Academic publishing: What’s the delay?
One of the more popular topics that we’ve covered so far at Post Academic is academic publishing. About a month ago, I wrote about what I called the “time lag problem” in academic publishing, and recounted a frustrating experience I had trying to place an article that ended up on the scrap heap after a year-and-a-half in review purgatory. (Actually, it would be kind of absurdly hilarious, if it hadn’t happened to me!) As we mentioned in the earlier posting, let us know about what you are curious about with regards to the publishing process, and we’ll try to cover it. And if anyone who has published any book of any kind wants to share her/his experience, contact us!
What I didn’t write about at the time was that I had an essay that was just about to be published in a good peer-reviewed journal that I like a lot. I am definitely proud of the final product and had a great experience working with a very professional staff. The best part of the process for me was the initial step of submission, because I felt that I got a fair shake and an objective blind reading–though, of course, I would think that because the essay was accepted!
But going through the process also revealed some of the same structural issues with academic publishing that I experienced in the 18-month revise-resubmit-rinse-repeat-rejection fiasco, albeit with a much happier ending. Even with a dedicated, on-the-ball staff, the piece took almost two years between acceptance and publication, plus another 5 months at the front end between initial submission and acceptance. Again, I hope this doesn’t seem to be a case where I sound ungrateful, because the folks at the journal were great and really took care of me and the essay. Here’s why, at least in my mind, it takes a relatively long time for an essay to see the light of day, even when everyone is working hard to get things done:
Resource: Glassdoor.com
A major disadvantage of moving from academia to the hamster world is that you probably don’t know how much you deserve to be paid. However, many companies ask you to provide your rate in a cover letter, or they’ll ask you in an interview.
What do you say? Grad students are notoriously low-paid, and if you throw out what you actually made last year, the company will lowball you or laugh in your face because you seem desperate.
Here’s where Glassdoor.com comes in. If you register for an account, you can research companies and find out what people are making in certain positions. This also includes hourly employees if you are considering contract work. Employees post their salaries and comments on the company anonymously. While the site is limited toward larger companies, you can still get a better idea of what you can expect to earn when you change jobs.
The comments section is also eye-opening, but as you know all too well with Rate My Professors, most people go to the site only when they’re royally pissed off. A low rating on Glassdoor.com might not mean much, but you should still read the comments to look for trends relating to the company as a whole. For example, if most of the comments mention major overtime or underwhelming health insurance, you might want to reconsider sending your resume.
Image of Disney’s Hollywood Hotel Café by Bvld11 under a Creative Commons license, from Wikimedia Commons.
News maybe you can use: Student loan reform
Caroline’s post yesterday about student loans was a particularly timely one, in light of today’s ceremonial signing of student loan reform into law by the Prez at Northern Virginia Community College. Largely overshadowed by the monumental health care reform bill/law that it is attached to, student loan reform is one of the those things pretty much everyone agrees with. Even more obscured is how the new law, which, as the AP explains it, “strips banks of their role as middlemen in federal student loans and puts the government in charge,” might impact graduate students, since the focus, rightfully enough, will be on how to get students into undergraduate programs and community colleges. Searching briefly online, I found one impact that the law will have on graduate student loans, via tax credits. Per the Washington Post: “In addition to increasing Pell grants, the administration has expanded tax credits for higher education, and is increasing funding for programs to help colleges retain and graduate students.”
If anyone knows how and when student loan reform will affect graduate students, please feel free to drop us a line or post a message in the comments section. Thanks!
The sad, impending demise of my .edu account
Earlier this month, I received a message that my uci.edu email account “is set to expire” on April 1. Practically speaking, it’s no big deal, since I switched my primary account to a different account a few years ago in anticipation of just this event. And actually, I should’ve been cut off much sooner, even with the postgraduation grace period, but lecturing the past few years at UCI gave the .edu account a lifeline.
Symbolically, it probably means something more–I wouldn’t be shocked if I received a few more rejection letters as my April Fools surprise! I’ve had some sort of .edu account for almost my whole virtual life (I used telnet for who knows how long!), and this particular one would be getting ready to go to high school soon. But having the .edu address is something of a badge of honor for the academic lifer, since it represents a sense of belonging you can’t get with a .com or a .org.
A sampling what I’ll be missing out on starting Thursday is below the jump…
Potential Post-Academic Professions: Realtor?
The site Grad Hacker has launched a helpful series interviewing people who chose not to go into academia after getting a PhD. The first article in the series interviews Marilyn Garcia, who received a PhD in Economics but decided to go into real estate. Part of why she shifted careers is the “continual, 24 hours a day guilt” that goes with being an untenured professor. She says,
Setting a specific goal is great but you have no idea how long, really, it’s going to take to achieve that goal. So you work for three hours and you’re not there, and then what do you do? You work for three hours after you’ve been in class all day, and you’ve got the faculty meetings, and had office hours, and driven back and forth.
The office world may seem like a daily grind, but, based on her statements, academia is really the hamster wheel. I’m speaking for myself only, but office life tends to provide clear deadlines. It’s true that I’ve worked 14- or 15-hour days, but those times were relatively short (the length of a football season, actually), and I had a specific goal to achieve. If I didn’t achieve that goal, I could go somewhere else and find new goals.
