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[nameishere]

Hi,
I'm a current undergraduate and was looking into a field of study of some interest to me (disability studies) where there is currently only one PhD program, maybe three masters programs, and a few other schools that offer graduate "minors" or certificates of studies.  It's a tiny, emerging field, but to me, a very, very interesting one.  As a person with a very visible physical disability, I have often been surprised and dismayed about the lack of research in this field, especially concerning the longterm life outcomes of people with physical disabilities and the problem of massive unemployment and occupational discrimination among people with physical disabilities.  So much of the current focus on disabilities tends to ignore the larger group dynamics of the population, and I'd love to do research on these issues.

I also have a good amount of family pressure to get a PhD from my family, but that's not really a factor to me (they haven't read about the horrors of the job market!).
However, I have a few concerns that make this idea little more than a fleeting thought in my head:
 
I'm very wary of academia in general, especially after reading the CHE forums regarding the bloodbath of the academic job market.  I'm a fairly low maintenance person with little desire to live the high life, and I never plan to have kids for physical reasons.  However, I'm one of those independently uninsurable people (why a nonprogressive condition makes one uninsurable, I'm not exactly sure), so it frightens me more than a bit to hear of all these well-qualified academics who are forced toil go without group benefits.  Also, I would like to live a life with enough income for shelter, food, savings, etc.  Not rich but not starving and sleeping in a car, either.

On that same point, I'm concerned that a field small enough to have only one PhD program (I don't think they've graduated any students yet) would have a minuscule, almost nonexistent number of job openings. This is really, really scary.  On location, I'm not that picky, though I'd pick the middle of nowhere long before I'd move to LA, Boston, or NYC (I know, the opposite of most people).  However, I am worried I'd be constantly on the move, and while that's not a dealbreaker for me, it is a negative point I'd have to consider.

Thirdly, and perhaps ironically, I'm worried my disability would disqualify me from jobs at many universities simply due to the sheer lack of physical accessibility of many campuses (and/or SC (unintentional?) discrimination...?).

Lastly, and most immediately, I'm worried about if I could actually get intosuch a program, having literally only one option. 
 
My other career consideration at the current time would be to get an MSW (I'm a social work and psychology double degree with a biology minor) and go into direct, micro practice in the field (child welfare, health, or mental health), probably ironically not working disability services (my interests are more in research in that area than direct services). 

Thanks for any input!

[kissa_mau]

On that same point, I'm concerned that a field small enough to have only one PhD program (I don't think they've graduated any students yet) would have a minuscule, almost nonexistent number of job openings. This is really, really scary.  On location, I'm not that picky, though I'd pick the middle of nowhere long before I'd move to LA, Boston, or NYC (I know, the opposite of most people).  However, I am worried I'd be constantly on the move, and while that's not a dealbreaker for me, it is a negative point I'd have to consider.

I think you've hit on your biggest issue right here. Is there some way you can do the research you are interested in, but do it in a more mainstream program?

[kismet227]

I agree that Disability Studies is an important area. You may want to study in a secondary area to expand your job opportunities.  I know Syracuse has a program in Media and Disability Studies.
Best of luck!

[figee]

Doesn't this depend on what you actually want to study?  I'd have thought that programmes in public health, public policy, politics, sociology, media (as mentioned), cultural studies, etc would also be relevant?

[tedbear09]

I don't know if this is the program you're talking about, but York University, in Toronto, Canada, offers graduate programs in Critical Disability Studies.

http://www.atkinson.yorku.ca/cdis/

MA and PhD.

[t_r_b]

The first question you need to answer is what you want to do with your life. Once you've decided that (even tentatively), then you can figure out which kind of graduate program will best serve those goals. It sounds like you're going about this in the opposite way: you've listed a few grad school options (PhD, MSW) and you're trying to figure out what you can do with them. Grad school is a means to an end: decide on where you want to end up, and then take whatever steps are needed to get there.

Since you're obviously concerned about long-term economic security, I'd say that having interest in doing research in a particular subject area is not a good reason to pursue a PhD. You'll do your research, write your dissertation, and then what? Pursue a PhD if you're really excited about an academic career (and then choose a program that will enable you to succeed in that career). Similarly, pursue an MSW if you're really excited about a career in social work. In either case, first talk to as many current academics or social workers as you can find to get a realistic sense of what you should expect.

If you're not interested in an academic career, another option would be to do a PhD in a field that offers good non-academic employment options (psychology might be a good fit, or even the disability studies program you mentioned - ask them about the careers their PhDs have pursued). This could allow you to do the dissertation you're excited about, and give you a viable career path at the end.

By the way, there is no rush to make this decision. The best thing for right now could be to take a few years and do non-academic work related to your interests. In the process, you'll probably get a clearer sense of what you want to end up doing.

