What are some exciting
things happening in your life?
Currently, I am
preparing for my oral comprehensive exams which I'll be taking mid-June. After
that, the rest of my summer will be devoted to finishing my dissertation
prospectus. Then I'll be able to start my dissertation in earnest. It's a
strange feeling to finally (well, almost!) reach this point in my education.
Both have always seemed so far away, so it's really exciting!
Favorite or recommended
history books?
This is a really easy
question. My absolute favorite book is Rosemarie Zagarri's Revolutionary
Backlash. I read it in my first semester in Dr. Kerrison's American
Historiography course. I was writing a paper on republican motherhood, and she
suggested it. I had been frustrated with the concept of the "republican
mother" since I read Linda Kerber's Women of the Republic in my
sophomore year of college. Kerber asserted that the political agency of women
derived from their domestic roles as wives and mothers. I was so dissatisfied
with that thesis! Zagarri's work fills that hole, demonstrating how women were
politically active during the Revolution and in the early republic, often in
the same ways as men, despite the fact that they were largely disenfranchised.
I was actually advised by my undergraduate mentor to apply to graduate programs
to study with historians whose books I admired or whose fields of study I
wanted to pursue myself. I followed her advice, and I'm lucky enough to be
studying with Prof. Zagarri now!
I'd also recommend Susan
Klepp's Revolutionary Conceptions, Barbara Clark Smith's The Freedoms
We Lost, Kathleen Brown's Good Wives, Nasty Wenches, and Anxious
Patriarchs, Kirsten Fischer's Suspect Relations, Catherine Allgor's Parlor
Politics, Seth Rockman's Scraping By, and Seth Cotlar's Tom
Paine's America, all for selfish reasons. No offense to all other areas of
history, but early America is obviously the best :) Okay, so maybe this wasn't such
an easy question...
Finally, I'll give a
shameless plug for Dr. Kerrison's first book, Claiming the Pen. It's a
common trope that in order to learn to write well, you need to read good
writing. I recall one phrase of hers--the "tyranny of the candle,"
referring to her female subjects writing late into the night, and being
thwarted by the dimness and ephemerality of the candle. I wish I had her
writing skills! And this doesn't count as sucking up--she's not grading my work
anymore :)
Why did you seek an MA
in History? Before attending Villanova, what did you have in mind, career-wise,
after completing the program? Did you pursue this? If not, what
changed your mind?
I have wanted to pursue
a PhD in order to teach at the college level since my undergraduate advisor at
Boston College suggested that I look into graduate study when I was a
sophomore. The MA in history is obviously a necessary step in achieving the
PhD, and Villanova's program was a great fit for me. After my first week of
classes, I decided that I really did want to pursue the PhD (it's something you
do have to be sure of before you commit!), so I methodically took classes in my
two concentrations and with professors who were both phenomenal scholars and
educators. I really benefited from the mentors I had in the department, and I
think this is a theme you would hear echoed constantly if you were to poll
graduate alumni.
Tell us a bit about your
experience applying for PhD programs.
I'm sure I have the most
absurd story of any PhD student or professor who might get this question. I had
the back luck of being rejected from almost every school to which I applied,
and in the eleventh hour, I got off a wait list at my top-choice school.
Sometimes the stars really do align! I was waitlisted at another school along
with a peer of mine from the program; neither of us got off of the waitlist at
that school, but he got into a much better one. I think this just goes
to show how random and seemingly arbitrary the admissions process can be.
Money, professor availability, research interests, and any number of things can
be a factor in admissions committees' decisions. A rejection letter certainly
does not mean that a candidate is incompetent or undeserving of obtaining a
PhD; often, it is due to another matter entirely that is out of the applicant's
control.
Give us a brief
description of your PhD candidate duties.
I'm a teaching assistant
at George Mason. For the past two years, I've TAed for two different professors
in Western Civilization courses. I've graded and led discussions
intermittently--this is a big course that is required for all students in
Humanities and Social Sciences, so most classes are lecture-based. Next year,
I'm hoping to TA for a World Civ class which has more opportunities for student
interaction, including weekly discussion groups with smaller class sizes.
Tell us a bit about the research you're doing.
