Comments on: Counting down: anxiety and excitement prior to graduation http://www.adambohannon.org/counting-down-anxiety-and-excitement-prior-to-graduation/ Tue, 31 Jan 2012 07:02:55 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Dan http://www.adambohannon.org/counting-down-anxiety-and-excitement-prior-to-graduation/comment-page-1/#comment-29 Dan Sat, 01 Nov 2008 23:12:36 +0000 http://abo46n2.wordpress.com/?p=41#comment-29 You have built a good websitea You have built a good websitea

]]> By: abo46n2 http://www.adambohannon.org/counting-down-anxiety-and-excitement-prior-to-graduation/comment-page-1/#comment-28 abo46n2 Fri, 18 Apr 2008 20:56:46 +0000 http://abo46n2.wordpress.com/?p=41#comment-28 I would like to have the option of becoming a professor. I like teaching, and I am around enough bad teachers everyday that it makes me want to become one myself (counter-intuitive, no?) so I can help to tip the balance in education. I also like doing research, so this influences my decision as well. You have a good point, however, about perhaps a Master's is all that's needed... or that doing a Master's before a Ph.D. might convince me that I don't really want to be in school that long, but a lot of the programs I've been looking at are Ph.D only. USC's communications grad program is only Ph.D. (unless I overlooked something)... and I'm more interested in the theoretical aspects of media and communications that the nitty-gritty (although both interest me). According to their website, the communications focus is centered around theory while the other options seem to be more technical or unrelated to what I am interested in. The bottom-line aside from wanting to study both anthropology and media studies is to do something that nourishes me as a human being. I've spent a lot of time in my years as an undergrad pretending to like what I am doing... I don't like doing that. Sure, it's beneficial at times... as Wesch would say... but damn... it gets really old when you have to do it a lot. This isn't to say my interests are narrow... they are very broad... but I think you know what I'm saying - the teaching of a subject can ruin all the fun and here there are many classes where the fun is completely ruined =\ At this point, I feel like being an undergrad is detrimental to my creativity, especially while taking classes in the psych department (perhaps I shoulda given up the psych major a while ago...). I miss anthropology classes so much! I would like to have the option of becoming a professor. I like teaching, and I am around enough bad teachers everyday that it makes me want to become one myself (counter-intuitive, no?) so I can help to tip the balance in education. I also like doing research, so this influences my decision as well. You have a good point, however, about perhaps a Master’s is all that’s needed… or that doing a Master’s before a Ph.D. might convince me that I don’t really want to be in school that long, but a lot of the programs I’ve been looking at are Ph.D only. USC’s communications grad program is only Ph.D. (unless I overlooked something)… and I’m more interested in the theoretical aspects of media and communications that the nitty-gritty (although both interest me). According to their website, the communications focus is centered around theory while the other options seem to be more technical or unrelated to what I am interested in.

The bottom-line aside from wanting to study both anthropology and media studies is to do something that nourishes me as a human being. I’ve spent a lot of time in my years as an undergrad pretending to like what I am doing… I don’t like doing that. Sure, it’s beneficial at times… as Wesch would say… but damn… it gets really old when you have to do it a lot. This isn’t to say my interests are narrow… they are very broad… but I think you know what I’m saying – the teaching of a subject can ruin all the fun and here there are many classes where the fun is completely ruined =\ At this point, I feel like being an undergrad is detrimental to my creativity, especially while taking classes in the psych department (perhaps I shoulda given up the psych major a while ago…). I miss anthropology classes so much!

]]> By: Kevin http://www.adambohannon.org/counting-down-anxiety-and-excitement-prior-to-graduation/comment-page-1/#comment-27 Kevin Fri, 18 Apr 2008 01:28:15 +0000 http://abo46n2.wordpress.com/?p=41#comment-27 What do you want to do with a doctorate? Do you want to be a professor? I am with you in the general malaise of the establishment. I think your advisor would tell you that you should just work from the inside out; get into a program and then study what you want to regardless of what program you're in. I myself am very skeptical about how easy that actually is to do. Two years out from graduation and the prospect of subjecting myself to that sort of reductionist and stifling environment still inspires me to inaction. I also find that while I would like the further education and the title it would bring (credibility), I am not convinced that I want to be a professor or work entirely within academia. You may find me a doctoral student a couple years down the line, but for now I can't bring myself to do it. A friend who went off to grad school last fall recently told me that he wishes he would have done a masters first, and recommended such to me. He said it would have given him time to become very educated in a specific area, allowed him to focus what he wants to study, and tested him to make sure grad work is really what he wanted. My only recommendation is to do some reading on integral theory, as I have found it to be the only academic (and pseud-academic at that) avenue that doesn't leave a bitter taste in my mouth. What do you want to do with a doctorate? Do you want to be a professor?

I am with you in the general malaise of the establishment. I think your advisor would tell you that you should just work from the inside out; get into a program and then study what you want to regardless of what program you’re in. I myself am very skeptical about how easy that actually is to do. Two years out from graduation and the prospect of subjecting myself to that sort of reductionist and stifling environment still inspires me to inaction. I also find that while I would like the further education and the title it would bring (credibility), I am not convinced that I want to be a professor or work entirely within academia. You may find me a doctoral student a couple years down the line, but for now I can’t bring myself to do it. A friend who went off to grad school last fall recently told me that he wishes he would have done a masters first, and recommended such to me. He said it would have given him time to become very educated in a specific area, allowed him to focus what he wants to study, and tested him to make sure grad work is really what he wanted.

My only recommendation is to do some reading on integral theory, as I have found it to be the only academic (and pseud-academic at that) avenue that doesn’t leave a bitter taste in my mouth.

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