GSAS Preparing Future Faculty Intensive Program

Preparing Future Faculty session

The Preparing Future Faculty Intensive program (PFFI) enhances the already extensive training and experience students receive at Fordham to become thriving faculty members. Open to students of all disciplines, the redesigned PFFI curriculum (formerly PFF) cultivates the necessary skills for students to successfully navigate the different stages of their academic career (from being on the job market to being on the tenure-track) and balance all areas of faculty life: teaching, research, and service while integrating diversity in all of these areas.

In order to build a collaborative atmosphere and facilitate sharing of resources across disciplines, the revised PFFI program operates on a cohort model where participants move through the program together for one full academic year. Additionally, the PFFI program complements the discipline-specific training on teaching and research that students receive from their individual graduate programs and mentors. For instance, PFFI provides participants with additional training in time-tested and forward-looking pedagogical theories, techniques, and practices rooted in the Jesuit pedagogical tradition. Also, the PFFI program prepares participants for the academic job market by developing and workshoping application materials, conducting mock interviews, and learning how to market and tailor their specific skill sets to different institutions. The PFFI program is an opportunity for participants to refine their skills and reflect systematically on their training and work at Fordham to gain a well-rounded perspective of being a faculty member. 

To get a better sense of the PFFI program, here is a list of topics that the 2023-2024 PFFI program will cover: 

  1. Navigating the Job Search Timeline
  2. Institutional Types
  3. Teaching, Research, and Service
  4. Building One’s Personal and Professional Brand
  5. Equity-Based Teaching
  6. Digital Pedagogy and Accessibility
  7. Anti-Racist Pedagogy
  8. Transparent Curriculum Designing
  9. Alternative Grading
  10. Faculty Interview Preparation/Mock Interviews
  11. Work-Life Balance and Time Management
  12. Networking and Collaboration