Graduate and Professional Students

Graduate and Professional Students: Preparing to Apply

When searching for potential positions, read position announcements carefully to identify what required application components need to be prepared and reviewed. Prepare these documents and have them reviewed by your advisor, a trusted mentor, peers, and/or your career consultant for feedback prior to submitting your application.

Select the topics below for more details.

A Teaching Portfolio/Dossier is an opportunity to demonstrate evidence of teaching excellence. A dossier is a curated collection of the following components:

  • Teaching Philosophy Statement
  • Evidence of Teaching (e.g., teaching materials like syllabi)
  • Teaching effectiveness (e.g., awards, evaluations, peer observation evidence, student letters of support)
  • Evidence of professional development (i.e., evidence of attending workshops, conferences, etc.)

Many faculty positions require a teaching demonstration to demonstrate instructional effectiveness. This is a critical part of an instructional/faculty job interview. You will need to demonstrate pedagogical expertise and content knowledge by delivering an engaging lesson to stakeholders at the university. Students, potential colleagues in the department, the administrators, and anyone on the hiring committee (i.e., a selected group of professionals overseeing the interviewing process for the position) may attend your teaching demonstration.

For information on workshops and information on teaching excellence, visit the Center for Teaching and Learning's events page. For more information on teaching related professional development, you may contact the Center for Teaching and Learning by phone at (706) 542-1355.

Many staff and administration positions in higher education ask you to prepare a presentation that is usually based on a prompt given by the potential employer. This is a critical part of the interview. You will need to demonstrate your ability to interpret the prompt and create an engaging presentation for employer and guests who are invited to this presentation. This presentation will be highly specialized to your field so remember to have this reviewed by people you consider advisors, mentors, and colleagues. The Presentation Collaboratory, housed in the Office for Student Success and Achievement (OSSA), offers consultation services to help students prepare for presentations and public speaking.

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