[hegemony]

I think the truth here is that you shouldn't do a degree in a Disability Studies program, but do research in disability studies in a mainstream department.   What you need to figure out is what angle of Disability Studies you're interested in.  Disability in literature?  Of English literature, of French literature, etc.?  Disability as a component of sociology?  Disability as it relates to psychology?  And so on.  Then go to a good department in your relevant field.  You don't necessarily need a faculty member who studies disability issues per se, since the field is so new.  But you'll need to make sure someone there would be open to advising you as you go forward in the field.  It's a hot topic right now, and I'd say job prospects look good for scholars who help move the field forward.

[zharkov]

I think the truth here is that you shouldn't do a degree in a Disability Studies program, but do research in disability studies in a mainstream department.   What you need to figure out is what angle of Disability Studies you're interested in.  Disability in literature?  Of English literature, of French literature, etc.?  Disability as a component of sociology?  Disability as it relates to psychology?  .....

Or economics, or law, or management, etc. etc.  If you have any interests or hopes of getting a job in academia, your best bet is to go though a traditional department, and do your dissertation research in the disabilities area.

Plan B, perhaps a program in interdisciplinary studies would meet your needs, but jobs in academia will be fewer.

[slac_vap]

Have you read journal articles related to the topics you are most interested in?  Google the authors of those scholarly works to find out where they are housed (at what universities and in which departments).  This might also be a good way to go about finding a mentor.  A well-worded email expressing interest in the research might go far toward securing a place in a grad program.

[tiger_lily]

Agreed with disability focus in a mainstream program. What about American studies, or rhetorical studies?

[tt_wannabe]

I second the notion that you should research where these folks got their PhDs. Consider that if there is only one PhD program in the country then the profs at that school probably didn't get their degrees there. So, where did they get their degrees and in what?

So can you (if, as said before, this lines up with your goals).

Good luck!

[nameishere]

Thank you so much for the replies!  Sorry for the delay in responding.

I did see the York program before but didn't "include" it in my account because it was out of the country (though I WOULD like to live in Canada sometime) and requires an MA for admittance.  I found a website offering links to all the schools in the US and CAN that offer some sort of disability studies program; I'll look for it again and post it in case anyone else is interested.

TRB, you raise some good points, and I'll try to address them here-

To be honest, an academic career doesn't interest me so much as research does (I have some background in both biomedical and psychology research).  Disabilities studies research interests me greatly because I see such a great need for it--when I'm looking for data on certain issues, the information I find is usually sparse, outdated, muddled, borderline offensive, or virtually nonexistent.   I truly believe that such research needs to be done, and I'd love to do it.  I know a PhD is the way to be trained in research.  I like the academic "thinking" environment and like the thought of being able to supply people with some of the information I always wish I had (yes, I realize that couldn't sound more idealistic :) ).  I've done research on some of these topics of undergraduate courses, and it felt so nice to be able to dive into the field, if just a little bit.

However... I don't really want to take on the academic world--the hellish job market, in particular.  I like the "feet on the ground" nature of social work and the clinical aspects of clinical psychology and clinical social work--heck, I'm one of the few people I know who doesn't mind doing paperwork!  I like the idea of working with people on an individual or group basis, though I'm sure it's get tiring at times, as does any field (I've known burnt-out social workers, doctors, lawyers, psychologists, engineers, and so on, so I know no career is perfect). I also like the relative versatility of the degrees in terms of practice environments and so on.  That being said, research is a negative part of doing this—little training and even less time for broad, in-depth research.

On the excellent suggestions of the posters (thanks!), I looked up the subjects in which the DS PhD program professors received their doctorates.  They range from English (surprisingly) and sociology to Neurophysiology and engineering, as well some clinical doctorates (physical therapy and OT).  The problem with looking for a program in, say, sociology is that I don’t just want to narrow it down to the sociological aspects.  For example, I’d love to study how the degree and nature of physical functioning is affected by early intervention and how that is then reflected on how the child views him or herself in light of their degree of physical functionality.  What I’m (very poorly, sorry), trying to say is that I’d like to study and research both the physical/medical aspects of disability and how those influence and are influenced by social and psychological forces.  I don’t want to ignore the physical aspect in looking at disability, which is why this particular program appeals to me.  I want to look at disability through as much of a "full scope" as possible.  Does that make any sense?  If not, I sincerely apologize.

I think the problem here is that, while I would be interested in getting the PhD for scholarly purposes, it feels like doing so would be a “trap” in a sense.  I worry that I’d spend years and years getting the degree, only to turn around and have nothing for which to use it—no or few faculty jobs, little or no training or credentialing in clinical/direct work, etc.  Basically, the degree seems horribly unpractical (no offense to any of you—I certainly don’t mean to imply that PhDs are useless [they aren’t]—it’s just that if I put aside interest and the thrill of [possibly] being able to do this, IMO, pressing and fascinating research, the PhD looks like attractive black hole that would suck me in and keep me there, ultimately sharply limiting my professional choices in ways I’m not sure I’d be comfortable with.  It's the longterm consequences of the PhD that scare me, to be honest.

