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Job-Market Reporting Thread (2026-27)
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Applying to junior positions from a senior position after a ‘redundancy’?

In our August "how can we help you?" thread, Dr. Doom writes,

I'm currently a senior level academic who has learned that the university might announce plans to make massive redundancies that, if approved, would force me back on the job market. What would you recommend to someone looking for a job and seeing ads mostly for tenure track positions. If fired, I would be quite willing to start from square one, but I worry about the perception of members of the search committee and what strategy to take in trying to sell myself to a committee. (I'd try to briefly explain the situation and highlight willingness to start from square one, but I'm quite nervous that they'll assume that I'd want a better position than they're offering, that I'd try to get special treatment because of seniority, etc.)

I'm so sorry to hear about the OP's situation. Without knowing more about their particular case, I think it's hard to say whether search committees would seriously consider them for a lower-level (Assistant Professor) position. But in any case, I suspect the best thing for them to do is probably to discuss things openly in their cover letter, making it clear that they wouldn't expect any special treatment, etc. 

What do you all think? It would be great to hear from some search committee members.

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4 responses to “Applying to junior positions from a senior position after a ‘redundancy’?”

  1. Emanuele

    I can think of at least three cases of tenured people who applied to tt positions and got in, effectively starting as tt faculty in their new job. As far as I know, they were not in the OP’s position, though. But I have never served in a committee dealing with such a situation, so I don’t have ‘internal’ insights.

    Reply
  2. SLAC Professor

    As someone who has chaired multiple searches, I can assure you that positions advertised at the Assistant level receive many applications from more advanced folks. The reasons are multiple: geographic, family-related, mission-focused, precarity-driven, and so on.
    If you are genuinely willing to give up tenure, I would say that clearly and directly in your cover letter. I would keep the editorializing about your current university’s actions to a minimum, but I would briefly explain that the Philosophy Department faces the possibility and/or reality of serious cuts. And then I would treat the application like any other application, highlighting your strengths and why you think you would be a good fit for the position. If you have administrative experience I would not downplay or hide that since that could be attractive to many institutions.
    I’m sorry you are going through this. If you were my friend, I would encourage you to go on the market now, rather than waiting to see if your position is cut.

    Reply
  3. Bill Vanderburgh

    We considered several similar cases in our recent searches. We had no general policy against these applicants, though to be fair we were looking for “new blood” when we imagined these positions in advance. Perhaps it is because already tenured people weren’t planning to be on the market, but generally their materials weren’t in as good shape as more typical applicants. SLAC Prof’s point is really important: Don’t expect to get attention because your current job is in jeopardy, rather make a strong case for why you fit the job as advertised. It is more important to make the case that you want to be in the new place and are an excellent fit, than to explain why you are potentially leaving your current role.

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  4. Raoul

    Our R1 department has hired previously tenured faculty for its last couple of tenure track searches. They had to give up tenure, and came in as assistant professors.

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