In our August "how can we help you?" thread, a reader asks:
I'm in a somewhat unusual position and would be very grateful for advice.
First, some background: I haven't applied for academic jobs in a few years as family commitments mean I'm not able to move even if I was offered a job. Instead, I've been a stay at home parent, doing freelance gigs on the side. However, I've continued to keep up with philosophy as a hobby and publish papers, albeit rather slowly. I currently have 12 publications (though many of those are joint papers), plus one joint paper in revise and resubmit status.
I wasn't planning to apply to philosophy jobs any more, but I came across a job posting for a tenure track position in a liberal arts college in my city and the AOS and AOC match my areas perfectly. I would love to apply, but I worry the time I've spent away from academia would instantly disqualify me. So, would applying for this position be a waste of everyone's time? And if not, should I address my unusual situation in the cover letter? Thanks!
These are good questions, and my honest answer is: I'm not sure–I suspect it probably depends entirely on the nature of the people on the search committee. If the OP really is a perfect fit for the job and they've continued publishing, then who knows: maybe the committee will seriously consider them, particularly if they can explain their situation well in a cover letter. Anecdotally, at least, my sense is that giving these kinds of details in a cover letter can help a lot.
Another thing to consider, as many people have noted in previous discussions, is that search committees at teaching-focused institutions can have interests in hiring people they think are likely to stay at the institution, as some departments at such institutions may have trouble retaining people. So perhaps the fact that the OP cannot move elsewhere might even be seen as a mark in their favor. The biggest challenge for the OP, I think, is that if they haven't taught in a while, they may need to convince the committee that they can step into the classroom and teach effectively in a full-time job. But I guess a lot depends there on the OP's past experience as an instructor, which wasn't disclosed in their comment.
Anyway, these are my quick thoughts. What are yours?
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