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Revisiting Conferences and Making it Worth It

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An academic conference provides the more than the venue to present your work and hear other presentations. It also is a great place to network and make connections, as well as learn from colleagues in the field. This post makes suggestions for a successful conference appearance. I know that the Western is this week and ISA is at the start of April. My hope is that this post will be useful for most.

If you are presenting and need technology (a video data projector), do make a point of making sure that your needs are met. Likewise, always have a Plan B if the technology does not work. This means copies of your slides for you to refer to and handouts of any pertinent slides or related matter is also copied (introduction, findings and conclusion) for distribution. I gave a talk on campus last week and had my iPad, thumbdrive, Slide Rocket and Drop Box versions of the presentation; however, everything worked fine with my iPad.

For graduate students, you should come with some business cards in hand. The standard in my areas of familiarity (Women’s Studies and Political Sciences) are that you can use the university crest and get cards printed. Please note that when you are writing your thesis, you are a candidate (for instance MA Candidate) otherwise you are a Graduate Student. When you have defended your prospectus for you dissertation, you are a PhD Candidate. You cannot put PhD on your card until you have defended or have your PhD in hand. I see that a few people have PhD on their Twitter profiles or blogs and they do not have this degree earned yet. This is misleading and unprofessional to do—don’t do it!

Practice your presentation in front of a mirror or a friendly audience. There is nothing harder to do than to sit by and pay to attention to a terrible or wooden presentation. Don’t stare at your computer. If you must, place phrases in your document that read: scan the room, breathe, smile, look up, etc. This will help you add some semblance of connection with your audience. Speaking of which you could present to one person or have no one in your audience, but this still counts as a presentation for your vitae. Enjoy your presentation!

Make sure that you take time to attend some of the receptions. This is a good place to network or catch up with others. Make sure that you are available to attend some of these events. The conference is not a vacation, but a working series of meetings. Take some time off, but your main job is to use the conference experience to help you share your research and meet people in your discipline. It is worth the time to meet people, too. I have found that some of my publications were thanks to a conference presentation, when an editor was in the audience or another panelist invited the panel to submit a special issue to a journal.

Before your trip you also want to peruse the conference program well so that you can organize your daily itinerary of what you have to do. If your advisor, mentor or other faculty in the department are attending the conference, go to some of their talks. Ask them to introduce you to some people at an event. A good committee member or mentor, will do this naturally, but some people need the little nudge to do so. Also, try and meet other graduate students. These people will provide the cohort of scholars you will see at the conferences and it is worth getting to know them.

The next few things are obvious: have fun, eat, sleep and exercise. Conferences are often 12 hour days and you want to make the most of them, but not work too hard that you return home exhausted or sick. Have a great time, but be careful to not drink too much. You are presenting yourself to others in your field. Likewise, be careful what you say on social media during the conference.

Remember that your first academic conference might appear a daunting experience, but it is not if you plan well and take the time to network and attend conference events. Also, engage with others online via social media–this way you can also meet people prior to the conference and have a meet up.

For the established academic, all of the above is obvious. But, let me add that we need to remember to make time to mentor. I try and take grad students out for a drink, coffee or a meal to chat with them about their progress. These brief meetings make a difference. I know that they did when I was a grad student.

Continuing the Conversation about Guilt: Academics on Academia

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I’ve enjoyed my conversations with Liana Silva. Her last post really touched me and troubled me. I was not frustrated with Liana, but with the truths she spoke about the ways in which academics allow the constant blurring of our work and personal lives. She made me look into the mirror and think about my work and the infamous to do lists that I keep. I spent all last week thinking about guilt. The guilty way I feel when I think about my day and the constant struggle to get all the tasks completed.

There is always a paper to write, assignments to grade, lectures to work on and other work. Then, add to that projects, publications, and service in the department, faculty and wider campus. The reality is that most academics do not work a 40 hour work week. No, we work easily work 50-60 and during the crunch periods more than this. And, this doesn’t include all the time responding to emails or thinking about the job. Alas, we do not get to bill by the fifteen minute increments!

