Professorships in Europe
June 24, 2006 6:26 PM Subscribe
How can I best position myself in my PhD program to get a job overseas when I complete my dissertation?
I am beginning a PhD in sociology this fall. I have broad interests (statistics, European politics, American politics, democracy, public opinion polls, social movements, Middle East studies) and plan to narrow them down a bit in the course of the program. What is the best way to position myself to get a (hopefully tenure-track) professorship in western Europe after completing my dissertation? The program provides the opportunity to learn a language (I plan on Arabic) if that helps. I would like to spend a year or two in the Middle East but do not want to settle down there necessarily.
I am beginning a PhD in sociology this fall. I have broad interests (statistics, European politics, American politics, democracy, public opinion polls, social movements, Middle East studies) and plan to narrow them down a bit in the course of the program. What is the best way to position myself to get a (hopefully tenure-track) professorship in western Europe after completing my dissertation? The program provides the opportunity to learn a language (I plan on Arabic) if that helps. I would like to spend a year or two in the Middle East but do not want to settle down there necessarily.
Could you focus your research on Arab immigrant communities in Europe? I would think there would be lot of interest in that, plus you might make some contacts while you were researching your dissertation. But really you need to talk with some American expats already teaching sociology in Europe.
posted by LarryC at 6:36 PM on June 24, 2006
posted by LarryC at 6:36 PM on June 24, 2006
First of all you need to research whether it is realistic to expect yourself to find an academic position in Europe. Even for European citizens -I am one- it is rather difficult to get on tenure track there if they do their PhD in US (I am assuming you will be studying in the US). Simply, there are very good candidates doing their PhDs there already aiming to the same positions.
However, you can still form relationships with groups of people there who will help you later on. First of all, you should pick the outside member of your PhD committee from the country/institution you want to end up at. It would be beneficial if your major professor is someone with ties and collaborations in Europe. You must attend conferences/workshops in Europe regularly (at least once a year) and choose your dissertation topic so as it is something that people in your future destination find interesting and which in a few years would complement their curriculum. Finally, you must spend a few months a year abroad doing your research in close personal contact with them. Funding for this latter suggestion will come from your US institution and hopefully from some grants you can compete for (there are several private or bi-governmental organizations who put out announcements each year).
In essence, get to know the group you want to end up in. Even if you become very well known in US it does not necessarily follow that they will know you across the 'pond' for a lot of reasons that you will pick up soon.
Good Luck!
on preview, recently it seems I always follow LarryC's very good advice postings.
posted by carmina at 6:49 PM on June 24, 2006
However, you can still form relationships with groups of people there who will help you later on. First of all, you should pick the outside member of your PhD committee from the country/institution you want to end up at. It would be beneficial if your major professor is someone with ties and collaborations in Europe. You must attend conferences/workshops in Europe regularly (at least once a year) and choose your dissertation topic so as it is something that people in your future destination find interesting and which in a few years would complement their curriculum. Finally, you must spend a few months a year abroad doing your research in close personal contact with them. Funding for this latter suggestion will come from your US institution and hopefully from some grants you can compete for (there are several private or bi-governmental organizations who put out announcements each year).
In essence, get to know the group you want to end up in. Even if you become very well known in US it does not necessarily follow that they will know you across the 'pond' for a lot of reasons that you will pick up soon.
Good Luck!
on preview, recently it seems I always follow LarryC's very good advice postings.
posted by carmina at 6:49 PM on June 24, 2006
Have a read of Networking on the Network for some general advice.
posted by scodger at 7:36 PM on June 24, 2006
posted by scodger at 7:36 PM on June 24, 2006
For what it's worth, I can share some information on the academic system in Germany. From your headline, I suppose you want to find employment as a professor. Until a few years ago, professorships could only be given to candidates who completed a Habilitation (postdoctoral lecture qualification) in addition to a doctorate degree. A Habilitation consists of a major academic work (often 500+ pages) and a special kind of exam. Recently though, it has become possible to achieve a Lehrstuhl (chair) with a doctorate. This is called Juniorprofessur, but it is not that common yet.
