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	<title>Love of History &#187; administration</title>
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	<link>http://loveofhistory.com</link>
	<description>A historical perspective of current events</description>
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		<title>How to become a happy Academic</title>
		<link>http://loveofhistory.com/how-to-become-a-happy-academic/</link>
		<comments>http://loveofhistory.com/how-to-become-a-happy-academic/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 18 Jul 2010 12:21:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[constantinakatsari]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Opinions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[academic job]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[administration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[happiness]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://constantinakatsari.wordpress.com/?p=658</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The majority of academics in several different countries keep complaining about the quality of their lives. In all fairness, being an academic is not a small feat. The constant demands on our free time (if any of it is left), the ever increasing number of publications we should produce, the intense effort to enhance the cognitive abilities of our students, the regular trips abroad and, last but not least, the low quality of cafeteria food are the main factors for becoming discontented with our jobs. Evidence of a general unhappiness is visible almost everywhere. Despite our wildest hopes, the system will not change in the near future. So, what is there to be done? For the past few months I have been thinking about the problem and I came up with one very simple solution. Let us all pretend that we are on holidays every time we enter the department! Imagine that your office is a bungalow by the sea. In fact, buy a cd that simulates the waves of the ocean. Block your window with a poster that shows an exotic location. Since in the UK the quality of light is very low, you will not be missing anything. Alternatively, buy a few flowers and pretend that you are sitting in a beautiful garden. Remove from your doors all the “Do Not Disturb” signs. Let your colleagues and students enter your office freely. And, then, pretend that they are old friends. Have a chat about their interests, share your latest information on Roman excavations or arrange for another meeting after the weekly seminar. Buy some cookies and offer tea in order to add to the experience. Visit the administrator’s office in order to share the latest news (gossip). Every time you receive an urgent email from another colleague, just remember that they are poor stressed academics who cannot enjoy their jobs as much as you do. Help them find happiness in their lives by showing how excited you are about your work. When you are trying to keep up with the administration, pretend that you are just solving another puzzle. There is no point in getting irritated about it. After all, it is just a game! And then, maybe, the atmosphere will change. There will be no need for holidays because every day will be a holiday. Academics will shave off their long (imaginary) beards and, hence, they will look less old, less serious and less unhappy. This is the strategy I will follow the new academic year. Wish me luck!]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>Seven Requirements to get an Academic Job.</title>
		<link>http://loveofhistory.com/seven-requirements-to-get-an-academic-job/</link>
		<comments>http://loveofhistory.com/seven-requirements-to-get-an-academic-job/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 07 Jan 2010 08:14:55 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[constantinakatsari]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[How to get a job]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[academic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[administration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[funding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[jobs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[publications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[requirements]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[teaching]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://constantinakatsari.wordpress.com/?p=101</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Ancient Historians are struggling to get their first post after they finish the PhD. The qualified candidates are too many, while the available jobs are always scant. In a previous article I insisted that the one prerequisite for getting a placement in a university is that the applicant should be a “good fit”. Even if this is essentially true for all cases, we should not forget that the competition is stiff and that the prospective candidates should meet also a set of other requirements. 1)      Publish or perish! Although this rule is not a strict prerogative, it would be advisable that the applicant has already published a couple of reviews and a couple of articles. The most prestigious the journal, the more chances s/he has to be noticed. Publishing in edited collections is also acceptable, if the editor is a well known scholar. 2)      In addition, a contract with a university press to publish the thesis could be very helpful. Be careful not to get contracts with vanity presses! They can do more harm than good! 3)      Teaching experience is a must. A few lectures as a visiting scholar, or a tutorial as a PhD student may prove your abilities as a teacher and give you adequate experience that will allow you to face the burden of full time teaching later. 