Reflections on tenure,the two-body problem,and retention in the 21st century academy

Academics rarely discuss work/life balance, or our lack thereof. In this symposium article, we confront the normalization of imbalance on the tenure-track that pervades 21st Century institutions. Our autoethnographic approach includes three personal vignettes based on each author’s experience, supported by extant research, to highlight the issues faced by a growing cadre of early career scholars. First, we discuss working within the volatile higher education environment. Second, we note financial, social, and health-related costs of life in long-distance, commuter relationships. Third, we consider whether work/life balance is possible given these trends, which adversely impacts retention, particularly for womxn faculty. In closing, we contend that the four pillars of public administration offer a useful framework for confronting these issues and pose recommendations at the individual, department, and institution level to improve work/life balance in an era when the goal posts never stop changing.