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:
Protected time
Salary support grants)
Clinician Investigator
50-80%
Partial or full for 2-5 years
Revenue generation for salary Obtain independent funding for most
Retention/Promotion Criteria of salary (i.e. ,grants)
Academic productivity (papers,
10-30%
Clinician Educator
Partial/full indefinitely
Significant portion of salary through clinical revenue
Teaching accomplishments/awards, clinical productivity; academic productivity less important
Usually NOT tenure track Tenure track Usually 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.
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
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.
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
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 expecta tion 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?
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
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
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
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 oncampus 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
1. Do some research.
You will need information to decide how to conduct your negotiation, since having data to corroborate and justify your request is also important in establishing credibility.

Research salary ranges for new faculty in a similar institution. Check the American Association of
University Professors website for their annual salary survey. At that site, you will find faculty salaries by region and size of the college or university. Public universities publish their salaries, so look at entry level salaries at these institutions to ensure that you are trying to negotiate within the appropriate ranges. Be careful not to undersell yourself by requesting a salary that is too low, or be unrealistic by requesting a salary that is too far above the normal range.

Do not consider salary in a vacuum.
You want to weigh salary information with the range of benefits, cost of living in the area, and the support that the institution will provide for your research. Cost of living expenses are also very important to consider, since these greatly impact the value of the salary you are being offered. See www.homefair.com/homefair/calc/salcalc.html
for estimates.

Be certain to also find out what benefits are automatically provided to you (such as travel funds or sabbatical leave) and what benefits might be fixed and non-negotiable (such as the health care and retirement benefits package) as an employee of the institution. Don’t waste your time attempting to negotiate the latter.
2. Identify your priorities. If you have not already done so, list and rank your priorities. While all items may not be negotiable, many will be of varying importance to you and should be considered in your decisionmaking.
PRIORITIES/POINTS FOR NEGOTIATION
Non-Negotiables Work Environment/Expectations/Support
GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION
SIZE/PRESTIGE OF INSTITUTION
START DATE
FACULTY COLLEAGUES
CLOUT OF DEPT. IN INSTITUTION
Salary and Benefits
SALARY/PROMOTIONS AND RAISES
RESEARCH FUNDING/ GRANT WRITING
EXPECTATIONS
TEACHING/ADVISING LOAD
TEACHING/RESEARCH ASSISTANTS
CLINICAL CARE EXPECTATIONS
TENURE TIMEFRAME
MEDICAL/DENTAL
RETIREMENT
MOVING EXPENSES
PARKING
SUBSIDIZED HOUSING
ON-SITE CHILD CARE
ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT
TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT
Other
TRAVEL SUPPORT (CONFERENCES)
JOB OPPORTUNITIES FOR
SPOUSE/PARTNER
OFFICE/LABORATORY SPACE
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
3. Get the offer with all of the details in writing .

Beware that a verbal promise of a job does not constitute a formal job offer.
Many candidates have heard promises like “the job is yours,” only to have nothing materialize, often due to tough economic conditions for universities. When an offer is extended via telephone, it is common for the committee chair or dean to read the formal offer letter to you. Make a few notes and ask questions, but do not feel obligated to accept or decline the offer on the spot. Ask to have the offer letter mailed or faxed to you, and take time to carefully consider the offer.

Formal job offers are always made in writing, defining salary and terms of appointment.
In some cases, they will want to negotiate the terms prior to sending the offer, but often the institution is willing to send at least a preliminary offer in writing. Wait until you have the written offer letter in your hands before making any other decisions.
A written offer letter should detail the terms of the offer, which usually include salary, starting date, a summary of benefits, and any other pertinent information (such as release time, course teaching load, technical and research resources, etc).

After you have received a hard copy of the offer letter, you can begin negotiation.
At this point, you can be certain that they are fully invested in you and that they want you as a part of their department

You will want to ask how long you have to make a decision. If you need more time, feel free to request an extension. Be certain to respond to the offer before or on the deadline date. Two weeks is typical, and most institutions will readily grant you that much time to make a decision.
4. Consider the strengths and weaknesses of the offer and decide if you want the position . If you would like the position, the next step is to select the areas that you wish to negotiate. Remember to be diplomatic in your approach and to let them know that you highly value their institution, the department, and your potential colleagues. Now you need to do some soul searching and research to make certain that the opportunity:

Is consistent with your professional goals and places you on track to achieve your long term career goals.

