Our Preferred Candidate Can Do … Everything: Recent Changes in the Tenure-Track Job Postings

Since 2019, multiple sociocultural events have occurred which have affected not only educational modalities but also the desired characteristics on the college campus. Job postings serve as the initial point of information for potential faculty candidates. Not only do job postings serve to identify key elements such as salary, skills, and education, but they also serve to aid the potential employees about the organizational culture into which they may be entering ( Kim & Angnakoon, 2016 ). Using a sampling of 559 publicly posted tenure track positions within schools of business, this study examines, using content analysis, the changes over a three-year period of 2019–2021 in the use of terms related to pedagogy, mode of instruction, and diversity. More specifically, these job postings were analyzed according to various search terms that correspond to aspects of (1) experiential learning; (2) learning modality (i.e., online/distance vs. face-to-face learning); and (3) diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Examined through the lenses of Issue Management and Institutional Change theories, the findings of this study indicate substantial, though perhaps superficial, reactions to societal changes. The findings of this study aid in understanding how institutions of higher learning recruit faculty and how job postings could be used more effectively as a tool to attract faculty members who can best take part in the institution’s overall goals.