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[anti_hegemony]

I am in my first year of a Ph.D. program in the humanities at an R1 University. When I applied and went on the campus visit, it seemed that the department was more focused on my subfield than it actually is.  While, on the surface, it seems that my interests meshed with particular faculty members but, after getting to know the faculty members and their work more thoroughly, it turns out we really have little in common research-wise. I have a lot of projects that I want to work on, but there seems to be no institutional or faculty support or direction available. The courses offered by the department have little to do with my particular areas of research, and since there is no faculty member who specializes in my subfield, there is no obvious choice of a professor to do a directed study with.  I could probably convince someone to do a directed study with me, but if they have no expertise in my area, is it worth it?  I really feel I need some guidance and direction-- it's only my first year and I feel I have a lot to learn.  However, I do not yet have an advisor (we don't select one until year 2), nor have I developed a strong relationship with any of the faculty. I am producing good work in my courses and receiving good marks (all A's), but it is not helping to develop my own research.  I feel that I need advice, but it seems that there is no one I can talk to about this issue. For various reasons, I feel strongly that I cannot have this conversation with the Dir. of Gradute Studies and I have never even met the Department Chair (i've seen him lead a meeting, but never spoken to him directly and I guarantee he doesn't know my face), so I am rather at a loss about who to approach.  I have thought about transferring, but I know that I would have to basically start over, and I don't really want to do that.  Furthermore, I know that transferring is often looked at negatively (it burns bridges) and I don't know if I can get into a more desirable department at another University (I was either rejected or wait-listed to my "first" choice schools last year, so why would they accept me now?).  So, ideally, I would like to stay in my program and make it work, but what can I do if none of the faculty really work in my subfield and no one has (as of yet) really taken an interest in my work?  I would really appreciate your advice, oh wise forumites!

[systeme_d_]

The fact that there is no one in your specific subfield is much less worrisome than the fact that you can't talk frankly with your DGS!

You're only in your first year, so transferring could be feasible.  The bottom line, for me, is that you will need good working relationships with your faculty, and you seem to be skeptical about that possibility for some reason.

What you seem to be overlooking is this:  Expertise in your specific subfield is not always necessary for success in a grad program, and good placement thereafter.  There was no one in my specific subfield in my program, for example.  However, I took a number of directed studies (as well as actual classes) with my faculty (and with folks outside of my department), and I benefited tremendously from these experiences.  For example, a directed study with a faculty person who had an expertise in a certain area of theory and method was formative for me, although his subfield (in terms of data) was quite different from my own.

[systeme_d_]

Sorry for the double-post, but for some reason, my reply was posted before I was finished typing.

My final comment: 

You are in your first year.  It is not at all surprising that no one has "taken an interest in your work."  It will be your job, later on, to show the faculty how you'd like to take advantage of what they can offer, not vice versa.

[bread_pirate_naan]

I am in my first year of a Ph.D. program in the humanities at an R1 University. When I applied and went on the campus visit, it seemed that the department was more focused on my subfield than it actually is.  While, on the surface, it seems that my interests meshed with particular faculty members but, after getting to know the faculty members and their work more thoroughly, it turns out we really have little in common research-wise.

A general statement to the peanut gallery.  Read the [current] publications, not just the bio on the department website. 

I have a lot of projects that I want to work on, but there seems to be no institutional or faculty support or direction available.

Handholding?

The courses offered by the department have little to do with my particular areas of research, and since there is no faculty member who specializes in my subfield, there is no obvious choice of a professor to do a directed study with.  I could probably convince someone to do a directed study with me, but if they have no expertise in my area, is it worth it?

 

Yes, you should like the way your advisor writes and thinks. I can listen to my advisor talk about nearly anything and it blows my mind.  It doesn't matter if it's a grad seminar, undergrad survey or upper division class for majors.  There is always something amazing happening.  Few of my advisor's successful students are in the same subfield(s).

I really feel I need some guidance and direction-- it's only my first year and I feel I have a lot to learn.

Coursework, coursework, coursework.  Make some friends with those in the cohort ahead of you.  The fora should not be your first line of defense.  If you have selected one of those cold, uber-competitive programs, developing your network will be a part of the skill set you acquire.  As you have done something few people do, which is go straight through to a humanities PhD from undergrad, there is likely a notable age and life experience difference between you and your peers.  I think that you might want to seek out someone who has that same experience for advice.  There should be grad student life organizations that can help you make some great connections.