Is in a location where you can live a lifestyle in keeping with your needs and personality.

Offers a competitive salary and benefits package.

Presents the best opportunity of the pool of job offers which you have received.
See “Questions to Ask When You Receive a Job Offer” belo w.
5. The negotiations :
Once an offer has been extended, the negotiations begin. Negotiation is the process in which two parties decide upon the resources they will give and take in an exchange. According to Pinkley and Northcraft, only about 25 percent of job applicants attempt to negotiate. Women are often more reluctant to negotiate than men, and this disinclination accounts, in part, for continuing wage discrepancies between the sexes. However, virtually all employers agree that it is appropriate to negotiate as long as it is done professionally. Many organizations report that the first offer extended to an applicant is less than what they are willing to pay because they expect the applicant to negotiate .
 Don’t hesitate to ask!
Many applicants are reluctant to even attempt negotiation. Some feel so grateful to have a job that they fear losing it, and others feel timid or guilty at the prospect of negotiation. Remember that you are not taking anything away from anyone else and that the department obviously really does want you (or else they would not have extended the offer in the first place). The worst answer you can receive during a negotiation is “no,” and as long as you conduct yourself professionally, negotiating will not negatively impact your future with the department.

Negotiate professionally. You always want to be polite and professional in your negotiations, since the people with whom you negotiate may be your colleagues for a long time. It is preferable to negotiate verbally, either in person or on the phone, but if you are more comfortable, you might inquire about
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers negotiation possibilities in writing. Your tone must always be collegial and collaborative; you want the person you’re negotiating with to understand that you are working with them to find the best possible solution. You never want to appear combative or hostile.

Your goal in negotiation is to satisfy your preferences.
However, for success, the tactics used must be collaborative and both parties should end negotiation feeling that they received something of value. Be certain that any requests that you make are reasonable, you want to get all that you are entitled to without creating baggage that will be the foundation of your reputation within the department or institution.

The time between when you are given an offer and when you accept the offer is your prime window of opportunity for negotiation.
At this point, many departments would prefer to satisfy your requests
(provided they are reasonable), rather than reconvene to decide upon their next course of action —to present an offer to their second choice or begin a new search.

Present your requests as a package.
You don’t want to be in a position of adding on a new issue when they think that everything is already on the table.

Be willing to be flexible and be prepared for give and take during the negotiations; Don’t fixate on one aspect of a negotiation.
Many job applicants make the mistake of negotiating only for an increased salary. In reality, there are many other aspects of a job offer to negotiate, and while salary is the most obvious one, it might actually be the least successful. You may have much more room to negotiate for other terms, like office space, computer support, and leave time, and it’s even possible that these aspects will make the job even more attractive than a slight increase in salary. Do not feel that your negotiation failed if the institution cannot increase your salary; sometimes it simply is not possible, especially if you are negotiating with a unionized campus or if budgets are tight. You must be willing to accept that the employer cannot honor your request.

Present your request in a way that highlights the benefits to the institution . Have available creative solutions that are of mutual benefit to both you and the institution.
For example, additional resources that will increase productivity or add depth and breath to your research capabilities or your ability to sponsor student researchers .

When the negotiations are complete, ask for a revised offer letter.
Following negotiation and the verbal agreement of terms, ask the employer to put these in writing. Review the revised terms carefully before accepting/declining the job offer.

If you are juggling multiple offers, you may want to keep all of the players informed and use one offer as leverage to ask your preferred institution to match the offer. Only do this if you plan to accept the position if the offer is matched.
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
Questions to Ask When You Receive a Job Offer
Is this institution and position a good “fit” for you?

Ask yourself how you see yourself in this environment. Do you think you can thrive and be happy at this institution? Does the department seem collegial? Will it be a positive work environment? Are you excited by the opportunity to work with the faculty members in the department and the students at the university?

