Getting Started in Academia: A Guide for Educational Psychologists

Abstract

We identify the major tasks facing pre-tenure faculty members and outline advice, based on a review of the literature and our experiences, for succeeding in academia. The challenges encountered by new faculty include learning the culture of the new academic institution, understanding the processes and policies for academic performance review, establishing meaningful and constructive mentoring relationships, creating a sustainable research agenda as well as fostering the writing attitudes and strategies that promote turning research projects into publications. Also included are recommendations for developing expertise in teaching, cultivating healthy and productive relationships with advisees, and fulfilling service responsibilities. Finally, we suggest strategies for balancing the multiple, and sometimes competing, demands and expectations.

Reflections of a novice sports science lecturer: Perceptions of the challenges and sources of support

“…Consistent with previous research, I found the task of balancing the time demands of these various roles can be difficult and has lead to the availability of time being seem as a major obstacle for academic career progression (Halpern, 2008;Mayrath, 2008) that highlights the need for effective time management. Some methods proposed to help create time and maximise efficiency include limiting classroom preparation time, setting meeting boundaries, conducting group advising sessions, trying to integrate teaching and research, removing any distractions, planning daily writing time and creating deadlines for yourself (Mayrath, 2008;McCormack & Barnes, 2008). It is also necessary to say "no" at times (Kiewra, 2008) since you can be asked to fulfil many commitments but have limited time to complete them all in and your attention can become diluted to the point where you have many goals but don"t get round to achieving them.…”

“…However, whist waiting to get your research ideas going, there are still many things proposed to allow development as a researcher (Kiewra, 2008). These include trying to develop collaborative research links within your department, as well as external links, to allow you to work within a research team which often plays an important role in publication success (Mayrath, 2008;McCormack & Barnes, 2008). One can meet potential collaborators through meetings, courses, conferences and through actively seeking a mentor.…”

“…It is worth noting, however, that supervision often involves more of an administration and support role that can be time consuming, since you spend a lot of time filling in forms and offering ideas or feedback. Therefore, conducting regular timetabled group sessions has been proposed as a useful way to save time, allow students to support each other through exchanging their experiences and maintain your enthusiasm and involvement in the projects (McCormack & Barnes, 2008).…”

“…At the end of the academic year, it may seem like you have a long time until your next teaching commitments, but in my experience this time seems to pass very quickly. It can be useful to formally construct a plan highlighting goals to achieve (McCormack & Barnes, 2008;Warrior, 2002). Some universities offer appraisals that involve discussing your development with a more experienced colleague.…”

Acculturating to the Role of Tenure-Track Assistant Professor: A Family Systems Approach to Joining the Academy

“…However, the rewards of being a member of the academy may not become apparent until the academic achieves tenure. Consequently, the ability to navigate the tenure-earning process to a successful outcome is critical (Clark et al 2010;McCormick and Barnes 2008;Park et al 2011;Toews and Yazedjian 2007). The trajectory to tenure requires one to balance attention among competing demands concurrently (Bogler and Kremer-Hayon 1999;Clark et al 2010;Halpern 2008;Hershberger et al 2005), and many newly appointed assistant professors struggle with this process (Chen and Anderson 2008;Coleman et al 2006).…”