Thinking about retirement

So as part of the standard paperwork overload of starting a new position, I had to fill out paperwork relating to my retirement account.  In both this new position and the position I had last year, I had two options: pension or private.

Unlike my old university, which let you choose one and then swap 5 years down the road if you so chose (one time only), at my new university, you have to choose one within 6 months of starting, and you can never, ever, ever (ever ever) go back.  Even if you leave the university and come back later, you're stuck in that same original choice.

The pension plan is typically a good deal if you plan to stay with that university (or within the state university system) for the rest of your career.  The way the pension plan works (at least at my new university), is you put in a set amount of your paycheck (~10%) into the pension plan (pre tax), and when you retire, they calculate how much your pension will be based on a special formula.  From what I understand, this formula takes into account how many years you've worked for the pension system (30 years seems to be what's needed to get the 'maximum' benefit), an average of your highest 3(?) salaries, and how old you are. So hypothetically, if you worked 30 years paying into the pension system, was of retirement age (~67ish?), and your highest 3 years of salary were $100,000, you'd end up somewhere with $80,000/year in pension until you croak.  If you worked fewer years, retired earlier, or made less salary, your pension would be lower.  Still, the benefits are largely guaranteed, so once you put in your time, you can sit back and let the cash roll in.
...So that seems like a pretty sweet deal.

The 'alternative' retirement program worked as follows: You put in the same amount (pretax) that is withheld from the pension (~10%), but that goes into a private retirement account that you own.  You can choose 3 providers to manage that account (e.g., TIAA-CREF), and the university will put in a matching amount of ~5%.  So in essence you end up with ~15% of your salary going into your retirement account each year, though it only costs you ~10% of your salary to do this (the rest is matching).  You are 100% vested from the start, which means that's your money (both your own and the matching) if you ever leave the university.  Your retirement fund grows over the years through your contributions, university matching, and as the markets increase in value.  Meanwhile, you have a few options of how to use your funds, such as in money market, real estate, bonds, stocks, etc.  All of these are mutual fund type investments, so you don't actually put your money in specific homes (if you choose real estate) or specific stocks, instead you buy shares in a mutual fund that uses their resources to purchase a number of different investments within that field (e.g., many different stocks).  From all of the literature I've seen, if you have a balanced investment strategy you can reasonably expect to earn 5-7% per year on your money (whether that holds up in real life, who knows).  You can't withdraw your retirement funds before you retire, otherwise you pay a HUGE amount of taxes/penalties on it.

The key things I had to consider when choosing between these options were:
1. Do I think the pension plan will still be around in ~35 years?  (Most definitely)
2. Do I think I'll stay with the same university/university system to ~35 years (Hopefully?)
3. Would I get seriously screwed over if I left the system early, such as not getting tenure or taking another position elsewhere in 10 years (Yes)
4. Do I expect to retire on time (late 60's) to start collecting the pension? (Maybe)
5. Do I expect to live a really long time in retirement? (Probably not)

So while I like my new position, and I hope to be at the same university until I retire, I ended up choosing the 'alternative' plan.  

There were a few reasons I did this:
1. I simply can't predict the future, and it seems like too much of a gamble to plan on being at the same university for 35+ years.
2. I'm not sure I'd want to retire when I hit mid/late 60's, since being a professor is a pretty sweet gig, and once you make full professor, you can pretty much do whatever you want in terms of research, and you always get summers off, and if you have a 2/2 load, the teaching is very reasonable.
3. I'm not convinced I'll live until I'm 80 or 90, so I'd rather have something that would go to my wife/children if I croak sooner rather than later.
4. I'm untenured, and while I'd like to think I'll get tenure at my new university, that decision is still 5+ years away.  If I don't get tenure, and I have the pension plan, my options would be to go to another state-university school (hard to do, unlikely to be a Ph.D. program, likely a big hit in salary), or take a HUGE hit on my retirement account and leave the system.
5. Even if I get tenure, if I wanted to move on to someplace new in 10 or 15 years, the pension would seem like a pair of golden handcuffs.  Good to have, but making it too costly to go anywhere else.

Another thing I had to consider was that under the university/state system, I don't pay social security tax (yay!), but I also wouldn't GET social security when I retire (boo!).  I fully expect social security to have crashed and burned well before I retire, or at best, be severely eviscerated, so I'm not too worried about that.  It basically gives me 4-6% more in my salary that I could use for a supplemental retirement fund (or beer).

Hopefully I'm making the right decision.  I expect that the pension system might have been a slightly better choice, since I don't plan on leaving the new university, but the alternative system seems like the safer of the two.  There's nothing I can do about my choice now (since, again, the only way to change your choice is with a time machine), so I guess I should just not worry and work instead on getting tenure.

