Article
A Consumer's View of the “Meat Market”
Anthropology News
(1989)
Abstract
In line with increasing professionalization of the discipline, we would like to offer some insight into the nature of the search and hiring processes for new academic anthropologists. Both of us chair moderate-sized departments. In the past five years we have collectively recruited for more than ten faculty positions. Our experiences at the recent AAA meeting in Phoenix, where we once again participated in the “meat market” atmosphere of the placement service, prompted this article. We would like to offer candidates a view of the search process from the other side, and invite comments from colleagues who have conducted similar searches. Faculty recruiting is a difficult and challenging process, but one whose outcome is vital to the well-being of our departments. We view recruiting as one of the most important responsibilities that anyone takes on within the context of an academic department. Some will view our comments and observations as elementary, simplistic, and obvious. Were this the case we wouldn’t waste your time or ours. We are motivated by the fact that we have seen too many applicants undermine their own candidacy by failing to recognize and observe these elementary, simplistic and obvious points.
Disciplines
Publication Date
February, 1989
DOI
10.1111/an.1989.30.2.1.1
Citation Information
Feldesman, M.R. and Trotter II, R.T. 1989. A consumer's view of the 'Meat Market'. Anthropology Newsletter
30(2): 1, 24-25.