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Insights from a survey-based analysis of the academic job market

View ORCID ProfileJason D. Fernandes, View ORCID ProfileSarvenaz Sarabipour, View ORCID ProfileChristopher T. Smith, View ORCID ProfileNatalie M. Niemi, View ORCID ProfileNafisa M. Jadavji, View ORCID ProfileAriangela J. Kozik, View ORCID ProfileAlex S. Holehouse, View ORCID ProfileVikas Pejaver, View ORCID ProfileOrsolya Symmons, View ORCID ProfileAlexandre W. Bisson Filho, View ORCID ProfileAmanda Haage
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/796466
Jason D. Fernandes
Department of Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz, California, United States
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Sarvenaz Sarabipour
Institute for Computational Medicine & Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, United States
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Christopher T. Smith
Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, North Carolina State University Graduate School, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States
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Natalie M. Niemi
Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States; Department of Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States
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Nafisa M. Jadavji
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Midwestern University, Glendale, Arizona, United States
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Ariangela J. Kozik
Division of Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States
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Alex S. Holehouse
Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biophysics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, United States
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Vikas Pejaver
Department of Biomedical Informatics & Medical Education & The eScience Institute, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States
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Orsolya Symmons
Department of Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States; current address: Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, Cologne, Germany
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Alexandre W. Bisson Filho
Department of Biology, Rosenstiel Basic Medical Science Research Center, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, United States
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Amanda Haage
Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States
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  • ORCID record for Amanda Haage
  • For correspondence: amanda.haage@und.edu
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Abstract

Many postdoctoral fellows in the STEM fields enter the academic job market with little knowledge of the process and expectations, and without any means to assess their qualifications relative to the general applicant pool. Demystifying this process is critical, as there is little information publicly available. In this work, we provide insight into the process of academic job searches by gathering data to establish background metrics for typical faculty job applicants, and further correlate these metrics with job search outcomes. We analyzed 317 responses to an anonymous survey for faculty job applicants from the May 2018 - May 2019 market cycle. Responses were about evenly split by gender, largely North American-centric and life science focused, and highly successful with 58% of applicants receiving at least one offer. Traditional metrics (funding, publications, etc.) of a positive research track record above a certain threshold of qualifications were unable to completely differentiate applicants that did and did not receive a job offer. Our findings suggest that there is no single clear path to a faculty job offer and that perhaps criteria not captured by our survey may also influence landing a faculty position above a certain threshold of qualification. Furthermore, our survey did capture applicants’ perception of the faculty job application process as unnecessarily stressful, time-consuming, and largely lacking in feedback, irrespective of a successful outcome. We hope that this study will provide an avenue for better data-driven decision making by the applicants and search committees, better evidence-based mentorship practices by principal investigators, and improved hiring practices by institutions.

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The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.
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Posted October 09, 2019.
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Insights from a survey-based analysis of the academic job market
Jason D. Fernandes, Sarvenaz Sarabipour, Christopher T. Smith, Natalie M. Niemi, Nafisa M. Jadavji, Ariangela J. Kozik, Alex S. Holehouse, Vikas Pejaver, Orsolya Symmons, Alexandre W. Bisson Filho, Amanda Haage
bioRxiv 796466; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/796466
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Insights from a survey-based analysis of the academic job market
Jason D. Fernandes, Sarvenaz Sarabipour, Christopher T. Smith, Natalie M. Niemi, Nafisa M. Jadavji, Ariangela J. Kozik, Alex S. Holehouse, Vikas Pejaver, Orsolya Symmons, Alexandre W. Bisson Filho, Amanda Haage
bioRxiv 796466; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/796466

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