Graduate Study for the Twenty-First Century : How to Build an Academic Career in the Humanities

"Many graduate students continue to be regarded as "apprentices" despite the fact that they are expected to design and teach their own classes, serve on university committees, and conference and publish regularly. The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that the attrition rate for American Ph.D. programs is at an all-time high, between 40% and 50% (higher for women and minorities). Of those who finish, only one in three will secure tenure-track jobs. These statistics highlight waste: of millions of dollars by universities and of time and energy by students. Rather than teaching graduate students how to be graduate students, then, the guide prepares them for what they really seek: a successful academic career"--Provided by publisher.

Differing from graduate school "survival guides," this book is the only book to confront the complex realities of graduate study in the humanities. Today, many graduate students are still regarded as "apprentices," despite the fact that they are expected to design and teach their own classes, serve on university committees, attend conferences, and publish regularly. Attrition rates for American Ph.D. programs are at an all-time high, and of those who finish, only one in three will secure tenure-track jobs. In a straightforward manner, Gregory Colón Semenza identifies the obstacles along the path of the academic career and provides tangible advice. Fully revised and updated, this new edition offers shrewd insight on advising, electronic publishing, and the post-financial crisis job market that will help students negotiate the changing landscape of academia. Semenza ably prepares graduate students and recent graduates for what they really seek: a successful academic career.

Cover......Page 1 Contents......Page 8 Preface to the Second Edition......Page 9 Acknowledgments to the Second Edition......Page 10 Preface......Page 11 Acknowledgments......Page 14 A Note on Terminology......Page 16 Foreword......Page 17 Introduction......Page 22 1 The Culture of a Graduate Program......Page 39 2 The Structure of Your Graduate Career: An Ideal Plan......Page 60 3 Organization and Time Management......Page 75 4 The Graduate Seminar......Page 97 5 The Seminar Paper......Page 111 6 Teaching......Page 137 7 Exams......Page 170 8 The Dissertation......Page 188 9 Attending Conferences......Page 216 10 Publishing......Page 235 11 Service and Participation......Page 259 12 The Job Market......Page 276 Afterword......Page 303 Appendix: Professional Documents......Page 309 Notes......Page 348 B......Page 354 C......Page 355 F......Page 356 J......Page 357 N......Page 358 R......Page 359 T......Page 360 Y......Page 361 "Many graduate students continue to be regarded as "apprentices" despite the fact that they are expected to design and teach their own classes, serve on university committees, and conference and publish regularly. The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that the attrition rate for American Ph. D. programs is at an all-time high, between 40% and 50% (higher for women and minorities). Of those who finish, only one in three will secure tenure-track jobs. These statistics highlight waste: of millions of dollars by universities and of time and energy by students. Rather than teaching graduate students how to be graduate students, then, the guide prepares them for what they really seek: a successful academic career"--Provided by publisher A guide to forging a successful academic career for graduate students. As opposed to graduate school "survival guides," this book is the only book to confront the complex realities of graduate study in the humanities. In a straightforward manner, Semenza identifies the obstacles along the path of the academic career and offers tangible advice. Fully revised and updated, this edition's new material on advising, electronic publishing, and the post-financial crisis humanities job market will help students negotiate the changing landscape of academia. Semenza ably prepares graduate students and recent graduates for what they really seek: a successful academic career "Gregory Semenza's Graduate Study for the Twenty-first Century is a tough-minded, witty, generous discussion of how to enter the profession of scholarship and teaching. The appendices alone are worth the price of the book; Semenza provides samples of everything from course syllabi and job letters to materials on the teaching portfolio, book prospectus, conference participation A- everything a serious graduate student needs to succeed. The book should be required reading for graduate students and their professors." - Barry V. Qualls, Dean of Humanities, Rutgers University