#PhD bullshit

[ellaeved]

I wonder how many Doctors are mad when people who do actual research on themselves and figure out something the Doctor couldn’t find. Like if it’s not always about the people using “Dr.Google” being wrong but it’s the superiority-complex having toddler with a PhD being wrong and their butthurt.

[freddiekugel]

my advisor thinks I need to be careful and specific with how I talk about my data, so my committee doesn't think I don't have enough.

fine, this is a writing concern.

but what she told me is that she thinks my data is 'thin' (three times), despite having approved my project a year and a half ago. despite having talked about it since then, as I gathered data and started analyzing and planned my dissertation.

the worst part is that I knew she thought it wasn't enough, but she said i could make it work. and I believed her.

no the real worst part is that I'm doing all this writing and reading alone, and it's messy, and she's not particularly involved, and then she comes back with concerns that I thought we had already addressed.

or that I'm trying to be done by next january, so it's too goddamn late to go through the hellish process of getting a new advisor or collecting a whole heap of new data.

[saintcirce]

Please do a whole post about phd applications, funding applications, fellowships, TAships etc. Would love your take on it. Thanks

I'm chronically horrible at responding to asks, so this is coming later than you probably expected!

For context, I'm now a second year PhD art history student about to take her doctoral (comprehensive) exams in April. I applied for PhD programs during the last semester of my master's program, which was a terminal degree through a different university than the one I currently attend.

I applied to two PhD programs in the United States and two in the United Kingdom: the processes are different, particularly when it comes to funding. The former will automatically consider you for funding and it's expected, at least in the humanities, that they will grant you tuition remission and a stipend for at least four years (potentially more, depending on your particular program). It's also possible to win additional fellowships, either through your university or a third party. For example, I have departmental funding (ie. a stipend that I receive for being a Graduate Assistant) and an outside fellowship from my university's Graduate School. My department applied for that fellowship on my behalf before I even enrolled. The other American university to which I applied also offered me tuition remission and a stipend, but it was less than the university I currently attend.

Two general notes about funding in the United States: (1) it often changes to account for rising cost of living but that does not necessarily mean you will be making a living wage, and (2) it often changes depending on whether your school has a Union. Graduate workers at my university are currently working to unionize, which would not only guarantee a living wage for union members but also offer protections for international students and student parents. There are a lot of benefits but the TLDR for funding is that unionizing often means the difference between $28,000 and $45,000 yearly stipend (see this article from the Boston Herald about BU's graduate student union). Graduate Assistants are often not allowed to hold a second job outside of the university and it's also difficult to do so when you are (a) working, (b) completing coursework, and (c) independently researching. My museum fellowship, which I'm due to begin in a couple days, jeopardized my funding status and I had to fight my university for them not to take away my fellowship. It ultimately worked out because I had my department chair's support but not all students are similarly supported—and not all departments are willing to advocate for their students.

Pivoting to UK schools: the TLDR is that they offer very little funding for international students and the funding that is available, either through the institutions themselves or outside organizations, is often not enough to cover the cost of living. Tuition is largely cheaper than in America but the difference was not significant enough for it to factor into my decision. If you're interested in more detail, I'd recommend reaching out to @therepublicofletters who actually attends a UK institution. She can also tell you more about how their programs are structured. Unlike American PhD programs—which involve at least two years of coursework, doctoral exams, and graduate assistantships before defending your prospectus and beginning dissertation research—UK programs ask you to apply with a prospectus that you will use as the basis for dissertation research that you begin immediately upon entry. The difference is that American programs typically take 5-7 years to complete whereas UK ones are only 3-4 years. While this may seem convenient in the short term, I was advised that American institutions (museums, universities, etc) often prefer PhDs from American institutions because of the extra work completed.

Setting aside this technical information, I chose the four programs to which I applied based on vibes. I had a master list of schools and advisors and I contacted each one to see if we fit in terms of academic interests and personalities. I did not want to work with an advisor I didn't like and who didn't like me—or who had so many students that they had no time for me. Aside from speaking with them personally, I also reached out to their current advisees: students will often give you a more honest perspective on faculty and the department as a whole. I would almost lend more weight to what the students say than any of the professors because they are and/or will be your peers. They are also the people who will give you the most honest information about how professors and the department view students of color, women, queer students, etc. Art history and the humanities are fairly white, straight, and male dominated, so it's important to get a read on how non-normative (for lack of a better collective term) individuals are treated. I used this information to narrow down my master list to four schools, each of which I would be happy to attend. Whether I was admitted to one or to all four, I would have a place to go where I would be content and able to find community.

This is a personal note but something to consider when it comes to advisors is gender. That should not be a determining factor but I realized after committing to my current school that this is the first time I've worked with a male advisor. I love him dearly and he is one of the most encouraging scholars I have met but there have been occasions where there is a disconnect based on life experience. That said, I know many people who have had no issues at all!

