Applying yourself: A new professor’s anecdotal insight for navigating the faculty application process

More than 50% of life sciences PhD students in the United States list a tenure track faculty position as their first career choice, yet less than 10% ultimately end up in a tenure track position. So too do faculty mentors and peers frequently steer graduate students towards seeking a faculty position. Despite the pressure often put on graduate students to land a faculty position, most receive little to no formal guidance on best practices in finding, applying to, and interviewing for these positions. Based on my recent successful job search comprising 37 applications, I present anecdotal advice for graduate students and postdoctoral researchers who are considering pursuing faculty positions. Mirroring my personal goals and job search activities, my talk places special focus on teaching-forward positions with opportunities for research, and will highlight tools for finding open positions, tips for formulating cover letters, teaching statements, and research statements, and guidelines for the virtual and in-person interviews. Given the very limited time available relative to the wealth of relevant information involved, I encourage those wanting to talk more about the process to contact me for more in-depth and broader discussion.