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For Music Theory and Composition jobs that begin in Fall 2014.

Can someone please start a Music Theory and Composition page for jobs that begin in Fall 2015?

Wiki for jobs that begin in Fall 2015 can be found here


This is the first year this wiki has been housed on Wikia. Previous years' archives can be found on WikiHost.

Current ethno/musicology page: Musicology/Ethnomusicology 2013-14

RECENT ACTIVITY on Music Theory/Composition Wiki[]

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Schools with accepted offers[]

(using the format from the musicology page) Please use the following template for entries:

  1. Institution Name: First Name Last Name (DOCTORAL INSTITUTION, YYYY or ABD; Current Position (if applicable)
    • For ABDs, please only indicate a graduation year if you've already defended and submitted. Nothing against you, but ABD->Done is often a moving target.
    • For folks who weren't/aren't enrolled at a doctoral institution, congrats on being an exception! A note in square brackets indicating the terminal degree is fine.
    • Please fill information as it becomes known (we have many empty entries!!!)

And with no further ado:

  1. Appalachian State University: Ben Hjertmann (NORTHWESTERN, 2013; Lecturer at Northwestern)
  2. Arizona State University: Kotoka Suzuki (STANFORD)
  3. Boise State University: David Biedenbender (MICHIGAN, 2013; PT posts)
  4. Brigham Young University: Sam Richards (MICHIGAN)
  5. California State University-Northridge: ???
  6. California State University-Stanislaus: Sara Chan (DMA, ROCHESTER)
  7. Carnegie Mellon University: Jesse Stilles (RPI [MFA, 2003])
  8. Colby College: Kate Heidemann (COLUMBIA, ?; ?)
  9. College of St. Rose (tech): ???
  10. College of St. Rose (theory): Lawrence Shuster (CUNY, VAP at Skidmore)
  11. Columbia University (comp): Zosha Di Castri (COLUMBIA candidate, 2014; TA at Columbia)
  12. Columbia University (music perf.): ???
  13. Columbus State University (comp/theory): James Ogburn (Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh, 2009; Chair of comp/theory at Mahidol University College of Music [BKK] 2009-2015)
  14. CUNY-Queens: Edward Klorman (CUNY, 2013, faculty at Juilliard)
  15. Dartmouth College (sonic arts): Ashley Fure? (HARVARD, 2013--Columbia Post-Doc 2014-16?)
  16. Dartmouth College (music): William Cheng (HARVARD, 2013, Junior Fellow at Harvard)
  17. Eastern Kentucky University: Shane Hoose (IOWA, 2013, Lecturer at EKU)
  18. Florida Gulf Coast University: Christopher J. Endrinal (FLORIDA STATE, 2008, Visiting Instructor at FGCU)
  19. Florida State University: Andrew Aziz (EASTMAN, 2013, Visiting Lecturer at Brown)
  20. Fordham University: Nathan Lincoln-DeCusatis [MARYLAND]
  21. Framingham University: Christian Gentry (BRANDEIS, 2012, Visiting Lecturer at Framingham Univ.)
  22. Furman University: Michael McClimon (INDIANA, ABD)
  23. Grinnell College: Abby Aresty (UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON, 2012, Fellow, Frank-Ratchye Studio for Creative Inquiry, Carnegie Mellon)
  24. Ithaca College: Crystal Peebles (FLORIDA STATE, 2011, Instructor at Northern Arizona University)
  25. Keene State College: ???
  26. Kenyon College Visiting Instructor: Chelsey Hamm (INDIANA, ABD; Adjunct Instructor at Butler University)
  27. Linfield College: Andrea Reinkemeyer (UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, 2005; formerly Adjunct @BGSU)
  28. Louisiana State University: Daniel Shanahan (TRINITY COLLEGE-DUBLIN, 2011; VAP Virginia)
  29. Mannes/New School: Lynne Rogers (PRINCETON UNIVERSITY, 1989; Assoc. Prof. William Paterson University)
  30. Montclair State University: Marcos Balter (NORTHWESTERN, 2008; Asst. Prof. Columbia College-Chicago)
  31. Nazareth College (Theory/Aural Skills): John S. Reef (INDIANA, 2014; Visiting Instructor at Oberlin)
  32. Nazareth College (Theory/Comp): Octavio Vazquez (MARYLAND)
  33. New England Conservatory: Justin Lundberg (EASTMAN, 2012; VAP at Ithaca)
  34. New York University: Sarah Marlowe (EASTMAN, 2013; VAP at NYU)
  35. Oberlin College: Megan Kaes Long (YALE, 2014?; Visiting Instructor at Wesleyan)
  36. Peabody Conservatory: ???
  37. Princeton University: Donnacha Dennehy (TRINITY COLLEGE-DUBLIN? ILLINOIS?, ?; Asst. Prof. Trinity College Dublin) an Ju Ri Seo (ILLINOIS, ?; WashU lecturer)
  38. Queen's University: ???
  39. Ramapo College: ???
  40. Roanoke College: ???
  41. Rocky Mountain College: James Bungert (WISCONSIN, 2014; ?)
  42. Roger Williams College: Elliott Miles McKinley (MINNESOTA, 2007)
  43. Scripps College: ???
  44. Soochow University: Yao Chen (CHICAGO)
  45. Stetson University (Digital Arts): Ethan Greene (TEXAS, 2013; Visiting Instructor at Tennessee State University)
  46. Stetson University (Theory): ???
  47. St. Joseph's University: ???
  48. St. Lawrence University: Victor Marquez-Barrios (MICHIGAN STATE, 2012)
  49. Stony Brook University: Matthew Barnson (YALE, 2012; Asst. Prof. Trinity College Dublin)
  50. SUNY-Broome: ???
  51. SUNY-Fredonia: ???
  52. SUNY-Geneseo: Michael Masci (UPENN postdoc, Geneseo VAP)
  53. SUNY-Oswego: Paul Leary (DUKE, 2013)
  54. SUNY-Potsdam (VAP): ???
  55. Sweet Briar College: Joshua Harris (NORTH TEXAS, ?; Southeastern Oklahoma State University)
  56. Texas Christian University: Sean Atkinson (FLORIDA STATE, 2008; Asst. Prof. at UT-Arlington)
  57. Texas State University: Michael Ippolito (JUILLIARD, 2014)
  58. Texas Women's University: Elizabeth Kelly (EASTMAN, 2012, Lecturer at SUNY Potsdam)
  59. Trinity College-Dublin: ???
  60. Tufts University: Frank Lehman (HARVARD, 2012, Lecturer at Tufts)
  61. University at Albany: Rachel Mitchell (TEXAS, 2009; Lecturer at North Texas)
  62. University at Buffalo: Brian Moseley (CUNY, 2013; VAP at Furman)
  63. University of Birmingham (UK): Annie Mahtani (BIRMINGHAM, 2008)
  64. University of British Columbia: Ève Poudrier, deferring to Fall 2015 (CUNY, 2009; Asst. Prof at Yale)
  65. University of California-San Diego: ???
  66. University of California-Santa Cruz: David Dunn
  67. University of Memphis: Jeremy Orosz (MINNESOTA, 2013; Instructor at Alabama)
  68. University of Miami: Juraj Kojs (VIRGINIA, 2008)
  69. University of Missouri: Richard Pellegrin (WASHINGTON, 2013; VAP at Mizzou)
  70. University of Nebraska-Kearney: Anthony Donofrio (IOWA, 2011; assistant professor (term) at Kent State)
  71. University of North Carolina-Asheville: Christine Boone (TEXAS, 2011; Instructor at Indiana State)
  72. University of North Carolina-Greensboro: Christopher White (YALE, 2013, Lecturer/Instructor at UNCG)
  73. University of North Georgia: Gabe Fankhauser (FSU, Associate Professor at Appalachian State)
  74. University of North Texas Asst. Prof.: Daniel Arthurs (INDIANA, 2011; Senior Lecturer at North Texas)
  75. University of North Texas Senior Lecturer: Diego Cubero (INDIANA, 2014; Adjunct Instructor at Butler University)
  76. University of Oklahoma: Jeffrey Swinkin (MICHIGAN, 2013; Lecturer at U-Mass Amherst)
  77. University of South Carolina-Upstate: Nolan Stolz (HARTT, 2010; Instructor at Southeast Missouri State University)
  78. University of Tennessee: Ken Stephenson [IOWA, 1989; Prof. at Univ. of Oklahoma)
  79. University of Texas-San Antonio: Jennifer Beavers [TEXAS, 2010; Lecturer at UTSA)
  80. University of Waterloo: ???
  81. Ursinus College: Michael Bratt (CLEVELAND INSTITUTE, ?; adjunct at Indiana Wesleyan)
  82. Washington University in St. Louis: Christopher Stark (CORNELL, 2012; Visiting Lecturer at Cornell)
  83. Wayne State College: Matthew Haakenson (KENTUCKY, 2008; VAP at Stetson)
  84. Wesleyan University: Roger Mathew Grant (UPENN, 2010; Asst. Prof. at Oregon)
  85. West Chester University: Jacob Cooper (YALE)
  86. Western Connecticutt State: ???
  87. Williams College: Eric Nathan (CORNELL, 2012)
  88. Yale-NUS College (Singapore): Jason Rosenberg (UCSD, 2013)

