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Comment by jzoch | Hacker News Reader

As a TA at Stanford currently, I have heard this from numerous professors and can confirm there is a serious lack of candidates. I have sat in on lecturer "auditions" and even the amount of people that come to interview are low, let alone those with the necessary skills. It sounds wild but really is the case that we lack faculty. The number of students far outweighs those with the credentials and ability to teach the material.

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Stanford has made $billions from IP developed by students and faculty, such as Google and others that followed, but it is unwilling to spend some of it to pay for faculty to attract the next generation of students. The school is eating its seed corn.

lack of security of employment makes teaching at low pay unattractive compared to industry at high pay. look at this posting [0]. nowhere does it say that this ladder is ever eligible for tenure, unlike (say) berkeley's lecturer SOE position.

"The Department of Computer Science at Stanford University invites applications for an educationally-focused faculty position. The responsibilities of the Assistant Professor of Computer Science Education will include: teaching classes (typically three or four courses, depending on class size, during the three quarters of the regular academic year), working to develop CS undergraduate curriculum, and involvement in the broader CS education community (e.g., research and/or leadership in CS education). The appointment has an initial term of three years with the possibility of reappointment of an additional three years. This position is eligible for promotion into the non-tenure (Teaching) faculty line. After completion of the five-year term as Associate Professor (Teaching), the candidate will be considered for promotion to Professor (Teaching). Experienced candidates with an already established reputation and national visibility in computer science education may apply for a senior appointment (Associate or Full Professor (Teaching)), commensurate with level of experience. Appointments at the level of Associate or Full Professor (Teaching) may be for a continuing term."

[0] https://cs.stanford.edu/jobs/faculty-opening

EDIT: interestingly, the "lecturer" position is at least eligible for SOE.

[1] https://cs.stanford.edu/jobs/lecturer-opening

Well, I think you have a location problem.

Look at the cost of a local home suitable for a family. Let's say it is on 0.3 acre, has 2500 square feet, and has 4 bedrooms. It is within a 20-minute commute. Consider the mortgage payment on a 30-year loan with a down payment of $40,000.

No, you can't assume there is a second income.

After paying taxes and that mortgage payment, what would the person have left? I hope it is something like $80,000 per year. I fear it may be negative. Conventional loans require that the loan payment not exceed 28% of gross income.

Perhaps. I will say a lecturer positions pays well, but not well enough for many. Its a problem in the valley for sure, though I'd argue its not the biggest issue by far. We have a small number of people apply (relative to the number we would want) but quality is still a huge problem despite qualifications.

I acknowledge your experience, but I have to wonder how much of this is caused by setting a very high bar in the preliminary selection stages.

The number of people who can do Stanford-level research in computer science is probably pretty low. But the number of people who could teach first- and second-year computer science courses, even to Stanford standards, could be much higher.

The positions in question were actually lecturer, not professor, positions. We have former TA's currently going through the process right after graduating undergrad even. Even then, with minimal experience "required", its a hard problem.

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