My dissertation will (hopefully!) focus on the differences between the lived experiences and prescribed behaviors of marriage and marital discourse. I will be investigating how things like class, gender, print culture, and the Revolution affected men's and women's ideas about their roles as husbands and wives, particularly in Boston, Philadelphia, and Charleston between 1750 and 1820.
What do you enjoy about
being in a PhD program? And if you’re comfortable sharing this
publicly, what would you say are the less desirable aspects of the gig?
Mason's program is
incredibly welcoming and friendly, both among faculty and students. I have a
great group of peers. We are not competitive with each other. We're really
supportive of each other, helping to organize studying sessions, readings, and
the occasional social outing to take a break from work! We've formed several
groups--writing groups, digital project working groups, etc.--that really give
us a chance to get insightful feedback from unintimidating sources! It's great
to be a part of a cohort that shares your interests (especially the nerdy
ones!) and is rooting for you to get through this difficult process!
Mason's program is also
fairly young, especially relative to other PhD programs. The professors who
established it years ago integrated several components that they wished they
had experienced in their own graduate education. One, for instance, is our
bi-monthly colloquium; we hear lectures from local historians, discuss issues
of professional development (presenting at conferences, publishing articles,
job interviews, alternative careers to academia, etc.), and we get to enjoy a
generally congenial environment (there are cookies!). We are also required to
take two semesters of Digital History (one on the theoretical side, another on
the practice of digital history) which I honestly wouldn't have done if it were
not mandated! I'm glad it was, though. I'm hoping to incorporate a few digital
tools and methods into my dissertation!
Pursuing a PhD can be a
solitary, and therefore an often lonely endeavor. This can be especially
difficult when you get to that point in the semester when you realize that
there are not enough hours in the day to finish all of your work. My peers at
Mason have been great in combatting these difficulties--after all, we're all in
the same boat! Venting sessions, happy hours, movie nights, and other outings
are ways that we get around the "less desirable aspects" of working
toward a PhD. I've also joined a volleyball team, started going to the gym
regularly, and taken a few bike rides from my apartment to the National Mall
(the benefits of living near a large metropolitan area!). Sometimes you may
feel guilty using "study time" to exercise, but breaks from stressful
work really are helpful.
How have the knowledge
and skills you developed at VU helped you as you’ve continued deeper into
academia?
I came to Villanova
almost by accident, but I'm incredibly grateful that I did. I know that my
experiences in seminar classes, with research papers, working with my peers in
the Rofinot lounge, and having incredible mentors has made all the difference
in my education. The program prepared me for the workload and the expectations
of a PhD program. Several of my current advisors have commented on the depth of
my reading in both early America and women's history, and I know that is a
testament to the rigorous coursework at Villanova. Before starting my PhD, I
had a strong foundation on which to build my learning and research due to the
high quality of my Masters coursework.
Do you have any
additional background, training, or experience that’s aided you (examples:
another degree or certificate, technical skills, language proficiency, etc.)?
None that I can think of
at the moment! Mason actually doesn't have a language requirement for students
studying U.S. history (not all programs do--make sure to check each
department's requirements!).
What would you tell
current students who are contemplating seeking a PhD?
First of all, make sure
it's for you. Consult with current students, think about your experience in the
program at Villanova, and especially talk to your professors about it. They'll
be honest with you about the workload, the realities of the job market, and the
practicality of pursuing a PhD.
In terms of the actual
application process, it's incredibly important to gauge whether you will be a
good fit for a particular program before applying. This was something I wish I
had known before applying myself. I would suggest contacting program chairs and
potential advisors at programs in which you are interested, and if at all
possible, schedule visits to meet with them in person. I don't doubt that some
of the main reasons I'm at Mason are that the program has a strong faculty in
early American women's history, and that I took the time to meet with the
program director. She remembered me, she knew and trusted the recommendation of
my advisor, and it made a difference in my situation. Personal connections and
networking can be critical in academia just as in any other field.
Any other wisdom you’d
like to pass on?
Take advantage of all
the resources at your disposal at Villanova, especially in the department. As I
have said about a million times in this interview, the faculty are incredible,
and I continue to be indebted to them for all they have done for me. I know my
peers and other alumni feel the same way--we all had a tough time at
graduation!
Also,
try the sweet potato fries in Connelly. They are delicious, and got us through
a number of paper-writing sessions in Rofinot!
No comments:
Post a Comment