Composition[]

Appalachian State University  (deadline December 17) Assistant Professor of Composition

  • (1/21) Additional materials requested via e-mail
  • (2/11) Phone interview scheduled
  • (2/27) Any movement on this?
  • (2/27) Contacted to schedule campus interview (on 2/26)
  • (6/8) Offer accepted (Ben Hjertmann [Northwestern University])

Arizona State University (deadline January 13, 2014 **REVISED**) Assistant Professor of Composition

  • (2/14) Anyone know if there has been any movement on this at all?
  • (2/19) Phone interviews scheduled for 2/23-25.
  • (3/13) Contacted to schedule campus interview.
  • (6/11) Rejection received - candidate chosen... (???)
  • Kotoka Suzuki [Stanford DMA, formerly professor at U Chicago)

Columbia University (until filled) Assistant Professor of Composition

  • (3/11) Any news?
  • (3/11) They've been holding onsite interviews of 4 candidates.
  • (5/6) Any updates?
  • (6/10) Zosha Di Castri [Columbia DMA candidate)

Montclair State University (deadline unspecified) Asst./Assoc. Professor of Composition

  • (11/23) Application acknowledged via email
  • (12/19) Notification that deliberations are still in process (via email)
  • (3/11) Offer accepted (Marcos Balter [Northwestern University])

Princeton University (deadline Nov. 1 **REVISED**) Assistant Professor of Composition

  • (12/1) Four interviews scheduled for this week and the following week
  • (3/2) Offers accepted (Donnacha Dennehy [Trinity College Dublin] and Ju Ri Seo [Washington University in St. Louis, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign])

Soochow University (deadline Nov. 1) Assistant Professor of Music Composition

  • (11/6) Skype interview scheduled for the following week
  • Yao Chen [Chicago]

Stony Brook University (Deadline Feb. 1)

  • (3/2) Any movement on this?
  • (3/25) Skype interviews held this week
  • (5/6) Anyone?
  • (5/6) Campus visits were conducted in April for finalists
  • Matthew Barnson (former AP at Trinity College, Dublin)

Sweet Briar College(deadline Oct 31) Assistant Professor of Music

  • (11/25) Phone interview
  • (11/7) Campus interview scheduled
  • (2/17) Offer accepted (Joshua Harris [University of North Texas])

Texas State University (deadline Nov. 4)  Asst. Professor of Composition

  • (11/12) Application acknowledged via snail mail
  • (11/16) Additional Materials Requested via Email
  • (1/20) Campus interview scheduled
  • (3/13) Job accepted
  • (3/14) Received letter saying offer extended and accepted, but didn't state by who - anyone know?
  • (4/25) Offer Accepted (Michael Ippolito [ABD Juilliard])

Washington University in St. Louis (until filled) Asst. Professor of Composition

  • (10/24) Additional Materials Requested via Email
  • (11/18) Skype Interviews Requested for First/Second Week of December
  • (1/14) Campus interview scheduled
  • (3/12) Offer Accepted (Christopher Stark [Cornell University])

Theory Only[]

Colby College (deadline 11/22): Faculty Fellow in Music Theory (one-year)

  • (1/9) Phone interviews scheduled
  • (3/6) Position accepted (Kate Heidemann [Columbia University])

College of Idaho (deadline 8/6): VAP in Music Theory

College of St. Rose (review begins immediately): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (11/8) Phone interviews scheduled
  • (3/11) Job Accepted (Lawrence Shuster [CUNY])

CUNY Queens College (deadline 12/30): Assistant or Associate Professor of Music Theory

  • (2/24) Campus interviews scheduled
  • (5/6) Offer accepted (Edward Klorman, CUNY [The Juilliard School])

Florida Gulf Coast University (10/30): Assistant or Associate Professor of Music Theory

  • (11/12) Phone interview scheduled
  • (2/1) Job accepted (Christopher J. Endrinal [Florida State University])

Florida State University (deadling 2/21): Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (3/3) Campus interview 
  • (3/20) Job accepted (Andrew Aziz [Eastman, 2013; VL Brown])

Ithaca College (deadline 11/15): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (11/25) Email acknowledgement of application
  • (12/20) Rejection received via e-mail
  • (12/20) Phone interview request via e-mail
  • (1/17) Campus interviews scheduled
  • (2/28) Offer accepted (Crystal Peebles, Northern Arizona [Florida State, 2011])

Indiana State University (OUF): Instructor of Music Theory

Louisiana State University (deadline 12/16): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (1/31) Skype interviews scheduled
  • (2/12) Campus interviews scheduled
  • (4/28) Offer accepted (Daniel Shanahan [Dublin, Trinity College 2011; VAP Virginia])

Mannes College, The New School (deadline 11/15): Edward Aldwell Professorship in The Techniques of Music

  • (1/30) Campus interviews scheduled

New England Conservatory of Music (deadline 2/7): Music Theory Faculty (no tenure/ranking system)

  • (2/14) Request for more materials
  • (3/8) Campus interviews scheduled
  • (5/12) Position accepted (Justin Lundberg, Ithaca College VAP [Eastman])

New York University (deadline 12/1): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (1/31) Skype interviews scheduled
  • (4/14) Job accepted (Sarah Marlowe [Eastman, NYU VAP])
  • (4/14) Congratulations, Sarah!
  • (4/15) Please be polite on the wiki.  Maybe someday you will also be the beneficiary in a search where you are an inside candidate.  And being the inside candidate in no way lessens the accomplishment of securing an academic job.  Congratulations, Sarah!
  • (4/16) The job description was obviously written with this candidate in mind. Anyone who looked at it carefully could see that.
  • (4/15) [2] I was another finalist for this search. It was a legitimate search, and I had a very positive experience with my visit, even though I did not receive an offer. I'll join the chorus congratulating Sarah!
  • (4/16) I was also a finalist for this search, and it definitely seemed to me as if all candidates were given an equal shot. Congrats to Professor Marlowe!
  • (4/16) I was not a finalist for this particular search. However, I do recall that the job description announced a preference for someone well-versed in tonal theory but with expertise outside of the "Schenkerian canon." This description does not strike me as "tailor-made," at least not so much as certain other jobs this season perhaps did. The frustration that one experiences in the case of job searches whose conclusions appear to be foregone (and I'm not implying that this one was or that it wasn't) is probably a reasonable topic for discussion (I think?); however, it should not bleed into resentment for the person who was hired...I mean, was she supposed to not apply for the job because she was there already? :) (Also, I'd like to say that I don't approve of deleting other peoples' comments if we don't like their tone.)

Oberlin College (deadline 11/30): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • Snail mail acknowledgment of application with AA survey
  • (12/23) Phone interviews requested
  • (1/8) Campus interviews scheduled
  • (2/18) Job accepted (Megan Kaes Long [Yale University, 2014])

Scripps College (review begins October): Visiting Lecturer of Music Theory, Spring 2014

  • (12/16) Job accepted

Stetson University : Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (12/5) Skype interviews scheduled
  • (1/24) Candidates contacted for campus interviews
  • (8/31) I noticed that the position is being advertised again for the next hiring year. Perhaps the position was not filled?

