Congratulations on entering the world of academia! You have worked diligently to earn your place at the table among those with academic careers but now what? Well as you navigate your way along the academic career path, you will certainly have various opportunities to consider and weigh against your professional career goals. These may change along the way or may guide you in a different direction. Either way, it is important that you develop a plan with the assistance of a career coach, so that you can master the skills needed to avoid self-sabotage and to navigate the corners and sharp edges of academia.
I’m not here to alarm you, however, without an understanding of the progressive steps to career advancement in higher education, there can be many distractions. Navigating academia requires skill to stay the course. Many academics, in the early phases of their careers, seek out mentors to guide their process. It is, however, important to realize that there can be many demands, influenced from a number of factors such as departmental concerns, increases or decreases in student enrollments, changes in curricula or the ever-evolving research landscape. When engaging too many mentors, the process can become complicated. This is where engaging an academic career coach is most useful!
The formal critique is necessary to support your professional development. A successful academic cannot wait for that critique to occur at the tenure and promotion review, as that is too late in the process. Gaining the skills and insight in advance to adequately advocate or express yourself can help avoid the pitfalls of missed opportunities and regrets. For example, you will hear the ‘publish or perish’ phrase at some point within academia and yet, you can neither be too much of a perfectionist or a procrastinator when turning in your writings. It is often a fast-paced environment that demands timely responsiveness. These academic products, the publications, are reflected in your Curriculum Vitae (CV). As you build your CV, you want to reflect quality work, collaborative networks and significance contributing to the body of science you are a member of.
While navigating academia, it is important to nurture your personal and professional relationships. Striking that work-life balance is another skill. Understanding the cultural norms that exist and being one that fits in and is seen as a key support and service member of the department or college are just a few of the ‘sharp edges’ to be aware of as an academic.
It is expected that an academic engages in service projects internal and external to the institution. Mapping out these service projects against the other demands on one’s time is another critical skill and need for avoiding self-sabotage. Time management is one of the most challenging areas cited by academics just embarking on their career.
As your academic coach, I will address many of these areas during personalized one-on-one sessions. We will look at your academic skill set and outline performance metrics. With a focus on both short-term strategy and long-term goals, together we can navigate the academic journey and inform a professional development plan that will kickstart your career advancement in higher education.
If you are ready to start navigating the corners and sharp edges of academia, schedule a consultation with Dr. Loren Hill today.