Interview Questions

Below are lists of questions frequently asked in academic interviews.   No one candidate will be asked all of these questions; however, one should always be prepared.

Research Questions

• Tell us about your research.
• How did you select your topic?
• What audience/s are you addressing?
• How does your work engage others in the field (e.g. relative to a hot, recent book or article.  Are you on the cutting edge?)
• What is the value of your work to an educated person outside the field?
• What methods did you use?
• What theoretical approaches have had the most influence on you?
• How much of your dissertation is completed?  If incomplete, give a solid completion plan.
• How will you revise your dissertation for publication?
• What publishers do you think may be interested?
• What journals best suit your work?
• What are the limitations of your work?  Use this as an opportunity to discuss where your research may be headed.
• What’s your next project/research plan?
• What resources will you need?  Start-up costs?  Space?  What are your plans for securing funding to support your research?  (Especially important for major research institutions.)
• What do you think of X’s work?

Teaching Questions

• What is your teaching philosophy?
• What would you like to teach?  Think of the department’s needs as well as your interests.
• Which of our courses are you prepared to teach?
• What is your dream course?  Think both practically and creatively—something that would fit with the department’s standard course offerings and something that shows your innovative flair.  Size?  Level?  Course goals?  Methods?  Graduate/undergraduate?
• What books would you use to teach X?  Are they in print?  Which textbook would you choose for X?
• How do you address diversity in your courses?  Diverse ways of learning?
• How do you motivate students who think the topic is boring? In your X basic service course, what three lessons of lasting value would non-majors come away with?
• How will you adapt your research to provide opportunities for undergraduate research (especially in the sciences)?
• What experience do you have in an environment like ours?
• How has your research influenced your teaching?
• Tell us about your most difficult teaching situation and how you handled it.
• How do you feel about mentoring and advising?
• How would you encourage students to major in X?

General Questions (think “fit”)

• Why are you interested in our institution?
• What do you consider the proper balance between research and teaching?
• How do you see yourself enhancing our department (specific) and institution (general)?
• How will you make the transition from a research institution to a small school?
• What kind of service would you expect to be engaged in?
• What specifically would you like to address in your professional development?
• If you get more than one job offer, how will you decide? Our mission is X (say, at a denominational or single sex institution).  How would you contribute to that and to our community?
• Our students aren’t as academically gifted as the students at U.Va.  How do you feel about that?
• What extra-academic activities would you like to participate in (for small schools)?
• How do you feel about:
• Teaching adult students?  All women?  Evening courses, etc.?  This is where knowing about the students comes in handy.
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?  Think in terms of the job description.
• (Toward the end of the interview) What do you think of us?

Also be prepared for icebreakers and random questions that may arise, especially in social situations, such as:

• What do you do in your spare time?
• What do you think about the war in Iraq?
• Who is the new provost at U.Va.?
• What’s all this I hear about U.Va.’s capital campaign?

U.Va. is one of the country’s premier universities, and you may be as close to it as interested interviewers will get.  Staying current on U.Va. news can pay off by enabling you to come across as an informed citizen of your academic community.

Handling Illegal and Inappropriate Questions

According to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, interview questions are illegal if they pertain to an applicant's gender, race, color, religion, age, disability, family or marital status, or national origin.  Examples of the sort of questions you should not be asked are:

• Where were you born? What is your native language?
• Are you a US citizen?  (It is legal to ask if you are authorized to work in the US).
• How old are you?
• Are you married?  How many children do you have?
• Do you have any disabilities?  (It is legal to ask if you are able to perform the functions of the job).

That being said, some people may ask illegal or inappropriate questions, especially in social contexts, and you are certainly free to volunteer information that would be illegal for an employer to request from you.  If people ask you illegal or inappropriate questions, it is best to react calmly and politely, and respond in a way that addresses the concerns they may have without necessarily giving them the specific information they are fishing for, unless you are comfortable doing so.  You are well within your rights to refuse to answer a question, but remember that people are human—and this might not win them over.  Graceful dodging, on the other hand, can allay worries and even impress.

Questions You May Ask

Asking questions during an interview shows interest and preparedness, and interviewers will usually incorporate time for your questions into the interview session.  Having no questions at that point looks very bad, so you should be prepared.  Use this opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge of the institution/department, play to your strengths, and gather information.  Avoid questions that may come across as confrontational.  Questions that refer to information you have gained during the interview will reflect your attentiveness and interest, thus scoring points.  Perhaps you learned about a program that particularly interests you and you would like to know more.  Below is a sampling of questions you may wish to ask:

• How does the department (and institution) define a good faculty member?  Very important!
• Is this a new or a replacement position?  If new, how does it factor into the department’s larger plans?
• What support is available to junior faculty for research and conferences?
• How would you describe your students?
• What role/s do faculty play outside the classroom/research?  Service?  On average, how many hours per week are devoted to committee work?
• What does the department or campus do to orient new faculty members?
• Does the campus or department have formal faculty mentoring programs?  Informal mentoring?
• How would you describe the culture of your department/college/campus?
• Why do you enjoy working here?
• What are the biggest challenges facing the campus and/or department?
• Are faculty evaluated annually?  What is the evaluation process like here?  How is promotion and tenure handled?
• What is the process for tenure?  Does family/maternity leave affect the clock?  How are faculty evaluated? 
• What is the department’s tenure rate?  What is the percentage of assistant professors in the department who have obtained tenure?
• What are the teaching responsibilities, course load?
• How much freedom would I have in designing a survey course?  What requirements (major, general education, graduate) would my courses need to fulfill?
• Are there opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration?
• In what direction is the institution headed (for the dean)?  How do you envision the department five years from now (for the department)?
• Does your department/institution collaborate with others in the area?
• What formal and informal structures are there for faculty to interact?
• Describe the ideal assistant professor's first year.
• Describe the community.
• What is your timeline for making a decision in this search?  They will usually tell you, but if they don’t, feel free to ask.

 

Refrain from asking questions about salary and benefits during the interview.  Doing so may be seen as presumptuous.  It is also best to respond evasively if someone asks you about your salary requirements.  Postpone such discussions until you have an offer, at which point the negotiation process begins.