Mert R Sabuncu
If you’re on the academic job market, I recommend taking the earliest possible interview date- assuming you can be prepared. Several advantages are:
1. Other places will hear about you interviewing and that’s a good thing,
2. Your hosts will be less jaded and more enthusiastic to see you (particularly at those places that do a lot of interviews),
3. You can set the benchmark that other candidates get compared against, &
4. Places that can make parallel offers will often not wait to see others.
Dec 13, 2022 at 12:31amWeb
Show threadFei XiaDec 13, 2022
@msabuncu Thanks for these tips, Mert. I was a student at your ML class previously. I find your posts insightful and helpful. I’d like to learn if you also have tips for academic couples in the job market? I’d be very interested to know.
Show threadMert R SabuncuDec 13, 2022
@feixia great question. First and foremost, I recommend applying broadly and independently. I also suggest not bringing this up during interviews and being hyper-focused on getting an offer. When you have offer(s), you should immediately bring up the partner situation. Most top places have mechanisms to help with partner recruitment. It varies a lot by institutions, but if the partner can fit several positions (eg depts), I’d try to pursue all options.
Show threadFei XiaDec 13, 2022
@msabuncu Thanks, Mert, for this informative tip!
Show threadAlex KwanDec 13, 2022
@msabuncu @feixia This was the strategy we took when Judy and I started. Happy to chat more offline about our experience.
Show threadFei XiaDec 13, 2022
@alexkwan @msabuncu wow, sounds great! Happy to chat offline too.
Show threadThijs RoumenDec 14, 2022
@msabuncu great post! One extension based on my experience: Try to make sure your #1 university is roughly your third interview. Don't start with that because you will have to get in the flow and understand basic logistics of how these interviews roll. Universities are much more flexible in their dates than you think (they really want _you_ to come interview!). After 1 or 2 you are in great shape (and not yet exhausted by it) so that's a good time to nail that dream university's interview!