Networking & mentoring for people in small departments?

In our most recent "how can we help you?" thread, a reader asks?

Two closely related questions for those of us in small dept gigs:

Is there a network to set up mentoring? When you're junior, these jobs can be very isolating. And if the few people immediately senior to you aren't great, or worse are tending toward poisonous, it can be really hard to see the forest or to make a good logging plan. I know some people have really thrived in small depts. (We see and appreciate you Marcus! And how does Gregg Caruso get it all done!) Is there any way to arrange for some sort of mentoring between junior and senior small dept folk?

Likewise, while I know that getting any kind of permanent employment is winning a lottery, sometimes the prize isn't quite what you'd hope for! https://americanliterature.com/author/w-w-jacobs/short-story/the-monkeys-paw

I wonder if there is a way for those of us stuck in the early career mud to have a happy hour or an anonymous vent board or something like that. (And for those hopeful to go into philosophy to know that lots of these jobs turn out to be not all that great, even if they are permanent or even TT.)

Good questions (and thanks for the kind words!). I don't know if there are any kinds of networks to "set up mentoring." As of a few years ago, my college has a nice mentoring program for new faculty that includes one person from the department and one outside mentor--and my sense is that it has worked quite well. I'd definitely encourage people at other places to try to start something like this if they don't have one already. But, beyond this, I don't know.

As for setting up an early career "happy hour", if anyone wants to start up early-career Zoom get-togethers (or something like that), I'd be happy to relay information about them on the Cocoon (as guest posts inviting people to join, reminders of upcoming get-togethers, etc.). I think something like this could be a cool way for early-career people who are otherwise isolated to get to know more people and develop a better network. I don't have the time to set something like this myself, but if someone does it, do let me know!

As for an "anonymous vent board", I'd worry about this. As I'm sure some readers remember, a few years back there were a series of anonymous boards like this (the "metablogs"), and they were problematic (to put it mildly--in fact, if I recall, many of these boards were shut down for slander).

Anyway, these are my thoughts. What are yours? It would be great to hear from people in small departments! 

Comments

[Michel]

For internet places, there used to be the Philosophy Smoker, which was better behaved than the metablogs but still often a gross place. I learned a lot from reading through it all, though.

There is still a forum-based pseudonymous academic community (not philosophy-specific): thefora.org . It used to be run by the Chronicle of Higher Education, but is now independent. It's a good place to vent, compare notes, and get advice, though. They even have monthly research accountability threads, where you can post monthly/daily goals, and your progress towards them.

[me]

I think it would make sense to just get involved in your subdiscipline, or organize something yourself in your subdiscipline (a weekly or biweekly zoom reading group, or research-feedback group). That way you are connecting with people with the same or similar interests, with a common end beyond 'let's be friends'.

Such things have been immensely helpful for me professionally, and helped me to reconcile myself to working in a sometimes-unpleasant department.