St. Joseph's University (OUF): Lecturer of Music Theory

SUNY Fredonia (deadline 12/31): Lecturer in Music Theory

  • (2/7) Request to schedule phone interviews
  • (2/26) Request to schedule on-campus interviews

Texas A&M-Kingsville (OUF): VAP or Lecturer Music Theory (Fall 2014 only)

Texas Woman's University (deadline 11/5): Assistant Professor

  • (12/3) Phone interviews requested
  • (12/17) Campus interview scheduled

Tufts University (deadline 10/21): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (10/25) Applications acknowledged by e-mail
  • (12/16) Job accepted (Frank Lehman, Harvard [Tufts, Brown])

University at Albany (deadline 1/31): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (10/25) Snail mail acknowledgment of application
  • (5/1) Position accepted (Rachel Mitchell, PhD UT-Austin; Lecturer @ University of North Texas)

University at Buffalo (deadline 12/2): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.
  • (12/8) Review of applications has begun; a shortlist will be announced soon, by requesting further materials from some candidates.
  • (12/11) Candidates contacted.  And a collective thanks, search committee, for keeping us updated! (x3)
  • (1/21) Candidates contacted for on-campus interviews.
  • (4/3) Job accepted (Brian Moseley, CUNY Graduate Center [Furman])

University of British Columbia (deadline 10/15): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (10/23) Applications acknowledged by e-mail
  • They will be using this page rather than emails to update about the progress of the search.
  • (12/6) Shortlist made, awaiting approval
  • (12/17) Campus interviews scheduled

University of Florida (6/15): VAP, Music Theory

University of Memphis (review begins 2/10): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (2/12) References contacted
  • (3/3) Skype interviews scheduled
  • (4/6) On campus interviews scheduled
  • (5/2)  Offer made
  • (5/19) Offer Accepted (Jeremy Orosz, Ph.D. Unversity of Minnesota, Instructor at Alabama)

University of Missouri (deadline 10/15): Assistant Teaching Professor of Music Theory

  • (11/17) Scheduling Skype interviews for the coming week
  • (1/11) Position accepted (Richard Pellegrin -- Univ. of Washington, 2013; Univ. of Missouri VAP)

University of North Carolina - Asheville (deadline 1/15):  Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (1/18) Application acknowledged by email.
  • (2/16) Phone Interviews Scheduled
  • (3/12) Skype interviews scheduled (don't know if this is in lieu of campus interview or an additional pre-finalist round) - pretty sure there will be on campus interview next.
  • (3/28) On-campus interviews scheduled
  • (4/23) Position accepted. (Christine Boone, PhD UT-Austin; VAP at Indiana State)

University of North Carolina - Greensboro (deadline 11/22): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (11/27) Application and reference letter submissions acknowledged via email
  • (12/9) Additional materials requested
  • (1/3) Skype interviews requested
  • (1/13) On-campus interviews scheduled
  • (3/13) Job accepted (Christopher White, Yale)

University of North Georgia (OUF): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (2/7) Phone interviews

University of North Texas (deadline 10/21): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • (10/30) Additional material requested
  • (1/24) Skype interviews scheduled
  • (2/10) Additional material requested (again) (2x)
  • (2/14) Scheduling campus interviews (although given the 2/10 post, perhaps the previous round isn't entirely settled yet)
  • (2/21) Re: (2/14): Interesting. Skype interview scheduled for next week.
  • (3/4!) Any movement here since the initial invites? Anybody have a campus interview scheduled?
  • (3/7) Campus interviews completed.
  • (3/20) Job accepted (Daniel Arthurs, University of North Texas [Indiana])
     

University of North Texas (OUF, announced 3/20): Lecturer/Senior Lecturer

University of Oklahoma (review begins 11/1): Assistant Professor of Music Theory

  • Snail mail acknowledgment of application with AA survey
  • (11/11) Additional materials requested
  • (12/12) On-campus interviews scheduled
  • (2/17) Job accepted (Jeffrey Swinkin, Lecturer, U-Mass Amherst [PhD, University of Michigan])

University of Tennessee (deadline 12/15): Lecturer (75% FTE, one-year)

  • (1/7) Skype interviews scheduled
  • (3/11) Job accepted (Dr. Ken Stephenson [Prof. University of Oklahoma])

University of Texas San Antonio (deadline 10/1): Assistant Professor of Theory and Aural Skills

  • (10/22) Additional materials requested
  • (12/4) On-campus interviews scheduled
  • (2/11) Offer accepted (Jennifer Beavers, UTSA [Ph.D. from UT-Austin])

University of Waterloo (deadline 11/1): Assistant or Associate Professor of Music Theory

  • (1/29) On-campus interviews scheduled — according to email rejection.

Composition, Theory, Etc.[]

Boise State University (OUF) : Assistant Professor in Music Theory and Composition

  • (12/7) Additional references requested
  • (1/4) Phone Interviews Scheduled
  • (1/16) On-campus Interview(s) Scheduled (via phone/email)
  • (3/6) Offer made and accepted (David Biedenbender, [DMA from University of Michigan]

Brigham Young University (deadine 1/10): Visiting Faculty Music Theory/Composition

  • (4/3) Email rejection received

California State University, Northridge (OUF): Assistant Professor

  • (1/14) snail-mail receipt of application
  • (1/14) Additional materials requested via e-mail
  • (1/30) Skype interviews scheduled
  • (4/10)  Offer made and accepted

California State University Stanislaus (deadline February 26): Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Keyboard Studies

  • (3/28) Request to schedule Skype interviews

Columbia University (deadline: April 7) Director, Music Performance Program

Why is this Columbia Performance Program job listed here?  Nothing to do with Music Theory, Composition, or Music Technology.

Not true. Knowing what this job entails (i.e. teaching one academic course per semester, which is usually music appreciation but might also be in the composition/theory area), it is conceivable that a composer could do this job. Why not?

Columbus State (5/27) VAP Comp/Theory

Dartmouth College (deadline October 7th) Open-rank position in Sonic Arts or related discipine. 

  • (11/18) Candidates contacted for additional info via Interfolio (x2)
  • (1/20) More Wiki oddity on this job with someone (today) updating "1/14 interviews scheduled" but then deleting it. Does any one have firm info on the state of this search?
  • (1/20) Looks like it was deleted inadvertently by this change: http://xrl.us/bqgxvk
  • (1/20) That's the best I can figure, too (though that was my edit and I swear didn't delete anything). So we can only assume that this is correct then: (1/14) On-campus interviews scheduled.
  • (1/21) Received encouraging rejection letter from Dept. Chair addressed to second-round candidates. A "handful" of candidates are being invited to campus. First hasn't happened yet, last will vist mid-February.
  • (3/7) Job accepted (Ashley Fure [PhD, Havard University])

Dartmouth College (deadline 10/1): Assistant Professor of Music

  • (11/1) request for more materials (re: musicology wiki)
  • (1/9) On-campus interviews are being scheduled (Question: Does this mean that interviews were not scheduled on 1/4 as originally posted?)
  • (1/15) answer: sorry, was contacted about another position in same department, so I moved this to the correct posting. Not an applicant for the sonic job.
  • (3/1) Job accepted (William Cheng [PhD, Havard University])

Fordham University (deadline 12/1): Assistant Professor of Theory and Composition (Jazz)

  • (1/7) Skype interviews scheduled

Framingham State University (OUF, review begins 3/3): Assistant Professor of Music

  •      (4/8) Interviews are being scheduled
  •      (5/9) Job accepted (Christian Gentry [PhD, Brandeis University (2012)])

Nazareth College: Assistant Professor of Theory and Aural Skills (position #1)

  • (12/24) Request to contact references for semi-finalists
  • (1/26) Request to schedule on campus interviews
  • (3/5) Offer made and accepted (John Reef [PhD, Indiana University])

Nazareth College: Assistant Professor of Composition and Theory (position #2)

  • (2/1) References contacted
  • (3/18) Interviews for finalists scheduled mid-late March
  • (5/1) Offer made and accepted (Octavio Vazquez [DMA, University of Maryland])

Peabody Conservatory (deadline 12/1): One-Year Position, Non Tenure Track (Musicology with Theory Teaching)

  • (12/12): Request for more materials (according to musicology wiki)
  • (3/18) Offer made

Queen's University (deadline 3/24): Two-Year Term Adjunct (Theory/Composition)

Ramapo College: Performance and Music Theory

  • (2/26): Phone interviews
  • (2/26) (2): Several phone interviews were also conducted on 2/12.  To the previous poster: were the interviews you refer to conducted more recently?
  • (3/12) On-site interview scheduled
  • (5/4) Offer made and accepted

Regis University (deadline 2/1): 1-Yr Sabbatical Replacement, Music Theory/Comp

  • (3/14) Search cancelled, funding not approved (per e-mail)

Roanoke College (deadline 2/1): 1-Yr Visiting Assistant Professor, Theory/Musicology

  • (4/4) On-campus interviews held
  • (5/19) Accepted (don't know by whom)

Rocky Mountain College (deadline 10/31): Assistant Professor of Music Theory and History

  • (1/8) References phoned
  • (1/14) Phone Interview scheduled
  • (1/27) on-site interview scheduled
  • (3/6) Offer made and accepted (James Bungert, Ph.D. in music theory, University of Wisconsin – Madison, 2014)

Roger Williams College (deadline OUF, applications reviewed starting 1/22): Asst. Professor of Music

  • (mid/late-March) Campus interviews
  • (early June) Position filled

St. Lawrence University (OUF): Visiting Assistant Professor

  • (4/14) Position accepted (according to snail-mail rejection dated 4/1)

SUNY Broome (deadline 2/7): Assistant Professor of Music

  • (2/24) Campus interviews held

SUNY Geneseo : Assistant Professor of Music Theory/Composition

  • (12/6): Skype interviews scheduled
  • Listed as "position filled" on website (anyone know who?)

