Today's Labor Day, and what better topic to discuss on Labor Day than law teaching jobs?
A candidate for a law school teaching position recently asked if I would post advice on the interview process. That’s like asking the Tasmanian Devil for advice on coping with ADHD. I didn’t exactly tear up the interview scene when I was interviewing thirty years ago. But I have seen a great deal of the process from the other side since then, including two stints on our Appointments Committee.
I can’t tell you how to ace the law teaching interview process, but I do have a good idea of what doesn’t work. I have seen a number of candidacies ruined by incredibly bad interviews and job talks. If you have the credentials to get in the door, but you don’t really want the job, here, in no particular order, are eleven easy ways to sabotage your search.
1. Don’t change the names when you send out that form letter.
“I would really like to teach at Nebraska because I love the Southeast. Go Dawgs!” Believe it or not, I have actually seen letters like this. (Not with “Go Dawgs.” No one in his right mind would cheer for the Dawgs.) It destroys your credibility. Anything else you say in the letter is immediately suspect.
2. Don’t proofread your resume, FAR form, or cover letter. No one will notice.
Everyone will notice! I can’t count the number of typos I have seen on resumes, cover letters, and FAR forms. I want colleagues who take care in their work. Giving me a resume with mistakes that a simple spell-check could have caught predisposes me against you.
3. Don’t have any questions ready for the interviewers.
At some point in almost every interview, your interviewer will turn to you and say, “Do you have any questions for us?” “No” is not an appropriate answer. It signals that you’re either not that interested or haven’t done enough homework to know what to ask. Even if it’s the end of the day and all of your questions have already been answered, ask them again. You’ll be amazed how often the answers are inconsistent; different people have different perspectives.
4. Know nothing about the school interviewing you or where they’re located.
All of us, even the faculty at Podunk University School of Law and Auto Repair, like to think we’re important. We want to believe we’re your first choice, even though we understand we probably are not.
Indulge us. You don’t have to lie and tell us we’re your top choice, but you should at least know something about our school. Questions like “Where exactly is your school?” or “Do you have any faculty I might have heard of?” aren’t likely to endear you to the appointments committee. Even if it’s just a thirty-minute preliminary interview at the hiring conference, learn a little about the school and ask informed questions that show you’ve actually heard of them.
5. Have nothing to say about articles you’ve written.
We’re interested in your scholarship. We read your scholarship. But some candidates seem surprised when we ask them about their past articles. You need to be prepared to discuss your previous work—to explain and defend what you wrote.
6. Focus on your research interests and ignore teaching and service.
Most of us take all three parts of the educational mission—teaching, research, and service—seriously. Yet, some candidates focus almost exclusively on the research they want to do. Before you interview, give at least some thought to what and how you want to teach. And don’t treat teaching as something you’re compelled to do so you can write. Research is important, but we want to be sure you’re committed to all three aspects of the job.
7. Be rude to the law school’s administrative staff or students
It’s amazing how often candidates let their true colors show when they think no one on the faculty is watching. But I promise you that any rudeness toward anyone at the law school—students or staff—will get back to those doing the hiring. We know these people; we respect them; and any negative behavior towards them will not be well-received. They don’t have a vote, but we do, and we expect them to be treated well. Be nice—to everyone.
8. Don’t bother preparing for your job talk. Speak extemporaneously.
The job talk is probably the most important part of an on-campus interview. Unless you’re a lateral candidate, it’s the only way we have to consider how good a teacher you’re likely to be.
Be prepared. Know what you’re going to say. Don’t ramble. Practice, practice, practice, preferably in front of a live audience.
But that brings me to my next point . . .
9. Read your job talk from a prepared script.
I understand the motivation. I’m not a good extemporaneous speaker, so I carefully prepare everything I’m going to say. I even have scripted notes for my classes, although I almost never look at them. (Who knows? Someday, I may find myself at a loss for words.)
It’s fine to have a detailed outline for your job talk. But don’t read it to us. Talk to us. Have a conversation with us. And, if that conversation doesn’t fit the sequence in our outline, be prepared to go with the flow. One of the marks of a good teacher is an ability to adjust when questions come up or things don’t go as you expected.
10. Assume your job talk audience knows a lot about your subject.
Law professors are not omniscient; we just act like we are. Most of your audience probably won’t know much about your topic. I admit that, as a securities scholar, I’m not up on the latest developments in health care law or civil procedure.
Even if you made a paper available in advance, don’t assume you have a “hot bench.” You can’t just jump into a sophisticated discussion of some complicated area of the law. You have to give us some background.
In fact, one of the hardest challenges of the job talk is keeping it simple enough for the neophytes, but advanced enough for the experts. But the job talk is just like teaching in that sense; you will often have to deal with a broad range of intellectual abilities and preparation in the classroom.
11. Focus on only one side of the issue you’re discussing in your job talk and ignore any weaknesses in your argument.
Any issue that’s worth discussing in a job talk has multiple possible solutions. People in the audience will disagree with your position. Some people may even dispute whether there is a problem that needs to be solved.
You need to fully understand the arguments against your position and be prepared to deal with those arguments. Your own argument will have weaknesses; acknowledge them honestly and don’t overstate your case. Here’s a good test: could you construct a strong argument against your view? If not, you’re not ready.
Respect the arguments against your position. Now is not the time to tell someone his or her views are stupid, even if they are. Be prepared to explain how you weighed all of the possible arguments and came to the position you did.
Good luck to everyone who's in the market. I hope you all find the law teaching positions you're looking for.