Each year, SEALS hosts a Prospective Law Teachers Workshop (PLTW), which provides intensive opportunities for VAPs, fellows, and practitioners to network and participate in mock interviews and mock job talks—prior to the actual teaching market. The Workshop also includes a luncheon (separate ticket purchase is required) and 1-on-1 sessions for candidates to receive faculty feedback on their CVs and FAR forms. This year’s Prospective Law Teachers Workshop will be held at The Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort, Florida on Thursday, July 28 through Saturday, July 30, 2022, although the full SEALS conference runs from Wednesday, July 27 through Wednesday, August 3. If you are interested in participating specifically in the Prospective Law Teachers Workshop, please send your CV, and a brief statement explaining your interest, to Professor Leah Chan Grinvald lgrinvald@suffolk.edu. Please also confirm that you are planning on entering the teaching market in August 2022. Applications are due by March 21, 2022, with decisions made no later than March 30, as registration for SEALS opens on April 1. Past PLTW participants have secured tenure-track appointments at an impressive array of law schools.
Independently from the PLTW, SEALS also offers a workshop that is broader programming for anyone considering academia—even if one is earlier in the process. Anyone may simply attend the Aspiring Law Teachers Workshop by attending SEALS. The programming includes a demonstration of faculty-candidate interviews and sessions on designing your teaching package, navigating the market as a nontraditional candidate, mapping academic opportunities, what’s in a job talk, crafting scholarship goals, the art of self-promotion, as well as a luncheon (separate ticket purchase required when registering for SEALS). The Aspiring Workshop occurs between Wednesday, July 27–Sunday, July 31.
The goal of these two workshops is, in tandem, to provide robust opportunities for those who hope to one day enter legal academia.
Frequently Asked Questions:
They both sound great. What exactly is the difference?
The Prospective Workshop is designed for those who are going on the market this fall (and will be submitting their FAR form or applying to law teaching positions), in 2022, and desiring a chance to moot job talks and interviews in advance of that time. The Aspiring Workshop is designed for anyone considering academia, including those who may not yet be ready to moot a job talk in the summer. Participation in the Prospective Workshop is by acceptance-only while the Aspiring Workshop is open to everyone.
Can I attend both workshops?
Possibly. Some of the times may conflict, but the Aspiring Law Teachers Workshop will be generally open to anyone wishing to attend. Attendance in the Prospective Workshop is in contrast only by acceptance through our competitive selection process, although the PLTW session on Navigating the Market is open to all SEALS attendees.
Is this the new faculty recruitment initiative that I heard SEALS has put together?
No, this is not the new hiring initiative that SEALS is conducting. That process is entirely separate. Information about SEALS’ new faculty recruitment initiative can be found at the following link: https://www.sealslawschools.org/recruitment/applicants/