Job decisions
June 9, 2017 9:36 AM Subscribe
I have to decide between two university teaching jobs. Even though I know it's a very nice problem to have, I'm incredibly stressed out about this.
I'm a professional in an extremely high-demand industry (think techy) who has taken up teaching in order to have time for some personal projects. Now I have to decide between two positions.
The first is an institution I've been at for about a year and a half. It's a, to be honest, mediocre technical college that has an ok program in my field; however they offer a decent salary and more important have bent over backwards to give me as much of my own time as possible, cramming all my classes into two days a week, letting me off meetings etc. The kids are awfully sweet and the Year Twos in particular, who I had from the start, exceeded expectations and I've grown pretty attached to them. I'd kind of like to see them through their third year. This years cohort is likely to be quite a bit weaker.
Downsides: The program is struggling from lack of support, we're losing our best associates, and our intake is a trickle of weak candidates. The course leader is running himself into the ground trying to keep it going but he's running out of steam. It's frustrating working somewhere that doesn't care that much about what they're doing. On the other hand I owe them some loyalty and my poor course leader would be very stressed by my leaving, so I would need a good reason.
The second is a new program with good funding; not a prestigious uni but hey have an advertising budget and a track record training in my field, so they've attracted a lot of strong students. They're offering quite a bit more money.
Downsides: although on paper the teaching hours are roughly the same, I have a feeling that they're going to expect a lot more out of me than the place I'm at now. A friend teaching there is happy but does say its a lot more work than he thought it would be. They see teaching their students as a full-time job really, which is fair enough! But if I was looking for a real full-time job I'd go back to industry for a better salary and way less hassle than teaching. I've suggested a part-time contract which they are open to, but that drops my salary down to pretty close to where I'm at now. The main reasons to go there would be keener students a more secure school, and less travel time.
Any thoughts? I'm incredibly stressed out about this decision, even though I can see it's much of a muchness in a lot of ways. Where I'm at now is the devil I know, and I feel a responsibility towards them and my colleagues. Part of me is just thinking of chucking teaching AND projects and going back into industry where life is simpler!
I'm a professional in an extremely high-demand industry (think techy) who has taken up teaching in order to have time for some personal projects. Now I have to decide between two positions.
The first is an institution I've been at for about a year and a half. It's a, to be honest, mediocre technical college that has an ok program in my field; however they offer a decent salary and more important have bent over backwards to give me as much of my own time as possible, cramming all my classes into two days a week, letting me off meetings etc. The kids are awfully sweet and the Year Twos in particular, who I had from the start, exceeded expectations and I've grown pretty attached to them. I'd kind of like to see them through their third year. This years cohort is likely to be quite a bit weaker.
Downsides: The program is struggling from lack of support, we're losing our best associates, and our intake is a trickle of weak candidates. The course leader is running himself into the ground trying to keep it going but he's running out of steam. It's frustrating working somewhere that doesn't care that much about what they're doing. On the other hand I owe them some loyalty and my poor course leader would be very stressed by my leaving, so I would need a good reason.
The second is a new program with good funding; not a prestigious uni but hey have an advertising budget and a track record training in my field, so they've attracted a lot of strong students. They're offering quite a bit more money.
Downsides: although on paper the teaching hours are roughly the same, I have a feeling that they're going to expect a lot more out of me than the place I'm at now. A friend teaching there is happy but does say its a lot more work than he thought it would be. They see teaching their students as a full-time job really, which is fair enough! But if I was looking for a real full-time job I'd go back to industry for a better salary and way less hassle than teaching. I've suggested a part-time contract which they are open to, but that drops my salary down to pretty close to where I'm at now. The main reasons to go there would be keener students a more secure school, and less travel time.
Any thoughts? I'm incredibly stressed out about this decision, even though I can see it's much of a muchness in a lot of ways. Where I'm at now is the devil I know, and I feel a responsibility towards them and my colleagues. Part of me is just thinking of chucking teaching AND projects and going back into industry where life is simpler!
On the other hand I owe them some loyalty and my poor course leader would be very stressed by my leaving, so I would need a good reason.
This is whole lot of nope right here. You don't owe your employer any loyalty, particularly so given you've only been there 18 months. Also, your course leader's stress level is not your responsibility. I would encourage you to focus on what is best for you, not what's best for the institution, your students, or your colleagues. It could be that you're stressed because those groups have a lot of competing needs, so simplifying the decision might make it easier.
posted by zebra at 10:29 AM on June 9, 2017 [4 favorites]
This is whole lot of nope right here. You don't owe your employer any loyalty, particularly so given you've only been there 18 months. Also, your course leader's stress level is not your responsibility. I would encourage you to focus on what is best for you, not what's best for the institution, your students, or your colleagues. It could be that you're stressed because those groups have a lot of competing needs, so simplifying the decision might make it easier.
posted by zebra at 10:29 AM on June 9, 2017 [4 favorites]
But if I was looking for a real full-time job I'd go back to industry for a better salary and way less hassle than teaching.With apologies for being harsh and the caveat that I'm working in a somewhat different job and probably have different priorities than you, it's worth asking: are you sure this is actually a job you enjoy? Teaching because it requires less work than a 9-5 job seems like a really weird statement from someone who's actively applying for college teaching positions.
