Yes, you read the title of the post correctly. I have some insignificant significant insignificant news. I found out on Saturday that my application to teach the logic course at the University of Winnipeg this fall was successful. So why is this news insignificant significant insignificant news? It’s, as you may have guessed, insignificant news that is, just a bit more significant than other insignificant news, but still pretty insignificant. Are you confused yet?
Let’s work our way from right to left. What makes this insignificant news? Well, I’m 95% certain that, had I not gotten the contract teaching job at the University of Winnipeg, I would have gotten equivalent work at the University of Manitoba, so I wasn’t in the position of being completely out of work if the U of W thing didn’t work out.
What makes it significant insignificant news? Well, as some of you know, when I finally finish my PhD, I’d like to get a job in academia. And, as I’ve been telling some of you, my chances of getting a job in academia are rather like your chances of winning the car you bought a raffle ticket for. Given these odds, not only is it unlikely that I will get a job in academia, it’s even more unlikely that, if I am fortunate enough to get one, it will be anywhere near Winnipeg, Manitoba. The philosophy department at the U of W has, shall we say, been going through some rough times recently. Some people didn’t like some other people, and eventually, a bunch of them decided to go their separate ways. (If you know someone connected to the U of W philosophy department, don’t tell them that I know about this or that I’ve written this post. That could defeat the purpose of my trying to get a teaching job there this fall.) That means that they will be hiring for some long-term (tenure-track) positions in the near future. The reason my news is significant insignificant news is that, maybe, if I am around the department, do my job well, and get to be liked by the right people, I might be considered for one of those positions.
What makes it insignificant significant insignificant news? Well, even if everything goes as well as it could for me at the U of W this coming year, my chances of landing a job there are still, well, about as good as your chances of winning the car you bought your raffle ticket for.
Anyway, in all seriousness, I’m looking forward to the course. It will be a bit of a challenge in that some of the material I will be presenting in the course was material that made some of my graduate-level courses difficult. It will also be significantly more convenient than teaching at the U of M would have been, because I can walk to work if I feel like it—not that anyone feels like walking to work in the middle of winter.
