Adding from the senior side (yes, typing this from my desk during the workday): a lot of professional service. In addition to peer review, editing a small section of a journal, chairing an award committee for an APSA section, serving on an MPSA award committee, serving on APSA council. And chairing a university committee. Like a lot of faculty at R2's and LACs, I also advise undergrads, which means I'll spend several hours this afternoon meeting with undergrads and discussing their graduation progress and course options. The "lazy professor" stereotype makes me insane.
Yes, this is absolutely a big part of what senior academics do--and there's also invisible service (mentoring), university level service, and shared governance.
yeah, spent the whole morning doing some "shared governance" (there aren't heavy enough quotes in the world) and now trying to make progress on my MPSA paper because i'm too young to turn into deadwood on the research side. thank you for writing this piece.
I am grateful to have a cool job that offers me flexibility and lets me feed my brain…but I work as many hours now, if not more, as I did when I was a CEO at non-profit and public agencies. Sure, that could be because I’m not as efficient as my colleagues, but it could also be that this is real work that takes real time. There are no “summers off” here, just a shift in what work looks like. How do we make sure that the work is visible to those inside and outside our institutions?
Adding from the senior side (yes, typing this from my desk during the workday): a lot of professional service. In addition to peer review, editing a small section of a journal, chairing an award committee for an APSA section, serving on an MPSA award committee, serving on APSA council. And chairing a university committee. Like a lot of faculty at R2's and LACs, I also advise undergrads, which means I'll spend several hours this afternoon meeting with undergrads and discussing their graduation progress and course options. The "lazy professor" stereotype makes me insane.
Yes, this is absolutely a big part of what senior academics do--and there's also invisible service (mentoring), university level service, and shared governance.
yeah, spent the whole morning doing some "shared governance" (there aren't heavy enough quotes in the world) and now trying to make progress on my MPSA paper because i'm too young to turn into deadwood on the research side. thank you for writing this piece.
Why? Is there any news from your home university? (Opens the Chronicle) ah well
I am grateful to have a cool job that offers me flexibility and lets me feed my brain…but I work as many hours now, if not more, as I did when I was a CEO at non-profit and public agencies. Sure, that could be because I’m not as efficient as my colleagues, but it could also be that this is real work that takes real time. There are no “summers off” here, just a shift in what work looks like. How do we make sure that the work is visible to those inside and outside our institutions?
I think we should just talk about it -- not defensively, not offensively, just talk about what it is we *do*. At least, that's my hope!