 However, I do not yet have an advisor (we don't select one until year 2), nor have I developed a strong relationship with any of the faculty.

Didn't you win a big 5 year fellowship and indicate who you wanted to work with in your SOP?  Or did you choose a different offer?

I am producing good work in my courses and receiving good marks (all A's), but it is not helping to develop my own research.

 

Really?  You have a lot of projects, and you've got some coursework under your belt, all which presumably allows some new insights into handling theory and method.  You should be selecting topics to explore in your coursework that relate to your interests broadly, if not precisely.  The disconnect is self-generated.  There isn't anything that happens in grad school that can't inform your work in some way.  You are there to think.  It is different than you expected, but that means that you have an opportunity to develop a more realistic idea of how research develops.

I would really appreciate your advice, oh wise forumites!

You have been humbled (?) and feel insecure.  You need to trust someone where you are to acclimate.  When you become a small fish in a big pond, there is a lot of room to move around.  Investigate faculty and course offerings in other departments.  Socialize.  Your research is ostensibly interdisciplinary, if I remember correctly.

Change your learning strategy and summarize what you took from each of your seminars.  Then apply it to one of your pet projects.

You will notice I have said roughly the same thing SD did.

[anti_hegemony]

Thank-you for your post.  It was certainly helpful, and I have a few comments in regards to some of your points:

Yes, I did accept the offer you mentioned.  However, the primary faculty member I wanted to work with (who I mentioned in my SOP and whose publications I read) actually left the University right before I started, and I was not told of her impending departure during my campus visit. Unfortunately, her position will not be filled by another professor because of financial cutbacks.  Finding out about this on day 1 of grad school, I was a bit perturbed, but took courses with the professors whose interests were next closest to mine (who I mention in my initial post)-- but that just isn't very close, nor do I feel a particular affinity with them. They are well-qualified in their own subfields, but they aren't inspiring the way many of my previous professors have been.  There aslo seems to be quite a bit of fliration going on between these professors (all male) and many of the female students, and this dynamic rubs me the wrong way. It's important to me to have an advisor (or directed study professor) that I can respect and feel comfortable with, without these dynamics entering into the equation. 

In respone to the "handholding" remark, perhpas I did not use the best phrasing which gave the wrong impression.  In general, I am fairly independent and I have never been one of the students who needs "handholding."  However, I think it is reasonable to expect that a grad student have an advisor or interim advisor to go to for academic questions/advice.  My colleagues in other departments have an interim advisor that they can go to until they select their dissertation advisor-- I wish we had something similar. We also have the unfortunate situation of having a DGS that is (for reasons I don't want to get into) unable to provide us with guidance.  Thus, I don't think it is unreasonable to expect that there is some faculty member we could go to in order to discuss academic or course related matters.

Yes, there were several professors I worked with at my previous instiution who I could listen to for hours about any topic, whether it related to my research or not.  In fact, my undergraduate advisor works in a  slightly different subfield, but she was extremely knowledgable about my area of research, and I could not possibly have had a better experience working with her (and many other professors there).  Hopefully, I will find such a professor at my current instiution but, as of yet, I simply haven't.  I'm not giving up hope as I know it is early, but I am a bit dissapointed thus far. 

In the future, I think my coursework likely will give me the opportunity to mold the assignments to my interests but, in my first semester, I was not given this opportunity.  The assignments were fairly rigid, and the reading lists were entirely outside of my particular area of research.  Since I don't want to be specific for anonymity's sake, think taking an 18th century history class and trying to make it fit with an interest in new media.  It just doesn't.  Furthermore, the course syllabi have changed quite a bit recently (there was apparently some overhaul) from what is listed online and, when deciding to apply and then accept my offer, I did not think to ask if courses with the same name and # still use the same reading lists and assignments.  (It seems that my department used to be particularly strong in my subfield but, recently, due to faculty changes and a few other things, that area has been phased out.)

Also, given that my program is interdisciplinary, the problem I am having is that none of the professors have a foundation in my "subfield" at all, because it is really more of a different field altoghether.  I am concerned that they don't have the background knowledge necessary to advise me as I develop my work.  Of course, they are very knowledgable and acomplished in their own areas, but they (admittedly) don't have experience in my area. Honestly, since they know that Professor X in my field was leaving, I am surprised that they admitted me in the first place. 

