ABSTRACT

This engaging collection of recent essays reveals how a professorial career involves not only pursuit of a scholarly discipline but also such unwelcome features as the tribulations of graduate school, the trials of teaching, and the tensions that develop from membership in a department. The author, who enjoyed a distinguished career as a professor of philosophy and senior university administrator, draws on his extensive experience to offer candid advice about handling the frustrations of academic life. Combining philosophical principles, practical concerns, and personal observations, this book serves as a reliable guide for both new and veteran academics as well as for anyone seeking to understand the inner workings of colleges and universities.

part I|25 pages

Graduate School

chapter Chapter 1|5 pages

Orientation

chapter Chapter 2|4 pages

Choosing a Dissertation Topic

chapter Chapter 3|3 pages

The Hidden Curriculum

chapter Chapter 4|5 pages

Preparing Graduate Students to Teach

chapter Chapter 5|3 pages

Why Graduate Schools Don’t Have Reunions

part II|42 pages

Teaching

chapter Chapter 6|3 pages

Caring about Students

chapter Chapter 7|3 pages

Teaching All the Students

chapter Chapter 8|7 pages

How Teachers Succeed

chapter Chapter 9|6 pages

Teaching and Testing

chapter Chapter 10|7 pages

Teaching and Grading

chapter Chapter 11|3 pages

Improving Teaching

chapter Chapter 12|6 pages

Evaluating Teaching

part III|33 pages

Departments

chapter Chapter 13|4 pages

Departmental Life

chapter Chapter 14|6 pages

Faculty Appointments

chapter Chapter 15|9 pages

The Ambiguities of Affirmative Action

chapter Chapter 16|2 pages

Departmental Voting

chapter Chapter 17|4 pages

Interviewing Candidates

chapter Chapter 18|5 pages

Tenure and Academic Freedom

part IV|18 pages

Finale

chapter Chapter 19|3 pages

Expressing Gratitude

chapter Chapter 20|12 pages

My Early Years in Academia