SUNY-Potsdam (3/31): VAP in Theory/Comp

Texas A & M University--Commerce (OUF): Asst. Prof. Theory/Comp

Texas Christian University (deadline 10/15): Assistant Professor of Music Theory and Composition

  • (10/8) Calls made to candidates
  • (10/16) Skype interviews scheduled
  • (10/29) On-campus interviews are being scheduled
  • (12/20) Offer made and accepted (Sean Atkinson, University of Texas, Arlington [Florida State University])

Trinity College Dublin (deadline 1/24/2014): Professor of Music

University of California Los Angeles (deadline 11/30): Assistant Professor of Musicology

  • (12/19) Request for more materials (according to musicology wiki)

University of Miami (deadline 12/5/2013) : Assistant Professor of Professional Practice, Music Theory and Composition

University of Nebraska Kearney (OUF, review begins 3/1): Assistant/Associate Professor of Theory/Composition

  • (4/13) Has anyone heard anything from them?
  • (4/13) (2): I've heard nothing either, aside from the auto-email from the GovernmentJobs site back in February.
  • (5/3) Campus interviews scheduled for this week.
  • (5/13) Offer made and accepted. (Anthony Donofrio, Kent State University [University of Iowa, PhD (2011)])

University of South Carolina, Upstate: Associate/Assistant Professor of Music

  • (2/13) References contacted
  • (2/18) Skype interviews scheduled
  • (2/26) Onsite interviews scheduled
  • (3/22) Onsite interviews were conducted during the first week of March
  • (5/20) Offer made and accepted early April, paperwork still being processed

Ursinus College : Visiting Assistant Professor (theory, technology, and string performance)

  • (3/26) Phone interviews scheduled

Wayne State College (OUF, review begins 2/17): Instructor/Assistant Professor of Music

  • (3/22) Phone interviews were conducted during the second week of March

Wesleyan University (deadline 9/20): Assistant Professor of Theory and Musicology

  • (11/11) On campus interviews scheduled over the next several weeks
  • (1/23) Job offered and accepted (Roger Mathew Grant, University of Oregon [University of Pennsylvania, PhD (2010)])

West Chester University (deadline 12/15): Assistant Professor of Music Theory and Composition

  • (2/12) Additional Materials Requested
  • (3/1) Skype Interviews scheduled
  • (3/14) On-site interviews scheduled
  • (4/30) Offer accepted (via rejection phone-call to other finalist)

Western Connecticut State (deadline 12/2): Assistant Professor of Music Theory and Class Piano

  • (12/20) Additional Materials Requested
  • (1/16) Telephone interviews scheduled
  • (3/17) Rejection email received (and I didn't make the first cut!) - does this mean it's been filled?

Williams College (deadline 2/7): Visiting Asst. Professor in Composition

  • (4/11) Offer made and accepted (Eric Nathan, [Cornell University, DMA (2012)])

Wingate Univsersity (4/21): Asst. Prof. Theory/Piano

Music Technology[]

Mansfield University (OUF): Theory/Tech Eastern Kentucky University (deadline 11/1): Assistant Professor of Music (music technology)

  • (4/7) Offer accepted (Shane Hoose, Lecturer, Eastern Kentucky University [PhD, University of Iowa])

Keene State College: NTT Artist-In-Residence (music technology and aplied music)

  • (1/7) Phone interviews scheduled

University of California, San Diego (deadline 11/8) Lecturer in Computer Music and Audio Engineering

University of California, Santa Cruz (until filled) Asst. Professor of Sound Art and Design

Carnegie Mellon University (deadline 12/1) Asst. Teaching Professor of Sound Media

  • Any word?
  • (12/19) References requested, due 1/13. 
  • Any movement here?

College of Saint Rose (until filled) Asst. Professor of Music Industry (music technology, record production, composition)

  • (1/24) First round of phone interviews started
  • (3/26) Position filled

State University of New York at Oswegoo (until filled) Asst. Professor of Music Industry and Technology (music technology, business of music, songwriting)

  • (1/9) Phone interviews scheduled
  • (2/20) On-site interviews scheduled
  • (3/16) Offer accepted

Grinnell College (Postdoc, due 2/15)

  • (3/29) Phone interviews
  • Any news?
  • (5/6) Any news?
  • (5/7) Position offered and accepted

University of Birmingham (UK) (deadline May 30, 2014) Lecturer in Electroacoustic Composition

DISCUSSION[]

'De Facto Required Qualifications'[]

5/16 - I'm not sure if this is considered an appropriate question or not but I think it's worthwhile for people to be able to talk about the expectations in the job market and address their creative/research/teaching efforts accordingly. I realize that i) every school/position is different to some extent and ii) official required qualifications are listed in job ads but I was wondering if people (incl. SC members) might have some insight into what sorts of qualifications are more likely to make someone a likely successful candidate for a TT (or at least f/t, permanent) position, out of all of the people people who have doctorates, creative work or research publications/presentations, and some amount of teaching experience to their names. From looking over online CVs and bios of people who got the jobs in the last couple of years, this is my preliminary impression of things that seem to make the difference:

Composition-only (very few positions): doctorate from a top-tier institution within the last 2-3 years; either i) several major orchestral performances, ii) possibly one major orchestral performance alongside a portfolio of exceptional and unique work in one other specific area, or iii) expertise with music technology and electroacoustic music; at least 4 juried awards, including ASCAP; at least two artist residencies; some composition teaching experience but otherwise, teaching experience seems like less of a priority; research also seems like less of a priority; substantial portfolio of works in a range of genres with at least one juried festival performance every year

Composition/Theory: doctorate in composition from a well-respected institution; a decent portfolio of creative work that shows an ability to teach students in a number of genres; at least one major orchestral performance; theory teaching experience; otherwise, these jobs seem slightly more flexible: strong research or teaching experience seems like it might be able to carry weight at some places vs awards/commissions/prizes at others

Teaching-Oriented Theory: This one is actually a little mysterious to me (although these are the jobs I usually interview for!). A doctorate in either composition or theory seems OK here, as long as you have a couple of years' teaching experience in theory (and aural skills/musicianship?). The weight that SCs place on research and/or creative activity here is not clear to me.

Research-Oriented Theory: ...?

5/20 I'll save you some time doing all this research and tell you the most important qualification for a candidate: connections.

SMT/AMS?[]

3/28 - It's that time of the year again. Has anybody heard anything? In a joint year, things typically take a little longer, so it might still be early. Anybody know if the program committee for SMT has met?

3/28 - FWIW, I received my acceptance notifications for the last two conferences on April 4, 2013 and April 20, 2012. 2012 was a joint conference--AMS, SMT, and SEM.

4/09 - Notice of rejection. Alas.

4/10 - Acceptance notification.

4/10 - Is it normal/advised to notify search committees of conference acceptances?

4/12 - Did anyone else not receive ANY notification yet? Does the program committee keep a "wait list" of sorts?

4/12 (2) - Although social media suggests that the notifications started going out on Wednesday, nothing here either. I suppose it's possible that it could take that long, but this is longer than I've ever known it to take.

4/12 (3) - I have received neither an acceptance nor a rejection at this point. I have no idea about a "wait list."

