Is not life a thousand times too short for us to bore ourselves?  ~ Friedrich Nietzche

Resources for Humanities Ph.D.s who are...
Exploring career options
Job searching
Struggling with the stress of your career change and/or job search

If you are asking what career options you have with your masters or Ph.D.:

WRK4US, through Duke University, has transcribed discussions about careers that are typically attractive to those in the humanities. 

Excellent books include:

• Outside the Ivory Tower: A Guide for Academics Considering Alternative Careers by Margaret Newhouse
• So What Are You Going to Do With That?: A Guide for M.A.'s and Ph.D.'s Seeking Careers Outside the Academy by Sue Basalla and Maggie Debelius

Also check out the Chronicle of Higher Education’s page on Where To Find Information on Nonacademic Careers at http://chronicle.com/jobs/2001/04/2001040604c.htm

If you are trying to decide what you want in your career:

Any career exploration book is fine, so just go to your local library or bookstore and find one that you think you will enjoy.  Some that I especially like are:

• Finding the Work You Love by Laurence Boldt
• Doing Work You Love: Discovering Your Purpose and Realizing Your Dreams by Cheryl Gilman
• Finding Your North Star by Martha Beck
• I Could Do Anything if I Only Knew What It Was by Barbara Sher

http://www.authentichappiness.org has a free “signature strengths survey”

If you are researching a career that is potentially of interest to you:

Road Trip Nation by Nathan Gebhard and Mike Marriner describes the enthusiastic project undertaken by two Pepperdine graduates who wanted to talk to interesting people about their careers. It has excellent advice about how to interview professionals for information, and I especially like the “how we landed the interview”notes.  The book is primarily targeted toward college students but relevant for anyone.  There is a related web site at http://www.roadtripnation.com

http://www.rileyguide.com/atoz.html is an excellent starting place to get links related to almost any career field.

The University of Virginia’s web site has an excellent article about informational interviews.  If you don’t know what an informational interview is, definitely read it, and don’t be thrown off by the term “networking.” (http://www.career.virginia.edu/students/resources/handouts/networking.pdf)

If you are trying to be more effective in your academic job search, I recommend:

• The Curriculum Vitae Handbook: Using Your CV to Present and Promote Your Academic Career by R. Anthony and G. Roe
• The MLA Guide to the Job Search: A Handbook for Departments for PhDs and PhD Candidates in English and Foreign Languages by E. Showalter, H. Figler, L. Klezter, J. Schuster and S. Katz
• Cracking the Academia Nut: A Guide to Preparing for Your Academic Career by Margaret Newhouse
• Job Search in Academe: Strategic Rhetorics for Faculty Job Candidates by Dawn M. Formo and Cheryl Reed
• The Academic Job Search Handbook by Mary Morris Heiberger and Julia Miller Vick
• The Chronicle of Higher Education’s career advice articles (this section does not require a subscription) are available at http://chronicle.com/jobs/archive/advicearch.htm

If you are starting your job search (outside the tenure track):

First, you need to understand that job searches outside academia are in some ways quite different!  Fewer jobs are advertised. Hiring may happen through a recruiter or an individual manager.  Hiring may or may not have a clear yearly cycle.  Richard Bolles’ chapters on job searching in What Color is Your Parachute are a must read.   He also has a web site with extremely useful information http://www.jobhuntersbible.com

To get some sense of job search basics, there are many good books available such as Job Hunting for Dummies by Max Messmer or Work It by Allison Hemming. Also check out the Riley Guide’s job search advice at http://www.rileyguide.com/  Of special note are the articles about how to use the Internet effectively in your search http://www.rileyguide.com/jobsrch.html and  sites to support your relevant research http://www.rileyguide.com/jsresearch.html

If you have been job searching without success:

See my article on assessing the effectiveness of your current job search. 

You may also need to talk through your job search strategies with one or more people who are effective at and knowledgeable about job searching.  You may simply be doing everything effectively in a market (like academia) where there is intense competition so that plenty of well qualified candidates don’t get positions quickly.  On the other hand, you may be making some mistakes and not realizing it. 

If you are feeling confused by the options, demoralized by the academic job market, angry about your current career, or overwhelmed by the mere thought of doing something new:

You may want to consider counseling with a licensed LPC, LCSW, or psychologist if you feel that your emotions and struggles are hampering you.  There should be many therapists listed in your local phone book. If you currently have a job, consider Employee Assistance Programs.  Students should all have access to student counseling services.  If you live near a university, there may be free counseling offered as part of a counselor education program.  You can also contact the local United Way for a list of counseling providers (likely agencies instead of those in private practice).

If you are having these feelings in a more manageable way, coaching may be especially useful for you.  Other helpful possibilities include finding a career change partner for moral support or getting a few wise friends to be on your personal advisory board.

Information may also help you!  Read about what others have done in WRK4US or the Chronicle of Higher Education. 

Women may find Paula J. Caplan’s book helpful - Lifting a Ton of Feathers: A Woman's Guide for Surviving in the Academic World.  I also recommend This Fine Place So Far From Home:Voices of Academics from the Working Class(Dews, C.L.B. and Law, C.L., Eds.) for those who feel like outsiders in academia.