I have received several queries recently asking whether Helen De Cruz and I will be running our Job-Market Mentoring Project again, and am happy to report that we will indeed be relaunching the program this Spring. For those of you who may not be familiar with the project, its primary aim is to enable job candidates in philosophy who face special challenges, including those with little access to mentoring (e.g., because their department or advisor does not offer this), to receive advice and support from more experienced members of the profession. Although we are not currently taking sign-ups, our tentative plan is to run the project from late May through August—and we plan to announce the signup period sometime next month.
Helen and I were fortunate to receive helpful feedback from a number of mentors and mentees—and we are happy to report that, by and large, the feedback we received was mostly positive. Here are a few brief testimonials:
“As a final-year PhD student in a solid but more or less unknown department in Continental Europe with no placement resources, the Cocoon mentoring project helped me gain an external and honest assessment of my situation and provided me with suggestions to improve my chances of succeeding in the job market” – Anonymous mentee #1
“I chatted with my mentor…a few times throughout the season and he gave me some very helpful advice with respect to my application materials. I am so very grateful to him for his detailed time and attention in helping me work through the job market. He was generous with his time and insight and I was very happy to have the opportunity to interact with him.
In the previous two years, I'd received a total of three first-round interview requests out of nearly 100 applications. This season, however, I only applied to 16 jobs and was interviewed by 6 of them. I am excited to report that I have now accepted a tenure-track position beginning in the Fall. My academic job search is over (thankfully!). What made a difference this year, I think, is having more publications, presentations, and classes, having a more polished dossier, and shifting my attitude from desperate graduate student to motivated professional. All of this would have been impossible without the Cocoon's job market bootcamp (especially the advice on cover letters), my mentor, my other colleagues, and my tired friends. Thank you, again. You provided a very valuable service and I will be forever grateful.” – Anonymous mentee #2“Thank you for this nice project, I consulted with my mentor…several occasions concerning things I didn't know much about – strategies about where to apply to, formulating the CV, cover letters, a teaching statement, and more particular stuff. [My mentor] was great.” – Anonymous mentee #3
“Being a mentor was a great experience. I had the opportunity to get to know another philosopher and, in a small way, help that person work to improve their chances at getting an academic position that was exciting to them. The back and forth was fun, interesting, not particularly time-consuming, and laid the foundation for a friendship that I hope will continue throughout our academic careers.” – Anonymous mentor
Based on the feedback we received, we hope to make several improvements to the program, particularly when it comes to matching mentors and mentees. We would also like to invite outside suggestions for improving the program, so please, if you have any suggestions, do feel free to email them to Helen (<helenldecruz@gmail.com>) and I (<marvan@ut.edu>). And of course, if you are in a tenure-track or tenured position (and will not be on a search committee this coming year), please do consider becoming a mentor when the program relaunches. Last Fall, one of our biggest hurdles was finding enough mentors for candidates in need–candidates who, judging by this past year, will probably be incredibly thankful for whatever help you might be willing to provide!
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