4/12 - In past years I've received a rejection notice up to a week after others had received acceptance notices.  My guess is that it's simply due to the volume of emails that must be sent.

4/14 - I was told they're sending both acceptances and rejections out in chunks, presumably because the process is so involved and takes so long.

New Wiki[]

9/25 - Thanks to whoever set up this new wiki! Wikihost has been down for weeks now. That was a pretty seamless transition, and this new editing interface is much easier/faster.(x2)

9/25b - I believe we should adopt the layout guidlines from Musicology/Ethnomusicology 2013-14 (which are in turn from Humanities and Social Sciences Postdocs 2013-14 ). What do you guys think? Right now, our page looks clean enough, but once job searches start being updated, it might get messy without a contingency plan.

9/25c - I'm happy someone got this page started up and think organizing it like Musicology/Ethno is a great idea. There's one aspect I don't think we should emulate--pasting the whole job posting under school headers. It's a cluttery waste of space when hyperlinks generally work just fine (as they had at the comp/theory wiki). Also, am I totally wrong for thinking that this isn't the first time wikihost just went AWOL? Maybe I'm misremembering, but couple of years ago we were faced with a similar problem. No matter. The old MT/Comp wiki is dead, long live the new MT/Comp wiki!

9/27 - Question about this new wiki: is there a way to tell that it's been edited without combing through the whole thing? The old wiki had a little counter thingy (that's a technical term) on the side that indicated the last time it was edited. I'm wondering if there's something similar here — something I'm missing, some link to click that'll take you to the counter thingy, something of that nature. Later in the job season, things can (hopefully) get rather unwieldy, so a counter thingy would save a lot of people a lot of time.

9/27b - It looks like we're not doing the statistics section (how many jobs people are applying for and what stage they are in their careers)? This information is interesting, but not particularly useful or accurate because it relies on self-reporting. For what it's worth, I'm currently on a 1-year VAP and I haven't submitted any applications yet.

9/30 - (I'm 9/27): I'm glad to see that there's an RSS feed, and yes, this is what I had in mind. However, I see that each change is accompanied by an IP address (the string of numbers punctuated by decimal points). I'm not tech savvy, but I do know that if you google an IP address, it'll tell you the location of the post, i.e. where the person is when they post. You can change the IP address through what I've heard called a "proxy server," but I don't know what that entails. Googling mine will narrow my institution down pretty darn quick (even down to location on campus), but (as far as I know) won't tell you precisely who I am. Or does it? I don't know. Googling the others narrows them down in terms of institution as well. For grad students, this is probably less of a problem; for faculty, this is probably more of a problem because if they say, for example, that they are on a tenure-track job but looking for a change, it's not too difficult to go directly to that institution's faculty page and see who's an "Assistant Professor." Obviously, the concern is anonymity. I, myself, am not planning to post much — really at all. But it could be an issue when things heat up a little bit later in the season: when people post that they've had interviews, etc.

Thoughts?

10/3 - Since the RSS feed went up and poster 9/30 pointed out the ability to determine an editor's location through IP address, we've seen a decline in edits. Who knows if those are actually connected, but if people are more comfortable contributing without their IPs not showing up on the wiki front page, I'm fine with removing the feed. (Another reason for the lack of activity may simply be that most theorists/composers don't know about the new location of this page. Any way to spread the word?)

10/5 - I like the RSS feed. We could announce the new page on SMT announce.

(Naz convo moved to below)

12/30 - Another question about this new wiki: on last year's wiki, when a job was accepted, it was confirmed by listing the successful candidate's name directly in the wiki. Here, I notice a few accepted jobs, but nobody is naming names. Of course on any wiki, we don't always know that all of the info is certified true (let's save debates about the epistemology of "truth" for the geniuses of SMT talk), but we know, via the honor system, that we can trust it most of the time, particularly within a relatively small scholarly community such as ours. When a job goes from being "open" to "accepted," it's significant for anyone else vying for it who hasn't heard back from the search committee (especially for those who have completed on-campus interviews and whose cell phone nearly causes cardiac arrest anytime their dry cleaner calls). And for me, seeing a name confirms the information a great deal more. Is there any reason why this practice has changed?

Application Etiquette Thread[]

12/19 - What do we think about sending "follow-up" emails to SC chairs after applying? A no-no? Helpful?

12/21 - I'll bite: a no-no. It comes across as pushy and they're overworked and assuming they got your materials they'll ask if interested.

12/21 - I have a related question.  Should we contact the SC if a publication of ours, "forthcoming" on our C.V., gets published?  

12/22 - Yes, that's a legit reason to contact the SC.

1/8 - Although, "forthcoming" means that it has already been accepted for publication... in the situation 12/21 describes, the only change is that the item has become available in print/electronic versions. I'm not sure that's all that significant (although, download it and send it out as requested!). I would definitely contact the SC if an item goes from "under review at X" to "forthcoming" or "accepted pending revisions." Just be sure to reserve the word "forthcoming" for articles that have been accepted at a journal and that are now in production. "Forthcoming" is not the same as "under review."

1/9 - Right: "forthcoming" is different from "published," as per 12/21, or "in print,"  or etc., etc.

1/12 Better to use the phrase "in press," which in my experience is more standard and is as good as being in print for a SC. 

1/12 - On wording standards, see: <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK7240/>

1/29 - For small liberal-arts schools, how negotiable do you all suppose pay is? When should one inquire about this? On-site interviews seem to be a good time, except that a good deal of money has been spent (and time wasted) on a candidate by that time - is there an acceptable way to ask about salary flexibility *before* on-site interviews?  One job has a specific range of pay that seems quite low, consider the cost of moving states (in my case), consequential loss of spousal income, etc. Thoughts?

1/30 - The advice I've been given from multiple advisors is that they only opportunity you have to negotiate is after you've received an offer. Until then, you risk any offer you *might* get if they think you won't accept it. It is bad and difficult for most departments to have an offer declined so many places are cautious in this regard. Missing the offer is a problem for a few reasons, first among them that you can't really evaluate it until you have it in hand and know what else they offer in addition to salary. If the range really is fixed and you really won't accept it then perhaps you don't mind missing out on the offer in the first place, but in the event you have a current position (even adjunct) or, dare I say it, get another offer the leverage might be useful. So, I say: mums the word until they offer you something. Then, negotiate. If the salary is a no-go for you at that point, be honest and clear and provide them with logic they can use to get the administration to up the offer so they don't lose the candidate of their choice. Good luck!s

1/30(2) - Never, ever, ever negotiate anything (especially anything monetary) until a formal offer has been made (normally via phone call after the interviews). During your interview, the only questions you should be asking are those that fall under the "I want to get to know your institution a little bit better" variety. Questions about the area (city, neighborhood, etc.) are also fine. If they want you, you'll be given the opportunity to negotiate.

1/31 - I have a bit of a different take than yesterday's posters. I think it depends on how much you need a job. The fact is, there are some jobs that pay too low to bother to apply for, IF you are already in a position that is OK. I think schools should provide a salary range, so that applicants can decide if it's worth their time. I'm involved in a search (non-theory) now, and that's in fact one of our concerns: that the salary will be too low for the candidate. All our SC members want to make clear to the candidates what the range will be BEFORE they come to campus, because if they won't work for what we're offering, a campus visit is a waste of everybody's time and money. However, I'm not sure that that will happen, because it would have to go through admin, HR, etc. I don't think the last part of 1/30(2)'s answer ("If they want you, you'll be given the opportunity to negotiate") is necessarily correct. I was told that I was the top choice for my current position, and I was told that the offer was the offer, period. This probably depends on the type of institution.

With regard to the specific question and the range seeming low, perhaps the OP could call HR and ask what the range applies to. For example, at my school, if a range is given, the specific salary would depend primarily on whether the person has the terminal degree and how many years of FT experience they have.

2/3 - I once flew out to a job interview and the dean told me they were surprised I was interested in the job given I already had a TT job and their salary was only $25k (for an 18 contact hour per semester job). I replied that they were correct about being surprised: no one bothered to tell me that the job only paid $25k otherwise I wouldn't have flown out - it was the first I'd heard about money b/c it wasn't on the job ad or brought up by the SC! I decided at that moment that if there was no salary range or it was "commensurate" or whatever they put on job ads, that I would ask what the hiring range was before flying out. Just the range, mind you, to make sure we were in the same ballpark, and just the question, no complaints or negotiation or "couldn't you raise that range some" etc. I only ask it when they call to invite me out, where I think it is a reasonable question to ask. The school doesn't want to fly you out if their offer is going to be rejected out of hand, and you don't want to waste your time flying out there for something that is already decided in the negative without your knowledge. So, my take is, if you have a requirement salary-wise that you're sticking with, go ahead and ask when they call to fly you out (they've never backed out of flying me up, and in a couple cases I was glad to have asked).

