Author: Jennifer Polk
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Jamie Pratt, Research Officer, Transition Q&A
Jamie Pratt received his PhD in philosophy from York University, specializing in ethics. He is now the research officer in York’s Faculty of Fine Arts. A tenure-track job at a research institution is often seen as the goal of a post-PhD job search. What was your experience? What did you hope for in terms of…
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Changes ahead
I’ll be playing around with different themes, layouts, and header images over the next few days. Don’t mind the mess and here’s hoping for positive changes!
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Patience in the neutral zone
Early this month was the one-year anniversary of my dissertation defence: 3 February 2012. Thinking about how much time has passed since then can get me down. I’m still not settled into a job or even on a career! Although I’m generally feeling optimistic and am fairly certain good things will come my way, it…
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Alexandra Guerson, Part-Time Faculty, Transition Q & A
About Alexandra Guerson Alexandra Guerson earned her PhD in history from the University of Toronto. She’s currently a part-time faculty member at New College, University of Toronto, and occasionally takes up sessional work at U of T’s history department and at York University. Find her online and follow her @AEGuerson. A tenure-track job at a research…
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Manifesto
There’s a big, and growing, problem with academic labour and the job market. What makes it worse is that there hasn’t been an attendant shift in attitudes within the academy about the purpose of a PhD. Although I’m most familiar with the situation in history and the troubles faced by the humanities in general, a…
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Exploration
When I hired my career coach, Hillary Hutchinson, back in the fall, I had no idea what a coach did. I’d heard—and laughed about—life coaches but had never heard of a career coach. I’d reached a impasse, though, and was determined to move forward. Since what I’d been doing thus far hadn’t been working, it…
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Scholarship and life
Scholars are almost always academics. We assign the designation to professors and researchers with university posts who get paid to research and publish. The term “independent scholar” only proves this: The qualifier is necessary because “scholar” by itself implies an academic position. I think this is why I’ve been uneasy about my desire to continue…
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Jessica Langer, Social Media and Digital Marketing Consultant, Transition Q&A
Jessica Langer earned her PhD in English from Royal Holloway, University of London. She runs ideas in flight, a social media and digital marketing consultancy, and teaches at York University’s Schulich School of Business. Find her online and follow her @DrJessicaLanger. A tenure-track job at a research institution is often seen as the supposed goal of a…
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A job interview
I had a job interview a couple weeks back. I wasn’t offered the position, but I still consider it a success. A celebration, even. Here’s what happened: Earlier this month, after talking with Natalie Zina Walschots, I started to be much more active on social media. That Friday, I mentioned Jessica Langer in a #FF…
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The importance of blogging
Reading an interview with #altac blogger Liana Silver got me thinking about the importance of blogging in my life. I first started to blog in June 2006. Life was pretty good: I was nearing the end of my second year of my PhD, was finishing up a stint as president of our graduate history society, my comprehensive exams…