Early postdoc deadlines -- why?

[guest321]

So, what is the point of establishing postdoc deadlines that arrive before some tenure track deadlines? Indeed, some people already know that they want to go the postdoc route when they are at the tail end of their grad careers, but the heavy majority will be paying attention to tenure track jobs and will look to postdocs only after meeting other deadlines.

[rrww]

For the same reason r1s also try to hire early:
they want the best candidates, not just those who happen to not have a job.

Your interest in exhausting your options is different from their interest in finding the best person for the job.

[guest321]

Oct 18, 2011 9:08:17 GMT -5 @rrww said:

For the same reason r1s also try to hire early:
they want the best candidates, not just those who happen to not have a job.

Your interest in exhausting your options is different from their interest in finding the best person for the job.

I understand this, but I don't see how it fits with postdocs. The "best person for the job" won't necessarily be looking for a postdoc with all options still open, because it is obviously not the reward for grad school achievement that many hope for at this time of year. Therefore, they are very likely to miss out on excellent prospects just because those candidates went on the market. Very few people with realistic prospects of landing an R1 are going to be focusing on postdocs at this point, so the people who, so early in the job hunt process, are inclined to go the postdoc route are either those who have already set their sights on one or those who worry that they may not be competitive enough for a tenure track position. At the very least, it makes little sense to have a postdoc deadline that so closely rivals that of a tenure track posting in the same university.

[from a postdoc]

" Very few people with realistic prospects of landing an R1 are going to be focusing on postdocs at this point, so the people who, so early in the job hunt process, are inclined to go the postdoc route are either those who have already set their sights on one or those who worry that they may not be competitive enough for a tenure track position."

---

actually there are people viable for R1s who are applying for postdocs. or at least we have to assume so based on who gets postdocs like RWJ , Chicago Provost's, etc. many R1 institutions will allow you to take a postdoc then start your job, but you have to have the postdoc offer or at least be in the running in order to negotiate something like that with a job. so it is not in best interest of all postdoc committee to wait until later to post for their positions or their best candidates may have already fully committed to starting a job in fall.


further, postdocs have varying due dates. some will actually not be posted until jan or feb and be due much later.


and since some jobs won't post until way later so if the postdoc committees were to wait to post they'd be waiting until April, which wouldn't be helpful for most people whether you are going R1, SLAC or whatever.

Security check: Everybody wins (ha!)

[guest321]

Oct 18, 2011 11:58:59 GMT -5 @from a postdoc said:

" Very few people with realistic prospects of landing an R1 are going to be focusing on postdocs at this point, so the people who, so early in the job hunt process, are inclined to go the postdoc route are either those who have already set their sights on one or those who worry that they may not be competitive enough for a tenure track position."

---

actually there are people viable for R1s who are applying for postdocs. or at least we have to assume so based on who gets postdocs like RWJ , Chicago Provost's, etc. many R1 institutions will allow you to take a postdoc then start your job, but you have to have the postdoc offer or at least be in the running in order to negotiate something like that with a job. so it is not in best interest of all postdoc committee to wait until later to post for their positions or their best candidates may have already fully committed to starting a job in fall.


further, postdocs have varying due dates. some will actually not be posted until jan or feb and be due much later.


and since some jobs won't post until way later so if the postdoc committees were to wait to post they'd be waiting until April, which wouldn't be helpful for most people whether you are going R1, SLAC or whatever.

Security check: Everybody wins (ha!)

The RWJ mention is, indeed, a good example, but it and other similar ones are exceptions. I guess maybe the ones that are posting early are those that are prestigious enough to be negotiated into contracts; I'll have to go back and check. Nevertheless, posting deadlines that are so early are peculiar, especially for postdocs that pay half of what RWJ does. (RWJ pays more than most starting AP positions around the country.)