I am pursuing a formal minor and taking courses in another department, which I do enjoy more than my home department. It still is not a perfect fit but, so far, the faculty and courses in that department seem to align a bit better with my particular research interests.  I'm taking a new class with a new professor in that department next semester, so hopefully that will be a good experience.  If I can find a committee member or ally in that department, that would be excellent, but it would still leave me the task of finding an advisor in my home department that I can build a productive working relationship with. 

I have mentioned bits and pieces of my concerns to others in my program both in my year and above me (the friends I have made are actually the best part of the program thus far).  While they are sympathetic and willing to listen-- and share their own frustrations--- they have little concrete advice to offer.  They all have an advisor or potential advisor that they really like and whose work they resonate with, and simply are not having a similar exeprience.  Thus, why I took the next step of posting to the fora. 

Finally, while I did not do a master's, I did not go directly from undergrad to grad.  I took a couple of years off to do related work, which was academic though outside of the University proper. Thus, while I'm fairly young compared to the average age of entering grad students, I'm more in the middle of my particular cohort (and about half of them also do not have master's degrees).  Since I'm also married, fairly settled in my life, and already have some great freinds at my new University,  the socialization part isn't really an issue.  I'm happy with the other students and activities here (I even enjoy my TA position)-- my only concern is the fit between my research area and the department I'm in.

[seniorscholar]

I have to say that the most successful (at this point) of my doctoral students -- tenured, good school, two books published and a high-prestige grant for next year's sabbatical -- entered the program to study with someone in a quite different subfield, and came rather shamefaced into my office when finishing coursework to ask if I'd consider directing the dissertation. It seems to me that one is supposed to learn (1) requisite theory and methodology (2) broad disciplinary background and (3) research skills before starting a dissertation, and the people who come to tread in the footsteps of some one faculty person (at least in my humanities field) often wind up with too much imitation and not enough innovation.

Certainly I'm generalizing, and have no doubt forgotten many of the good people who have passed through my department's doctoral program in the past 25+ years, but the people who have had a great deal of individual initiative are the ones who stand out in my memory.

[womanofproperty]

In the future, I think my coursework likely will give me the opportunity to mold the assignments to my interests but, in my first semester, I was not given this opportunity.  The assignments were fairly rigid, and the reading lists were entirely outside of my particular area of research.  [underscoring supplied] Since I don't want to be specific for anonymity's sake, think taking an 18th century history class and trying to make it fit with an interest in new media.  It just doesn't.

I can understand your disappointment, OP - and I don't want to question the validity of your concerns - but it doesn't seem that terrible to me that you are required to cover material that doesn't seem to be directly related to your research interests.  As a graduate student, you should be getting a broad and deep understanding of your field.  Keep in mind that once you've graduated, you will be asked to do more than teach seminars on your dissertation.  You might find yourself teaching a large survey class to first-year undergraduates.

One of the tasks you will certainly face in the future is the task of describing to others who are not particularly interested or knowledgeable about your area of research (e.g. individuals on a search committee) exactly why your work is important and relevant.  I think you'll want to be able to come up with some sort of answer if/when you are asked what your cutting-edge research in new media contributes to an understanding of history from the 18th century to the present.

[bewilderedta]

There should certainly be a faculty member to advise you - generally this is why the DGS position exists. If you feel you cannot speak to your DGS, you need to choose another faculty member with whom you feel more comfortable, even if they're not technically assigned to you, and ask them for a half hour of their time. One of them is going to end up being your adviser, so you may as well start feeling things out now.

The other thing - I wonder if you could look at the idea of subfields a little differently, in terms of the larger questions that are in play. To use your example, say you want to study 18th C - connections to new media might not be immediately obvious, but I think there probably are parallels you could draw (questions of scientific/technological advance and societal shift and such like, maybe? I'm not in either of those fields, I'm just guessing). It's up to you to figure out what they are.

BTW, you should be able to go to your DGS and it's very odd that you can't. Is this just you, or everybody? If everybody, you all need to talk to the chair about whatever the issue is.

[polly_mer]

In the future, I think my coursework likely will give me the opportunity to mold the assignments to my interests but, in my first semester, I was not given this opportunity.  The assignments were fairly rigid, and the reading lists were entirely outside of my particular area of research.  [underscoring supplied] Since I don't want to be specific for anonymity's sake, think taking an 18th century history class and trying to make it fit with an interest in new media.  It just doesn't.

