Faculty Members on Preparing Scholars of Religion for Non-academic Careers

American Academy of Religion

In recent years as the job market for tenure-track academic positions has tightened and the use of contingent faculty has exploded, increasing numbers of graduate degree seekers are intending to pursue nonacademic careers. While some areas of study present obvious nonacademic options, for scholars in the humanities, nonacademic career opportunities and the best preparation for them may not be obvious and religious studies faculty are exploring how graduate programs can - and should - prepare all alumni for multiple employment outcomes. This panel brings together faculty members from a variety of institutions to discuss some of the problems confronting their students and their programs as more people turn - by necessity and by choice - to nonacademic career paths. Cristine Hutchison-Jones, Harvard Law School, Presiding Panelists: - Molly Bassett, Georgia State University - Jason C. Bivins, North Carolina State University - Kathleen Moore, University of California, Santa Barbara This session was recorded at the 2017 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion in Boston, Massachusetts, on November 19.