Continue reading →

Organization Matters: Fri Fun Facts

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Recently I had a student in my office who had his next two years planned out–typed and ready for my review. I get this. I did this. OK, it was hand written, but I also planned like this. Today’s Friday Fun Facts is dedicated to planning your post-secondary education. And, here I assume that this plan is after the first year, so that the student has at least taken several course as they figure out what they like or don’t.

1. After you’ve met your undergraduate requirements for the degree review the requirements for the degree programs that you’re the most interested in for your major and or minor.

2. Related to the above point, I actually suggest to students that they at the very least have a major and a minor. Preferably, I’d suggest a double major. For some the preference might work best as a major, minor and co-op. The students who are focused on graduate school should look if the department has an Honors Program.

3. You should meet with the Undergraduate Advisor(s). This will vary at campuses. In some the office might be in the department (your major area) or there might be an Advising Center. Either way–these professional staff or faculty are there to help you. They can best help you when you are well informed and when you have questions for them.

4. Talk to other students to find out what they suggest. They will also be useful to find out which departments and professors you should look into for your degree program.

5. Remember that this is your education and you need to own it. You must be your best advocate in and out of the classroom. This means that you need to keep an eye out for deadlines and make meetings with the appropriate people or offices for information.

6. And, if you’re like the student from earlier this month and me, you can map out your courses for your degree program. It’s useful to actually see what you need and what you can take. Do it! It’s not in stone, but it makes you organize what you need to do.

May I suggest that you get a copy of the rules and add post its and highlight all the key information. Nowadays so much of this information is online and somehow you need to get familiar with the information regarding your degree program. Bookmark the appropriate webpages.

On the Job Market: Undergrads

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This post is going to offer some suggestions for students who are entering the job market. Some of my suggestions were shared previously, but they are worth repeating.

1. Go by the Career Services or similar offices on your campus. Usually Alums can also use this service.

  • When there check out the services.
  • Attend a resume writing workshop or ask one of the staff to review your resume
  • Attend any other useful workships that the office staff offers

2. Chat with your mentors. If you don’t have any–chat with your current or former professors. If you feel unsure, then contact the Undergraduate Advisors and chat with her/him.

  • Let this contact know that you’re on the job market and see if they have any suggestions for you.
  • Ask this person if s/he is willing to review your resume or CV.

3. Work your networks.

  • Let everyone in your network know that you are looking for work. (This might include your partner, girlfriend/boyfriend, parents, coworkers, pastor, coach, etc.
  • Make coffee appointments or other appointments with people and come with your resume in hand. Let people know that you are looking for work.
  • Ask your contacts if they have any leads or suggestions for you.
  • Offer to take the person out for coffee…chances are that you’ll go dutch or the other person will want to pay, but you really should be willing to offer.
  • Research if there are other means of engaging in the community–social media, Chamber of Commerce, and other groups related to your area.

4. Keep a positive attitude.

  • it might take you several months to find work that meets your requirements
  • Be willing to get your foot in the door and accept an entry level position
  • Sleep, eat right, exercise, and try to save money or spend as little money as possible as you’re set on your job search goal.

5. Be flexible

  • Make sure that you’re willing to take a job that isn’t your career. This job might help you get to the next step.
  • Don’t dismiss the job. The connections you make might turn into gold for the next job or get you toward your career goal.

6. When you get an interview offer for your dream job or even plan b

  • Talk to a trusted mentor about questions to expect, dress, and other points so that you’re ready for the interview
  • Try to coordinate a mock interview with a few trusted friends–preferable people who have interviewed more than you.
  • Think about the questions you might get asked and work out answers. You might even practice in front of a mirror.
  • During the interview, remember that it’s acceptable to pause for a second–get your bearings and then answer the question.
  • e. Send a thank you card after the interview. Keep it simple: thank the person, committee or team for the interview and note that you look forward to hearing from them.
  • f. Do not bad mouth the company or any of the employees on any social media.

7. You get an offer

  • Try to negotiate for more pay or benefits. It doesn’t hurt. Particular to women–we tend to not negotiate and accept the offer.
  • Review the offer with someone who you trust.
  • Counter offer and wait. (Be reasonable with your counter offer)
  • Do not involved your parents in the counter offer—your mom or dad should not call and complain about the offer!