The usual career in academia in Germany roughly goes like this (details vary by region and faculty):
1. Get a diploma or Magister (roughly equivalent to a master's)
2. Try to get a job as an assistant lecturer, finish your doctorate.
3. Try to get (another) job as an assistant lecturer, finish your Habilitation.
4. Now you are what is called a Privatdozent, that is, you are qualified to fill a chair.
5. Quite a lot of people spend considerable time in the miserable position of point 4, since applying for chairs often takes long (chairs are usually filled for a lifetime).
6. Congratulations! You've got it made.
I should mention that the above stated is valid only for universities. In Germany, we also have Fachhochschulen (universities of applied science), where the formal requirements are somewhat smaller, but where there is the requirement of (industry) experience working in a relevant field.
posted by Herr Fahrstuhl at 8:08 PM on June 24, 2006
The usual career in academia in Germany roughly goes like this (details vary by region and faculty):
1. Get a diploma or Magister (roughly equivalent to a master's)
2. Try to get a job as an assistant lecturer, finish your doctorate.
3. Try to get (another) job as an assistant lecturer, finish your Habilitation.
4. Now you are what is called a Privatdozent, that is, you are qualified to fill a chair.
5. Quite a lot of people spend considerable time in the miserable position of point 4, since applying for chairs often takes long (chairs are usually filled for a lifetime).
6. Congratulations! You've got it made.
I should mention that the above stated is valid only for universities. In Germany, we also have Fachhochschulen (universities of applied science), where the formal requirements are somewhat smaller, but where there is the requirement of (industry) experience working in a relevant field.
posted by Herr Fahrstuhl at 8:08 PM on June 24, 2006
Do your dessertation on American Phds that get jobs overseas. Make it the main research question in each of your classes. You will either figure it out or be sick of the whole tlhing.
posted by zackdog at 8:42 PM on June 24, 2006
posted by zackdog at 8:42 PM on June 24, 2006
A lot of my professors in my UK university will tell you that they'd rather be professors in the US. (Especially the ones that had done their own PhDs in the US - they were so angry that their PhD peers were making triple what they were, working at better universities, had better benefits, more support when publishing, less work loads, more resources, etc.)
UK profs get paid TERRIBLY - just a little more than high school teachers in the UK.
I don't want to be too negative, but 99% of PhD students *that I know* in the social sciences ALREADY have significant skills/experience in the region in which they plan to do field work. This usually includes language knowledge.
Perhaps I know a strange group of PhDs, but based on what I know, you'd be better to stick to sociology in countries in which you already have expertise.
-- Just my opinion as a fellow PhD student in the social sciences that works in the Caucasus and some in Central Asia. I have already done my first 3 regional language studies and am currently working on my 4th. I have already spent years living, studying, and working in my region. I have a BA in my region and an MA related to my region. All of my fellow PhD students have similar backgrounds to me, but in different regions of the world.
posted by k8t at 8:59 PM on June 24, 2006 [1 favorite]
UK profs get paid TERRIBLY - just a little more than high school teachers in the UK.
I don't want to be too negative, but 99% of PhD students *that I know* in the social sciences ALREADY have significant skills/experience in the region in which they plan to do field work. This usually includes language knowledge.
Perhaps I know a strange group of PhDs, but based on what I know, you'd be better to stick to sociology in countries in which you already have expertise.
-- Just my opinion as a fellow PhD student in the social sciences that works in the Caucasus and some in Central Asia. I have already done my first 3 regional language studies and am currently working on my 4th. I have already spent years living, studying, and working in my region. I have a BA in my region and an MA related to my region. All of my fellow PhD students have similar backgrounds to me, but in different regions of the world.
posted by k8t at 8:59 PM on June 24, 2006 [1 favorite]
Oh, and also -- as others have mentioned, the networking involved in getting ANY professor position is intense. The already-in-Europe folks are going to have a huge advantage over you.
My profs with American PhDs only made it into their current positions after a significant effort -- such as publishing their dissertations and having a VERY VERY VERY specific focus.
Also, please be aware that the American and UK (and I'd assume the rest of Europe) university teaching methods are pretty different. They aren't black and white, but certainly very different. My profs with American PhDs generally had their undergrad and/or MA in Europe already, which certainly made the transition easier.
The 2 or 3 profs that I know that are Americans teaching abroad already had MANY MANY MANY years teaching in the US and have moved to Europe a few years before retirement.