I can understand your disappointment, OP - and I don't want to question the validity of your concerns - but it doesn't seem that terrible to me that you are required to cover material that doesn't seem to be directly related to your research interests.  As a graduate student, you should be getting a broad and deep understanding of your field.  Keep in mind that once you've graduated, you will be asked to do more than teach seminars on your dissertation.  You might find yourself teaching a large survey class to first-year undergraduates.

One of the tasks you will certainly face in the future is the task of describing to others who are not particularly interested or knowledgeable about your area of research (e.g. individuals on a search committee) exactly why your work is important and relevant.  I think you'll want to be able to come up with some sort of answer if/when you are asked what your cutting-edge research in new media contributes to an understanding of history from the 18th century to the present.

If you get nothing else from this discussion, reread Womanofproperty's post a couple of times.

Classes are to socialize you to the norms of your discipline.

You will spend far more time in your professional life using the general precepts of your field, whatever that is, than your dissertation topic so that you need this solid foundation that is shared with everyone in your discipline in order to call yourself a scholar of your discipline.  If all you do is focus on your narrow dissertation topic, then you don't need to go to graduate school.  You can be a dilettante in any sub-sub-sub-sub-sub-sub area that you like for your own amusement.

However, you do have to go to graduate school to be taken seriously a professional scholar in your discipline because being a scholar is more than expertise in one tiny dissertation topic.  You should be the world expert in your dissertation topic, but the credential aspect of a graduate degree should encompass far more than becoming the world expert in one topic that is likely to be unrelated to any future endeavors that require a graduate degree as the minimum qualification.

[verysneaky]

Yes, I did accept the offer you mentioned.  However, the primary faculty member I wanted to work with (who I mentioned in my SOP and whose publications I read) actually left the University right before I started, and I was not told of her impending departure during my campus visit.

Yeah, this kind of thing is unfortunately not as rare as it should be.

I also have only one person who can work with me at my current program, because my subfield is tiny. Most programs don't have anyone in it. Here's my backup plan in case something that happens (that person moves, etc.). Most of these steps are things I was planning to do anyway but that will be extra-important if I lose my advisor:

a) Give papers at specialist conferences, even grad conferences, perhaps more than I otherwise would (to get feedback from people in my subfield);
b) Stay in good touch with senior people from MA or undergrad;
c) Take a semester's exchange at another campus, actually the only school I know of with several people in my subfield, that will allow me to pick up the advanced technical skills I would otherwise lack;
d) Lead a reading group in my research area for nonspecialists (teaching is a great way to master content IMO, and leading a reading group is as close as I will possibly come to teaching in my area for a while);
e) Using fields lists from other schools with strong programs in my subfield to make sure I've covered all my own bases.

Basically the burden is on you to keep up with your field.

[helpful]

What I don't understand, OP, is why the department would admit you if they didn't think you would be an excellent Ph.D. student. Maybe you need to find out why they admitted you?

[bread_pirate_naan]

Thanks for the update and clarification, AH.
I'm sorry to hear about the departure of your intended.  While I had very little reason to choose another program, I did worry about my advisor moving, and had good options three faculty deep -- with an optional change of specialization built in if need be.  I do this all the time.  I would not be a happy camper if I didn't, and still things don't always work out.

There aslo seems to be quite a bit of fliration going on between these professors (all male) and many of the female students, and this dynamic rubs me the wrong way. It's important to me to have an advisor (or directed study professor) that I can respect and feel comfortable with, without these dynamics entering into the equation.

Got it.  Again, so sorry.  No gay men or women of any persuasion in your anti-hegemonic department?  Bummer.  The anti-hegemony climate is lacking and that may indeed be a problem.  Or, hypocrisy.  Also no fun.  Contradictions or a lack of admiration I can negotiate, but respect is a huge element of a successful prof-student relationship.  That was what pissed me off so much on the "seminar paper/publication thread."  One can plan to meet with the professor, take more classes with them and show such an untter disrespect to their authority as the Professor leading the seminar, without thinking, offends me. 

In respone to the "handholding" remark, perhpas I did not use the best phrasing which gave the wrong impression.  In general, I am fairly independent and I have never been one of the students who needs "handholding."  However, I think it is reasonable to expect that a grad student have an advisor or interim advisor to go to for academic questions/advice.