...Of course, in 40 years if I'm stuck eating cat food because the market crashed and I don't have social security, I'm going to look back on this post and be pretty pissed.

While Professor Fluffykins' 401k crashed and burned,
the prospect of having to eat cat food in retirement
doesn't seem all that bad to him.

The Academic Job Interview, Part 1

Sorry for the delay in posting these past few months.  This first semester has been a roller coaster ride.  Anyway, back to semi-regular posting! (Maybe.)

This post concerns the Academic Job Interview (*DUN DUUNNN DUUUUNNNN!*)

If you've never been on one, it can be a nerve-wracking experience leading up to the visit, absolutely terrifying while you're on it, and completely exhausting afterwards. Hopefully this series of posts help make planning for it a little easier.

First Things First

The first thing that will probably happen in the interview timeline (after applying, that is), is you'll get a call (maybe an email) asking if you can come to campus for an interview. Sometimes you'll have had a phone interview beforehand, sometimes not.  All of the on-campus interviews I've been on were scheduled a couple weeks in advance, as I recall. So you won't have a lot of notice that you're going on an interview. This means you need to be prepared for an interview invitation to come at any time after you've submitted your application(s) to open positions. So start working on your job talk! (more about this in a future post...)  It also means you need to have interview clothes ready, so if it'll take a few weeks to get that suit tailored to fit right, do it now so it'll be ready when you need it.

When you get the call, you'll need to iron out the details of the visit. This might involve discussions with the search chair, or it might be talking to an admin person instead. In either case, you'll want to confirm the following at some point before the interview:

• Will you need to book and (more importantly) pay for the flight or hotel expenses yourself up front?
  
• If so, what paperwork do you need to provide to be reimbursed?  
• Realize it may take a few months to actually get the reimbursement, so you'll want to have access to cash or a credit card with enough free space to cover at least a couple interviews (~$2,000?).
  
• Side note: In my opinion, if the school is unwilling to reimburse the flight/hotel, you should seriously consider whether you actually want to work for such a (cheap/broke) department.
  
• Also, some places in far away locations (Alaska, Hawaii, the UK) might have stipulations that if they offer you the job and you decline, you will not be reimbursed for your travel. Keep this in mind if you're lukewarm about the position.
  
  
• Will other expenses, like meals while traveling, be reimbursed?
  
• If so, what receipts do you need to keep?
  
• Side note: I wouldn't order alcohol during these travel meals, especially if you need to provide an itemized receipt. Some departments will not reimburse alcohol purchases anyway.)
  
• Side side note: These questions on smaller reimbursement things (meals, etc.) have the potential to make you look really cheap and inconsiderate if asked in the wrong way. Be careful with how you phrase these reimbursement questions if you decide to ask about them. Asking about flight/hotel reimbursement, however, is both normal and should be an expected question if it's not clear up front.
  
  
• How will you get from the airport to your next location (whether that's the hotel or dinner if you're arriving the night before, or the department/offices if you're arriving the morning of your interview)?  This might require taking a shuttle from the airport to your hotel (do you book it? Do they? Is it reimbursed?), or meeting a faculty member (or grad student) at the airport (if so, get their contact information).
  
  
• Realize that you probably don't want to barrage whomever calls you to set up the interview with *all* of these questions at once (especially if it's the chair calling you with the interview offer).  Instead, it might be appropriate to send a follow up email about the smaller things, after hammering out the big things first (dates, flight/hotel booking questions, etc.).

Packing


In terms of packing for the interview, you need to consider where you're interviewing and what time of the year it will be, as well as for how long you'll be there. Here are a few things to consider:

• Regarding location/season: If you're interviewing in the South in September, you're probably going to want to dress lighter than if you were interviewing in the Northeast in January.  This might mean packing (or not packing) a pair of snow boots, coat/hat/gloves, or a travel umbrella. For example, I have a wool driving coat with a zip out liner that I love, because it's acceptable outerwear for at least three out of the four seasons, works whether it's raining or snowing, and it looks pretty sharp (in my opinion) when worn over a suit. Something similarly versatile might be a good investment when you're upgrading your wardrobe.
  
  
• You'll need to consider how many outfits you'll need to bring.  For instance, if you're on a one-day interview schedule, then a single suit should be fine (ladies, adjust my recommendations regarding 'suits' accordingly).  Conversely, if you're meeting people for dinner the first evening, having a full day of interviews on day two, and meeting people for breakfast before leaving on the third day, then you'll probably want to bring at least three dress shirts (with three different ties) and a couple of different suits.
  