My apologies for littering your board with undergraduate angst.—I’m a sophomore, so I still have more time to research, self-examine, etc., etc., but I’m just trying to get as full of a picture of the situation as I can without experiencing it first-hand.

Thank you once again!

[zharkov]

On the excellent suggestions of the posters (thanks!), I looked up the subjects in which the DS PhD program professors received their doctorates.  They range from English (surprisingly) and sociology to Neurophysiology and engineering, as well some clinical doctorates (physical therapy and OT).  The problem with looking for a program in, say, sociology is that I don’t just want to narrow it down to the sociological aspects.  For example, I’d love to study how the degree and nature of physical functioning is affected by early intervention and how that is then reflected on how the child views him or herself in light of their degree of physical functionality.  What I’m (very poorly, sorry), trying to say is that I’d like to study and research both the physical/medical aspects of disability and how those influence and are influenced by social and psychological forces.  I don’t want to ignore the physical aspect in looking at disability, which is why this particular program appeals to me.  I want to look at disability through as much of a "full scope" as possible.  Does that make any sense?  If not, I sincerely apologize.

Some programs/schools will allow, even encourage what economist Albert Hirshman called "trespassing" -- that is -- pulling in findings from   other disciplines, doing interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary work.  Some programs would be aghast even at the though that their view of the world is not already comprehensive.  So when it is time to consider grad school, keep that in mind.

FWIW,   My MA school was of the second -- insular -- variety.  One guy wanted to do research on labor markets and -- aghast -- wanted to include some AI stuff from the computer science dept. The home dept didn't like that at all.  (Actually, they didn't get the research proposal, didn't get AI in the least.) But my PhD school was much more open to a reasonable degree of trespassing.

[slac_vap]

I think the problem here is that, while I would be interested in getting the PhD for scholarly purposes, it feels like doing so would be a “trap” in a sense.  I worry that I’d spend years and years getting the degree, only to turn around and have nothing for which to use it—no or few faculty jobs, little or no training or credentialing in clinical/direct work, etc.  Basically, the degree seems horribly unpractical (no offense to any of you—I certainly don’t mean to imply that PhDs are useless [they aren’t]—it’s just that if I put aside interest and the thrill of [possibly] being able to do this, IMO, pressing and fascinating research, the PhD looks like attractive black hole that would suck me in and keep me there, ultimately sharply limiting my professional choices in ways I’m not sure I’d be comfortable with.  It's the longterm consequences of the PhD that scare me, to be honest.

Well, you should certainly consider the clinical psychology Ph.D.  The clinical psych Ph.D. program prepares students both as researchers and clinicians (though the degree to which each of those is emphasized varies widely depending on the grad program).  All clinical psychology Ph.D.s are required to complete internship experiences which prepare them for clinical practice in addition to completing the dissertation and other research work.  In that sense, the clinical psychology Ph.D. is more versatile than many other degrees.

...I like the "feet on the ground" nature of social work and the clinical aspects of clinical psychology and clinical social work--heck, I'm one of the few people I know who doesn't mind doing paperwork!  I like the idea of working with people on an individual or group basis, though I'm sure it's get tiring at times, as does any field (I've known burnt-out social workers, doctors, lawyers, psychologists, engineers, and so on, so I know no career is perfect). I also like the relative versatility of the degrees in terms of practice environments and so on.  That being said, research is a negative part of doing this- little training and even less time for broad, in-depth research...

...The problem with looking for a program in, say, sociology is that I don't just want to narrow it down to the sociological aspects.  For example, I'd love to study how the degree and nature of physical functioning is affected by early intervention and how that is then reflected on how the child views him or herself in light of their degree of physical functionality.  What I'm (very poorly, sorry), trying to say is that I'd like to study and research both the physical/medical aspects of disability and how those influence and are influenced by social and psychological forces.  I don't want to ignore the physical aspect in looking at disability, which is why this particular program appeals to me.  I want to look at disability through as much of a "full scope" as possible. 

Consider clinical psych programs that offer specialized training in either neuropsychology (if you have interest in CNS disabilities or traumatic brain injury) or health psychology (if you have interest in other medical disabilities).  Good programs in those fields are by nature collaborative and incorporate multiple perspectives, looking at interactions between social, psychological, and physiological factors.

If you are interested in clinical psychology, though... be aware that admission standards to Ph.D. programs are tough.  Keep working on gaining research experience, taking a broad range of coursework, get to know your professors so they'll write you excellent recommendations, and plan on practicing for the GRE.