I put this out there because it was thrown up in my face by someone not that much older than me.  In a graduate program.  To be completely honest, that individual initiative and personal commitment to research, combined with a restrictive first year could/should make it easier to answer your own questions.  I may err a bit on the DIY side, but I try to work independently and save my question time for pressing matters. 

My colleagues in other departments have an interim advisor that they can go to until they select their dissertation advisor-- I wish we had something similar.

I think a lot of programs do this.  I was paired with someone in a radically different field, after being initially matched with someone I know well.  Neither is my advisor, but I didn't see the first year again until review time.  I'd concentrate on making progress.  There may be a program admin who can be of great help.  If there is a deeply knowledgeable person like this, sometimes referred to as a "secretary," they may be more helpful than you know.

We also have the unfortunate situation of having a DGS that is (for reasons I don't want to get into) unable to provide us with guidance.  Thus, I don't think it is unreasonable to expect that there is some faculty member we could go to in order to discuss academic or course related matters.

Why not discuss course related matters with the Prof at office hours?

Yes, there were several professors I worked with at my previous instiution who I could listen to for hours about any topic, whether it related to my research or not.  In fact, my undergraduate advisor works in a  slightly different subfield, but she was extremely knowledgable about my area of research, and I could not possibly have had a better experience working with her (and many other professors there).  Hopefully, I will find such a professor at my current instiution but, as of yet, I simply haven't.  I'm not giving up hope as I know it is early, but I am a bit dissapointed thus far.

I think you need to get over this.  The person who is most knowledgeable about your research in the coming years should be you.  Connection will expand your understanding, but I think some of these 'slight' differences are going to be a big disappointment as they grow wider.  Imagine being faculty.  Not a lot of overlap in interests, but invariably, good professors know other's work in the department and university and can establish substantive relationships and connections.

In the future, I think my coursework likely will give me the opportunity to mold the assignments to my interests but, in my first semester, I was not given this opportunity.  The assignments were fairly rigid, and the reading lists were entirely outside of my particular area of research.

WoP was right about this. You don't want to hear things like handholding and snowflakey, but there is an undercurrent of that here.  If your research can't adapt to what is going on in the academy, why would you be relevant when you go on the market?  I am not suggesting you jump a trend train, but at this point I am trying to decide which of the people I never anticipated working with will be the one whose work I allow to influence mine the most .(outside readers same discipline, different philosophical grounding -- even in the same tradition, both amazing and well known scholars)  This decision is likely to have long term impact on my career and my work, but neither of them teach in my area of research. 

Since I don't want to be specific for anonymity's sake, think taking an 18th century history class and trying to make it fit with an interest in new media. It just doesn't.

Good choice.  I can do this and know for a fact that one of the beloved mentors of a superstar in one of these areas is a superstar in the other.

Furthermore, the course syllabi have changed quite a bit recently (there was apparently some overhaul) from what is listed online and, when deciding to apply and then accept my offer, I did not think to ask if courses with the same name and # still use the same reading lists and assignments.  (It seems that my department used to be particularly strong in my subfield but, recently, due to faculty changes and a few other things, that area has been phased out.)

If you are flexible or adaptive, you can adjust.  If yu aren't, you should probably find a new department.  In the scope of thigs, especially program climate I can see why you would make that choice.  I would look at the program where your intended advisor went and see how well your research would be supported by the program and university as a whole.  If it isn't, as a scholar in the humanities, I think you need to think about why things are changing and whether or not that affects your viability.  Plan B is not just for leaving academe.

Also, given that my program is interdisciplinary, the problem I am having is that none of the professors have a foundation in my "subfield" at all, because it is really more of a different field altoghether.

Tough lesson.  This is the nature of the interdisciplinary.  I have a hard time believing this, but can understand what you may be talking about.  Again, it sounds, but may not be, narrow and rigid.  This might be rewarding intellectually, but it sounds like a professional cul-de-sac.  I know I could be wrong, but what did you think you were going to be doing when you weren't working with your advisor?  It sounds like you intended to lean on them more than any coursework would allow.  Things change constantly.  That's life.

I am concerned that they don't have the background knowledge necessary to advise me as I develop my work.  Of course, they are very knowledgable and acomplished in their own areas, but they (admittedly) don't have experience in my area.