Are the expectations for the position clearly defined and agreed upon by faculty and administrators?

What do your instincts tell you about the environment, per your campus visit and interviews?
Is the salary and benefits package fair?
Salary is the number one thing applicants negotiate, yet a negotiation that focuses only on salary will not be nearly as effective as one that considers all possible options.

Salary negotiation is very important because, for tenure track positions, most future salary raises are derived from your starting value. Salary increases are normally awarded annually, based on cost-of-living adjustments (and sometimes with small merit increases), and as a percentage of your salary, rather than a fixed dollar amount. Larger lump sump increases to your base pay do not occur unless you achieve tenure or commence another job search and receive an offer from another institution. The higher salary you start with, the more significant each salary increase will be.

Always ask if salary is negotiable. Because of equity issues relating to other assistant professors in a department, departments are often unable to accommodate a request for a slightly higher salary. In these instances, job seekers should focus their negotiations on other issues.

Many universities have a salary range for the position being offered, but offer letters usually will not offer a salary at the top of this range. As a result, it is often possible for the department to move a little bit within this range, especially if you are in a high demand field.

Because of a varying cost of living across the country, you should make an effort to determine what is an appropriate entry-level salary in your field , not only on a national scale, but also on a regional scale.

All salaries are public at public colleges and universities —inquire with the office of Human Resources at these institutions and others nearby.

Find the equivalent starting salary in governmental or industrial occupations.

If the faculty at this institution is unionized, you may contact a union representative there to help review the fairness of your salary offer and contract.

Generalized information about faculty salaries is released each year by the AAUP, available through the
Chronicle of Higher Education .

Talking with peers in your discipline may also help.

The more differentiated you are from other candidates, the more you'll be able to negotiate salary.
Benefits Benefits packages are often non-negotiable, as many universities have standardized (and comprehensive) benefits policies. However, take time to learn more about the benefits package being offered.
You may have bargaining points, particularly if you have multiple offers.

Health care package: Do employees pay part of the insurance premium? When does health care take effect? Can health care coverage begin in the summer before the appointment starts? Does the plan cover your partner or dependents? Does the health care package include vision, dental, orthodontic, and psychological services?

How are retirement plans structured? Is there institutional matching?

Vacation/Family leave policies? Child care services available to faculty and staff?

Sabbaticals?

Relocation Expenses: Institutions may reimburse you for some or all of your moving expenses. Before negotiating, educate yourself about moving costs —either moving yourself or hiring a moving company.
Having some idea of the costs will aid your negotiation. Save all receipts related to your move —your moving expenses may also be tax deductible.

Tuition support/discounts for employees and their spouses/children.

Fitness center for use by faculty and their families?
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
Are the terms of the appointment clearly defined?

During contract talks, also discuss your starting date.

Is your appointment defined as a 9-month or 12-month position?

Is summer support separate from academic year salary? If so, is summer teaching available? Could research support for one or more summers be included as part of the start-up package? Can you have your 9-month salary distributed over a 12-month period?

If your appointment is split between departments or duties, is the division of responsibility well-defined, particularly related to matters such as teaching responsibilities, office location, performance evaluation, and home department for tenure review?
What will your working conditions be like?
Teaching and advising load

Is your course load clearly articulated and appropriate to the type of institution?

Be certain that all elements of your teaching responsibility are well defined: the number of classes each term, the number of new course preparations you will be responsible for in the first few years, the types of courses (graduate, undergraduate, nonmajors, etc.), support from teaching assistants, and typical enrollments.

You may want to make the "transition argument"--that you need time to settle in and get organized before launching a full-blown teaching schedule.

"You may want to think about asking to minimize your preps the first year."

Ask how many unique classes you'd have to teach.

What will be expected in following years?
 Is your advising role defined? Are you expected to advise undergraduate honors theses, master’s theses, and doctoral dissertations? How many?

How will your teaching be evaluated? Does the institution have resources to help you improve your teaching?
Start-up funds

Think about all those incidentals that you need: Journal subscriptions, office supplies, software purchases.

Negotiate how much money you'll need.

