I just finished reading the last of the job search files. As Doctor Racine is retiring this year, we'll be welcoming a new member to the History Department in August 2009. We should all take our hats off to Dr. Mark Byrnes, who has chaired the search committee and dealt with all the paperwork, notifications, logistics, etc. I know just how hard that job is, having done it many years ago, and I want everyone to know that Mark's work is highly appreciated by his colleagues and especially by his departmental chair!
I guess the best thing I could compare a job search to is a bizarre kind of 'date.' Each candidate wants to make a great first impression, to prove that he or she is the right person for the job. That requires one to boast a bit while still appearing humble, which is a very delicate balance. A candidate grooms his/her letter as carefully as he/she would choose clothing or a hairstyle for an evening out. A potential hire wants to show seriousness of mind and purpose, but also display wit, charm, and a ready sense of humor. And all of this needs to be accomplished through words on a sheet of paper! Having been a job candidate myself, I know how much hope and anxiety rides on each application.
We will be conducting initial interviews in New York City over the holidays. Interviewing is stressful for both sides, especially as we rarely have more than a half hour to talk to individuals. I would be ready to wager that 99.9% of college professors have some horror story to tell about a job interview at a convention, or over the phone. It's an awkward, surreal process, but we all go through it. I know the Wofford History Department (being so naturally charming!) will work hard to put our candidates at ease, but convention interviews are at best awkward encounters that most of us are glad we don't have to repeat.
Over the last few weeks, many job candidates have visited Wofford College, as several departments have open searches. One of the best things about a small school is that when a candidate gives a talk, it will be attended by people in his/her discipline and also by outsiders. I've listened to political scientists and environmental scientists and biological scientists; I may have even learned a few things in the process. The audience's diversity sends an important message to candidates. It lets them know that at Wofford we enjoy learning from each other and just generally like being around our colleagues from different departments, something people at bigger schools can't always honestly say.
In the end, making a decision about offering a job to a person is an almost mystical process. One brings logic to the table, of course, especially in terms of what fields are needed, but there is also a certain indefinable quality, the moment when department members say 'this is the one' and 'I'll kill another school if they offer him/her a job!'