2/27 - OK, so let us say, hypothetically, I did receive an offer, and almost everything about that position was great (faculty, benefits, perks, facilities, neighborhoods, family atmosphere, etc.), and I may be planning to accept the offer, except the salary was on the low side. The above discussion says to wait until there's an offer in hand, and now, hypothetically, I have that offer. How to proceed? Do I negotiate before verbally accepting? After verbally accepting? Or do I say that "I'm planning to accept the offer, but I'd like to address the salary issue first." I'm not the type of person to play such hardball that they fear they're going to lose me, but I'm willing to do what will get the best results — hypothetically.

Then, what kinds of factors/reasons should I introduce as to why I'm interested in more money? I'm assuming that simply saying "I want more money" is about the worst way to proceed — akin to being asked "Why are you interested in this position" and answering "Because it's a job, duh!" I feel like they want to hear things about what I would do with the "extra" money, things like childcare, buy a house large enough for the family, etc. Thoughts?

(3/3) While they do relate to your overall well-being as a person and employee, things like childcare and the size of your house are not really the chair/dean's problem. Any time you ask for a higher salary in negotiation, it has to be because you believe your scholarship and/or teaching experience justifies it. If you are given an offer--and they tell you you are the first choice--use that to your advantage. "You are getting a scholar with X, Y, and Z on the table and I'm ready to go, so now you need to pony up." Just be ready for the answer to be no. Then you have to decide if it's worth it to you.

3/4 I have to disagree slightly with the 3/3 poster on this matter. the caveat of course is this is all much easier if you have a position currently. While it is not the chair/dean's problem where you live, etc. it is fair to say "the salary you're offering me is not a financially viable option. I have a family to support, and my partner will have to leave their job and try to establish something new here if possible...". Certainly you want to make your case that you're a great scholar and they are getting their money's worth but the people making these offers know that there are many factors when accepting a position and many of them are personal. On top of this if they know if you accept the position but are unhappy with the low salary you will most likely be acitively seeking employment elsewhere so you can attain a better salary. It will save them money in the long run if they offer you a slightly higher salary and keep you there long term then having to do a new search, retrain a new candidate, etc. The final thing I will say is that almost every administrator leaves a cushion of a couple of thousand dollars to increase the salary during a negotiation. It's not a garuntee but it is a standard practice.

3/5 - New question: I have an on-site interview out of state, and I leave in four days. I have still not received any details about what I'm supposed to be prepared to teach/present. The committee chair has told me this information is forthcoming, and most recently promised this information would be available... yesterday. To me this seems like absurdly late notice for giving me this information. I generally like to be prepared for things like this, and teach full time currently, so the prospect of having to plan any lecture(s) at the nth hour does not seem appealing, nor will it likely give me the best chance for success. Has anybody encountered this before? What is "normal" in terms of notice? I have been in touch, politely, a few times since the visit was arranged, but feel a bit uncomfortable continuing to do so. Any suggestions? I suspect that I am the first on-site interview (since this information is not already known and available), so I can't help but feel unfairly disadvantaged.

3/5: To the poster above, this has happened to me three times. Twice I was asked to prepare materials/lectures with under a week's notice. Once I received an e-mail the evening prior to my flight out informing me that I would now be teaching a class on X topic. We all know that committees have multiple members, not all of whom are responsive to one another in a timely manner. I expect poor internal communication as the primary cause. However, I did get the sense of it being more purposeful in two of those three occassions. You either roll with it or decline the request knowing what affect that has on your prospects of getting hired. Certainly, many of us can do better by one another in this process: no candidate feels respected when their time and existing commitments seem inconsiquential to a hiring committee.

Interview Advice[]

A question for those with search committee experience:  Can you give some insight into the first-round to second-round transition?  I'm a composer/theorist; I've been reasonably happy with the number of requests I've gotten for phone interviews, calls for more materials, and the like, but disappointed at the number of times that's led to an on-campus interview.  Probably there's no single explanation for this, but I'd be interested to hear what sorts of considerations go into making the cut for second round consideration.  Obviously, committees can't give feedback directly to interviewees, and while there are advice columns on this sort of thing on CHE and elsewhere, they're pretty generalized, so I'd like to hear if anyone has thoughts specifically from a theory/comp perspective.

(2/26) This is a great question, if nearly impossible to answer with any degree of specificity that'd apply to all situations (as you're already aware). The winnowing process (from short list to finalists) involves conversations and negotiations between SC members, as they try to come to a unanimous decision about which candidates, during their phone interviews, made the case for themselves as the best, most closely-matched choice for the position described. All things being equal, the process is straightforward: the SC will have heard, together, each candidate responding to the same basic prompts; it'll be self-evident that some number rose to the occasion and some did not, and those who rose to the occasion will get the nod.But of course, all things are not equal, ever. Some SCs choose (or are forced, by institutional policy) to give phone interviews to a larger-than-normal pool of candidates (the norm, from my experience, is between 8 and 12 on the short list), making the narrowing-down process convoluted. The opposite can also be true. In my early days on the market, I was one of four (!) candidates selected for a phone interview. When I asked the SC chair about this, s/he told me that the SC had already decided, pre-phone interview, which candidates they'd be inviting to campus (i.e., all four of us); thus, the phone interview was purely a formality, and the SC was using it simply to make sure "none of [us] were nuts" (I quote). And, being made up of humans, some SCs will inevitably have members who, for political or personal reasons, insist on bringing to campus a candidate who, in the minds of the other SC members, bombed the phone interview (and thus not give the chance to someone who did really well). So candidates really don't have any way of knowing much about what's going on behind the scenes (unless they happen to have inside connections who can tell them how/why decisions are made). If you are going into each phone interview as well prepared as you possibly can be -- having internalized the job description; having given some thought to how you, uniquely, are equipped to meet/exceed the qualifications and duties they've outlined; having done your homework on the faculty and the institution so you can speak as knowledgably and relevantly as possible; speaking with confidence and clarity, and staying on-topic and concise -- then you really, honestly, cannot do anymore. (FWIW, as someone who's served on several SCs, I can confidently say that, if you're doing those things, then you are doing more -- by far -- than several of the others in any phone-interview pool.)

One other point, though: you wrote: "Obviously, committees can't give feedback directly to interviewees..." I disagree. When I was first on the market, I did, in fact, make a point of following up with SC chairs after unsuccessful phone interviews (i.e., once I knew, for certain, that they were moving on without me), soliciting (politely) feedback on how I could have presented myself in a better way and, perhaps, pushed myself into the campus-interview pool.  Some never responded, and I didn't hound them. Some only responded with banalities, for which I thanked them (and promptly deleted). But a few gave me truly useful and detailed constructive feedback on where I fell down, and how to sharpen my presentation abilities in this unnatural format. There's no doubt in my mind that this information helped me land my current job, and has made me more comfortable with subsequent phone interviews.  So, from my perspective, it absolutely doesn't hurt to ask, and could make a real difference in the long run.  Good luck!

Interview Advice - Personal Questions[]

4/29 - I interviewed at an institution a while ago, and learned recently that I wasn't selected for the position. I'm sure I'll never know all the ins and outs of the decision, though I plan to ask for feedback. One part of the visit lingered with me, though, because it caught me flat-footed - a few personal questions. I'm interested in what others have encountered and done about this.

The search chair, an administrator, took me out to lunch. As we left the restaurant, he asked casually, "Is anyone else in your family musical?" My guard went up because my spouse is a musicologist. Had I been selected for the position, my intent was to attempt to negotiate at least an adjunct position for my spouse - something toward which, from what I understand, administrators are almost wholly resistant. Who knows if he was just making innocent small talk or really trying to get at something, but everything I've ever read or heard about spousal hires has suggested that it's wisest to avoid the topic completely until you've been offered something. So I took the cautious approach and didn't mention my spouse, saying instead that my mother and sister played piano and sang.

