---
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title: "The Professor Is In: The Essential Guide to Turning Your PhD into a Job"
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# The Professor Is In: The Essential Guide to Turning Your PhD into a Job

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## Description

UPDATED FOR 2026 • The definitive career guide for grad students, adjuncts, post-docs, and anyone else eager to get tenure or turn their PhD into their ideal job—now refreshed with new material to equip readers for today’s job market “If you want unvarnished straight talk about the academic job market—and how to navigate it—then heed Karen Kelsky, and heed her now.”—Rebecca Schuman, education columnist for Slate Each year thousands of students earn their PhDs, but only a small percentage land a job. For every tenured professor or well-paid former academic, there are countless underpaid and overworked adjuncts, and many who simply give up in frustration. Karen Kelsky has made it her mission to help readers solve the mystery of the academic job market. As a former tenured professor and department head, and the creator of the popular and widely respected advice site TheProfessorIsIn, she has helped thousands land their dream careers. With The Professor Is In, Dr. Kelsky has poured all her best advice into a guide that addresses the most important issues facing any PhD, including: • When, where, and what to publish • Writing a foolproof grant application • Cultivating references and crafting the perfect CV • Acing the job talk and campus interview • Avoiding the adjunct trap • Making the leap to nonacademic work when the time is right The Professor Is In addresses all of these issues—and now it’s been overhauled to arm the latest generation of readers. This revised edition features updates throughout and new candid chapters on the risks of academia, the importance of making it work for you, the need to rethink the search committee, and even the possibility of life outside the Ivory Tower.

Review: Indispensable for those considering graduate school, those in it, and those who are considering leaving it (plus their mentors) - I'm an avid reader of Kelsky's blog and purchased this book fairly certain of what it would contain, My high expectations were certainly met. While the book did not contain much information that was "startlingly new," its breadth and depth earn the book its place on my bookshelf. I'm certainly happy to have all of this information in one place so that I can share chapters with colleagues, friends, and students. Kelsky has written a book designed to empower PhD students who are facing a bleak academic job market. She doesn't guarantee that her readers will earn a "coveted" tenure-track position by reading the book - nor is that her goal. Her mission is to help PhDs get a job, be it academia, alt-ac, or non-ac; and she does this by detailing what job candidates need to know about academia. The readers of her blog or columns in The Chronicle will not be surprised by this goal, nor should they be. Kelsky is an avowed advocate for PhD students and recent graduates who are struggling on the market because they need more guidance. The book is written for all academic fields, but Kelsky also calls attention to some of the dire conditions in the humanities, and how that may affect PhD candidates and job seekers. The bulk of the book focuses on preparing for jobs in academia, but it also provides information on leaving academia and finding other ways to utilize the PhD. The book is broken down into ten parts covering everything those looking at the tenure-track need to know, including types of academic institutions (R1/SLACs/R2/etc.), job market documents, offer negotiations, grant writing, and how/when/why to leave academia altogether. For those who are familiar with her blog, here are the biggest bonuses of her book: * More real-life examples from emails, letters, and in person conversations Kelsky has had over the years. * Chapter 4 details how the academic search process works from the university/department side - a land few grads may know as intimately as Kelsky explains. * Figuring out a 5-year plan and determining what issues of the minutiae of graduate school life will distract you from the goal of making your CV the strongest it can be for the job market. * Creating your “campaign platform” for the job market * More specific information on crafting your elevator speech * Key questions to prepare for in an academic interview (and how to tackle Skype and on-campus interviews) * Answers the question of what to do when you don’t feel like you belong in academia, for myriad reasons including elitism, racism, gender, sexuality, imposter syndrome, and more Most importantly for me, having all of this information in one compact book means I have a go-to present for my favorite students who giddily tell me that they want to become a professor. I don't want to discourage them like my undergraduate advisers tried to do to me, but I do want them to be well-informed about what the graduate-school-to-tenure-track life is like. I love having genuinely curious and bright students be interested in becoming a professional in my field (history), but I don't think it necessary that they see "professor" as the only meaningful way to study history or be a historian. I'm glad Kelsky has deepened my understanding of the nuances involved in mentoring students and being a student myself, as well as giving practical and thoughtful advice. On another note, the book also provides me with a good stocking-stuffer for my non-academic parents who still wonder why I’m “in school” after so many years, and why my work schedule doesn't follow the 9-5 they're used to. I may even send a copy to my adviser.
Review: Get This Book...Now - Karen Kelsky could sell this book at three times its sales price and I would still highly recommend it for future and current graduate students and their mentors. Of course, the current price, especially for the Kindle version, is just a small part of the allure of the book for impoverished graduate students like me. In "The Professor Is In," Kelsky, a former tenured professor at two research institutions, offers readers a wealth of insights from her two decades in the academy and as a member of many hiring committees. Readers will open the book to find an extensive table of contents that covers just about every conceivable aspect of the academic job market; everything from an overview of the hiring process to building a competitive record are covered. The author weaves concrete, helpful examples throughout the book. These examples are where the book makes its money and are especially pertinent in the chapters that attend to job documents, interviews and offer negotiations. It is also Kelsky's (often hilarious) examples that make the book's chapter on Outrageous Interview Questions particularly shine (as a minority graduate student, I can only imagine the effort it would take on my part to keep a straight face when asked such questions). Most important, however, is the fact that the author provides all of this insight without a saccharine view of academia. This is important given the state of the academic job market; Kelsky does not (and cannot) offer any guarantees of success. Instead, her advice, if followed, will make the reader a more attractive candidate, which, in this highly competitive market, is the best a candidate can do. It is also worth noting that the author tailors much of her advice according to the type of institution offering the job (ie., research universities vs. teaching colleges). As far as negatives go, the only one I see is that some of the book's content is derived directly from the author's blog. Considering the fact that the content on her blog is what got me interested in her book, and the derivative content is but a relatively small portion of the book, this isn't even a minor quibble for me. The initial advice on the blog was great; no need to reinvent the wheel, indeed. Also, STEM graduate students may not find this book as helpful...most STEM students I know don't desire a job in academia and, those that do, will find this to be a book geared toward grad students in the humanities. The humanities are where Kelsky's experience lies, though, so it's hard for me to find fault there. In sum, if you have any interest whatsoever in pursuing a job in academia, you must Get. This. Book. It will be my bible during my time on the market and beyond.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #42,126 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #20 in Job Interviewing (Books) #34 in Job Hunting (Books) #96 in Educational Certification & Development |
| Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 1,051 Reviews |

