Monday, September 1, 2008

Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy!!

A new job-search year is upon us! Welcome Back to some, and Greetings to others!

This site is modeled after the successful sociology job search "blog. The current iteration of this can be found here, but for a full year's version (2007-2008) go here.


Because of the problem of wiki vandalism a password-protected Classics page has been established here:

Classics Wiki 2008-2009

In order to access this wiki you must be a member, so an account has been established which everybody can use, anonymously. The log-in email is:

classicswiki@gmail.com

The password is the first phrase commented upon by Austin in his Little Red Oxford commentary on the sixth book. Enter this two word phrase as oneword. If you would prefer to open a WikiDot account of your own, and would like access to the Classics Wiki hosted there, the password to gain access is the same.

********

In order to encourage as many voices as possible this site will be completely driven by the comments sections. It will only be as useful (and civilized) as you all make it. We would suggest that you sign up for a Blogger ID so that you can edit your comments (and later delete them if need arises) and so that people will be able to respond to your anonymous online persona rather than a series of "anonymous" posts. Just a thought.

Do not list names on this site. As hires are announced in the spring the wiki will be filled in by those made offers, and who are willing to post such information on the wiki. Any comments which reveal names, directly or indirectly by posting TMI will be deleted post-haste.

Most importantly, please, please, please maintain a supportive and helpful environment! Applicants and Search Committees are all in this together, even though it often does not feel that way. This process is brutal enough without exacerbating it by impugning the methods and motives of others. Remember, we are all present and future colleagues. Let's live up to our current reputation (scroll down about a third of the way) as model academic citizens! For some serious academic job-market snark, however, we suggest you direct the eyeballs to this blog, of which we are, curiously enough, devoted fans.

This space was created as a way for information sharing, not as a platform for launching unsubstantiated and slanderous rumors. Humor is good. Good-natured kvetching is good. Helping each other out with tips is great, and getting well-informed and well-intentioned advice from those who have gone through this wringer is truly awesome. We can all learn a great deal from each other, applicants and non-applicants alike, but only if we strive to maintain a thoughtful and graceful conversation. We should continue to discuss difficult and challenging topics, but let us try to do so in a way that shows respect for our audience and a humble regard for our own place within it!

In boca al' lupo, Quirites!

(a send-off left by an anonymous poster that is too good not to plagiarize)


Sincerely Yours,
Servius, Servia, and Donatus