By Jackie Caemmerer, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, and Kai Zhuang Shum, Ph.D., University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Contributors: Melissa Bray, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, Sandy Chafouleas, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, and Randy Floyd, Ph.D., University of Memphis
After you submit your faculty job application (read some of the posts linked below for advice in that process), there is often a pause, and the waiting begins. After the search committee has reviewed all the applications, they typically invite a short list of candidates to a first-round interview, which more recently has become a brief virtual interview. After the committee completes all their first-round virtual interviews, they will make decisions about which candidates they will invite to a full 1–2-day campus interview (or perhaps a much longer full-day virtual interview).
We provide some suggestions below to help you prepare for your first-round virtual interview (congrats on making it to the short-list!). These suggestions are an amalgamation of our experiences and suggestions from 3 senior faculty with a lot of experience leading search committees: Drs. Melissa Bray, Sandy Chafouleas, and Randy Floyd.
Preparation Before the Interview
- Know the Department and Program and Prepare to Make Yourself Useful: Read faculty bios, recent publications, and program initiatives. Pay close attention to how school psychology fits within the department (e.g., connections to counseling, special education, or clinical psychology). Be prepared to clearly explain how your skills and interests align with current faculty and how you could contribute right away by easing the workload or adding value to ongoing work. Candidates who enter the interview thinking, “I will just be myself” and “They will either like me or not, and I have no control over that,” are not likely to be successful. Instead, saying, “I think that there are a lot of ways I could fit in and contribute to your strong program” is much more likely to yield positive outcomes.
- Highlight How You Fit the Call: Review the job announcement once again (pay special attention to the required and preferred qualifications) and all of your application materials. Prepare examples that directly address the position’s listed needs (e.g., practicum coordination, licensure, research, or teaching needs) and what you can contribute to their program, college, or university.
- Prepare Your Responses: Be ready to briefly explain your research trajectory, teaching philosophy, mentorship experience and style, and your current licensure status or eligibility for licensure in the state in which you are applying. Questions often begin with the directive of “Tell us about yourself,” and often include a question about why the candidate is interested in the specific institution and program. Practice a clear and brief introduction and prepare your best “canned” answers to common questions. Practice, practice, and practice providing very concise answers!
- Prepare Questions for the Committee: Show genuine interest in the position with a list of thoughtful questions (e.g., collaboration opportunities, practicum sites, support for research, or how the program engages with local schools and communities, and their timeline for the next steps in their job search).
- Set Up Your Tech & Space: Test your internet connection, camera, mic, and sound quality. Find a quiet location where you can complete the interview (in your home or otherwise). Choose a neutral background with good lighting (there are plenty of guides out there on how to present yourself favorably in an online presence, so at this point, become an expert!). Develop a backup plan in case your first choice of technology does not work (desktop, laptop, tablet, or phone). Have a copy of your CV, the job ad, and your list of questions for them nearby.
- Check your Time Zones and Sign on Early: If you applied broadly to jobs in different parts of the country, the search committee may be in a different time zone than you. Double and triple-check the time zone for the interview time slot, so you show up at the right time. Be prepared to sign on a few minutes early so you are ready when the committee wants to admit you into the virtual meeting.
During the Virtual Interview
- Pay Attention to Virtual Etiquette: Greet the committee, maintain eye contact (look at the camera, not the screen), make sure your background is clear of distractions, mute when not speaking (if it’s a panel), and pause before answering in case of a lag.
- “Embrace the Awkward” – Online interviews can feel scripted and unnatural. The committee may have a standard set of identical questions that they must ask everyone. Accept the discomfort, do not forget to smile, and avoid rushing. Use the time to elaborate with examples and anecdotes that show your strengths. If you can, enter the interview anticipating that you will need to show ample flexibility and patience because there may be technical problems that you cannot prevent.
- It’s Time to Shine: You’ve prepared for the typical questions. Make sure to highlight your fit, share your “academic story”, and ask your questions with confidence! Remember that time is limited, so you want to be concise in your responses while leaving the committee with 3-5 takeaways that will make you stand out.
- Express Enthusiasm: Thank the committee for their time and reiterate one or two reasons you’re excited about the role.
After the Virtual Interview
- Follow Up Immediately: Send a concise thank-you email highlighting a specific part of the conversation that stood out to you. Keep the message brief, express appreciation for the opportunity, and email each person who participated.
Our senior contributors, Drs. Bray, Chafouleas, and Floyd also shared some helpful general suggestions for those applying to school psychology faculty positions in the current academic context.
General Advice for Success in the Job Search
- Be Open and Apply Broadly: If your situation allows, apply to positions broadly to increase your chances of success. Avoid limiting yourself geographically (if possible) and consider post-doctoral positions as well. Be open to a variety of possible positions, even if they do not match your ideal position exactly. Your first job is not always your last, so get the experience in creative ways.
- Tailor Your Job Materials to Match their Criteria: Very carefully attend to the position criteria in the job announcement, both the required and preferred qualifications, and align your materials with what the committee is looking for. The committee members may be reviewing many applications with limited available time, so make your job materials easy to follow. Clearly explain and showcase your research, teaching and mentorship, and service accomplishments thus far.
- Demonstrate Your Future Potential: Make sure your materials reflect a strong trajectory – it’s not just what you have already done but the promise that you hold for long-term success.
- Prepare for Uncertainty and Some Disappointment: Many of us who have spent most of our careers as university professors can attest to this period being one of unprecedented changes and uncertainty. Job applicants should consider that university leaders may be feeling something akin to inverted reality right now. Our standard scripts for communicating with applicants and our expectations for new faculty when they join us may have recently been revised—or we have yet to articulate those revisions because we don’t know what is ahead for us. Furthermore, some standard interview questions that we have asked for years (e.g., “What are some of your contributions to DEI efforts?”) may now be prohibited by state laws and federal guidelines. Faculty members may appear evasive in answering candidates’ questions about their institutions because they truly do not know what those answers are currently or what they are likely to be in the near future.
- Be Optimistic and Trust that You (and Higher Education) Have Versatility: The key question when deciding on the next phase of your career is to ask what priorities are most important to you at this time. The act of securing the job, committing, and settling into some new roles is the key feature of an early career. Then, you can determine if you have the well-balanced life you want, and you can potentially re-prioritize and shift to a new setting and some new roles at a later point. Your broad school psychology skill set will allow for that. Universities certainly provide numerous opportunities for career growth and for changing one’s focus within that setting across time. Even during this challenging period for higher education, it is important to remember that universities are highly malleable and adaptive institutions. With time, they will adjust to changing conditions. We feel confident that university faculty positions will continue to offer rewarding careers for many future generations of scholars in school psychology.