Moving to a new position...

If the mods want to move this, I have no problem with it... :bandit:

This morning, I accepted a tenure-track business professor position at the University of Saint Francis (USF) in Fort Wayne, IN. Acceptance of this position is a relief after several months of looking for a new position. My duties start on August 15.

I posted this here, because as regulars on this board know, I hold a PhD from Capella University. Obviously, the doctorate from a for-profit university was not a factor in getting the position.

That being said, looking back at the selection process, the doctorate was, IMHO, a "check the box" requirement. USF is a candidate for ACBSP accreditation (they hope to be accredited in January 2012), and in the USF Systems Portfolio, one of the school's goals was to attract more doctoral faculty. So in that aspect, the doctorate box was checked.

For the record, I have been teaching full-time for six years at a small tribal community college in Wisconsin. During my six years, I have served as co-chair of two major committees, (Curriculum/Assessment and HLC Steering), chair of the Business and Technology Division for three years, and as an Interim Academic Dean last summer. In addition, I have either presented papers or chaired panels at eight different conferences, and have been engaged in service learning with my courses.

As I stated earlier, I have been actively looking for a new position for several months. In addition to USF, in May I was a finalist for a tenure-track position at UW-Platteville. Although I was not selected for the position, being selected as a finalist for a position there confirmed to me that a DL doctorate does not stand in the way of moving along in academia.

The only way that the negative perceptions of DL doctorates will be changed is by those of us who hold those degrees. We need to show academia that we are just as capable of effective teaching, scholarship, and service, as our non-DL counterparts.

Shawn

 

Thanks for sharing this great news! Way to go and set an example!

 

Way to go Shawn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Abner

 

Congratulations Shawn. I hope your new position is everything you're hoping it will be.

 

Congratulations on the new position! I lived in Ft. Wayne for a little while in the late 90's. It's a great community and an excellent place to raise a family. I'm sure you will love it there.

 

Awesome! Congrats! :beerchug:

-Matt

 

Congratulations! Fort Wayne is a great place to live and USF is very well-regarded in the area.

 

Congratulations on your new position, that's great news.

Thanks also for providing the mini background. As has been pointed out in the past, the doctorate is only one piece of the puzzle in terms of getting hired for a tenure track position. The additional question that comes to mind for me (if you don't mind my asking) is how many publications do you have?

Congratulations again.

 

Great job Shawn.

 

Congrats!!!

 

Right now - none....but....

I received an e-mail from The Qualitative Report that my submission has made it through the first step of the approval process.

 

Congratulations! :banana::banana::banana::banana:

 

I love this! A tenure track position by an individual who holds a doctorate earned via DL. Your 6 years of higher ed experience was a huge factor, I'm sure, but the fact remains. You are my new hero!

 

You know, I'm a member of the "Official" Capella University Page at Linkedin. You would be surprised at the number of people who think that once they earn their PhD that they are going to land a teaching gig.

The other part of the equation was before I accepted my position at LCO Community College (where I'm leaving), is that I had adjunct experience at two other schools in addition to my real world experience. My very first adjunct gig was at Southern Ohio College (Now Brown Mackie College), an ACICS school in Akron, OH. I found out about the LCO Community College position through the University of Texas listing of all the Community Colleges in the US.

 

Congrats! You've set the bar!

 

Congrats, Shawn.

I'd be one that would speculate that the doctorate opened doors previously, but now it is more about the experience you bring to the position - strong all around.

Well done.

 

Congrats Shawn!
Very well deserved.

 

I earned the doctorate while working at LCO Community College (March 2010 - grad). When hired in July 2005, I was taking classes in my program pre-comps.

Shawn

 

While the doctorate certainly helped, don't undervalue your past teaching experience in the selection process. In my experience (as an instructor at 2 different Directional State U's and serving on hiring committees), what small colleges that don't pay particularly well are often looking for is the "safe bet". Yes, they prefer the doctorate. But they really want somebody who is willing to live in their community, teach at their college (with an extreme load in some cases), fit in with the campus community (service), etc. If you've demonstrated that y ou can teach, you have a huge leg up, doctorate or not. Unless it is a college where the president is emphasizing doctorates... in those cases, ideally you need experience, a doctorate, and a willingness to accept low pay. Tricky combo to pull off.