Find an admirable senior person, or well rounded mid-career person.  Anyone who has been a successful academic (in a good way, not a bad way) for years knows a hell of a lot more than you, and probably know more than you think about topics of interest. (disclaimer: this is also a certain personality in the diverse garden of the uni)

Honestly, since they know that Professor X in my field was leaving, I am surprised that they admitted me in the first place.

Because you were a promising student?  I am surprised that the Prof didn't talk with you at admissions events and drop any clues.  If that is the case, that is a pretty good indication they would have been a bad advisor (on the naan scale).

I am pursuing a formal minor and taking courses in another department, which I do enjoy more than my home department. It still is not a perfect fit but, so far, the faculty and courses in that department seem to align a bit better with my particular research interests.  I'm taking a new class with a new professor in that department next semester, so hopefully that will be a good experience.  If I can find a committee member or ally in that department, that would be excellent, but it would still leave me the task of finding an advisor in my home department that I can build a productive working relationship with.

Great.  This is good.  Pick a good scholar who cares about advising and can professionalize you. Develop in a related or growing sub-field.  If you can't do that as an interdisciplinary schoalr, you aren't really interdisciplinary.

There is a lot more to learn in grad school than the research.  Lots.

I have mentioned bits and pieces of my concerns to others in my program both in my year and above me (the friends I have made are actually the best part of the program thus far).  While they are sympathetic and willing to listen-- and share their own frustrations--- they have little concrete advice to offer.  They all have an advisor or potential advisor that they really like and whose work they resonate with, and simply are not having a similar exeprience.  Thus, why I took the next step of posting to the fora.

This bothers me.  A student who cannot advise they peer because they lack the same experience is not going to be a very good teacher.  Someone in your program should know ins and outs, what have yous, that no one on the fora knows.  I am sorry you are in this situation.  Sometimes the reason you do not get advice is because someone doesn't especially want you to get ahead and you are in a land of complainers.  It happens.

Finally, while I did not do a master's, I did not go directly from undergrad to grad.  I took a couple of years off to do related work, which was academic though outside of the University proper.

What a relief!

Thus, while I'm fairly young compared to the average age of entering grad students, I'm more in the middle of my particular cohort (and about half of them also do not have master's degrees). 

Sounds like a social science department I wade in.

Since I'm also married, fairly settled in my life, and already have some great freinds at my new University,  the socialization part isn't really an issue. 

Also great.  You should mention your husband around creepy profs.

I'm happy with the other students and activities here (I even enjoy my TA position)-- my only concern is the fit between my research area and the department I'm in.

Just because I love a red flag...
If you cannot enjoy your teaching, unless you are under The Devil, you might be in a difficult situation.  You should like it more than a teeny bit in the humanities.  The sciences are full of peope who can afford to dislike teaching.  It's your job unless you are a supergenius who will do a bunch of well funded work pre- and post- doc.  You could be that sort of scholar, but you still want to enjoy your teaching as much as you possibly can.

Since you can't disclose the specific elements f your research or your department, it is hard to evaluate whether or not you should move on.  You have a lot of financial security.  It helps you make potentially minor problems bigger than they need to be, IMO.  Don't got looking for real problems (new dept, less funding) unless you are a trustifarian or married wealthy.  I might think about how you can become the best scholar you can there, even if that means adapting your research to bloom as you wish mid-career.  I was in an ill fitting, but profoundly educational MA. Hellish as it was, I wouldn't trade it.  It serves me extremely well, every which way.  I wish the same for anyone pursuing a very personal goal with an imperfect fit. (not the hellish part, the tasty lemonade of lemons, far better than sour grapes)

As a regular reader and contributor to this board, I want to point again to the excellent peer-to-peer posts of Bewildered, who really gets it and has clearly made a lot of progress since first year. 

[stangoldsmith]

Wow, what a lot of really helpful posts.  This place (chronicle forum) keeps reminding me what a great field we are in, full of unpretentious brilliant minds bursting at the seams with insightful comments and aid to those under them. 

I've seen more help given to new recruits in the military by drill sgts than what you people have written back to the original poster.

What is the deal with the dark side of academia?  It's brimming with unsatisfied snarky unoriginal masses of boring, lonely and useless people who do nothing besides think they are intelligent when all markers suggest otherwise.  This forum is useless unless you want to hear these people come out and attack anyone who asks a simple question.

It's a bad enough job market and anti-academic culture out there, do we really need to eat our own?  Do you honestly think that "tough love" (even though here it's more like "direct insult" than tough love) creates any kind of better culture or environment or that it's helpful at all?

