Faculty Development: A non-traditional career pathway in academia, USA

Abstract: This talk intends to share a non-traditional career pathway to help fresh PhD students, faculty who consider changing their tracks, or professionals outside academia who are interested in a position in academia. In this talk, I will share a non-traditional career pathway in academia in USA I have been through. In the past twelve years, I always have dual appointments as a faculty member and an admin either in academia or at a federal agency. By choice, I started working as a tenure-track Assistant Professor and the Director of Engineering Programs later the Founding Department Chair just after I received my PhD. Eight years later, I was selected as a Program Director at the National Science Foundation (NSF) for about three years. I gave up my tenure after I rotated out of the NSF and joined Northeastern University in Arlington, VA as a Full Teaching Professor and Campus Director on behalf of Khoury College of Computer Sciences.

 Several key points in this talk: 

1. the pros and cons of having a dual appointment in academia at three faculty rankings— assistant, associate and full;
2. reflections on working experiences at a federal grant agency leading STEM education and STEM education research;
3. observations as an officer/board member/volunteer of various professional societies— IEEE Educational Activities Board, IEEE Education Society, ABET, ACM and ASEE. 

This talk intends to plant some seeds for those who want to change but still hesitate to change with concerns, those who do not know what others have been doing on a non-tenure track, and those who have not thought out of the box.