Professional Development in Applied Linguistics

Success in academia requires more than an understanding of discipline-specific literature and an ability to teach and do research. It is also necessary to develop an understanding of a range of professionally-oriented skills such as how to identify and apply to doctoral programs, how to make the most of conferences, how to achieve a semblance of work-life balance, and how to land a job. Unfortunately, however, training on such professional matters is often inconsistent and/or idiosyncratic. This book seeks to consolidate and demystify these critical and often-misunderstood aspects of professional development in the context of applied linguistics. Put another way, this book is an attempt at the text many of us wish we had as we began our graduate studies. Throughout the book, readers will find anecdotes and insights informed by individual authors’ first-hand experiences. The resulting tone across the volume is that of a meet-up with a trusted and thoughtful mentor. As readers “meet” with these mentors, it is the hope of this volume that their guidance will help move readers closer to realizing their professional goals in applied linguistics.

Eric K. Ku, Akita University, on Linguist List 32.1781 (2021):
This edited volume effectively fills the need it has set out to address; that is, to provide an accessible professional development resource for graduate students and early-career faculty members specifically geared towards applied linguistics. The editors and authors are very aware and up front about the context in which this book is situated – that much of this information is already available floating amongst peers, colleagues, advisors, and online resources, but not collected and curated in one place as an easily accessible resource. The value of gathering the breadth of advice and information into an edited handbook is apparent – one can imagine teachers and supervisors recommending this edited volume to their students or students finding this at their institution’s library.