Preparing Future Faculty
Information for Potential Participants
What the PFF program offers participants
"I cannot imagine trying to begin an academic job without having PFF. Through seminars, mentoring, and teaching, the program exposed me to so many different aspects of the academic community that I would have never even considered without it."
- Ph.D. student in Chemistry, ISU
"All along, I thought I knew what it takes to be a successful faculty professor. But I had it all wrong. PFF has enabled me to understand [faculty life] much better and is equipping me with a litany of skills to make my faculty life more manageable."
- Master's student in Family and Consumer Science, ISU
Recent research shows that many new faculty are unprepared for the demands of an academic career. The PFF program addresses this problem by offering you the following benefits:
- Increased practical teaching information and opportunities. PFF’s focus on teaching can give you the credentials and the confidence you need to face a competitive academic job market.
- Additional information on the balance of research, teaching, and service at various types of higher education institutions. This information can better prepare you to deal with the competing demands of a faculty position.
- Additional mentoring, with a tenure-track faculty member of your choice. PFF mentoring supplements the research mentoring you receive from your major professor and gives you the opportunity to build a new professional relationship.
- Seminars and workshops in such diverse topics as grant and proposal writing, intellectual property, learning styles, employment research, and promotion and tenure. This course work can help you develop a more comprehensive view of today’s academic workplace.
- Current job search information. PFF provides speakers and other resources on the job search and critiques of your job letter and vita.
- Enhanced placement information. PFF gives you opportunities to work with groups of diverse institutions with different student populations and a wide range of institutional expectations to help you make decisions about the kind of institution that is right for you.
- A strong interdisciplinary professional network. The connections you make both with Iowa State PFF participants and at partner institutions can benefit you in your career.
Perhaps most importantly, since the PFF program is widely known among academic institutions, participants who complete the associate, fellow, and scholar levels will receive credentials valuable in the academic marketplace. In short, PFF can help you get a faculty position and begin that position at a higher performance level. The program can provide you with the documentation future employers may require, including transcript notations, explanatory letters for your portfolio or dossier, and letters of recommendation from your mentors.