## Images

![The Professor Is In: The Essential Guide to Turning Your PhD into a Job - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71+3A5svsyL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Indispensable for those considering graduate school, those in it, and those who are considering leaving it (plus their mentors)
*by D***. on August 4, 2015*

I'm an avid reader of Kelsky's blog and purchased this book fairly certain of what it would contain, My high expectations were certainly met. While the book did not contain much information that was "startlingly new," its breadth and depth earn the book its place on my bookshelf. I'm certainly happy to have all of this information in one place so that I can share chapters with colleagues, friends, and students. Kelsky has written a book designed to empower PhD students who are facing a bleak academic job market. She doesn't guarantee that her readers will earn a "coveted" tenure-track position by reading the book - nor is that her goal. Her mission is to help PhDs get a job, be it academia, alt-ac, or non-ac; and she does this by detailing what job candidates need to know about academia. The readers of her blog or columns in The Chronicle will not be surprised by this goal, nor should they be. Kelsky is an avowed advocate for PhD students and recent graduates who are struggling on the market because they need more guidance. The book is written for all academic fields, but Kelsky also calls attention to some of the dire conditions in the humanities, and how that may affect PhD candidates and job seekers. The bulk of the book focuses on preparing for jobs in academia, but it also provides information on leaving academia and finding other ways to utilize the PhD. The book is broken down into ten parts covering everything those looking at the tenure-track need to know, including types of academic institutions (R1/SLACs/R2/etc.), job market documents, offer negotiations, grant writing, and how/when/why to leave academia altogether. For those who are familiar with her blog, here are the biggest bonuses of her book: * More real-life examples from emails, letters, and in person conversations Kelsky has had over the years. * Chapter 4 details how the academic search process works from the university/department side - a land few grads may know as intimately as Kelsky explains. * Figuring out a 5-year plan and determining what issues of the minutiae of graduate school life will distract you from the goal of making your CV the strongest it can be for the job market. * Creating your “campaign platform” for the job market * More specific information on crafting your elevator speech * Key questions to prepare for in an academic interview (and how to tackle Skype and on-campus interviews) * Answers the question of what to do when you don’t feel like you belong in academia, for myriad reasons including elitism, racism, gender, sexuality, imposter syndrome, and more Most importantly for me, having all of this information in one compact book means I have a go-to present for my favorite students who giddily tell me that they want to become a professor. I don't want to discourage them like my undergraduate advisers tried to do to me, but I do want them to be well-informed about what the graduate-school-to-tenure-track life is like. I love having genuinely curious and bright students be interested in becoming a professional in my field (history), but I don't think it necessary that they see "professor" as the only meaningful way to study history or be a historian. I'm glad Kelsky has deepened my understanding of the nuances involved in mentoring students and being a student myself, as well as giving practical and thoughtful advice. On another note, the book also provides me with a good stocking-stuffer for my non-academic parents who still wonder why I’m “in school” after so many years, and why my work schedule doesn't follow the 9-5 they're used to. I may even send a copy to my adviser.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Get This Book...Now
*by G***N on September 1, 2015*

