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Hello,
I saw this message last week and meant to respond with my experience but time got away from me. I am finishing my postdoc and I have a 17month old daughter. I will be starting a faculty position this winter and I interviewed when I was 10 weeks post-delivery, so mid-maternity leave. I would say either I am completely oblivious or this was not a problem at all, and may even have been an asset. I know that many of my colleagues were worried about having to interview pregnant and were timing kids accordingly. I gave talks (though not interviews) throughout my pregnancy and did not once encounter any negative vibes from anyone with whom I spoke. I suppose once someone did say something like "well you probably wont get as much done when the baby arrives" but I didn't take offense.
When I got the interview for my faculty position I was fully upfront with them about the fact I had a young daughter at home. Indeed, I was still in maternity clothes - not that that was particularly evident. I was going to be away from the baby for 48 hours and needed space to store breast milk (in discrete cooler packs) that wasn't available at the B&B. I also needed time built into my interview schedule to pump. That said, I didn't broach this with the (very German) male department head but rather with the main departmental administrator who was coordinating my visit, but I did so with the knowledge that this would be something that everyone would know about.
In general I have found (from the interviewee end of things) that people have been incredibly supportive - and I personally have felt that being a woman and a mom has been something of an asset. Certainly from the "work perspective" (I am much more productive) but also the perception of me when I visit places. I was at a small conference this past weekend and I have a picture of my daughter on my desktop - in the break after my talk many people, including older faculty members, came up to me and hadn't known I was a mother - and were generally impressed ("you're doing good work and you are balancing a family life"). This perception that I had (pre-kids) that it was considered a liability is, in my experience, limited to very few people and it hasn't been something I personally encountered.
My two cents - not sure it is helpful but it is one perspective!
Sasha
From: leah.beche <leah.beche@...>
To: scienceandfamilies@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Monday, September 10, 2007 1:09:36 AM
Subject: [scienceandfamilies] Re: How do search committees view candidates with families?
I feel compelled to join this group, as my labmates and I have been
having these types of discussions for years!
I, too, am interested in the response to this question, particularly
for women candidates. While it is technically illegal for committe
members to broach this subject, I find it hard to believe that they
would not consider a person's family situation during a search (even
if it is done silently by each individual), especially at a R-1
university. That is not to say that you would be
discriminated
against, but I think that it is pretty difficult to say whether your
family situation plays a role in hiring decisions.
A practical question for you all...If you are not obviously pregnant,
but you have a family, do you stay 100% silent about it at an
interview? Only bring it up if it appears that the department/certain
individuals might be amenable to it (i.e. untenured faculty with young
kids)? Or do you try to bring it up so that it isn't a big secret?
That is, by addressing it, you verify that it is not a big deal that
you have a family, you are dedicated to your profession, etc?
cheers,
Leah
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