Better students, a more secure school, less travel time, and presumably more engaged colleagues all seem like overwhelming arguments for moving if you care about teaching and want to spend your life doing it. (I could see choosing to spend time at a less well supported school out of a social obligation to support under-served students; but you don't actually mention that.) Wanting to see a particular cohort graduate is lovely, but it'll be over in a year, and then you'll still be stuck working at an institution you don't respect. You can still get tickets to their graduation after you've left. That this isn't a no-brainer decision seems like it might be a reason for broader introspection.
posted by eotvos at 10:29 AM on June 9, 2017 [1 favorite]
I genuinely admire and relate to your loyalty, but that's not how to make this decision.
And if you take that out of the equation, it seems like switching to the second job part time is definitely the way to go. The money is equivalent, the time is relatively equivalent, and there is more support and a shorter commute (plus better likelihood of the department surviving, if I'm reading correctly).
Unless I'm missing something, that's definitely the logical conclusion, though I do understand that a lot of emotion comes into a decision like this. But from a rational point of view, you should probably switch.
posted by gideonfrog at 10:42 AM on June 9, 2017 [1 favorite]
And if you take that out of the equation, it seems like switching to the second job part time is definitely the way to go. The money is equivalent, the time is relatively equivalent, and there is more support and a shorter commute (plus better likelihood of the department surviving, if I'm reading correctly).
Unless I'm missing something, that's definitely the logical conclusion, though I do understand that a lot of emotion comes into a decision like this. But from a rational point of view, you should probably switch.
posted by gideonfrog at 10:42 AM on June 9, 2017 [1 favorite]
The course leader is running himself into the ground trying to keep it going but he's running out of steam. It's frustrating working somewhere that doesn't care that much about what they're doing. On the other hand I owe them some loyalty and my poor course leader would be very stressed by my leaving, so I would need a good reason.
You wouldn't be letting down the course leader. It's a combination of the institution is letting them down by not providing adequate resources, and them choosing to run the course in a way that isn't sustainable with the resources they have. I'm not in a position to judge which of those factors is more important or who (if anyone) is on the side of the angels, and keep in mind that you might not have a full picture of what's really going on there, either.
Regardless, neither circumstance obligates you, a non-tenured instructor, to sacrifice yourself to help keep that boat afloat.
posted by BrashTech at 12:18 PM on June 9, 2017
You wouldn't be letting down the course leader. It's a combination of the institution is letting them down by not providing adequate resources, and them choosing to run the course in a way that isn't sustainable with the resources they have. I'm not in a position to judge which of those factors is more important or who (if anyone) is on the side of the angels, and keep in mind that you might not have a full picture of what's really going on there, either.
Regardless, neither circumstance obligates you, a non-tenured instructor, to sacrifice yourself to help keep that boat afloat.
posted by BrashTech at 12:18 PM on June 9, 2017
To me, it depends on what's more important to you: teaching or your side projects. If you want teaching to increasingly be a thing you do, then go with the more secure place with keener students. If your priority is doing side projects, then go with the place that has worked hard to make space for that for you.
posted by salvia at 12:45 PM on June 9, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by salvia at 12:45 PM on June 9, 2017 [3 favorites]
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I work at a good UK uni, but even here our teaching staff have a pretty heavy load. At less prestigious institutions it is generally assumed you are going to get hammered on teaching whether you are teaching or research, and moreso if you are teaching only. So I would think you are right that they will expect a lot from you and I think it would be hard to protect your time. One advantage might be that you could probably protect time from around now to around the end of August each year. But this may not fit with what you are after. Having said that, if you can go part time and make the same money for doing so as you make as a full time lecturer at the FE place (am I reading that right?) it sounds like it would make some sense. Your challenge will be not to end up with 5 days work for 3 days pay. This is doable but might require you can keep on top of who in your new dept is doing what and what a full teaching load looks like for them, so you can be doing an agreed fraction of it. Avoid taking on admin wherever possible and make sure any you have to do is properly reflected in your workload to the extent possible (you use words like responsibility so you may be at risk of doing something stupid here).
You might well find that teaching a class with stronger candidates is more rewarding, or at least more comfortable. It is just as possible you will get to like them, in my experience different year groups have their own personality so that can vary anyway.
posted by biffa at 9:52 AM on June 9, 2017