The Interfolio Blog

While you donâ??t need to be an economist to understand the severe impacts of todayâ??s recession on the American job market, the numbers are staggering.  The January unemployment rate has risen to 7.6%, an increase of .8% from November 2008, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  While millions of Americans worry about the rising cost of tuition, universities and colleges nationwide worry about how to pay professors, and have often resorted to placing hiring freezes on all departments, and even trimming research and tenure positions. With the economic stimulus plan now signed into law, higher education will see some relief, but will likely experience further tightening.  As the job market continues to be a legitimate concern for many academic professionals, what can you do as a professor and faculty member to prove your value and maintain your position?  And how can job seekers in higher education differentiate themselves from other candidates? In a recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Jeffery Young discusses the use of technology as a burgeoning differentiator among faculty members, and introduces the idea of online course management systems at public institutions, citing specific examples from University of Maryland, Baltimore County.  The university operates the system to help track each teacherâ??s utilization of online tools and materials, and has drawn distinct correlations between a professor's effective use of technology, and the positive feedback received by students. Those professors using online tools like Blackboard and other course management systems, keeping students involved in online collaboration projects or using technology to tie outside sources into class work have received markedly better marks in student engagement, responsiveness, and overall satisfaction with the course.  While Young doesn't argue that efficient use of technology means one teacher is necessarily better than the next, he does note that it certainly indicates sharper foresight and may likely be the direction many schools move toward in tracking the work of their faculty and determining the value of their work at the institution.  Online teaching tools and other technologies allow not only greater interaction between faculty and students,  but also greater accountability to departments, curriculum requirements and student feedback.  The educators that are able to seamlessly adapt with the changes in technology will likely be the teachers that are still employed over the next decade.  And even if you are one of those technologically savvy that is unfortunately let go, you will be in a much better position to network and ultimately impress in your next interview, as much of your work and feedback will be collected online and can be used to demonstrate your success in previous positions. This argument doesnâ??t extend to just teachers.  An employer will look highly upon someone who recognizes the direction of our marketplace and isnâ??t afraid to adjust to its changes.  Technology can be used to not only distribute and share content with others, but also to collect, organize and store your own personal material.   To those unemployed? Same argument applies. Imagine interviewing for a position where hypothetically, there are only two candidates still battling for the job.  Regardless of the industry or position, if you can prove to that employer that you have a keen understanding of the direction of the marketplace and technology, you are significantly more likely to land that job. The advice here isnâ??t necessarily to become a tech geek.  But instead, embrace the technological tools that lie in front of you, and use them to differentiate yourself from those that donâ??t.