A Five-Year Study of Junior Faculty Expectations about Their Work

Abstract

This paper uses the "met expectations" framework to examine the effect of post-graduate work experience on tenure acquisition. Pre-tenure faculty with academic postdoctoral experience had better time management skills, were clearer about work priorities, and experienced less work stress than those without this experience. Early work stress was, in turn, associated with lower year-five job satisfaction and a greater likelihood of a negative tenure review, suggesting some possible deficits in the preparation of graduate students.