There is a common notion that among academics that serving on a search committee is a whole lot less satisfying that say, giving a talk in Aspen or making a new discovery at the laboratory bench. But this isn’t always true. Yesterday our search committee got together to make some key decisions in one of our faculty searches and–even though the meeting was 2 hours long–it was an absolute pleasure. Why?
For one thing, most of us have been colleagues for years. There is an easy going professional friendship that allows for humor, yet at the same time manifests a group open-mindedness.
Secondly, we have an incredible set of candidates. There are folks who, among themselves, have published in the likes of Cell, Nature, Neuron and the like, who come with existing NIH grants in hand, and whose research statements are both well-written and frankly intriguing. Growing your faculty becomes enjoyable when the prospects are for great new colleagues.
Finally, with a computer plugged into a powerpoint projector, we were able to call up CV’s, letters and the like and read them together, with ease.
Jim
Discoverers and Discoveries 