4)      You need to prove that you can network and organize events. Therefore, you should volunteer to co-organize the Ancient History or Classics Seminar in your department, in which you can invite scholars from other universities. Alternatively, you should co-organize a conference on a topic of your choice. If all goes well, you may even manage to put together an edited volume. 5)      The ability to raise funds is probably one of the most important assets you can exhibit. Any type of scholarships, grants or fellowships you acquired over the years should be highlighted. Departments are especially interested in candidates who can bring regular revenue; thus compensating for their salary. Excellent scholars tend to underestimate the power of money and focus only on their publication record. I am certain, though, that hiring committees will take a different view. Do not forget that universities are also business organizations with annual budgets, accountants and managers. 6)      In the current climate you will need to prove your ability to become a competent administrator. Once you have acquired a permanent post in any university, you will be asked to perform administrative tasks. These may involve compiling grades, or organizing the teaching schedule, or arranging for exchanges with the Erasmus program, or coordinating modules, or…. anything really. As the amount of time we spend administering the department increases, so do the job requirements. Therefore, if you manage to hold a part time job as a clerk or administrator in any organization (even for the briefest of times), it will be considered an asset. 7)      In addition to the above, you will need to develop a pleasant personality to match your new position in life. A long list of publications is not the only prerogative to get the much desired post. You will definitely need excellent communication skills, a charming disposition and an ease in making new friends. In order to achieve this you should stop reading blogs, stop commenting on facebook photos and abstain from your continuous string of tweets. Get out of the house and go to the nearest pub! As most academics are also perfectionists, I should offer a word of caution. Try not to get overqualified, while you attempt to meet the above requirements. If you end up having more publications than your future Head of Department or you gain more grants than senior scholars, you will probably be rejected.]]></description>
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		<item>
		<title>Academic Administration. Good or Evil?</title>
		<link>http://loveofhistory.com/academic-administration-good-or-evil/</link>
		<comments>http://loveofhistory.com/academic-administration-good-or-evil/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 07 Dec 2009 18:59:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[constantinakatsari]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Opinions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[academic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[administration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[meditation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[procrastination]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://constantinakatsari.wordpress.com/?p=29</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Don’t you just love administration? And I do not mean “like”. I mean absolutely loving every minute you spend in front of your computer, downloading forms, filling them up and then sending them off to cyberspace. Did you ever wish you had more administrative tasks to complete? Did you ever look back at your long and arduous day hoping that you had one more report to fill before you went to bed? I know I did. No I am not perverse. I just came up with the perfect solution to a very difficult problem. I started to use administration the same way I use meditation. The benefits of meditation are well known. There are several studies indicating the part of the brain they affect. By now, we understand fairly well how meditation slows the brain, clarifies the thoughts, helps us focus on the “here and now” and balances the emotions. In effect, it empties the mind from unwanted negative thoughts and gives new meaning to life. I cannot possibly support the theory that administration benefits us in exactly the same way as meditation. However, I can inform you that it has one similar effect. It empties the brain. The past few years I noticed that every time I fill a new form or write down a complicated report my brain stops functioning in its full capacity. In the beginning I felt frustrated. As time passed by, though, I learned how to use this effect to its full advantage. By now, when I want to rest from the demanding article I write or the dissertation I am correcting, I turn to the most tedious administrative task that is pending. Within minutes any clever forthcoming thoughts die on the spot. Another way to use administration is as a meaningful form of procrastination. When the ultimate theoretical model eludes me, when the trip to the library in Cambridge or London seems way to long, when writing does not flow, I need to procrastinate. Nevertheless, procrastination allows feelings of guilt to arise. Unless, of course, I occupy myself with something productive. And what can be more productive than administrative work? It immediately boosts my self esteem, I become more confident and definitely happier. And when I am happy, I spread joy to the world. I become the perfect colleague, friend and confidant. In fact, sometimes outside my office door you will even see the sign “Please Disturb”. So, I have one advice to the vice chancellors of the world who suggest that academics should undertake more administration: By all means, give as more! As soon as procrastination becomes our best friend, as soon as our brain cells become dead, we will fully qualify for the highest echelons of the British Academia.]]></description>
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