I have never heard of anyone going straight there.
And for clarification, I'm an American, did my BA in the US, MA in the UK, PhD in process in the US.
posted by k8t at 9:05 PM on June 24, 2006
My profs with American PhDs only made it into their current positions after a significant effort -- such as publishing their dissertations and having a VERY VERY VERY specific focus.
Also, please be aware that the American and UK (and I'd assume the rest of Europe) university teaching methods are pretty different. They aren't black and white, but certainly very different. My profs with American PhDs generally had their undergrad and/or MA in Europe already, which certainly made the transition easier.
The 2 or 3 profs that I know that are Americans teaching abroad already had MANY MANY MANY years teaching in the US and have moved to Europe a few years before retirement.
I have never heard of anyone going straight there.
And for clarification, I'm an American, did my BA in the US, MA in the UK, PhD in process in the US.
posted by k8t at 9:05 PM on June 24, 2006
I have a Ph.D. in sociology. I watched any number of grad students in our large department try to do what you want to do. The ones who succeeded invariably wrote their dissertations on (and in) the country they wanted to work in, and acquired near-native fluency in the language. Our department was big on the sociology of emerging markets in former Soviet bloc states, so it may have been more common in our shop than in others. (Although one friend of mine is now a prof in Iceland.) If by "Europe" you can include eastern Europe, I think your odds are better. If by "Europe" you mean France, Germany, Netherlands, etc., then I'd say you had better be brilliant and emerge from grad school with a string of impressive publications. As others have noted, universities in these nations already have a serious glut of qualified citizens. Look for grants and fellowships that will allow you to study where you want to live, and, of course, networking matters. A mentor with contacts can definitely improve your odds. Good luck.
posted by Crotalus at 9:50 PM on June 24, 2006
posted by Crotalus at 9:50 PM on June 24, 2006
I reckon for a serious academic in social sciences, it's a good bit less competetive in business schools. More crappier students to deal with mind you cos it's a bit of a default location for students...
posted by singingfish at 2:25 AM on June 25, 2006
posted by singingfish at 2:25 AM on June 25, 2006
Hey, you're in Williamsburg! Have a pint at the Greenleafe for me.
Another place to ask this question is at the Chronicle of Higher Ed forums: chronicle.com. There are a fair few American expats who hang there.
posted by LarryC at 7:07 AM on June 25, 2006
Another place to ask this question is at the Chronicle of Higher Ed forums: chronicle.com. There are a fair few American expats who hang there.
posted by LarryC at 7:07 AM on June 25, 2006
What is the best way to position myself to get a (hopefully tenure-track) professorship in western Europe
You should know that European institutions of higher learning generally frown on heavy crack abuse, so my first recommendation would be to throw away your pipe.
The only person I know personally who has done this (currently in Padova, Italy):
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 9:07 AM on June 25, 2006
You should know that European institutions of higher learning generally frown on heavy crack abuse, so my first recommendation would be to throw away your pipe.
The only person I know personally who has done this (currently in Padova, Italy):
- ...was a Fulbright recipient
- ...had a couple of articles published in her field (Psychology/Sociology)
- ...which was extremely narrow in scope (something to do with language and the role of women in Italian society)
- ...and had complete fluency in Italian.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 9:07 AM on June 25, 2006
Response by poster: It appears that the obstacles are as daunting as I feared. Thanks for the great answers.
posted by trey at 9:50 AM on June 25, 2006
posted by trey at 9:50 AM on June 25, 2006
Response by poster: BTW, LarryC: A pint at the Greenleafe is always a good idea!
posted by trey at 10:57 AM on June 25, 2006
posted by trey at 10:57 AM on June 25, 2006
You could go for a non-tenure track appointment to get there and then go on the job market while there. In my discipline (rhetoric and writing) it would be very difficult to get a tenure-track job in Europe directly out of a program without some material connection to the country. It is fairly easy to get a decent paying NTT appointment for 2-3 years if you are a top 20-25% student with some language fluency.
posted by mrmojoflying at 11:11 AM on June 25, 2006
posted by mrmojoflying at 11:11 AM on June 25, 2006
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by rolypolyman at 6:30 PM on June 24, 2006