TA Professional Development Tips
Academic Hiring Committees
There are a number of insider tips (and practical advice) that can help you get a leg-up on the
competition as you apply for your first academic job. Here are some to help you get started:
1. Pre-Interview Stage
Do’s
Expand Your CV’s Teaching Resources:
-Teaching and research experience is a must: Guest lecture, teach as a contract instructor, publish articles
and attend/present at conferences.
Select your top picks:
-Contact your most desired schools at least 1 year in advance to indicate your desire to work there
Select a school that matches your interests:
-If your passion is teaching and you’re not interested in research, seek out an institution where teaching is
the priority or vice versa.
Examples:
Teaching: U of T, smaller institutions such as Acadia
Research: Brock
Stick with your passion:
-No matter how tempting it is to go into a ‘hot’ field or topic, you’re better suited in a topic you like and
can work in for 35 years
Prepare a Teaching Dossier
-A dossier can highlight your teaching and research skills, and provide you an extended opportunity to
express your teaching philosophy outside of a CV
Don’ts
Apply Liberally:
-Schools like to know they are your number one choice, not your twelfth. Select your top institutions and
apply to those
Fail to Customize your application:
-A standard application that does not specifically address the position available, and has outdated or
generic references is sure to end up at the top of the pile...in the recycling bin
2. Interview Stage
Do’s
Study Up:
-You should be intimately familiar with the faculty, their recent published work and
the courses that are offered in the department.
Expect a Long Engagement:
-Depending on your field, your interview will last between 1 day and 2 days.
Continued on reverse side
Educational Development
Centre
410 DT
carleton.ca/edc
Phone: 520-4433
Fax: 520-4456
2. Interview Stage con’t
Prepare to Teach:
-Be ready to give a guest lecture or seminar so that your classroom skills can be evaluated. Don’t forget
to cater to your audience - a graduate seminar won’t go over well with a class of first year
undergraduates
Prepare for the future:
-Be ready to explain where you’ll go once you have the position: your research interests, your preferred
courses and how you’ll fit in in the department
Don’ts
Speak Incoherently:
-This point may seem obvious, but it is crucial that answers and lectures are delivered in concise, eloquent
and audible sentences. If you can’t perform in the interview, the committee will doubt your ability to
perform on the job.
Go In Cold:
-As with any job interview, you should anticipate questions and have your answers prepared and
polished. For a list of sample academic job questions, visit the EDC website for the Academic Job
Interview Question handout (under publications)
3. The First Year Stage
Do’s
Find a Mentor:
-Mentors of any kind (Departmental, Faculty or inter-disciplinary) can help you acclimatize to your new
surroundings, help you understand protocols & procedures and help you prepare for tenure.
Don’ts
Isolate Yourself:
-It’s tempting to think that you can handle all the challenges of beginning a new career on your own, but
this can ultimately create more work (and stress) in the long run. It is better to ask for help and guidance
at the start than get in over your head.
There are no surefire ways to ensure that you are the successful candidate, although there are a number
of tips and ideas that can help point you in the correct direction.
Please bear in mind that several of these tips were developed with Carleton’s hiring practices in mind
and may not reflect all college and university hiring committee practices.
Special Thanks
Robert Burk, Department of Chemistry
Andre Loiselle, Department of Canadian Studies
Nick Rowe, Department of Economics
Educational Development
Centre
410 DT
carleton.ca/edc
Phone: 520-4433
Fax: 520-4456