  
• I recommend packing 1 more dress shirt than you think you'll need, because you never know when you'll spill something on the shirt in the middle of the day and not want to wear it for an evening event.  I also recommend using the same 'one extra' rule for t-shirts, underwear, ties, and socks. It's a relatively small increase in 'stuff' to pack, but a huge increase in 'oh sh*t' insurance.

Things to remember
There are a few other things I wanted to mention that don't really fit anywhere other that a miscellaneous category of things to remember/do/prepare for.  So here it goes:

• Don't cut your hair right before you leave!  You don't want to get a horrible haircut and be stuck with it on the interview (or if you do it yourself, f*ck something up and have to buzz it completely off the night before and end up looking like a big scary ex-convict... don't ask me how I know this.)  If you need to, I'd cut your hair a couple of weeks before the interview, since you'll have enough time to try and fix it if something does go wrong, but it won't be enough time to look 'shaggy' in the mean time.  Of course, if you rock the buzzcut normally, then disregard this advice and keep on keepin' on.
• Side note: While I like to think I looked like a big scary ex-convict, after the haircutting incident, realistically I probably looked closer to Louie CK...

Yeah, that's about right.

• Dress comfortably, but professionally.  For instance, if you have a 'lucky' dress shirt that you feel really comfortable in, like how you look in it, etc., then wear that on your 'long day' (or whatever day you have to give your job talk).  This, of course, is assuming the dress shirt still looks good and doesn't look worn and shabby.  If you end up feeling more comfortable then (I think) that should come through in your interview.  For the same reason, I always buy a new pair of dress socks whenever I have an interview or give a presentation. Weird, I know, but there's just something about a brand new pair of socks that makes me feel more comfortable and confident (plus, I don't have to worry that the socks I packed have a hole in them I didn't notice before, or don't match each other).

Dr. Cable Guy was wondering if you
log-transformed your independent variables...

• Relatedly, you can never overdress for the interview. I don't care if all of the other faculty are wearing jeans and flannel shirts with no sleeves ala Larry the Cable Guy.  You can't go wrong if you wear a suit (as a guy, at least -- again, ladies please adjust the advice accordingly). Even if you feel overdressed, it's much MUCH better than if you were seen as under dressed. If you feel absolutely uncomfortable wearing the whole suit for the entire time, then maybe lose the tie in the one-on-one interviews if it feels right (but keep it nearby for when you do the job talk or meet with the Dean).  Still, when in doubt, stay dressed up!

• Bring a notepad/folio, and use it! I never understand when job candidates come for an interview, ask questions, but never write anything down. Writing things down during the one-on-one interviews, and sometimes during the Q&A session after the job talk, shows that you're interested in what people are saying, and also allows you to refer back to your notes after the interview is over. There is simply no way you'll remember 12 different faculty members' answers to 20 difference questions over the course of an 8 hour interview day without writing things down.

• Bring your job talk's .PPT file on a USB drive (also, email it to yourself), and bring hard copy printouts of the slides. Best case scenario, you won't use the printouts, or might refer to them only during your flight to the interview. Worst case scenario is you have to deal with technology problems or a bad setup of the computer equipment, and have to refer to your printouts during your job talk or load your .PPT from your USB drive.  If you don't have a .PPT, you should seriously consider if your presentation skills are good enough to hold faculty members' attention for 30-45 minutes without .PPT visuals to refer to
• I like to use a wireless presenter mouse thingy when I do my presentations, whether that's at job talks or conferences. I always make sure it's packed in my carry on. For under $100, you don't have to be tethered to the laptop, and this is especially useful if you are a wanderer/ambler when you present (guilty).
• Side note: I really like this presenter mouse.  It has a timer on it that 'buzzes' you when you're getting low on time.

• Bring a bottle of water and some portable, fairly clean snacks (e.g., Powerbars).  You'll be talking for hours at a time, possibly with few chances for a water fountain or snack break. Having access to a bottle of water and a Powerbar or two can help keep your energy up (and stomach in line) during the marathon days that make up the job interview.  This will also help you from pigging out during the lunch and dinner meetings, allowing you to ask and answer questions more easily than if you were shoveling food into your mouth due to starvation.

Overall, it should be clear that there is a LOT of stuff that comes with an academic interview, even before you even get on the plane! This is just a small sample of things to consider.  

Future Posts
In the interest of keeping posts relatively short and digestible, I'll be breaking up posting on The Academic Job Interview into different parts.  Here's some of the future planned posts that I'll eventually get to:

• The Job Talk
• Meetings with Faculty and Grad Students
• Post Interview Stuff

In the meantime, here is an excellent post on how to act when you're on an academic interview: http://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2012/01/30/essay-why-candidates-academic-jobs-cant-just-be-themselves

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Image Credit: Louie CK, Cable Guy,