A faculty search often runs in two rounds: a short screening interview, often by phone or video, then a campus visit with a job talk, a teaching demonstration, and a day of meetings. Here is how named universities tell their own search committees to run those interviews, what committees may not ask you, and how postdoc fellowship interviews work, all from the institutions’ own guides.
From universities’ own search committee guides, the EEOC, and HHMI2026-27 hiring seasonChecked October 28, 2026
Practice your job talkOne-on-one on Zoom with Julie Cunningham, MA, CCC-SLP.
Jump to:Screening interviewCampus visitIllegal questionsPostdoc interviewsQuestionsHow to prepareFAQ
Round one: the screening interview
Cleveland State’s 2026-27 Faculty Search Handbook tells committees that “Telephone/Virtual pre-screening interviews are highly recommended and can be conducted as the first step in the search process.” It sets rules for consistency: “The same questions should be asked of all candidates, the same information about the process should be given to the candidates, and the same members of the Search Committee should participate” (Cleveland State).
Yale School of Medicine recommends the same: “all applicants be given opportunities to respond to a common set of questions that are developed by the committee in addition to questions that may be more relevant to the candidate’s experiences and interests” (Yale School of Medicine). So expect a core set of questions every candidate hears, plus a few about your own work.
Round two: the campus visit
| Institution | Format | What their page says |
|---|---|---|
| Cleveland State University | Job talk and teaching demonstration | “The obligatory ‘job talk’ for tenure-track candidates is usually a presentation of one’s current research and future research agenda, before an audience of faculty from the hiring unit.” “A teaching demonstration is also strongly recommended for tenure-track candidates.” Source |
| Jacksonville University | Meetings plus a teaching demonstration | “Interviews for a campus visit should include, at a minimum,” the department chair, the dean, and “the entire Faculty of the department.” “If possible, arrange for the candidate to give a class, seminar or lecture, with students and other faculty present.” Source |
| Berea College | One and a half days, teaching presentation, student lunch | “Candidates will generally be asked to spend one and one-half days on the campus.” The itinerary includes a dinner meeting with the search committee, “A teaching presentation for faculty and students,” and a lunch meeting with students. Source |
| Yale School of Medicine | Talk and faculty meetings | If candidates speak about their work, committees pick a time that lets department faculty attend. “Following a visit, individual search committee members should complete an assessment and possibly a ranking.” Source |
Two things stand out. First, everyone you meet may be evaluating you: Berea builds the visit around a committee dinner and a student lunch, and Jacksonville asks committees to “solicit feedback from attendees” after the teaching demonstration (Jacksonville University). Second, research universities and teaching colleges weight the day differently. Cleveland State expects the job talk from tenure-track candidates, while Berea centers its visit on a teaching presentation.
Questions a search committee may not ask
The EEOC says pre-employment questions “should be limited to those essential for determining if a person is qualified for the job,” and “Employers are explicitly prohibited from making pre-offer inquiries about disability” (EEOC). University guides spell out examples. Jacksonville’s list of questions committees must not ask includes “How old are you?,” “What is your marital status?,” and “What childcare arrangements have you made?” (Jacksonville University). Cleveland State says “All inquiries that seek information on sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression are forbidden” (Cleveland State).
If one comes up anyway, you don’t have to answer it. A short, polite redirect to the job works: “I’m confident I can meet the demands of the position. Can you tell me more about the teaching load?”
Postdoc and fellowship interviews
Postdoc hiring varies by lab, but competitive postdoc awards run structured interviews. HHMI’s Hanna H. Gray Fellows program, for its competition opening November 3, 2026, lists “Semifinalist Leadership Interviews” in September and October 2027 and “Finalist Scientific Interviews” in January 2028 (HHMI). HHMI says the process “is designed to evaluate your skills and potential both as a scientist and as a lab leader and mentor,” and “No, the virtual interviews may not be rescheduled” (HHMI).
Practice questions
The guides above tell committees how to ask, not what to ask. These are my practice prompts, not questions any institution has published:
- Tell us about your research in two minutes, for someone outside your subfield.
- What will your research program look like in five years? How will you fund it?
- Which of our courses could you teach now, and what new course would you build?
- How do you mentor students, including undergraduates new to research?
- Tell us about a class that went badly. What did you change?
- How would you collaborate with faculty in this department?
- Why this institution, and what questions do you have for us?
How to prepare
- Build the job talk for the room. Cleveland State describes it as current research plus a future agenda, for faculty in the hiring unit. Make the first ten minutes clear to everyone, not just your subfield.
- Rehearse the teaching demonstration with real students if you can. Find out the course level and the topic early.
- Prepare a two-minute and a thirty-second version of your research. You will tell it a dozen times in one day.
- Treat every meal as part of the interview. Berea’s visit includes a committee dinner and a student lunch.
- Prepare questions for each meeting: the chair, the dean, faculty, and students all want to hear different things.
- Practice the talk out loud, timed, in front of someone who will tell you where you lose them. For the delivery itself, see how to project your voice for a job talk from Julie Cunningham, a licensed speech-language pathologist.
Your committee has your application packet open. See our teaching statement, research statement, diversity statement, academic cover letter, and CV examples, or work with Lauren Hammond, PhD, who edits academic job documents. Applying for a postdoc? See our postdoc personal statement examples.
Get your job talk ready for the room. My wife, Julie Cunningham, MA, CCC-SLP, is a licensed speech-language pathologist who coaches clear, confident public speaking on Zoom, including talks and interviews, using your own material. For a job talk or teaching demonstration, she works on pacing, voice, filler words, and getting your point across to people outside your field. It’s $250 an hour.
Frequently asked questions
What happens on a faculty campus visit?
Usually a job talk, a teaching demonstration, and meetings with the department chair, the dean, faculty, and students, often with meals. Berea College says candidates generally spend one and a half days on campus.
What is a job talk?
Cleveland State’s faculty search handbook describes it as usually a presentation of your current research and future research agenda, before an audience of faculty from the hiring unit.
Do faculty candidates give a teaching demonstration?
Often. Cleveland State expects one from candidates for teaching positions and strongly recommends it for tenure-track candidates, and Jacksonville University says the campus visit should include an opportunity to demonstrate teaching skills.
What questions can't a search committee ask?
Questions not essential to whether you are qualified for the job, such as your age, marital status, or childcare arrangements. The EEOC says employers are explicitly prohibited from making pre-offer inquiries about disability.
Are screening interviews the same for every candidate?
They are supposed to be. Cleveland State tells committees to ask all candidates the same questions, and Yale School of Medicine recommends a common set of questions developed by the committee.
Related guides: Scholarships. See all interview guides by program.
Every quotation on this page comes from the institution’s own faculty search guide, the EEOC, or HHMI, linked where it appears. Last checked October 28, 2026.