University of Wisconsin – Whitewater

[nothing_else_matters]

Anticipated position, tenure-track Assistant Professor of Sociology position beginning 8/23/2013. Required: A PhD in Sociology or Criminology/Criminal Justice.
Candidates are expected to teach a range of criminology courses including corrections from a sociological perspective and criminological theory. Expertise in comparative criminology or criminal justice would be a plus. Candidates are expected to contribute to the scholarly literature, pursue grants, and engage in professional and public service. Candidates must have experience and be able to work with a diverse student population. The multi-disciplinary department has 23 full and part-time faculty and academic staff and serves approximately 450 majors. UW-Whitewater is a premier public regional university with an enrollment of 12,000 students in 44 undergraduate majors and 13 master’s degree programs. It offers high-quality, career-oriented programs with a model general education curriculum. Whitewater, a city of 14,000, in southeastern Wisconsin is near the Kettle Moraine State Forest. The area offers a variety of summer and winter recreational activities. Whitewater is 50 miles from Milwaukee, 45 miles from Madison and 110 miles from Chicago. A complete application package must include a letter of application, vita including all relevant professional experience, all undergraduate and graduate transcripts (photocopies are acceptable for initial application), three letters of recommendation, sample publications, and evidence of teaching effectiveness. Only complete applications will be considered. Unless confidentiality is requested in writing, lists of applicants must be released upon request. Finalists cannot be guaranteed confidentiality. Criminal background check required prior to employment.
Please send materials electronically to: [e-mail] SUBJECT: Crim
Professor Ronald Berger, Search Committee Chair
Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice
University of Wisconsin – Whitewater
800 W. Main Street
Whitewater WI 53190
Applications received by 10/15/2012 are ensured consideration; the position is considered open until otherwise noted. UW-Whitewater is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. We promote excellence through diversity and encourage all qualified individuals to apply.

[courseload]

I was curious about the courseload and found this is in a UW publication ("Wisconsin Ideas") and thought others might be interested:

Increased work loads are another reality of the budget cuts. To preserve course sections with fewer faculty and staff, the university adopted a “5-4” teaching plan that requires academic staff to teach nine courses per year, rather than eight

[reality]

wow.

[nothx]

I honestly don't get why anyone would take a job like this. Their salaries are terrible, too (40s).

[re nothx]

Failure to think before speaking (as the line by nothx nicely illustrates) is a pretty good reason why this board can get so snarky. I sincerely hope that nothx isn't being as "honest" as s/he says.

[Huh]

Not sure why you are so up in arms about notnx's comment. Taking a position like this is career suicide (i.e. if you want to transition to a more research intensive place). If teaching is what you really love and don't mind having zero time to do anything else then by all means apply for this.

I personally would rather work in the private sector than take a job like this- I imagine most others on the board agree.

[re re nothx]

Oct 1, 2012 11:49:25 GMT -5 @re nothx said:

Failure to think before speaking (as the line by nothx nicely illustrates) is a pretty good reason why this board can get so snarky.

Hypersensitivity to dissenting views is part of what makes sociologists so obnoxious and annoying

[andmore]

Oct 1, 2012 11:58:16 GMT -5 @Huh said:

If teaching is what you really love and don't mind having zero time to do anything else then by all means apply for this.

No! Applying for grants is also in the job description, and sample publications are requested!

[teaching duh]

UW-Whitewater is a teaching college focused on undergrads.
Nothing wrong with that. Many people want a job that is primarily teaching.

Just because it's not for you doesn't mean it's not a job someone would love to have.

[sweatshop]

Yes, many people want to take teaching jobs. No judgment here. This description, however, is of a sweat shop. A 5-4 load, pursuing grants, and public service? This is a trend whereby teaching schools try to raise their research profile on the backs of young professors.

[wow]

Courseload -- can you post the link to where you found that information? Thanks!

[anon]

So you spend all your time teaching and have little time for research. How is this any different than a research-intensive university where you spend all your time researching and rarely get to teach (1-0 or 1-1 teaching load)?

It's telling that nobody refers to the top R-1 jobs as "career suicide" for those who are committed teachers.

I have a bit of inside info on UWW, and although they do expect faculty to do some research, expectations are incredibly modest. (Similar to how Harvard may expect you to teach, but expectations are incredibly modest-- both in terms of amount and also performance).

FYI for context: When I was on the market, I turned down an R-1 job for a SLAC job for just these reasons (as well as many more reasons). What I object to, I think, is the assumption that research is inherently more enjoyable than teaching-- and that research furthers your career while teaching doesn't.

[maybeimbeingelitist]

To the above poster I think when someone says 'career suicide' they simply mean that one's graduate school career is hardly devoted to becoming a teacher it is almost entirely research based. I can safely say on the basis on my own, and several other colleagues experience that as graduate students there was ZERO mentorship concerning teaching.

Just because UWW says they value grants and an active research does not make it so (this would be the exact same as Harvard or Berkeley saying they really value teaching). There is no possible way to teach NINE courses and still have time to have an active research program (unless this counts doing a couple book reviews a year).

[qqqqq]

Oct 1, 2012 15:51:08 GMT -5 anon said:

So you spend all your time teaching and have little time for research. How is this any different than a research-intensive university where you spend all your time researching and rarely get to teach (1-0 or 1-1 teaching load)?

It's telling that nobody refers to the top R-1 jobs as "career suicide" for those who are committed teachers.

I have a bit of inside info on UWW, and although they do expect faculty to do some research, expectations are incredibly modest. (Similar to how Harvard may expect you to teach, but expectations are incredibly modest-- both in terms of amount and also performance).

FYI for context: When I was on the market, I turned down an R-1 job for a SLAC job for just these reasons (as well as many more reasons). What I object to, I think, is the assumption that research is inherently more enjoyable than teaching-- and that research furthers your career while teaching doesn't.

I don't want to sound harsh, but you seem to miss the point completely.

First of all, it is simply a fact of life that, currently, research is more valued than teaching. We might think that that is unfair or unnecessary (and I'd even agree with you). But the fact is that it is. We might advocate for things to change, but if we are giving out advice to applicants to have to exist in the current reality, we have to at least acknowledge things as they are. And the fact is that it is that if you take a job at a teaching intensive place and dislike it, it is a lot harder to move to a more research oriented place than if you are at a research oriented place and want to move to a more teaching focused one.


Second, the issue that people are pointing out is not simply that this is a teaching intensive place. But that the teaching load there has just been raised to a 5-4. So to treat this as simply a matter of "teaching vs research" completely misses the point. A place can be just as teaching intensive with a 3-2 load, and have a much better work-life balance.

[url]

Here is the URL someone asked for:
www.uwsa.edu/wisconsinideas/archive/2004v20n2spring/uww.htm