Blogging Away Debt Our Journeys to a Debt-Free Life

by Ashley

I have a friend whose son goes to the same preschool my girls are at (the Jewish Community Center) and we generally meet up once a week while the kids are at preschool so we can hit the on-site gym and catch up a bit.

So the other day we were on the treadmill and he was talking about recent job applications he put in (did I mention – he’s a friend from when I was a grad student. He was a couple years behind me so he’s just reached ABD status). Anyway, he mentions a job at my alma mater that he’d wanted to apply for but couldn’t because it requires a PhD and he’s not done yet. At first I was encouraging him to apply anyway. Maybe he can hurry and finish before the summer deadline?

But then after chatting a bit he drops this little knowledge-bomb:

Friend: You know, Ashley, I actually think you’d be really well suited to the job.

Me: Me? What do you mean???

Friend: Well, they’re looking for someone to teach (X, Y, Z) classes but the person would also be in charge of developing a lot of online material. They’re trying to get a full online bachelors program up and running, so that’d be a large portion of the position.

Me: *Blank Stare.*

Friend: Yeah, the job has been posted since May 1^st. Maybe check it out.

Me (thinking): WTF, friend?! A job that is literally PERFECT for me given my background/skills opens up and has been posted for an entire MONTH and you’re just now mentioning it all casually in conversation???

*strangles friend*

LOL! So, that’s obviously not how it really went down (the end part anyway), but I was a little shocked I didn’t know about this position earlier. I didn’t want to compete against my good friend, but after being reassured he can’t/won’t apply for the position I went home and applied the very same day.

It’s a bit of a weird thing because the last-minute nature of the position. It was posted May 1^st, they begin reviewing applications June 1^st, and the official position begins August 15^th, with the possibility of a mini-contract starting July 1^st to allow time to prepare the classes that will be taught in the Fall semester. Apparently funding came through last minute, because the timing of the position is nuts (remember how I just mentioned most of academic hiring takes place way in advance?)

At this stage in the game I basically never get my hopes up. I’ve put in sooooo many applications over the past 2 years and even had some really awesome interviews and ultimately haven’t received a single job offer. So, yeah. Not getting hopes up.

But, especially after reading the full position description – it really could not have been written more perfectly for me. Not only do I have experience teaching the exact in-person classes they want taught, but I also have extensive experience transferring in-person classes into online classes in addition to teaching online (I really only talk about the teaching part…but years ago I was on a grant and turned several in-person classes into online classes, so this is really right up my alley).

So now I can only wait and hope I get a call for an interview. Oh – and also hope the pay is decent (it’s advertised as DOE – dependent upon experience. Since it’s essentially a new position I can’t simply look up what people in comparable positions make). Given the quick timeline for hiring I assume I’ll hear pretty soon one way or another.

Fingers crossed for me, mkay???

Ashley

Hi, I’m Ashley! Arizonan on paper, Texan at heart. Lover of running, blogging, and all things cheeeeese. Freshly 40, married mother of two, working in academia. Trying to finally (finally!) pay off that ridiculous 6-digit student loan debt!