What Colleges and Universities Want in New Faculty
by Kathrynn A. Adams

What Do New Faculty Members Say About the Benefits of PFF Programs?
Although PFF programs have been thoroughly assessed, it has not been until recently that there have been enough doctoral students completing a PFF program, finishing requirements for a Ph.D, securing an academic position, and gaining enough experience to assess the value of PFF in their early career. That is changing, and Leigh DeNeef, associate dean of the graduate school at Duke University, was commissioned to survey a sample of PFF alumni and conduct follow-up telephone calls with several (in Leigh DeNeef, Preparing Future Faculty: What Difference Does It Make? Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges and Universities, 2002). Here are some of his findings:

• PFF changed the nature of the graduate experience. Specifically, individuals reported that it created a sense of intellectual community that had been missing, legitimated conversations about teaching, gave a broader view of the diversity of institutions, and gave them more sophistication about navigating academic organizations.
• PFF helped students successfully negotiate the job market. In particular, PFF alumni believed that they knew more about the academic scene and the variety of institutions than their competitors. They also believed that they knew better how to present themselves as professionals who could “fit” in different institutional environments.
• PFF prepared alumni for the early stages of their careers. For example, because they had had some meaningful teaching experience and had acquired a “basket of tools,” they were less stressed than their colleagues with their teaching responsibilities. One surprising finding was
  that these new faculty were asked by their cohorts for advice and several served as a de facto mentor to their new colleagues.
  Obviously, more research needs to be done on conditions that produce most and least benefits, on which kinds of students benefit the most and least, and on what the long term impact is on academic careers. But the early results are promising and confirm the several recommendations in this essay.