Yes academia has many faults to be sure and yes a grad student needs to forge their own way and yes it's lonely, etc. etc.  but I know I wouldn't be anywhere near to where I am now without the help of others who have been there before, without their guidance, yes critical guidance at times but never insulting laughter at my innocent questions or feelings, and without those few people who actually are in the game not to feel better about their insecurities but because they really believe in it.

I'm glad I ran into those few people during my time as an undergrad and as a grad student and I try to always follow their lead when others ask me for advice, students, friends outside the game, fellow grad students new and old.  You insulting people haven't helped the original poster at all but you've said a lot about yourselves.

SO... OP:  I am a grad student with a committee of professors who have minimal overlap with my own research and yet who have been ten million times more helpful than the other profs who I thought I would work with when I got here who either also left or were "too busy" to do anything with me.  So keep looking and keep moving forward, all those classes you think are irrelevant may actually later prove to be the core of your future dissertation.  Talk to other profs, take courses you think you shouldn't, keep your ears and eyes open to who might be of help to you.  Talk to your DGS too.  And don't listen to the haters, every game has them and they are never the leaders.

[the_honey_badger]

In the future, I think my coursework likely will give me the opportunity to mold the assignments to my interests but, in my first semester, I was not given this opportunity.  The assignments were fairly rigid, and the reading lists were entirely outside of my particular area of research.  [underscoring supplied] Since I don't want to be specific for anonymity's sake, think taking an 18th century history class and trying to make it fit with an interest in new media.  It just doesn't.

I can understand your disappointment, OP - and I don't want to question the validity of your concerns - but it doesn't seem that terrible to me that you are required to cover material that doesn't seem to be directly related to your research interests.  As a graduate student, you should be getting a broad and deep understanding of your field.  Keep in mind that once you've graduated, you will be asked to do more than teach seminars on your dissertation.  You might find yourself teaching a large survey class to first-year undergraduates.

One of the tasks you will certainly face in the future is the task of describing to others who are not particularly interested or knowledgeable about your area of research (e.g. individuals on a search committee) exactly why your work is important and relevant.  I think you'll want to be able to come up with some sort of answer if/when you are asked what your cutting-edge research in new media contributes to an understanding of history from the 18th century to the present.

Yeah, read this again.  Now, when a student came to me recently with a similar problem, I asked about his interests and was able to direct him to a number of people. He had it in his head that to do 18th century American Religious History, he needed someone who did and published on *precisely* that topic. Sure, in a perfect world I guess but it turned out that he didn't have a sense of the wider picture.  To be short, I suggested that since he had an interest in 18th century American revivals and their influence on the American Revolution that he had plenty of people to direct him:  the 18th century intellectual historian, the US Religious historian, a social historian who works on the 20th century, etc.  I suggested that he speak to each about his interests to see who got excited about the same things. None of them did exactly what his "lost advisor" did but each had expertise in one element of his project.   A *committee* is needed to direct work and you want to draw on the strengths of multiple people who each have a different perspective and different pieces of the intellectual and methodological puzzle.

To go a bit further....my own primary advisor didn't share sub-field or even chronological period with me. What she brought was tremendous intellect and imagination.  My other committee members shared one or more elements of my ultimate research project and could pull me back from egregious errors in specialized areas---what my advisor could do was bring the broad perspective, ride herd on the others, and teach me a lot about *thinking* about and framing the subject.  In fact, with leaves and departures, I didn't have ONE class pre-qualifying exams that could be considered precisely in "my" field.  That meant that I had to be independent about shaping research, learn how to "bend" a seminar on 19th century social history into one that included intellectual history and, in general, I have enormous breadth that has stood me in very good stead for my own work.   IF Mr. Super Historian had NOT left my program before I arrived, I'd likely be another derivative product from his sub-field.  It isn't the easiest course to take but it can be the most rewarding!

[bread_pirate_naan]

 

BTR:  A *committee* is needed to direct work and you want to draw on the strengths of multiple people who each have a different perspective and different pieces of the intellectual and methodological puzzle.

Can't be emphasized enough. But not so different they hate each other('s work) and make it impossible to reconcile their feedback.

This forum is useless unless you want to hear these people come out and attack anyone who asks a simple question.

<snip>

And don't listen to the haters, every game has them and they are never the leaders.

Irony at its best.