Understanding Job Market Lingo

ABD: All But Dissertation AFAIK: As Far As I Know BTW: By The Way CC: Community College ESL: English as a Second Language FTE: Full-Time Employee FWIW: For What It's Worth HBCU: Historically Black College or University Hu: A gender-neutral pronoun used by some members ofthe forums and despised by others. IMHO: In My Humble Opinion IRB: Institutional Review Board (An organization at each university that reviews research projects that use human subjects.) NB: Nota Bene (Latin for note well) OP: Original Poster OTOH: On The Other Hand PITA: Pain In The A * * RAE: Research Assessment Exercise (For UK research -- determines the selective distribution of public funds by the four higher-education funding bodies in the UK.) RI: Top-tier Research University SC: Search Committee SLAC: Small Liberal Arts College RA: Research Assistant RI: Research Intensive University RU: Research University TA: Teaching Assistant TT: Tenure Track VP AA: Vice President for Academic Affairs Annually Renewable: This term, or the phrase "with the possibility of renewal for subsequent semesters," are sometimes found injob descriptions for non-tenure-track instructor, lecturer, adjunct, and visiting positions. Ph.D.'s often view these positions as "foot in the door" opportunities. Sometimes they can be, but often they won't lead to anything more than another short-term contract. Content management system (CMS): A content management system is the software used to provide the electronic resources necessary to teach a class, whether via "distance learning," (see below) or in a classroom. Blackboard and WebCT are major vendors of this type of software. Being familiar with at least one of these systems is helpful when interviewing for positions that stress teaching. Evidence of Excellence in Teaching: Here's another open-ended term found in many job ads, allowing you to submit in your application whatever you can come up with to demonstrate your teaching skills. If your institution has a system in which students

evaluate course instructors and your marks are high, you can submit those. You can ask one of your recommenders to write extensively about your teaching. You can offer examples of your work itself (for example, syllabuses), but bear in mind that hiring committees don't like to deal with lots of extra volume in an application. What they look for is evidence that others view your teaching as excellent. Faculty Lines: The term refers to the number of full-time faculty positions an institution supports and is often used in context of a new position. Forthcoming, under submission, and in preparation: Manuscripts go through several stages of preparation for publication, so there are different phrases that you should use to describe these stages on your CV. "Forthcoming" indicates an article has been completed and accepted for publication. "Under submission" -- or "under review" -- is used when a manuscript has been completed and submitted, but not accepted. "In preparation" shows that although your article has been neither completed nor accepted, it is in progress. Provost: The senior academic administrator of an institution is often called the provost, or sometimes, the vice president for academic affairs. In most institutions, the provost is the chief academic officer for the entire institution. R01: The ROI is the oldest research grant awarded by the National Institutes of Health and is given for health-related projects in the biomedical sciences. Its dollar value is limited only by what the NIH determines to be the needs of the project. The grant pays for, among other things, the salaries of the principal investigator (the person who wrote the grant, also known as the "PI") and key personnel, laboratory equipment, and other costs. Soft Money: Sometimes the occupant of a position that is partially or wholly financed by "soft money" (i.e., grants) is responsible for raising the dollars for the position. At other times, someone else has the primary responsibility for fund raising. In either case, such positions are usually thought of as less secure than those supported directly by the employing organization itself. Standing Faculty: All the faculty members who have tenure or are on the tenure track -i.e., those with the titles of professor, associate professor, and assistant professor -- are considered members of the standing faculty. Summary: "I have applied for an assistant professor's position. The department is asking me to write and submit a two-to-three page summary. I have no idea what should be included in the summary." A summary in ajob description normally means a summary of your research experience or expertise. It's another term for a research statement. In the summary, you might discuss your current research and future plans. If you aren't sure about something you are asked to submit for ajob application, contact the department and ask.