8. Accept the job

  • Work in the position like you are in probation. You might be on probation! So you have to prove to your employer why you are invaluable.
  • Dress for the job you want and not just the job you have.
  • Be professional in dress (note 8 b) and in your attitude.

Remember your job does not necessarily define you. Each job can provide you useful experience and build your resume.

Academics on Academia: Supportive Networks

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I sat on Liana’s last post thinking about how important support networks were to me during the various phases of my academic career thus far: undergraduate, new graduate student in Liberal Arts, new graduate student in Political Science, ABD in Political Science, Adjunct, Sessional, and now tenure-track faculty. Support networks never go out of style. They serve an important role helping the academic traverse through the morass of academia. There are multiple reasons why we have legions of ABDs. One major reason, in my opinion, is the lack of supportive networks or people in the student’s life. This includes personal life and professional life.

It’s important to remember that we need camaraderie, mentorship, and support. I have previously shared how lucky I was to be a member of a woman’s academic support group. This group made me realize that I would have to find support networks in Political Science. And, like Liana previously blogged, I had to get outside of my comfort zone and network. This meant attending conferences (debt) and making connections. Then, at the next conference people recognized me and things and I became part of the academic community.

You can’t snap your fingers and have a network of people who are your academic posse. You have to cultivate it and I would argue that you have to have multiple networks to keep sane in this game. There is so much competition and you are rife to have moments of self-doubt, you networks will keep you grounded and focused. Likewise, you need to have supportive networks outside of academe. Gasp. This means you need to try to have a rounded laugh. Oh, stop laughing or smirking. It’s true. You need to take time for yourself, too. This seems antithetical to academe, but it’s important to take care of you!

How do you find the seedlings for supportive networks? One place is via social media. You might find that the professional organization related to your field(s) is the first place to start, but don’t stop there. Look on Facebook, Twitter, Linked In and blogs, too. Don’t think that the conferences are the only place to connect with like minded people in your field. See if you can make some early connections via social media sites and then meet up IRL at the conferences. The time investment in meeting people is worth it. Academic communities are incestuous at times and everyone in your discipline knows someone else. This can work to your favor when you’re applying for scholarships, post-docs, and jobs. It can also work to your disadvantage if you’ve been foolish or have burned a bridge via bad behaviour. So, always be professional and collegial.

When you’re at the conferences, business meetings for the sections or groups that you’re interested are worth attending. This is if they are open to the general membership. Find a friendly face and sit near them or hover and listen and learn. You have to make the effort to reach out and hopefully someone will see this and connect with you. Good luck as you look for supportive networks and as you build them, too.

Presenting/Public Speaking

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After attending Word Camp #WCV12  a few weeks ago, I’ve been thinking lots about the talks that I attended and all the great information that I learned. There were lots of points shared that validated what I already knew from my reading and my own use of social media. But, there was one thing that I’ve been thinking about lots. Part of it stems from a good conversation that I had with my colleague and good friend, Dr. Raul Pacheco-Vega. Raul is known as Hummingbird604. He is also a Political Scientist and is what I refer to as a power user of social media. He blogs, tweets, teaches, and shares his love of Vancouver with the masses via his blog.

Raul also explained after Word Camp that he had consulted with a keynote couch, who gave him tips on presentation skills and public speaking. We were recapping the events and chatted about his presentation and others. After our chat I thought more about this and  realized that the talks that I liked best really were the ones that offered a dynamic presentation style. It’s not just the information, but also the way the information is shared. I have now heard Raul present on at least four occasions and this last talk was great, but I did notice that the talk was seamless. Whatever the keynote suggested–it worked. Again, his other presentations were strong. He’s a natural public speaker.

As an academic, I live in the world of public speaking–I am an educator. I am constantly “on” and giving presentations in classes, in the community, at conferences, and to the media. It is very important to feel comfortable speaking in front of people. But, you also have to be able to distill information in ways that is understandable to the group that you’re speaking to. And, this point is at times forgotten by some as they ruminate in the tiniest details or computer code and lose the audience. You have to gear your talk to your audience and make the presentation dynamic.

If you have not presented lots, practice, practice, and practice. Practice in  front of a mirror or at home. Practice in front of friends, so that the real presentation goes as smoothly as possible. And, when you practice in front of friends–try to get someone who is unfamiliar with your topic. This will allow you to see how you’re pitching your talk. Do they understand the information?

Then, once you’re giving your talk–breath. I like to walk around, but it’s important to not pace too much. Smile and if you feel you cannot look directly into eyes–look at the eyebrows! If you are prone to blushing or breaking out in hives, then wear a higher collared shirt. Eventually you won’t have a physical reaction and you’ll enjoy giving your presentation. If you can, have a friend attend the talk so that you can get feedback from someone who knows you.

When I first started attending conferences back in 1991, I had my presentation triple spaced and included notes to self that read: take a breath, smile, look around. I only had to do this a few times, but, I swear it helped. Now, I put together my skeleton bullet points or Slide Rocket presentation the night before typically. If it’s an academic presentation, it could be the same day, but I have the research completed well before the conference! I do think that public speaking skills is a tangible transferable skill. And, a skill that we all should have. Now, if all the presenters would remember this–is a completely different story!

Fri Fun Facts: Organizing Writing Time

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At Word Camp Victoria 2012 ( #wcv12 ) @Miss604 (Rebecca Bolwitt) shared how she manages her time blogging. And, as a a teacher/instructor/professor it made me think not only of my time management, but also my students’ time management with writing. This post is dedicated to organizing writing and thinking time. And, like so many of my posts the targeted reader is students or others who work with students. I look forward to your input.

Bolwitt gave some great advice. She blogs typically in the morning for a few hours and during this time she will compose 3-5 posts. Now, for students I would like them to think about earmarking time for thinking about writing. Yes, it’s part of the process. Thinking about what you want to say and what sort of research you want to engage in for the assignment. Is the paper an investigative piece or argumentative? What does the assignment requirements explain? You need to organize what the requirements are with what you want to do with the assignment.

If you merely think about writing as the actual writing, then you will not have enough time to “marinate” with your topic. I have found that placing “Janni Writing or Thinking Time” in my calendar necessary to successfully work on writing projects. Some of your ideas will undoubtedly hit you when you’re commuting in to campus or perhaps in another class. It is important to jot down these ideas, as you might not remember them later. Likewise, it’s also good to chat with classmates or your professor about the assignment.

Then, set time aside to begin your writing in earnest. You might start with pulling together facts and quotes and what you hope to find. Whatever method you use–make sure that you attempt to organize your thoughts. But, you must set realistic goals with your writing time and set time aside to get your writing completed. Bolwitt noted that the morning is a good time for her to write. When is your most productive time of day?

One Take Away from #WCV12

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This will be the first of a few blog posts about Word Camp Victoria 2012 ( #wcv12 ). This was my second Word Camp in Victoria and I have to say that I definitely enjoyed this camp more than the last one. And, no, it’s not because #UVIC was a site sponsor! I got more out of the sessions and part of this is that I chose more wisely and frankly that I have fiddled more with Word Press. Yes, Word Camp is a Word Press Blogging conference, er camp for users or those who are interested in the platform.

This post is going to speak to Craig Spence’s presentation, “Why WordPress works so well as a Dynamic Creative Writing Environment.” Spence is a writer and the way he interacts with the Word Press platform is informed by his writing philosophy. I liked that he shared the Cosmic Chicken, his speculative writing series that allows readers to add to the story. And, did I mention that he was such an honest, humble presenter? He hooked me in and made me want to listen to his presentation. Sure, I live tweeted too, but I also have about a page of notes from his presentation.

What really struck me is that he views his writing on line as similar to his offline writing and this is something that I am trying to explain to my students, who are completing blogging assignments. I’ve said that their 1000 word post is like a paper in terms of coherency and organization, but the platform allows them to add images and video and make the post theirs via their analysis and the look of the blog. They have more opportunity for creativity and Spence’s talk reminded me of this point.

Difficult Students: Public Court of Opinion

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Lots of academics have been immersed in conversation about the NYU student’s outburst against her professor. The student ended up writing letters to the NYU President and went so far to repeatedly threaten her professor and the university. She wanted to take the issue to various papers, where she has family and friend connections and the court of public opinion.

Of course, the university cannot really respond openly, as it is an issue of the student’s privacy. But, what the student did was make her various diatribes public. These letters have been made public and have really made her look terrible–like a petulant, self-entitled young person. I have not used her name and I won’t. But, what I will respond to is the fact that she was unhappy with an assignment and contacted the university president to get her professor terminated! One of her diatribes also accused her professor of being only a “spousal hire.” Obviously this student has no idea about hiring in higher ed. Even if this professor was a spousal hire–she would still have to be qualified and a good fit for the department.

There is even a blog that includes many of the student’s alleged Facebook status updates and they display more of the same sort of outrageous statements. What this makes me think of is the difficult students that instructors have in classes. These students usually make up a small percentage of the student population, but at time they can actually take up more time than all the other students combined.

Some of us on Twitter responded using the hashtag #difficultstudents and my Facebook feed was full with friends in and outside of academe responding to the incident. The discussion that I would like to have is two-fold: acknowledge that some students are difficult and that faculty need to balance protecting student needs, protecting the integrity of the classroom and more so for contingent and pre-tenure faculty protecting your reputation/job.

This is part one of this discussion. What are your thoughts?

Career Advice for Advanced Undergrads

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You’re in your last year of university and getting nervous as the school year starts, hits the half way point or is ending. But, for the sake of ease, let’s pretend it’s mid-way through your last year of university. I’m going to make some suggestions for you. And, these are my opinions alone and not endorsed by my employer. This advice comes from my university experience, 14 years of teaching, and years of advising unofficially and officially.

1. Get yourself to the Career Center or the Career offices. Your campus should have an office with extremely competent staff who are there to help you. But, understand that they aren’t there to help you get a job, rather they are there to give you the skills so that you get yourself that job. They will empower you, but it’s all about your own skills and your own file.

2. Speak with your departments Undergraduate Advisor. Believe it or not, s/he might have some good advice to give you. The advisor might know of additional job boards in your area of interest. See if this person is willing to review a cover letter or your resume. If they are not–don’t get offended–go back to number one and ask for help at the Career Services office.

3. Speak to trusted peers who are in your situation or who have recently graduated. Your peers are a useful resource, too.

4. Confer with other faculty or mentors that you have in the campus community or community at large. Now is not the time to feel shy. You have to reach out and make some effort.

5. If it works for your field (and which fields does it not work for?) get on social media. Yes, join Linked in and establish your profile there and meet others on the platform. Ask people questions—especially those in the industry that you’re interested in.

6. Are you blogging or on Twitter? Will these platforms be useful for you? If so, then do it. But, always be very careful with your digital footprint. Google yourself and see what is out there. That photo of you in residence engaging in naked beer sliding—might need to be deleted! OK, you really don’t have compromising photos, but do take a look and see what photos and status updates you’ve had so that you won’t have a future employer “creep” and find something that they don’t like.

Particular to Victoria, I suggest to students that they not only look at the local job boards (BC Public Service, municipality job boards, and UVIC’s U-Hire, but also VIATEC’s. You never know what you might find in many of these. I also explain to students that they most likely won’t get hired right out of their undergrad as a senior policy analyst. The truth is that you’re going to have to work your way up and this might mean that you’re working in a position that requires data entry, filing, and “gofer” work. You have to cut your teeth in a job and be prepared for this.

If you’re interested in working in Victoria, I suggest that you keep abreast of when there are Chamber of Commerce events (Victoria or Westshore) and attend some of the events to network and meet local members. Note that members of this organization aren’t only local business owners, but government types, elected officials, and just regular people who are interested in the community. Also, attend other local events and get to know the community. This might mean registering with Meet Up and looking for events that will allow you to meet other like minded people. The thought of doing this might make you feel uncomfortable, but you need to get out and meet more people and realize that the limited discomfort can pay off with a mentor, community building, contacts, and possibly a job connection.

I have seen students take 4-8 months to find work after they graduate and this is pretty common. The students who are willing to take risks or start at the entry level position are the ones who have been the most successful. What are you doing to do?