This meeting was intended as a preparation for those of us looking for jobs in academia. Some of the topics discussed included where to look for jobs, how early to begin searching for adds, what is the best time of the year to do this search and apply for positions, what are some of the expected activities that should fill out your CV, who to talk to before applying for jobs and what to do while you're still in schoool and have the time to do it. The meeting started with a presentation by prof. Anne Gelb, a recent hiree at the ASU Math Departement, and her experience of going through this extensive process of getting a professorship. Here are some of the suggestions in terms of building up to a good CV and competing in the academic job market:

• Before actually graduating and getting on your own feet, make sure you try to attend some conferences. To do so, talk to your advisor and ask how you can go about doing this. Be aggressive in this pursuit! Talk to lots of other people too, show them your good work, and try to get noticed ( in a good way!).
• A first step after obtaining a PhD is usually to find a Post-Doc rather then directly applying for a proferssorship position. This is intended to give you some time and resources to publish original work in mathematically relevent journals. This can also be a good opportunity to move into a new area, and show some diversity in your capabilites. Again, attend conferences, talk to lots of people. Such a position can take anywhere between few months to couple or more years. Keep in mind that most of the times you'll get judged exclusively by your research work.
• To apply for a professorship, you need to begin sometimes in early fall. Most adds appear near the end of the year, and allow for a month or so to send applications. Sometimes the description of the advertised position is general, other times is more specific. Always only apply if you fit the description of the potential candidate - if the add wants to hire an analyst, and you're a statistician, is not worth your time (and certainly not theirs). Research the specific department you're applying to. The more you know, the better prepared you will be. Apply for both tenure and visiting, if both are options you are interested in. Also, the more cross-disciplinary your background is, the more options you will find in job notices. Finally, some places to look for jobs are: AMS Notices - paper or electronic, SIAM News, university web pages. Start searching as early as November if you want a job next September!