Ask when those funds will be available.
Tenure

What is the process for tenure and promotion at this institution? Sometimes promotion and the tenure decision are linked, sometimes they aren't.

Ask what the renewable status of your contract is. Is it yearly? Is it a 3-year contract?

What are the standards the department would expect you to meet in order to recommend tenure? What are the publication requirements? Are these reasonable and well-defined in relation to the teaching load?

Have most recent hires achieved tenure, or have they left before achieving tenure? If so, what might this mean?

Does the department and/or university have a faculty mentoring program for young faculty members?

Is the institution making the commitment and investment in you to help see you to tenure?

If you are a woman anticipating having children, you should ask questions about the tenure clock — does the tenure clock stop for a discrete period of time during pregnancy and childbirth?
Research support

What resources are available for your research? Are start-up funds available? Are they adequate to secure your successful path to tenure?

If you are running a lab, go into negotiations confident that you know that you've thought about
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers everything you'll need to start up your lab. o Ask whether the institution already has pieces of equipment. o If they do, is it accessible? o If you have to buy equipment, will there be space for it? Where will that space be?

More people are trying to negotiate a technician/research assistant for life. You don't want to lose a technician/research assistant if you lose a grant, so find out if you can negotiate for the department to pay their salary during times when your budget is slim.

How are the library facilities? Will the department provide funding for the purchase of library materials relevant to your research?

Will you have access to biostatisticians/programmers? Will you be required to pay consulting fees out of your own grants?
Travel support

Do you have a fixed number of trips the department will pay for?

Is it expected that you present data or research findings at all meetings?

Some places will give you a pot of money--but make sure you justify why you need X-amount of dollars for travel and other expenses ... and how you spent it.
Secretarial support

This perhaps isn't negotiable, but it does affect how you do your work.

Will somebody help you prepare your teaching materials and photocopy examinations?

Is there someone who can help you prepare applications and grants, or deal with new hires?
Graduate assistants/Trainees

How do you enlist the help of graduate students/fellows?

Initially, a few "free" hands in your lab will help you get organized, but later you may want to recruit trainees to perform research.

What is the institution's policy for this?

How will you fit in with the graduate/residency/fellowship program?

Will you be required to sit on committees that are responsible for trainees?
Will you be able to have a life outside work?

Ask questions about local housing, public schools, and the community. Is this a community you will enjoy living in?

Is the cost of living prohibitive in the area?

Housing.
Sometimes candidates can negotiate for the institution to pay for a second trip to the community to search for housing. Some institutions, especially those located in communities with a shortage of affordable housing, have on-campus facilities to temporarily house faculty or feature programs to help faculty members locate and purchase homes. You may wish to inquire about a campus’s temporary housing provisions.
A special note on the “Two-Body” Problem
 You may also need to ask “Will your partner and/or children be happy in this community?”

If relevant, will your partner be able to secure satisfying work in the area? Spousal or partner assistance can sometimes be requested, especially if the job being offered is in a remote location. o This assistance can range from the institution providing t he applicant’s partner with resources for embarking on their own job hunt to actually locating a job for the spouse on campus. o Generally a department will locate jobs only for the partners of highly recruited applicants, but if an applicant’s partner is qualified for a campus position that becomes available, the partner candidate may receive some advantage.
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers o Investigate the programs available at the institutions you are considering. Spousal assistance initiatives are usually housed in the provost’s office or academic affairs, and you may wish to do preliminary Internet research on the institution’s Web site using the keywords “spousal hiring,”
“dual career” or “dual career academic couple.”
What if this position is not your first choice?
If you receive an offer from an institution that is not your first choice, and you are hoping for good news from another university, request more time from the institution making an offer. While a two week period of time is standard, you can sometimes negotiate for more t ime. After you’ve received an offer, you may wish to telephone the institution(s) that you would most prefer to work at and explain that you have received an offer from another employer (without naming the specific institution). Sometimes the decision has been made but the paperwork is slow, and a phone call can help speed up the process and provide you with an answer more quickly. If the other institutions you are waiting to hear from cannot give you an answer in the timeframe you require, however, you may be forced to make a difficult decision.
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
Accepting and Rejecting Offers
Ultimately, you will have to either accept or reject every job offer that you receive. The best way to do this is to first call the department, since that will allow them to know of your answer in a timely manner, and then to follow up with a written letter of acceptance or rejection.
If you decide that the offer is not one that you can accept, call the person who made the offer to inform them of your decision to decline, and then follow your call with a letter. Keep in mind that it is a small professional community and you want to be respectful and courteous at all times.
Acceptance
When you accept a job, be certain that your official letter of acceptance confirms all terms that were decided upon for the job, including start date and any negotiated benefits. If you have applications currently under review at other institutions, it is courteous to notify the search committees and withdraw your name from candidacy. If you have other pending job offers, you should certainly also notify those departments and reject them as soon as you accept your offer. You should begin to familiarize yourself with your new department, and it is never too early to start building relationships. This can be done by contacting some of your new colleagues and introducing yourself and learning as much about the new department as possible. Try to stay in touch with the department between the time of acceptance and your start date.
Rejection
Sometimes you will end up rejecting a job offer. This may occur for multiple reasons:



