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Jumping ship: how to move from a tenure-track or tenured position to another

When I was an innocent postdoc I could never understand why people, after finally resting from their labours and anxieties of the job market, would actually want to move jobs.

Sure, there are offers you can't refuse (but few of us get those!), but why would you try to find another job if you're already in a tenure track, or even tenured?

Now I can see many reasons for why people would want to move, including, but not limited to the following: 

  • Lack of job prospects for a spouse, especially a problem if the spouse is an academic. It being a buyer's market, few schools offer spousal accommodation. 
  • A high teaching load, e.g., 4-4 or even higher. I recently heard of someone who had a 6-6 load!
  • Low wages, or too high cost of living in relationship to the salary
  • The department is at risk of cuts or being closed down altogether (tenure does not protect against this)
  • The department is plagued by in-fighting, harassment or other things that disrupt departmental harmony
  • You don't like the area where you live

This blog tends to prioritize people who have no tenure track job yet both in our mentoring scheme and in our blogposts. But now, we would like to hear from readers who made a move from one tenure track or tenured position to another. 

Please send your stories, or comment below with any insights you might have on how to approach the job market as a tenure-track or tenured faculty member. How did you search? What did you mention in your cover letter (anything on reasons for moving, or did you solely focus on pull factors?) Who were your referees? Were people at your department aware you were looking to move? How did you negotiate? 

We're interested in tenure track to tenure track, tenured to tenured, and also tenured to tenure track (it has happened!), and any other combination. 

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14 responses to “Jumping ship: how to move from a tenure-track or tenured position to another”

  1. Recent grad

    I’ve interviewed three places since being at my TT job. My main reasons for moving: relatively low salary, high teaching load, and I want to be closer to my home state for family reasons. I am fairly selective in where I apply since I am in a good location with a secure department and good colleagues. I tell the department I’m applying to the partial truth about why I want to move: I want more opportunities for research and/or I’d like to be closer to my home state. I’ve never told any of my colleagues and I would tell them only in the event of an offer. I use a combination of old and updated letters from back when I was searching for a TT job.

    Reply
  2. S

    Bottom line, I don’t like the area I live in. It’s too remote, too culturally isolated, too white, too conservative. The tipping point was when my spouse lost a good-paying telecommuting job, and our household income was basically cut in half. I appealed to several people at my university to help him find a job — spousal accommodations are very common because of the university’s remote location. No job, despite several actual jobs he applied for. It made me feel a lot less valued here.
    I worked my butt off. Published a lot. Created new courses and programs. Received prestigious invitations. Have loads of teaching experience. And got a lot of interviews over about 4 active years on the market. A dozen campus interviews; twice that many first-round interviews, but no job offers. In looking at who was hired for those jobs, my own (perhaps very self-serving) interpretation is that institutional prestige bias still works against me (doubled in my case, since both my PhD institution and the university where I work now lack prestige). There are a few other factors that are very specific to the types of jobs I apply for (including, increasingly, places that want a track record of successful grant applications). Now I’m an associate, so the available jobs are fewer, unless I’m willing to be demoted. Since I’m still my family’s primary breadwinner, I can’t take a pay cut. I know that in the current market, I am lucky to have a job at all, and mine pays me a decent salary.
    But I’d still like to move on. I took a year off from the job market after I got tenure and promotion. But I’m back now.

    Reply
  3. S

    I neglected to answer the questions!
    What did you mention in your cover letter (anything on reasons for moving, or did you solely focus on pull factors?): Focused in describing my work, experience, and career goals.
    Who were your referees?: I asked senior people in my field, whom I’ve known for a long time, to write me letters, filed with Interfolio.
    Were people at your department aware you were looking to move?: No. I’ve told two people: one colleague who was moving away for a new job (and I knew she’d keep it confidential), and a retired colleague who had done my first teaching evaluation — I asked her to write me a “teaching letter,” and mentioned that I was looking for a job “for leverage” (which was true). She kept it confidential, as far as I know.

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  4. Job seeker

    I went on the market once, in my third year on the tenure track. I like my colleagues and many things about my job, but I’m at a state university in a state with budget issues, and I’m worried about things getting worse here long term. In my cover letters I mostly just talked about pull factors, but on every campus visit I ended up getting asked about why I wanted to leave – and everyone seemed satisfied when I said that I really liked my department but wanted a job that would be more secure in the long term (plus obviously things I liked about their departments in particular).
    As for the other questions:
    How did you search? I mostly looked for places in areas I’d rather live in, with big endowments and a commitment to the liberal arts. Since I like a lot of things about my current job, I didn’t want to move unless I was pretty sure the new job would be significantly better.
    Who were your referees? I had one member of my dissertation committee (not my chair, because my chair had recently been at the center of a big scandal), two other biggish to big full profs in the field who work generally in my area, one associate professor who is the expert on my specific area, and a teaching letter from someone in my current department who was also leaving.
    Were people at your department aware you were looking to move? Initially, only the person writing my teaching letter knew. I told my chair at the fly-out stage.
    How did you negotiate? I made sure that each place I had a fly out would be willing to give me at least some time off the tenure clock, and count all of my previous pubs. I ended up not taking the offer I got, but used it to get a counter offer and decent raise from my original job. I guess that doesn’t answer how I negotiated, but knowing what others negotiated for might still help?

