Grad School: The Secret Syllabus
Looking for The Tenure-Track Program Syllabus? Click here.
New Post
Online and Viewable
⏩ Coming Soon (Click to Request Advanced Preview)
Absolute Beginners
- Welcome to the Course
- The Summer Before Grad School Begins
- Phd Application Statement of Purpose: A Metaphor ⏩
- PhD Applications: How to Choose a Writing Sample
- First-Year Chaos ⏩
- Helping Your Potential Advisor Advocate for You
- How to Research Potential Advisors (Proquest Trick)
- No One Remembers Your Application
- Moving from a Non-U.S. to a U.S. Institution
- Starting Attending Job Talks Now! (Here’s Why)
Working with Your Advisor
Jumpstarting Your Research
- “That Was Then. Diss is Now.” (Read as many dissertations as books!)
- One Note, One Card: Back to Basics ⏩
- Meet a Librarian (Now) ⏩
- Figuring Out How to Speak about Your Research (before you know what it really is)
Coursework
- How to Choose Courses in Grad School
- Methodological Promiscuity
- Credit Loads: Why NOT to Max Them Out
- Transferring MA Credits ⏩
- Language Training ⏩
- Summer Courses ⏩
- Start Reading for Orals… Now ⏩
- Your First Research Paper ⏩
- From Proposal to Final Paper
- Independent Study/Directed Reading Beware ⏩
- Critique Like a Writer ⏩
- Getting Feedback from Profs (“You Need to Learn to Write Better” story) ⏩
Orals and Comps
- I Failed Orals: Let’s Be Honest about the PhD Process
- Auditioning Faculty to Be on Your Committee ⏩
- Why You Need to Prepare Briefing Memos
- How to Practice for Orals
- How to Begin Every Orals Exam Answer
Emotional and Mental Health
Your First TAship
- Creating a Section Syllabus ⏩
- Working with Your TA Course Faculty ⏩
- Your First Course Evaluation ⏩
- Paying the Price for a Crappy Prof: What to Do with Bad Evaluations ⏩
- Unionization ⏩
Social Media for Grad Students
- TikTok for Grad Students
- Creating a Professional Website ⏩
The Second Year
- The Summer Before Year 2 ⏩
- Sophomore Slump ⏩
- How (and If) to Start a Secret Life 🌍
- On-Campus or Off? Where to Live
- Doubts ⏩
Networking and Relationships
- Having a Child in Grad School ⏩
- Dating in Grad School ⏩
- A Death in the Family ⏩
- Physical Fitness ⏩
- Mental Health Redux ⏩
- How (and Why) to Avoid Cliques ⏩
- Meet a 6th Year and Ask Advice ⏩
- Activism, On and Beyond Campus ⏩
Conferences & Writing Groups
- When to Apply for Your First Academic Conference?
- How (and Why) to Form a Writing Group
- Honoraria: How Much Money Do You Make Giving Talks?
Fellowships and Grants
- How to Write a Statement of Purpose ⏩
- Letters of Recommendation: How and When to Ask for Them
The Dissertation
Filing and Defending
- The Defense ⏩
- To Embargo or Not to Embargo? ⏩
- Do This Right After Your Defense
- When and How to Approach Editors
Tenure: The Secret Syllabus
Looking for The Grad School Syllabus? Click here or scroll up.
New Post
Online and Viewable
⏩ Coming Soon (Click to Request Advanced Preview)
Getting Published
- Publishing 101: How the Process Works, Start to Finish ⏩
- How and Where to Meet Editors and Publishers ⏩
- “Simultaneous Submission”: What Is It, How to Do It, and Why It Matters ⏩
- How to Write an Author Response Letter ⏩
- Negotiating Better Book Contracts ⏩
- What if a Press Rejects Your Book? ⏩
- Edited Volumes and “Special Issues” ⏩
- How to Interpret and Respond to Criticism ⏩
- Writing for Magazines and Newspapers (and Getting Paid Doing So!)
Teaching
- Don’t Launch that Shiny New Course! ⏩
- Your Slides Suck: What Profs Can Learn from Graphic Designers ⏩
- The Secret to Better Evaluations ⏩
- Course Evaluations Matters (in Ways Your Students Don’t Realize)
- How to Run Office Hours (Hint: Stop Calling Them “Office Hours”)
- Course Evaluations are Biased (and We Should Our Students So) ⏩
- Working with TAs Effectively ⏩
- How to Treat Student Athletes with the Respect They Deserve ⏩
Mental Health
- Where and When to Seek It Out ⏩
- Leaves of Absence ⏩
- Enemies (ugh)
The Minefield of Informality
- Hallways, Lunches, Dinners…
- First-Name Basis or “Dr. So-and-So”?
- Power: When Do You Know You Have It?
Fellowships and Grants
- Sabbatical Grants ⏩
- Multi-Year Grants ⏩
- Conference Grants ⏩
- Small Grants ⏩
- “Mid-Career” Grants and Fellowships: When’s the Earliest You Can Apply? ⏩
- Residential Fellowships ⏩
Promoting Your Research
- No One Knows Who You Are
- Book Awards ⏩
- Securing Blurbs ⏩
- The “Author Questionnaire” ⏩
- Social Media for Academics ⏩
Advising Students
- Young Professor, Older Graduate Student: The Complex Dynamics of PhD Advising ⏩
- Don’t Give No Advice: The Basics of Good Mentorship ⏩
- Mentoring Students is the Hardest Job You’ll Ever Have ⏩
- How to Help Your Students Find Their Thesis and Dissertation Questions ⏩
Reappointment
- What is Reappointment Review? ⏩
- Getting (and Interpreting) Feedback ⏩
- Preparing Your Reappointment File ⏩
Sabbatical
- What Should Your Sabbatical Goals Be? ⏩
- Where to Find Funding for Your Sabbatical? ