Job Market Reporting Thread (2020-21 season)

Each year, readers ask for threads for discussing and reporting news on the job-market. I recently posted this season's discussion thread here. Please visit that thread if you are interested in discussing/commiserating about this year's market. The current thread (below) is for reporting news on the market (i.e. reporting interviews, flyouts, offers, hires, and so on). Although it should go without saying, commenters are asked to please remember the Cocoon's supportive mission while reporting. A link to this thread will remain on the blog's right sidebar for the remainder of the job season.

Comments

[Anon]

Shortlisted, assistant professorship in applied/business ethics, Copenhagen Business School

[Thomas]

>Copenhagen Business School

I didn't know about this post, though I'd have loved to apply for it. Does Anon or anyone else know where it was advertised, so I don't miss the next one? Thanks...

[Dreaming weed]

Utrecht (tt in history and phil of life sciences) scheduled first-round interviews.

[a postdoc]

Anyone hear about the Turin job.

[anon]

Holy Family University has scheduled first round interviews

[anon ancient]

Florida Gulf Coast (open, TT) requested further application materials.

(Not sure whether that is significant in any way given that search does not close until 12/5, but it's nice to have something to report this year.)

[anon]

First round interviews scheduled for Stanford's Race in America search (specifically for philosophy department's part of this search).

[anon recent phd]

Houston (TT) (open) requested letters of recommendation (which wasn't required at the time of application). Not sure how significant this is though.

[postdoc]

PFO from Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford (Postdoc).

[Question]

What is a PFO?

[anon]

Please fuck off; the general terminology for form letter rejections from universities, i.e,

"We had many qualified applicants and please do not take our decision not to interview you to in any way reflect the quality of your materials."

Welcome to the job market!

[recent phd]

PFO from UMBC Postdoctoral Fellow for Faculty Diversity

[Dan]

The Virginia Tech PPE/political science job (https://philjobs.org/job/show/15862) went to first round interviews (from the political science rumors website).

[J. Belfort]

St. Norbert College (business ethics, TT) has scheduled interviews

[Anon]

Hi, this is my first year on the market. I know that in some years there was a job wiki. Does anyone know if there is a job wiki this year? If so, where can I find it? I saw this webpage https://academicjobs.wikia.org/wiki/Philosophy_2020-2021
but there doesn't seem to be too many updates there. I might be looking at the wrong place, or people might not be updating there, or there might not be any updates at this point.

I am particularly interested in knowing whether anyone has heard more news about the Houston job after the request for letters of rec.

[jobjobjob]

houston has conducted at least some zoom interviews

[anon]

PFO from the University of Alberta Killam Postdoctoral Fellow

[not a postdoc]

PFO, University of Alberta Killiam postdoc

[Alberta again]

Any news on the other job at the University of Alberta (tt in phil sc and technology)?

[idk]

I applied for the Killam postdoc as well and have heard nothing. I also got no confirmation that my application was received. Should I be anxious? Hopeful? None of the above?

[Anon]

Thank you, jobjobbjob!

[resigned]

Has anyone heard anything from Berkeley (epistemology etc. tt) or Hopkins (open tt), or have insight into those timelines?

[oudeis]

idk: I didn't receive any response from Alberta acknowledging that my Killam app was received, but I did receive the PFO. So I wouldn't take the lack of confirmation (at least on its own) to be evidence that your app wasn't evaluated.

[abd]

Has anyone heard anything about Chicago TT (Oct 15 deadline)?

[Anonymous Tip]

Re Berkeley: They haven't contacted applicants yet

[anon recent phd]

PFO from Dartmouth Society of Fellows.

Wonder what went wrong with my application as they sent me five identical rejection letters over two hours.

PFO from UBC Political Theory Assistant Professor Position.

[Lottery player n]

Nothing yet from Chicago on my end.

[Silicon Valley]

Any news from Santa Clara?

[Gambling Addict]

Heard from a friend that Chicago has scheduled at least some interviews for the Oct. 15 TT.

[Lottery player n]

@gambling addict — you don’t by chance know when they started scheduling interviews, do you?

[dying to apply unsuccessfully a second time]

LSU (ancient) sends unnavigable message saying job has closed due to "necessary job description revisions," that they "posted the revised job description and welcome applications and materials," but with link simply back to original job posting, for which cannot be re-applied.

[Gambling Addict]

Dying: I got the same message. At first I was confused, but then I noticed that they referred to a different job ID. I think they sent this message to people who applied for the Ancient position that got cancelled because of covid *last year.* Of course, they're sending out this notice *after* the deadline for the new position this year. Either that, or I think it's some kind of system error.

Lottery player: Within the past few days. Sorry I can't be more specific. It wasn't me (though I did apply!).

[oudeis]

dying: I received this rather puzzling email too. The reference number in that email, R00040911, is the number for last year's (failed) search, which did indeed close. The reference number for this year's search is different. My best guess is that this is some super-late HR email that was meant to alert last year's applicants about this year's search...but was sent the day after review of the applications began! My application for the current search is still listed as "in progress," and, like you, I can't apply again, so it doesn't look like our applications for this year's search were affected.

[dying only once]

@Gambling and @oudeis, thank you and that makes a lot of sense. You’re probably right.

[fellow furthers]

U Chicago (Society of Fellows multi-year teaching gig) is requesting further application materials.

[postdoc no.2]

UNC Wilmington has requested letters of recommendation.

[circling the drain]

Has anyone heard anything about Hamilton?

[postdoc]

@postdoc no.2: Did they reach out to candidates directly for them, or did you hear about this from letter-writers?

The online application said they would only ask for letters with the verbal consent of the applicant, but that's the pre-written university language, so I'm curious.

[Postdoc no.2]

Postdoc: I got an email from the department directly asking me to send the letters through Interfolio.

[postdoc #3]

Santa Clara has begun scheduling first round Zoom interviews.

[hoi polloi]

RE: the LSU search: I got the same nonsense message, and decided to follow up with both HR and the department.

The department administrator kindly replied, and clarified that HR was supposed to contact last year's applicants and let us know that there was a new search. (Apparently they did not do this until after the search closed, so there's that.)

Our newly submitted materials are good to go!

[have to ask]

Has anyone heard from Union University or Belmont Abbey?

[Lottery player n]

Any news from Brown / Yale / Dartmouth / UNC?

[Anon]

PFO, Open AOS TT position at Brigham Young University.

[oudeis]

A PFO from BYU.

[Boston]

Northeastern is collecting letters of recommendation. I don't know if it's automatic or what

[Anon]

I wouldn't expect anything anytime soon from Yale--they said review of applications doesn't begin until today.

[Anon]

Was the Ryerson website down for anyone else?

[ABD]

The Ryerson website wasn't down for me. I also received a confirmation of receipt this morning.

[J. Belfort]

@havetoask: I’m also waiting to hear from Union (I bet few others here are). Heard nothing so far. I’ll let you know if/when things change.

[Anon]

Has anyone heard from Macalester College?

[anon]

PFO from John and Daria Barry Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Chicago

[idk]

PFO from Barry Foundation postdoc

[Anon]

Shortlisted, Barry Foundation U Chicago postdoc

[CanadianHopeful]

has anyone heard from Toronto (phil science)?

[anon]

Notre Dame is scheduling first round interviews.

[Tom]

Any word on Johns Hopkins?

[Anon]

CanadianHopeful: I just know that the automatic system is crazy and it keeps asking for letters

[ABD]

PFO from Hannover postdoc (philosophy of science). They "decided to offer the position to another, even
more highly qualified applicant."

[still hopeful]

PFO from UNC Wilmington

[Ouch]

ABD, that language is ruthless.

[postdoc]

UNC Wilmington is scheduling first-round interviews.

[xmas spirit]

Which Notre Dame job are you talking about? (anon)
Thanks

[ABD]

@Ouch, I am so glad to find the remark utterly ruthless!

[anotheranotheranon]

@xmas spirit: I think anon means the Notre Dame Tech Ethics Center job. In any case, that one has scheduled interviews.

[xmas spirit]

Thanks. I've been waiting on the NDIAS (Faculty Fellowship at Notre Dame).

[Boston]

Any news about Northeastern?

[lottery player n+1]

Any news about Brown or Yale?

[Lottery player n]

Nothing yet from either on my end.

[Annika]

Second writing sample requested from University of Toronto (Biomedical Ethics)

[A]

PFO from Stanford (Race in America)

[circling the drain]

Annika, is that the TT position at University of Toronto, Scarborough, or a different position?

[postdoc #3]

Northeastern (applied ethics/information ethics) is scheduling first round interviews.

[dreamer dreamer]

Has Notre Dame tech ethics scheduled interviews?

[AA]

dreamer dreamer: Yes, ND tech ethics is scheduling interviews

[Same anon as 12/7/20 8:42]

Yes, Notre Dame Tech Ethics has scheduled interviews.

[Annika]

Circling the drain, it is the Scarborough one

[circling the drain]

Shucks. Thanks, Annika, and good luck!

[Hopeful]

Has anyone heard from Niagara or Utah Valley?

[Anon]

Niagara has scheduled interviews a few days ago.

[Annika]

I actually heard through a friend but I shall pass it on. The best of luck to you, Circling the drain.

[newanon]

Has anyone heard from Cal State Fullerton?

[Hopeful]

@Anon, thanks for the information! I am getting less and less hopeful...

[To Roll Tide or Not to Roll Tide]

I have a hunch Alabama has already started scheduling interviews. Anyone confirm/deny?

[J. Belfort]

Heard anything about British Columbia (TT, ethics) or Union (TT, apologetics)? Both had Nov. 1 deadlines.

[anon]

Are interview requests going out later than usual? Or are there just fewer of them?

[Idk]

To Roll Tide: a hunch based on what? Did you hear anything?

[anon]

Florida Gulf Coast has scheduled first round interviews

[excited]

Interview invitation from Flora Gulf Coast University!

[excited]

Florida Gulf Coast University*

[To Roll Tide or Not to Roll Tide]

@Idk: Lynyrd Skynyrd came to me in a dream with a message.

No, actually I just had a flurry of visits from Tuscaloosa to my website a week or so ago, and then nothing.

(I know this is proof of nothing. I know keeping track of these visits is a bad habit to get into. I don't advise anyone else to do this. I know it's only likely to cause stress. I just can't help myself.)

[Anon]

Has anyone heard from Toronto (philosophy of science) other than automatic messages asking letters?

[anon]

PFO from Utah Valley (epistemology_broadly construed)

[Singapore]

The National University of Singapore notified candidates who are on the long list

[Wills]

To Roll Tide:

Don't assume much from website hits about the stage of the search. I have had hits the day I've been contacted by the search committee. But on the other hand, when I applied for my current position, I had a flurry of hits on my website from this university about six weeks before I got the first round invite, and no hits at all from them in that intervening month and a half...

[Annika]

To Roll Tide: For your sanity you should remove the tracker from your website, then.

[Concerned]

Moderator, I don’t think authenticity’s comment is consistent with community standards. The comment is sarcastic, mean, and explicitly targeted toward a particular user. This is supposed to be a forum where people can be vulnerable and open about the market without being made fun of.

[Marcus Arvan]

Concerned: Thanks for bringing it to my attention. I didn’t read it that way (I saw it as lightheartedly mocking the absurdities of the job market). But I appreciate your concern now. I’ve unpublished it.

[authenticity trying]

Marcus Arvan, you read it right. I was having a bit of fun, adding levity to the situation. But God forbid someone might take offense to a little bit of humor and request that my comment be deleted. I understand you had to take that down for political/moderator reasons, but come on. This is the state of professional philosophy, where we can't play a little bit? As soon as someone uncharitably interprets my comments, they must be taken down to spare their feelings? No wonder so many people look unfavorably on philosophers. Ah well, I suppose I've just been personally targeted by Concerned, and I request that Concerned's message be removed :)

[Marcus Arvan]

authenticity: I appreciate the attempt at levity. Yet, as I think we all know, satirical humor often runs the risk of offense—and in this case, I think your poking fun at another commenter’s situation (and the advice they received) was open to multiple interpretations, not just the innocent one you intended. I don’t think this says much about the state of philosophy. I think it says something about this particular forum (the Cocoon): namely, that attempts at humor that may be entirely fine in other contexts may be borderline or out of place here. I don’t think this is a negative. The job market is brutal, and (as I well know from my time on it) emotions can run very close to the surface. I do appreciate the attempt at levity—but the #1 priority in this section of cyberspace is to preserve the blog’s safe and supportive mission. It’s a difficult job as moderator, but I do my best. Let’s move on and do our best to support each other. I think there’s much to be said for this mission.