Karen Kelsky could sell this book at three times its sales price and I would still highly recommend it for future and current graduate students and their mentors. Of course, the current price, especially for the Kindle version, is just a small part of the allure of the book for impoverished graduate students like me. In "The Professor Is In," Kelsky, a former tenured professor at two research institutions, offers readers a wealth of insights from her two decades in the academy and as a member of many hiring committees. Readers will open the book to find an extensive table of contents that covers just about every conceivable aspect of the academic job market; everything from an overview of the hiring process to building a competitive record are covered. The author weaves concrete, helpful examples throughout the book. These examples are where the book makes its money and are especially pertinent in the chapters that attend to job documents, interviews and offer negotiations. It is also Kelsky's (often hilarious) examples that make the book's chapter on Outrageous Interview Questions particularly shine (as a minority graduate student, I can only imagine the effort it would take on my part to keep a straight face when asked such questions). Most important, however, is the fact that the author provides all of this insight without a saccharine view of academia. This is important given the state of the academic job market; Kelsky does not (and cannot) offer any guarantees of success. Instead, her advice, if followed, will make the reader a more attractive candidate, which, in this highly competitive market, is the best a candidate can do. It is also worth noting that the author tailors much of her advice according to the type of institution offering the job (ie., research universities vs. teaching colleges). As far as negatives go, the only one I see is that some of the book's content is derived directly from the author's blog. Considering the fact that the content on her blog is what got me interested in her book, and the derivative content is but a relatively small portion of the book, this isn't even a minor quibble for me. The initial advice on the blog was great; no need to reinvent the wheel, indeed. Also, STEM graduate students may not find this book as helpful...most STEM students I know don't desire a job in academia and, those that do, will find this to be a book geared toward grad students in the humanities. The humanities are where Kelsky's experience lies, though, so it's hard for me to find fault there. In sum, if you have any interest whatsoever in pursuing a job in academia, you must Get. This. Book. It will be my bible during my time on the market and beyond.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This is truly essential. Cannot recommend enough.
*by K***E on August 7, 2015*

If you are a graduate student, considering graduate school, a faculty member, academic support, academic administration, or human; you need to read this book. The American academy is broken. I say this as one of the lucky few with a tenure track job. A system of graduate education was created in a time with circumstances that no longer exist. As Karen Kelsky explains in the opening chapters, the path to secure employment via a doctoral degree is a rocky one with a very uncertain outcome. For those that choose to pursue it, this book (and Kelsky's blog and social media profiles) provides a frank, honest, and accurate description of what it takes to get something out of the doctoral experience. Highlights: - The scope of this book could have been problematic. Yet somehow Kelsky pulled it off: covering what it takes to get a tenure track job, the job market process, and throws in some additional material on grants and leaving the academy. - The job market process chapters are incredibly detail oriented and this is a very good thing. The academic job interview is unlike anything anyone has experienced before. I'm certain this book will make interviews less scary. - Some of the chapters are elaborations on Kelsky's blog posts (some of which may not be available online anymore), but this is the minority of the content in the book. Moreover, the overarching themes and lessons of the book make the material useful, even to those that had read the blog post previously. - Kelsky is telling the ugly truth about the reality of the job market process. Yet, unlike many academic pundits, she also gives proven strategies for dealing with reality. We would all like things to be better, but until then, we have to work within the system. Kelsey gives you ways to do that. - Occasionally Kelsky's experience as an anthropologist does not resonate with my experience in a different field. Almost always Kelsky acknowledges when there are disciplinary or paradigmatic differences and suggests that the reader knows her field. This book may frighten some people. But it is absolutely essential that anyone that is a part of this process understands how this works. I read the book as a veteran of Kelsky's blog and consulting. I suspect that reading the entire book would be challenging and/or overwhelming for a young graduate student. I would suggest that an early graduate student read Part I, II, III, and IV carefully and skim the rest for familiarity. A graduate student that successfully passes exams should re-read Parts I-IV and then read V-VII carefully. Parts VIII-X are more topic-specific, but are excellent resources for any scholar. I believe that faculty should read this entire book with a goal of being better advisors and better academic community members. We all need to take responsibility for the system that currently exists and Kelsky's book (and other work) may be a good starting point for trying to resolve some of the problems - either as individuals or systematically. I sincerely hope that Kelsky can carve out time from her consulting work to write a similar book about life on the tenure track and getting tenure. Her blog posts on this topic are fantastic and I suspect that it would be a good "second project" ;) for her. We all desperately need this sort of frankness and guidance.

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