Throughout this whole process, the name value of the schools was functionally irrelevant. In my experience—and that of the numerous individuals who advised me during the application process—your advisor is far more important than your school. While this will necessarily vary by discipline, you want to work with someone who has connections and/or knows how to network. For example, an older scholar will likely know everyone and their mother whereas a younger scholar will know fewer people but likely be more present at conferences, etc.

In the end, what matters most is your happiness and stability. Will you like working with your chosen advisor? Will you like taking classes in other disciplines within your department? Will you be able to make friends and/or have civil relationships with other graduate students (ie. will people steal books you need because they know you need them, like at Columbia)? Can you afford to live in whatever city in which you school is located? Are they paying you a living wage and/or offering you alternate opportunities to apply for funding?

I chose my school based on the graduate community, my advisors (I now have two), and the funding package. There have been incidental issues that I could not have anticipated, but on the whole, I do not regret my decision because I prioritized my happiness when I was applying and did not make decisions based on what I thought other people would want. This is a huge commitment and you need to be self-motivated, to rely on your love of the subject, to make it through the hard times.

My last bit of advice, which I received from my undergraduate advisor: don't go into debt for art history! If a program isn't paying you and/or isn't paying you enough, then they're not worth your time. Know your worth and ask for what you deserve, never be afraid to negotiate funding.

Let me know if y'all have any other questions! This was a long one but I hope it was helpful.

[areyouwell]

what if... what if MC was there atop the Statue of Liberty with the rest of the team?

and instead of Erik pointing Logan's claws towards himself, he pointed them into you...?

and he had to make a choice between hurting you and saving Marie or keeping you safe and letting Erik enact his plan...

What if Erik forced Logan to choose between saving you or saving Marie?

What if he chooses Marie?

Or worse still...

What if he chooses you?

[le-fruit-de-la-passion]

if the finals dont kill me I'll kill myself for the finals. why am I in academia. why am i here.

[maelstrom-of-emotions]

There are two moods when writing fanfiction about something that needs to be researched:

Going to the absolute nitty gritty, double checking everything, going through articles, maps, videos, research papers just to make sure that one bit is correct and ties in correctly.

Going fuck it and making up something that sounds right and praying no one who actually knows the subject calls you out.

[dennisboobs]

real glennisheads lovingly bully glenn for his antivax arc

[probablynottola]

If I wrote fanfiction like I write academic papers

"From Trent Crimm, The Independent to Trent Crimm, Interdependent. How a late-in-life queer awakening disrupts the linear neoliberal atomized ethos" Abstract: The allegory of Trent torching his career for Ted represents the potential of the disinvestment in the linear career dream that provides a cruelly optimistic (Berlant, 2011) attachment to individual fulfillment, which is fundamentally opposed to a queer mutualistic radical futurity. What Ted provides for Trent is a peek into the possibility of collective support and an alternative to a hyper-individualistic focus, represented by his former work at "The Independent". One could argue that only arriving at a "Trent Crimm, Interdependent", does the queer post-scarcity utopian possibility of interdependency realizes itself"

[politedemon]

bosses officially pissed me off enough i'm googling how to unionise my workplace lmao

[littlemaple]

the hardest thing about getting a masters is bullshitting your way through the thesis

[estelletargaryen]

https://youtube.com/shorts/7RzPl5iFNKM?feature=share

That’s edited by some AI voice generator, I can tell just by listening to it. ​Then I just so happened to stumble across the fake original video with that audio right here and the video of the late Queen here 🥰). You literally could’ve just googled the late Queen saying she doesn’t like Camilla and nothing supporting this audio that came from a fake tiktok video would show up. And if she doesn’t like Camilla, why did she allow the marriage between Camilla and Charles and make it known in her jubilee message that she wanted Camilla to be known as Queen Consort as opposed to Princess Consort or no title?

Even if the late Queen did say this (she didn’t 😍) that doesn’t mean I’m not allowed to support Camilla. No one’s opinion of people will always and completely dictate my opinion of them. I respect Camilla’s work, I respect her as a Queen. I respect her initiatives and the attention she gives her patronages along with other charities/organizations that deserve the attention they receive from the monarchy. She’s not my favorite royal or person but I do respect her. Far more than you do, as I can tell you probably call her Cowmilla and say all sorts of ageist things against her. Would you like it if I called you a street rat? Sewer rat maybe? Fugly pick-me bitch? Camilla doesn’t deserve that abuse, Diana wasn’t a saint, they all acted immaturely, none of them were completely right. It’s been a quarter of a century now. Accept that Charles is King, Camilla is Queen Consort, and Diana deserves to rest in peace.

Anon’s Link

[quasi-normalcy]

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[telesilla]

Weird how the fan girl brain never quite turns off.

[shadyfennec]

PhD paper reading sessions in a nutshell

[lerios]

we love banks scheduling meetings with me with literally fuCKING NINE MINUTES OF WARNING DURING MY LUNCH BREAK.

every hsbc building on the planet get hit with an EMP challenge. i hope your data is irrecoverable and your business fails forever

[mercurylamp]

"Applications burden the mind" from a physics doctoral candidate is absolutely badass