Not all 4-4 loads are created equal (I speak from experience since I have taught at universities with 4-4 loads for the last 11 or 12 years). Four sections of American politics is much different than a 4-4 with three (or four! yes I've done it!) course preparations. Your 4-4 will likely fall between these two extremes. If you approach your teaching wisely (and are well prepared going in) you CAN have research success doing a 4-4 load; admittedly not at the level of someone teaching a 1-2 at a doctoral I but enough to move into a tenure track position that may have a lighter load (though a 3-3 with 3 preps is still difficult so beware).

One of the benefits of that 4-4 will be that you can demonstrate the ability to teach to your next employer. You will have more teaching evaluations and likely some peer evaluations that you can include with your job applications. You can also get letters of recommendation from a faculty member at your new institution instead of the typical three or four letters from your graduate institution. As the old saying goes: "It's easier to get a job when you've got a job."

The reality of this profession is that there are comparatively few institutions where you will simply teach upper division courses that reflect your narrow interests. Anyone who is still in grad school needs to come to grips with this reality: It is highly unlikely that you will get a job at a top-20 or even a top-100 university. Seriously, think about it, do the math: The odds are low.

But it is OK. As I have said a few times on this board you can have a perfectly successful career outside of Doctoral I institutions; and you get to do something that you love, which is more than a lot of people can say about their jobs.

no expectation that you're staying, so supportive of your search. good luck publishing your way out of a 4-4.

We'll survive, I am sure.

Thanks for taking the time to come on this board to taunt us, though.

for public law?

missed that one ...