I took two years off. I didn't know what I wanted to do and my Ph. D program this fall will be in a completely different area than my undergraduate program.
Was it a job that helped you figure out which direction you wanted to go? Or just the time to think and plan etc.
I've been trying to work out a specialty in my field, and been having trouble. Someone suggested I wait a year to go to school, but there's not much in my situation that would help me figure things out while out of school. That's why I ask; I'm curious what part of your break really helped you most.
Actually, the job that I worked for 18 months convinced me that I wanted to do something else, so I decided to my graduate program in a subject I had minored in and very much enjoyed during my undergraduate program.
This was also something I was facing my sr year, which contributed to my decision to take time off. Last Fall I took a grad school course on Lit Theory, which covered a lot of different aspects/approaches in research. This helped me identify what I like and what I don't like.
I also did a lot of brainstorming about what I find interesting/what I don't find interesting. I'm not sure what your field is, but I'm an English person and I don't have direct interests based in a time period/specific time period. It took me some time to put my finger on what it was that I loved to study, because it wasn't so obvious.
Time off definitely helped me sort this out. It seems counter-intuitive, because you'd think more school would be more helpful. I think time off allows you a little distance and the space to be objective. But keep in touch with your profs and other nerdy friends, to talk things through and keep your mind sharp in the mean time.
Long Responses, for the win.smyleykyleyAugust 27 2009, 17:20:03 UTC
Ah, I'm still slaving away in the working-world! :)
I'm really interested in film/pop-culture, theory (gender and post-colonialism), and power dynamics in language/literature (Foucault)...so, yeah, talk about all over the place. The interesting thing I've found is that the different programs I'm applying to, I'm picking for very different reasons. (BC, Tufts, NYU, Berkeley Rhetoric...still building the list.)
If I had to move home I would have definitely gone insane. My parents also live in a tiny town with no real job prospects. I stayed in Boston after grad school, and lived with friends. Of course, this is part of the reason it has taken me so long to get back--sorting out my finances and trying my best to save $$ while paying rent and bills.
I'm sure you've heard this before, but the job competition for Modernism is really, really tough. Medievalism might make you more employable. But I'm just a schmuck who lurks on the Chronicle of Higher Ed, so take my $.02 with a grain of salt. :)
Re: Long Responses, for the win.katia_chanAugust 27 2009, 19:38:23 UTC
Wow, you really do have varied interests. They sound really awesome though. I haven't had much involvement in any of those areas, as my university seems to have a hard time dragging itself past 1900 in any category, but they sound like they'd be fascinating to study. The theory sounds especially interesting. [This is the problem with english; too many fields, so little time
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Re: Long Responses, for the win.katia_chanAugust 27 2009, 20:41:58 UTC
I did hear that was a really good school. But I'm a midwestern girl...moving out east to a big city sort of terrifies me. :) But you're like the fourth person to rec me the program, so I think it's warranting some looking into. And funding always makes my ears perk up.
Re: Long Responses, for the win.smyleykyleyAugust 27 2009, 20:46:21 UTC
Ah, Boston will always be home to me. It's the non-urban midwest that scares the crap out of me. :)
BC is actually situated on the outskirts of the city, where things have a slightly more suburban feel, so it wouldn't be as overwhelming as, say, Boston University or NYU.
I could go on and on about the wonders of this fine city, but I'll only embarrass myself with my gushing. (I recently had to move to Providence, so I'm overcompensating.)
Re: Long Responses, for the win.katia_chanAugust 27 2009, 22:13:13 UTC
Bah, non-urban midwest is so pretteh. Though I may be just a little biased...
I'll take a look at the college, and then I might be pestering you for all the information I can get about the area. Though hearing that it's suburban makes me a little less skiddish to look.
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I've been trying to work out a specialty in my field, and been having trouble. Someone suggested I wait a year to go to school, but there's not much in my situation that would help me figure things out while out of school. That's why I ask; I'm curious what part of your break really helped you most.
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I also did a lot of brainstorming about what I find interesting/what I don't find interesting. I'm not sure what your field is, but I'm an English person and I don't have direct interests based in a time period/specific time period. It took me some time to put my finger on what it was that I loved to study, because it wasn't so obvious.
Time off definitely helped me sort this out. It seems counter-intuitive, because you'd think more school would be more helpful. I think time off allows you a little distance and the space to be objective. But keep in touch with your profs and other nerdy friends, to talk things through and keep your mind sharp in the mean time.
Yikes, that was a long response. :)
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I'm really interested in film/pop-culture, theory (gender and post-colonialism), and power dynamics in language/literature (Foucault)...so, yeah, talk about all over the place. The interesting thing I've found is that the different programs I'm applying to, I'm picking for very different reasons. (BC, Tufts, NYU, Berkeley Rhetoric...still building the list.)
If I had to move home I would have definitely gone insane. My parents also live in a tiny town with no real job prospects. I stayed in Boston after grad school, and lived with friends. Of course, this is part of the reason it has taken me so long to get back--sorting out my finances and trying my best to save $$ while paying rent and bills.
I'm sure you've heard this before, but the job competition for Modernism is really, really tough. Medievalism might make you more employable. But I'm just a schmuck who lurks on the Chronicle of Higher Ed, so take my $.02 with a grain of salt. :)
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The reason I "know what I'm talking about" is because in this time off, I have spent far too much time at my 9-5 researching grad school. :)
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BC is actually situated on the outskirts of the city, where things have a slightly more suburban feel, so it wouldn't be as overwhelming as, say, Boston University or NYU.
I could go on and on about the wonders of this fine city, but I'll only embarrass myself with my gushing. (I recently had to move to Providence, so I'm overcompensating.)
Reply
I'll take a look at the college, and then I might be pestering you for all the information I can get about the area. Though hearing that it's suburban makes me a little less skiddish to look.
Reply
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