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You receive and accept another more attractive job offer.
You accept a post-doctoral position instead.
You realize that the position will not be a good fit for your skills, personality, and/or family.
You cannot accept the terms of the offer.
You are confident that you will receive an offer from an institution that is more attractive to you.
When you reject a job offer, be extremely polite and courteous. Notify them of your alternative plans and focus on the aspects of their department that were positive to you. It is important to conduct yourself professionally and leave a positive impression on the department; the academic community is relatively small, and you will likely encounter these committee members again.
Job Search Ethics —Can you Back Out on a Job Acceptance?
Sometimes a situation will arise where you accept a job offer, and then you are offered your “dream” job at another institution. Applicants often wonder if they can ethically break their commitment to the first institution and accept the position they really want. Some people will tell you that you are ethically obligated to meet the commitment you made to the first employer; others will say that you need to do what is best for you, your career, and your family. Ultimately it is your decision, and you must be comfortable with your decision and be prepared to live with the consequences. Backing out of a job you have accepted will likely not ingratiate you with members of the search committee, and it could have negative ramifications for your future career.
Carefully consider your personal ethics and values, and perhaps get some advice from a faculty member whom you trust.
Once the deal is sealed, go out and celebrate!
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Guide to the Academic Job Search For Clinician Researchers
References
Notes from prior GIM Faculty/Fellows: Allen Fremont, Mara Schonberg, Mary Ellen Goldhamer,
Harvard School of Public Health Career Services Handout “Guide to the Academic Job Search”
Nine Key Negotiating Points - Science Careers - Biotech, Pharmaceutical, Faculty, Postdoc jobs on Science
Careers
( http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_development/previous_issues/articles/0350/nine_key_negotiatin g_points )
“How to Get an Academic Job”, SGIM 2000 Workshop, Sanjay Saint MD, MPH and Stephan D. Fihn, MD,
MPH
Academic Job Offers and Negotiation (Adapted from and used with permission of the Graduate College Career
Services Office - University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign). Career Planning Series, University Career
Services, University of Houston Student Service Center. (713) 743-5100 www.career.uh.edu
.
References therein:
Dantzig, Jonathan A. Landing an Academic Job: The Process and the Pitfalls, quattro.me.uiuc.edu/~jon/ACAJOB/index.html, University of Illinois, 1995.
Formo, Dawn M. and Cheryl Reed. Job Search in Academe: Strategic Rhetorics for Faculty Job
Candidates Sterling, VA: Stylus, 1999.
Golde, C.M. (Jan/Feb, 1999). "After the Offer, Before the Deal: Negotiating a First Academic Job,"
Academe: Bulletin of the American Association of University Professors, January/February 1999, Vol.
85, no. 1, pp. 44-49.
Heiberger, Mary Morris and Julia Miller Vick. The Academic Job Search Handbook, 3d ed. Philadelphia:
University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001.
Pinkley, Ro bin L. and Gregory B. Northcraft, Get Paid What You’re Worth. New York: St. Martin’s
Press, 2000.
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