That evening, at dinner, I sat next to the search chair. He asked me directly, "So what does your [spouse, though gender-specific] do? ... I noticed your ring." This caught me utterly by surprise, and I had no idea what to do. I answered succinctly but truthfully, and left it at that - no mention of any intent to seek a spousal hire. Neither he nor I mentioned the topic again for the rest of the visit. No doubt it made a bad impression on him that I hadn't mentioned my spouse when he asked about "musical family" at lunch, but his questions also made a bad impression on me, because I'd thought these sorts of questions were off-limits (politely if not legally).

Has anyone else encountered a similar situation, or heard of others? If so, how did you or those others respond?

4/30 - I and other friends I know have experienced similar situations. One time, a SC member mentioned his/her son, and so I followed up with, "oh, you have a son," to which the SC member responded, "you can ask me that question, but it's illegal for me to ask you that question." I've no idea what he/she was driving at. Later in the same interview, after I had interpreted something as "queer" in my talk, the SC member spent a fair amount of time at dinner mentioning he/she thought Varese was attractive, what did I think, as if trying to out me. I basically said nothing. I think both situations were inappropriate and unprofessional. The lesson? This kind of thing happens frequently and there's little we can do about it.

4/30(2) - I've encountered this kind of thing too, and--although it does't completely surprise me--I'm kind of appalled and upset by it.  (For one thing, I don't even know the kind of answer--have spouse vs. don't have spouse; music/academic spouse vs. not--would be found more appealing to the SC.) Such questioning could be illegal because it invites illegal discrimination. Isn't it deplorable?  What legitmate reason could a SC have for wanting to know this information to decide on a hire? But anyway, sure there are things that could be done to stop it.  MTO-jobs and SMT-Announce should make search committee chairs electronically sign a commitment to completely avoid such questions during interviewing (interview visits etc) and also commit to showing the rest of the SC members the commitment that was signed.  SC members would then kind of police each other; it would be embarrassing for SC members to go against it once out in the open like that.

4/30 (3) - In my experience, search committees are just interested in knowing more about the candidates, without any hiring-related agenda.  For me, my spouse is an important part of my life, and since my spouse was not looking for work in academia, I felt comfortable mentioning my spouse's existence in informal search-related settings (first night dinner, e.g.) as part of normal conversation.  (I certainly made no attempt to hide my spouse's existence--I wear a wedding ring, for example.)  Certainly some of the situations described above are objectionable/problematic, though one hopes that they wouldn't impact a hiring decision.  But I think in many cases committees just want to get to know you better and have no intention of discriminating based on marital status, whether or not you have kids, sexuality, etc.

On a related note, something that might merit its own thread in this forum is how different responses to these questions may be treated for men and women.  I suspect that having a wife and kids is considered a plus for male candidates ("we're looking to settle down in a nice town like yours") and a liability for female candidates ("how could she get tenure with a kid?"/"what if there's another one on the way?").  I wonder if this is the case, and if so, if there's anything we can do (via CSW, for example) to help minimize this kind of discrimination.

And of course, I should put it out there that I've never been treated with anything but decorum and respect by search committees (hence my original comment: most people on both sides of this process are just people trying their best to make an awkward situation slightly less awkward!).  Generally my interview experiences have been very positive, and I hope that this has been the case for most of us!

4/30 (4) - It's really impossible to know what anyone "means" by anything they might say. I feel like the closer one gets to being the successful candidate, the farther they get into a kind of "no man's land."

Just beware that such questions, no matter what side of the situation one is on, can backfire with a quickness. I was interviewing once upon a time and the search committee chair (who was relatively young — probably in his or her mid-to-late 30s) picked me up from the hotel on the first morning of the interview. I tried to make small talk: "So, are you married? Have kids?" I thought these questions were innocent enough. I figured that if he/she was married and/or had kids, that we'd have something in common and could connect from the get go, thus increase my chances of being liked. Swap stories about our kids having temper tantrums in the grocery store, etc. The response was not what I expected: "Um... well... no kids... but, actually... I'm... well, divorced... almost." Not exactly the start I imagined. Ouch. I apologized immediately, and steered the conversation to what ended up being a much safer topic: coffee.

5/1 - Despite all this discussion, it hasn't become clear how a candidate's marital status is legitimately relevant to being hired for an academic teaching job.  So I wonder, if it's not a legitimate criteria, why would a SC go out of its way to determine this--despite the fact that it might very contraversial. Can it really be that SC members can't think of anything else to make conversation (small-talk) about? It seems rather far-fetched.

5/5-What do you do if the position has been filled ( known thru Wiki) and no word has been given by the university to the candidates that did not get the position?--well over 3-4 weeks?

5/5 (2) - I don't think you do anything. 

5/6 - I have been in this position before.  It is appropriate to phone or email the chair of the search committee saying that you had heard a candidate had been selected, and you wanted to confirm that this was the case so that you could make other plans/get on with your life/etc.  Alternately, you can write to check on "the status of the search," which sounds a little less accusatory than "I saw this on the wiki!"  (This is also an opportunity to thank them again for the interview and tell them how you look forward to interacting in your future professional life.)  Usually they're very apologetic and are planning to write you a personal letter but just haven't gotten around to it.  (And for what it's worth, 3-4 weeks after a candidate has accepted is not an unusual amount of time to wait--I have waited at least that long multiple times.)  That said, this long wait time seems to me to be one of the most frustrating aspects of being a candidate, and I would encourage search committees to contact their campus interviewees as soon as the paperwork is signed.

5/7 - Back to the original poster's situation: If the interview made you uncomfortable, I would strongly suggest reporting your experience to the appropriate administrative authority on that campus. If the search committee chair was the source of discomfort, then the chair/director/dean of the music department/school would be the appropriate level. You could also make a report with someone in Human Resources. In most cases, these kinds of questions are illegal to ask in the context of an interview, regardless of the intentions (cf. poster 4/30(3)). But if they aren't reported, no corrective actions can be taken. I always advise my students who are going on the market to think in advance and plan how they will answer these kinds of questions. The fact that they are illegal doesn't mean they don't happen, and I think it's always in your best interest to have decided ahead of time (rather than in the moment) what approach you will take to them. My sense is that many more search committees are aware of the illegality of these questions now than when I was on the market (almost 15 years ago). In the years I was most actively on the market, there was only one on-sight interview where someone didn't nod at the ring on my left hand and ask me, "so, what does your wife do?" I had already decided that I would answer that question honestly—"He's a physicist"—because I knew I would learn a lot about my potential future colleagues from the way they reacted.

The SMT Committee on the Status of Women has an excellent resource on this issue, available on the SMT website. I note that the information incudes a request that instances of inappropriate questions be reported to the chair of the committee. If the original poster (or any other readers) experienced inappropriate questioning in the context of a search for a music theory position, I would encourage contacting the current committee chair Laurel Parsons, whose contact information is available from SMT here.

5/7 (2): The truth is that search committees can hire anyone they want or hire nobody.  The only thing that matters is you did or did not get the job.  If you got it, that's good for you.  If not, move on.  It doesn't matter what they asked you or anything else.  They don't need to explain themselves.  I have been asked my age more than once.  I have been asked if I'm married.  I have been a finalist for jobs that went to someone with over a decade more experience than me and others that went to someone with essentially no credentials compared to me.  I have had a lot of searches where I was a finalist and there was an internal candidate and likely nothing I could do to alter the outcome.  None of it matters.  You get the job or you don't.  Don't spend any time feeling sorry for yourself.  It will not improve your CV.  And regarding the suggestion above about reporting questions you don't like: how will that improve the candidate's relationship with that committee or in the field?  

5/8: wow, well that's one way to look at it!

5/8(2): I think that 5/7 (2) is correct in the sense that you could slit the throats of several children and drink their blood, as long as no one catches you. 

5/8 (3): OP here. Thank you, 5/7 (1), for the helpful comments and links. I've worked in an HR environment before and was well aware that the question was potentially illegal; that's why it surprised me so much. But as the SMT's website notes, it's difficult to prove malicious intent through active discimination; only a fool would document such questions/answers as pertainng to the hiring decision in any way. 5/7 (2), I must disagree with the statement that "none of it matters." You're correct, of course, that committees may hire anyone they wish. But if it's ever clear, or even suspected, that someone was not hired because of information obtained about the person's status in one of several protected civil classes, then it cheapens the search because of the implication that the field wasn't level for qualified candidates. I don't believe my answer to the discomfiting question had anything to do with the outcome of the search, but I also don't think we can assume that for all searches.

