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What’s the deal with post-docs?

In many sciences, having a post-doc is required if one eventually wants to be in a tenure system faculty, among other career paths that a post-doc supports. Getting a post-doc at a good place is a big deal, and very competitive; some folks do several post-docs before applying to tenure system faculty positions. But the significance of a post-doc is not so straight forward in Philosophy, I feel, and it seems like there are less of them available than in most sciences (I could be wrong here). Some people complete their degrees and go straight into tenure system jobs, perhaps even advising graduate students within months after depositing their dissertations. Others may do several post-docs, but were likely also applying to tenure system jobs at the same time they applied for those post-docs. But not all post-docs are created equal. Some require no teaching whatsoever. Others might involve teaching. Some are at research universities, others at liberal arts colleges. Some are one year, others are two or three years. I know many philosophers who see post-docs as what you do when the tenure system job market is tough, so post-docs are mere back-ups (part of the so called "1 year/fixed term market" that occurs after APA Eastern). Then there are Visiting Assistant Professor positions, some with more or less teaching. Do these hold the same weight as post-docs, whatever "weight" means in this case?

I've often wondered, from the stand point of an early career Philosopher, how should we understand the role of post-docs in our career planning? Should they be conceived exactly as they are in many science disciplines? If so, what benefits do they provide for Philosophy careers (such as concentrated time to do research or build a teaching portfolio)? Or are post-docs really something that may have significance in some cases; however, it is ultimately always better to land a tenure system job as soon as you can?  

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3 responses to “What’s the deal with post-docs?”

  1. Marcus Arvan

    Excellent post — and boy do I have a lot to say about it. My experience is that I was in no way prepared for a TT job out of grad school. At the time I graduated, I wanted a TT job just like everyone else. Now I feel very lucky that I got a post-doc (at UBC) and a revolving term position (now at Tampa). These positions have helped me find my footing both as a researcher and as a teacher — all without a looming tenure clock.
    Now, of course, I had better get a tenure-track job sometime soon (else I run the risk of never getting one). But this isn’t really the point of my comment. The point is that, in my experience, I think I benefited tremendously from not going straight into a TT job. I was most certainly not prepared to supervise grad students straight out of grad school, and it took me 2-3 years to even begin learning how to publish and teach effectively. I can only imagine how stressed I might have been if I had to learn all that in a TT job (with a tenure clock hanging over my head).

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  2. Mark Alfano

    Interesting set of questions, Kyle. As someone who was on the hunt for jobs for the last two years, I can tell you that I just applied for everything: TT-jobs, research post-docs, teaching post-docs, and VAPs. It’s hard to get anything, so in my opinion the best strategy is to carpet-bomb the market.
    On the uses of post-docs, I think you’re right to distinguish the various types. A research post-doc is more like a traditional science post-doc: it helps you pump out articles, chapters, or maybe even a book while you burnish your other credentials and connections. I’m sure that one of the reasons the 2011-12 market was easier for me than the 2010-11 market was that I had a post-doc at Notre Dame that functioned as a mark of approval on its own and also provided opportunities to publish.
    A teaching post-doc and a VAP, on the other hand, seem to be more of a way to fly in a holding pattern while you go on the market again. Some of these have light teaching loads (1-1, 2-1, or 2-2), which simultaneously helps you get into the groove of teaching and leaves some time for research. Others come with really heavy teaching loads (up to 4-4); people can research in such a context, but it’s harder to get a lot done.
    Two crucial questions to ask about any non-TT position, I think are whether 1) it’s renewable beyond a single year and 2) it provides health insurance.

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  3. David Morrow

    It would be worth taking a look at the last few tenure-track hiring threads for people who get TT jobs after holding post-docs. My impression, which is not backed up by research, is that a lot of people land very good TT jobs after taking post-docs. I’m not quite sure what to make of that fact (if it is one), but it suggests that some post-docs are much more than just a way to mark time.
    Mark is being modest here, but he’s one of the people I have in mind. He’s been churning out articles and books–yes, plural–during his post-doc, and he got a TT job at the University of Oregon this year.

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