Preparing Future Faculty

Another good commentary about finding out what your purpose is, what your priorities are and the importance of asserting them. I would also suggest taking a look at some of the comments people have left, they have some good thoughts as well as some perspective from people in academia and their thoughts on the piece.

This article details personal accounts on how professors manage their work and life.

Dr. Anne-Marie Slaughter gives her rationale on work-life balance.

Work-life balance is possible for educators.

Portfolio of research (research output and citations); again, the program's website but more of a research emphasis with no inclusion of teaching

Dr. Laprade's ePortfolio - a bit flowery but robust in terms of her teaching experience and philosophy

Dr. Foreman's faculty webpage but includes components you'd expect on a personal site (service, teaching philosophy, etc.)

So here is an example of a research website, where research is the priority. Probably not somewhere I will be heading professionally but it is interesting to see the various ways ePortfolios/websites are presented based on interests/priorities.

This is someone who isn't exactly in my field but it's a branch of my field and he has a pretty thorough website

This is an example of a website for one of the professors in my field, as you can see research is quite important!

Portfolio of a well-known academic in the PT field.

A less well-known academic PT, but she teaches for a well-known program-- NYU.

Here is a young assistant professor at University of Pitt -- the top ranked PT program in the US. She is also completing her PhD currently and teaching.

This definitely strikes a chord, its one of those things I was told I had to choose between if I wanted to go for my PhD: family or career- and by female faculty members! I won't spoil the article, but I agree- babies do matter in the academic career of women.

So this is a TED talk- very interesting perspective. I have been listening and reading to different ideas of how this work/life balance isn't something we need to achieve, that it is not achievable, or practical for that matter. But by accepting that "off-balance" with a purpose and direction is reality and is how you achieve success then you will be more successful in the areas of your life that is important to you. It is all about your purpose. It an interesting idea- I wonder what people think...

A great article explaining why many women have to choose between tenure and children. It also has the Statement of Principles on Family Responsibilities and Academic Work by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP).

"You'll spot that I haven't mentioned 'work-life balance'. I don't believe in it. There are only 24 hours in a day, and it's all my life. My work is my life, my home is my life, my family is my life and my addiction to mid-century Belgian ceramics on eBay is also my life."

I am certainly interested in having children while I pursue a career in academia. I enjoyed this article because it was a refreshing departure from the usual negativity associated with the topic. Obviously being a parent and an academic are not mutually exclusive titles, so here's someone who talks about how she does it!

Good links to evidence that working too much has negative health outcomes, taking time off has positive health and productivity outcomes "Work-life balance: what do professors do?" by this blogger is another good post.

I have the PDF of this if anyone is interested. Individuals who work longer hours, perceive less job-based support for work/family issues, have spouses who demonstrate less support for career goals, and who are less satisfied with day care arrangements report greater levels of work and family stress. Women reported greater academic and family stress and perceptions of less institutional support for balance of work and family as compared to men.

This is a good broad example for a health sciences program.

Interesting use of ePortfolio, included links to examples of her presentations or links to pertinent articles; maybe a bit long but I think this is really engaging

Most of the ones I looked up were realively bland for my field, but I liked the way Dr. Laprade designed her website and presented her teaching philosophy