Take a gander at this Grad Hacker article. It offers much more for anyone dissatisfied with the academic life, especially if you have a hobby that you might be able to turn into a living.
What Do You Do With a PhD? [Grad Hacker]
The latest from the MLA: Convention proposals due April 1
We usually don’t do CFPs (aka Calls for Papers) here, but I got an email yesterday from the MLA reminding me that the deadline for all panel proposals for the January 2011 MLA convention are due this Thursday, April 1. The reason I’m posting this is that the MLA announced earlier this month that it is promoting panels and papers on the ever-worsening status of the profession, under the catchily-titled theme “The Academy in Hard Times”.
Just thought we’d put out a PSA about the MLA convention deadline, especially if you’re more together than I am and can get a proposal together in the next few days. Here’s a link to the MLA proposal submission site. At this point, I think single paper proposals to panel CFPs are all but closed by now, so you’ll have to come up with a panel topic, then find a few colleagues and friends with papers to round out the proposal. One helpful tip: It’s a bit confusing to navigate the MLA submission site, especially if you aren’t a member and don’t have a login–actually, you can’t even submit anything if you aren’t member, so don’t waste your time if you’re not!
Hopefully, some of panels listed under “The Academy in Hard Times” will consider post-academic issues. Good luck, and let us know if you have a panel accepted, whether it’s about “Hard Times” or good times!
The psychological baggage of your CV
I wanted to follow up Caroline’s really helpful how-to’s on converting a CV into a resume by focusing on my own real-time experiences of doing just that, particularly some of the more intangible aspects of the process. What makes turning a CV into a resume all the more difficult is the psychological baggage that goes along with it, since it can symbolize something you wish it didn’t–that you might be becoming a post-academic. It’s not so much figuring out a new set of conventions that’s the tough part, but the self-scrutiny and rose-colored reminiscences that can really paralyze you. Writing a resume feels like a surrendering the past to the future, when paring 5 pages down to 1 page feels like you’ve just ended up with a blank page.
Here are some of the mixed feelings I’ve dealt with in writing a resume and what I’m telling myself I need to do to thoughtfully and seriously prepare for a transition.
1. Get(ting) over it: Does shearing off all the details of your CV feel like your academic achievements don’t matter? What exactly happened to the last 5 to 7 (to 10) years of your life? Do your faculty recommendations even matter any more? Going through your CV to decide what to keep (a little bit) and what to ditch (almost everything) is a daunting task, because it requires a retrospective introspection that isn’t easy, especially when you’re forced to do it.
In the post-academic’s touchstone, “So What Are You Going to Do with That?”, by Susan Basalla and Maggie Debelius, there’s a chapter on resumes that’s aptly titled “This Might Hurt a Bit,” which offers great how-to advice on shaping a resume out of CV. But more important than the nuts-and-bolts of the process (though the list of resume verbs on to use on 110-11 is pretty great), Basalla and Debelius get you into the right mindset with some tough love. According to them, the editing process involves some cuts that’ll sting. But, for your own sake, leave off the following (109-10):
See the list and more after the jump…
The Grad Student Loan Trap
Now that people are getting into grad programs, they are wondering how to pay for it. Some schools are generous and offer fellowships or TA-ships. However, that might not cover everything, and you may need to get a loan. These tips can help you avoid winding up in debtor’s hell:
1. Set a budget to find out what you really need. What you need will depend on where you live. If your dream grad program is in New York City, your living expenses will skyrocket. Don’t forget to factor in moving costs and the fact that you may not be employed in the summers.
2. Turn to the school and the government first. Did you fill out a FAFSA? Good. You should receive information soon on how much the school can give you and if you are eligible for government loans, like Stafford or PLUS loans, that offer fixed rates.
3. Steer clear of private loans. This is your dream and you can’t turn it down. Okay. But you should still beware of private loans. Haven’t you read Dickens? If you don’t have time to read Dickens, read this article from Kiplinger, which describes how students get hooked by a teaser loan rate that can balloon later on.
More after the jump!
(more…)
Last week on Post Academic (3/21-3/27)
Thanks to all the readers for making this another great week for us at Post Academic! Here are some of the posts from the past week that might have been lost in the shuffle or have cycled off the front page by the end of the week. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
* Caroline offers some real-life hands-on advice on how to write a resume and how to get paid (if you’re a freelancer, that is).
* While Arnold takes Caroline’s real-life hands-on advice, he’s still dithering about keeping on hanging on or moving on.
* But at least health care reform passed, which should help vulnerable academics and post-academics.
Random Career Option for Post Academics: Reality TV
No, I’m not kidding. Over at abovethelaw.com, the writers are actively encouraging unemployed lawyers to apply for the latest season on “The Apprentice.”
You know the economy is bad when the last resource you can turn to is a reality show fronted by a guy with a bad rug. That said, if lawyers can be recruited for “The Apprentice,” why not PhDs? Based on Arnold’s post regarding MLA stats, your chances of winning a season of “The Apprentice” might be as good as your chances of landing a tenure-track job.
You laugh, and you think I’m being silly, but if a little part of you is curious about the fast-money culture of reality TV, feel free to look at the casting information after the jump:
Image of Donald Trump by Michelle Sandberg under a Creative Commons license, from Wikimedia Commons.
(more…)