6/11 I'm late to this party but having been on the SC side of things numerous times I can give you a little of my insight. I make sure never to ask personal questions and often times if I'm discussing something that could have an impact on their personal life I will phrase it like this: "I can't ask you and I don't need to know but here's an area of town that is a beautiful place to live in but has a terrible school district."

As SC members of course we are interested in your personal life, are you married, do you have kids, what are your hobbies? etc. For two reasons: One is that sometimes we might worry that having those things might prevent you from taking our position if we don't show you the right things (i.e. neighborhoods, schools, etc.). The other reason is by the time you get to the on-campus interview you're dealing three to four candidates who are qualified in some way and for some reason. Now we're really fleshing out which one is the person I can see myself working with for the next twenty years. Who do I want to have lunch with, hang out with, etc. We're looking for that right fit. With all that said I always keep it professional and unless the candidate brings up personal matters I leave them alone.

One last thing I'm equally open to hiring a man or a woman and the whole children or potential pregnancy has never been an issue with me nor any other search committee member I've ever worked with. In fact I can't think of a single time when it has ever come up.

School-Specific Discussion[]

Grinnell College[]

(1/22) Is anyone familiar with the program at Grinnell?  I was looking at their website to try to find out more about their electronic music facilities/faculty, and I found very little information available.  Just trying to get a sense for the lay of the land...

(1/29) FYI, a senior composer who had been at Grinnell for many years is now Dean of the Faculty at Vassar; he may be willing to share some background, etc. re: the situation at Grinnell.

Florida State University[]

(2/16) This is a visiting position, but one of the tenured theory faculty members at FSU is retiring in two years, so the visitor would likely be an inside candidate for an upcoming tenure-track search.

Brigham Young University []

(1/22) Anyone hear anything yet or know when to expect to?

(2/11) Things move slowly at BYU--several layers of approval are needed to proceed with candidates. It's also possible that the search had advanced, but--given the likely smaller pool of applicants--no one has updated the wiki. 

(4/3) Email rejection received.

College of St. Rose[]

(10/22) Any movement here yet?

(11/8) Phone Interviews Scheduled for following week

Texas Christian University[]

(10/14) Anybody have info on the process going on here? The deadline above says 10/15, but a poster has already indicated that they "contacted candidates" on 10/8.

(10/15) The deadline was 10/1.  TCU has also taken the listing down.

(10/28) I didn't interpret 10/1 as a "deadline." It said, "application review will begin October 1, 2013 and continue until the position is filled." HR took down the ad on the 2nd or 3rd I think. Usually an OUF search will remain open longer than a few days past the first review date.

(10/28) I believe the search technically still is open, but they are proceeding quickly in order to make a hire before winter break.

(2/24) Candidate has accepted an offer.

Florida Gulf Coast[]

(10/3) Wow, never had an application require a letter about mentoring students in research within the discipline. 

(11/21) I heard there's a strong internal candidate...

(1/31) There is, and said person has accepted FGSU's offer.

Peabody Conservatory[]

(11/15) Complete job description copied below. Please note that although the position is housed within the Musicology Department, it entails teaching two graduate seminars in Music Theory.

(3/17) I removed the job description.  Is it really important to keep it here?  It seemed to be messing people up when they tried to edit elsewhere.

Nazareth College[]

(11/20) - Anyone heard back from Nazareth College yet?

(12/24) Semi-finalists at Nazareth contacted via email.

(1/8) Were the semi-finalists for position #1 (theory) or #2 (comp/theory), or for both?

(1/9) I can only speak for myself, but I was contacted for position #1.

(1/9) (2) Ditto. I was unaware that there was also a comp search until one of my references relayed the information to me, per his conversation last week with an SC member.

(1/20) Anyone hear anything yet?

Nazareth College (position #2 – comp/theory)[]

(2/12) Has anyone heard anything further about the composition/theory opening (request for more materials, interviews, etc.)?

(2/13) References have been contacted, but no movement since

(3/18) Interviews for finalists were scheduled for mid-late March.

Tufts University[]

(12/18) Above lists this as being accepted per 12/16. Um, WHAT?!?!

(12/18)(2) Inside candidate?

(12/18)(3) They interviewed four candidates in early December. (I was one of the three that didn't get the job.)

Montclair State University[]

(12/21) I'm just curious if almost everyone who applied for this job was asked for more materials. I only know of one person who wasn't but they also never received an email acknowledging their application.

(12/22) Yeah, I got excited at first, but when I got an identical email a few weeks later (even after acknowledgment from the SC of my initial submission of additional materials), I realized that this was almost definitely a generic request. Seems like a bit of a disorganized search. Still, a job I'd love to get...

(12/31) ...conducted skype interviews two weeks ago.

(12/31) Skype interviews two weeks ago? I only received an email stating that they were "still deliberating" 13 days ago. Can someone else confirm. 

(12/31) Confirmed skype interviews in December. Campus interviews scheduled for January. 

(1/1) Were people already notified about campus interviews?

(1/6) On-campus interviews are starting in a few weeks, but applications are still being accepted.  As announcement says, job remains open until it's filled, i.e., no deadline.

(1/20) Never asked for more materials; only received the same generic email about deliberations ongoing, etc.

(2/7) Any word on this job?

University of Memphis[]

(4/3)  Apparently, they are ramping up to do on campus interviews soon, but have had some administrative hassles that have slowed them down.  The SC chair has expressed frustration with how slowly the process is moving.

University of North Carolina - Asheville[]

(3/3) Anyone have any activity after the phone interviews yet?

(3/4) The head of the search committee told me that I wouldn't hear anything before this week at the earliest

University of North Texas[]

(1/6) Surely this search has moved beyond the long list by now, right?

(1/7) I was asked for more materials in October and have heard nothing since, so I have been wondering this as well.  Has anyone heard anything?

(3/21) UNT just announced a lecturer position — related?

(3/26) Given that Dr. Arthurs was a lecturer before landing the TT position, I'd say yes, it's related.

(3/27) Gotta love inside candidate situations...

(4/9) See Eastern Kentucky U - same deal.

Linfield College[]

1/8 - Anyone have any news about the job at Linfield College in OR?

1/9 - Phone interview scheduled with Linfield College. (X2)

1/13 - Additional materials requested.

2/7 - Skype interview conducted

2/15 - Any news?

(4/19) - Offer made and accepted.

SUNY Albany[]

1/19 - Anyone have any inside scoop about this position? I've heard that Albany closed several departments a few years back as a cost cutting thing. Any danger of something similar happening with music? Or at least junior positions being not very secure? Also, does anybody know the general load and tenure requirements?

2/27 - So, on 2/27, someone with an IP address at University of Pennsylvania edits "Albany" to "Albania." Also, on 2/27 we learn that someone at UPenn doesn't have anything better to do than mess with our wiki. I'm a little sad and I'm asking nicely: Please person at UPenn, find something better to do and leave our wiki alone. There are much more fun things to do on the interwebs if you look around a little. 4chan seems like it might be your speed; try there. Thanks in advance!

3/11 - Anybody know the deal with Albany? I logged into the system yesterday and it said the position was closed. Was somebody hired? Was the search cancelled? Or is the HR system just wrong?

SUNY Geneseo[]

1/25 - Did anyone hear back after the Skype interviews?

New England Conservatory[]

1/27 - This was kind of a strange application, right? I'm a little bit worried that I didn't apply in the right place. Did anybody else feel this way? The application asked for things like current salary, why you left your last job, etc.

2/16 - They use an application system that's normally used by corporations instead of academic institutions - those fields were probably defaults.

Stony Brook University (SUNY)[]

1/31 - Has anyone else tried to apply for this job via academicjobsonline.org? The maximum total file size is 8Mbs which is far too small to accomodate three scores and recordings. There also seems to be no alternative for submitting and application in the ad.

2/1 - There is an alternative, although tthe instructions are well hidden under FAQ > large files.  Upload your files to a location online (youtube/vimeo/soundcloud), go to adding files to your portfolio, and instead of browsing your computer choose adding free HTML text.  Then paste your link.  All and all, this system is definitely unfriendly :)

2/4 - I also had difficulty with this application platform.  Thanks 2/1 for your work-around, though I already submitted my materials with a less elegant but easy work-around: I put my link in a pdf doc with a note explaining why.

Sweet Briar College[]

(2/14) Any news here?

(2/17) Offer accepted.

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