A recurring challenge for candidates entering the AALS meat market relates to an unfortunate timing quirk. FAR biographical forms are due during the summer, a couple of months before the August law review submission cycle. Law school hiring committees then receive these potentially out-of-date forms in late August. While candidates can submit an updated cv which includes late placements, most hiring committees do their rough cut based on the single page forms. Most committees only pull cv's for candidates who shine through on the one page form. If you've got a piece ready to mail out August1, that's a problem.
The scope of the problem is limited. There are plenty of candidates for whom one new placement is a minor concern and many others for whom a placement is unlikely to help. Then, too, there are schools for which a "work in progress" or "under submission" will trigger close scrutiny. But there are candidates for whom that one additional placement may make a crucial difference. When a candidate lists an article as "forthcoming in the Indiana L.J.", or the like, she does two things. First, she indicates she has a completed work that she was willing to release to the world at large. (Historically, a suprising number of entry level hires couldnt even deliver on this challenge – a situation that has a changed a lot as hiring standards have become more rigorous.) Second, a good placement might conceivably say something about the quality of the work. Not always – or, probably, most of the time. But as an appointments committee works through the first stage of the hiring process – sifting through 800 short FAR forms - heuristics are essential. And for better or worse, a well-placed article is an easy one.
What to do about this problem?
The simplest choice is to update all appointments chairs as soon as the article is placed. Send an email or write a letter, and include a draft of your newly placed article. Candidates also might consider putting their draft up on SSRN and putting that link onto their FAR form during the summer. (Note that you can put up an early draft in June, then update it with a final draft before the FAR forms are actually distributed – keeping the same SSRN url.) While this isn't as good as having a placement, the act of putting an article on SSRN does signal that you were comfortable releasing the work – and it makes it very simple for committee members to read it.
From the longer perspective, some folks might wait a year to go on the market and others might push a piece out the door the prior February. All of these are viable strategies, and their necessity varies widely based on a candidates overall package. I do strongly discourage one choice, however: pushing a crappy piece out in February simply to have a placement. First, a bad piece may place badly – undermining the whole project. Second, irrespective of the placement, a bad piece of work is never an attractive part of a candidate's vita.
There is no simple answer to this quandry. But a savvy candidate needs to know that it exists.
I would echo Dan's call to update hiring chairs at schools of interest ASAP after an August submission finds a home. I chaired our committee last year, and I recall that we scheduled a conference interview with one candidate only after we received confirmation from the candidate that an August submission had placed (and placed very well).
I suppose one answer to the issue raised by Dan's post is to ask the AALS to move the deadline for the first batch of FAR forms from early August to a later date (e.g., September 20) that would give candidates a chance to provide more current information on the FAR form, particularly information that plays such an important part in hiring decisions.
I would like to add a calming word to candidates about to go into the first FAR. Although Dan raises a good point, most candidates need not stress out about it. As Dan says, for most candidates this won't make a difference. I also agree with Dan and Tim re sending an email to update hiring chairs ASAP when the article places. Apart from anything else, it's always good to have an excuse to bring yourself to the front of a hiring chair's mind during a time when the appointments committee is likely sifting through piles of CVs. Also, if you are in a position to bring a hard copy of the recently placed version of the article to interviews in DC, that is another way of reinforcing the message that your piece has placed well, and of distinguishing yourself from other candidates.
would like to add a calming word to candidates about to go into the first FAR. Although Dan raises a good point, most candidates need not stress out about it.
amazing job done keep coming