Morning all. The media news of the week is that I'm doing a Guardian Higher Education live chat on Surviving Your First Academic Job. I'll post the link when I know it, and you can all submit your burning questions.
I'm still in my first academic job, I suppose. Not for want of trying to get a second one, I hasten to add. I started teaching as soon as I began my PhD, and did something in every semester: English, Media, Sociology, Politics, History, American Studies, Theoretical Mathematics). When there wasn't much around, I did a tour of duty as a supply teacher in The Dark Place's fine secondary schools. Apart from a day spent umpiring cricket, it was a tale of unrelieved misery and shame. But that's for another day.
Now I'm in the 5th year of a series of 'temporary' contracts, 0.5 in each of two departments. How did I start teaching Media and Cultural Studies despite being a Welsh literature expert I hear you ask? Well, the former head of Media noticed me reading a newspaper. He asked me if I read one every day and when I replied in the affirmative, he offered me a job.
Yes, it's that easy. So that's something else I have to thank the Guardian for! No Guardian, no hourly-paid lecturing, no 0.5 contract, no MA lecture on blogging, no Vole! So you can thank/blame the Guardian too.
No comments:
Post a Comment