By now, you’ve probably heard about the scholar who had a tenure-track job offer rescinded after she tried negotiating on a number of terms. That incident has stoked a lot of talk on an important question: What’s the right way to go about negotiate an academic offer? We asked our experts to dole out some advice.
Given the hiring climate we’re in, what advice would you give to young academics on negotiating?
First, you need to know the things you want that are absolute—the ones that, if you don’t get them, you won’t take the job. These need to be the priority in any negotiation. I think that one of “W’s” errors was providing a basically unranked list of rather unrealistic requests rather than asking for the really key things she’d need to take the job.
Moreover, the first rule (which is evident from many of the comments in the various venues where this sad story has been discussed) is that candidates need to negotiate and ask for things that are in line with the kind of institution with which they are discussing a potential position. This does require some savvy from the candidate, but she should have a good basic idea of what salary, load, culture, and possible perqs are before going too far out a limb.
It’s certainly true that a candidate should try to get the best possible deal because that sets the tone for compensation and other opportunities, potentially forever. But to ask for an entry-level starting salary, in a low-demand field, that exceeds the average associate-professor salary at a particular institution, indicates a severe misunderstanding of what may be possible—and a degree of self-regard that can raise serious red flags.
I personally have had very good luck as a candidate by just being honest about what I wanted. I knew I was going to take my current job and indicated that to the president. I simply laid out my current salary and some other issues and said I would take the job anyhow, but would be most grateful for some additional considerations, which I got. This is not always a plausible strategy, however, because not everyone negotiates in good faith, and you have to use your judgment and be very careful.
While it’s common wisdom that you shouldn’t negotiate if you’re not prepared for the other party to walk away, we’ve almost never heard of that actually happening. Have you?
I have never personally revoked an offer, though I have been tempted a couple of times. I do believe it happens occasionally, however, and I can imagine doing it under certain circumstances.
Here’s what other academics had to say in the Negotiation 101 series: