accepted an offer – what’s next?
● International students – start the application process for
OPT or H1B; you cannot work without authorization
● Start on the onboarding process with HR
● Prepare for the course you will be teaching – slides,
assignments, etc.
● Update your online/academic/social media profiles to
reflect the institution and position
● Start working on your relocation – finding an apartment,
moving companies, etc.
● Complete the write-up and defense of your dissertation!
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

21. At the new place
The first couple of weeks
● Meet the faculty and staff in the department – the
department administrator/secretary is most likely your go-to
person to find resources
● Attend the new faculty orientation sessions and complete
the remaining in-person onboarding tasks (e.g., ID card)
● Become familiar with the software systems the
university/department utilizes (e.g., learning/course
management systems)
● Explore the campus – become familiar with the various
buildings, offices and restaurants
● Don’t be afraid to ask for help – you’re new and not
expected to know everything!
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

22. Summary

23. Summary
Start Early
Writing statements can be
time-consuming and will
require multiple rewrites
and reviews; some
institutes might set
constraints on content
Your letter writers need
time to write their
recommendations
Apply to Many
Some places have already
decided on who they want,
and this is just a formality
Keep track of where you
apply and when
Don’t be disappointed if
your top choice doesn’t
select you
Good Fit
Spend time learning about
the place you’re applying to
Show that you’re a good fit:
- Customizing your
statements
- Talking points in your
interviews
Ask questions!
Negotiate
Don’t be afraid to ask for
the package you deserve
You only get one startup
package – make it count!
- Sufficient to grow your
research program for the
first 3 years
A n t h on y Per u m a
https://www.peruma.me

24. Thanks!
Anthony S. Peruma, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Information and Computer Sciences Department
University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
peruma@hawaii.edu
https://www.peruma.me