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  5. solved two body problem

    My partner is also an academic, and my first job was at a good school. They didn’t give him a TT job, but a fairly good teaching deal. We started searching for a place that would give both of us TT jobs. We were completely open about this in our cover letters, and also with our home department. I didn’t see any reason to be secretive. I didn’t want to waste anyone’s time, so being honest about what we wanted seemed best. I used mostly the same (updated) letters as when I first applied, but not all of them were from people on my committee. I also had two outside letters from senior people in my field. It took three years on the market until it worked.

    Reply
  6. Throwaway Name

    This might be a question for another thread, but I’ll go ahead and ask it: I am being laid off from my tenure-track job soon after being hired (think 1-2 years after being hired) because of financial exigency. Essentially, the university seems to be making a calculation against the small philosophy program here. I get to finish out the year, but then I’m done.
    I’m wondering if I should bring this fact up during the interview process, and if so, when. I can’t imagine it helping anything, but maybe I’m just missing something.

    Reply
  7. Job seeker

    Throwaway Name, it might help. For more typically prestigious jobs, they will likely just assume you are applying because you want a “better” job. Other jobs standardly taken to be lateral moves or a step down, though, might wonder why you’re moving, and be hesitant to hire someone who they think might just jump ship, or have some kind of drama following them. (They might also think you are just jockeying for a raise at your current job, and wouldn’t take the job if offered, leading to a possible failed search.) Telling them in your cover letter that you are leaving for those reasons might reassure them you are serious about their job, aren’t just job hopping, and aren’t leaving because of personality conflicts or something else that might indicate you’d be a poor colleague. So I’d recommend mentioning it in your cover letter for at least those sorts of jobs. I’m so sorry you’re in this stressful position, and I wish you good luck!

    Reply
  8. Amanda

    Throwaway name I think it could help- it explains you were good enough to get a TT job, and lost it do to no fault of your own. I would definitely mention this in the cover letter. My guess is more than a few people will take notice of this, as many philosophers are inclined to help those in your position, assuming they already like your dossier.
    And so sorry this happened. That really sucks. Are any tenured people leaving, or just non-tenured folks?

    Reply
  9. Throwaway Name

    I’m sorry; I can’t really say more about the situation since I don’t want me or the university to be identified. But yes, it’s a bad and absurd situation.

    Reply
  10. DS

    I posted this on another thread, but I will post this here as well, in case it is better suited for here:
    How have people sought to secure outside letters once they are in a TT job in order to change jobs/move up? I am well published in my area, but I have never been much of a ‘networker’ at conferences and whatnot. Do people just cold email senior people in their area or what?
    Thanks

    Reply
  11. By the Letter

    DS,
    If you are well published in your area, then there must be senior people in the field who know your work (and like it). You should ask these people. Over the years, I have corresponded with a number of senior people about research issues. They are my letter writers. One of them is on the opposing side in a debate that had well developed and entrenched sides. Despite our philosophical differences, we have a lot of respect for each other. Further, if you know of someone who has put your name forward for something – like refereeing, or to give a talk somewhere – they are suitable. And, then, just ask them. It is probably best to explain what you want letters for – a new job, or a fellowship, etc. – so they know how big the commitment is.

    Reply
  12. Amanda

    By the letter – I am interested in this as well. So suppose I am well published in a certain area. Professor X is a leader in this area, and has likely read my work. However, I have either never talked to Professor X, or only talked to him very briefly at a conference and he likely doesn’t remember me. Is it typical, acceptable, etc., to just email this person out of the blue and ask for them to be my referee?

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  13. By the letter

    Amanda,
    If you have reason to believe that someone would support you, then just ask if they will write a letter for you. Usually, in my cases, I have had an exchange with people. Some are rather short exchanges. These are not necessarily people I have spent much time with; perhaps only talked to at a conference. Or, sometimes it begins because someone senior has contacted me about a paper (or book) I have published, expressing delight or satisfaction. I have found that such people are more than willing to support you.

    Reply
  14. Amanda

    Thanks for the info!

    Reply

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