was in the second year of my second postdoc, a year [*before*]{} I absolutely needed a job. When I ran through the list of questions I’d come up with, I saw that what was different about applying then was that I wasn’t absolutely required to apply, so I could be a bit more selective, thus limiting the amount of time I’d have to spend (and thus things I’d have to sacrifice) in Questions 2 and 3. I therefore chose my applications based on a single criterion: I only applied to a job if I could, after reading the job ad (and maybe doing a minimal amount of research on the department, if I wasn’t already familiar with them) express in a sentence or two why I was a good fit for the job, and why it was a good fit for me. Job applications, after all, are arguments– you are arguing for your suitability to a particular position. If I felt like I couldn’t make that argument right away, I passed on applying for that job.

### How do I evaluate a faculty offer?

That job application cycle was successful for me, in part because of my approach, but also 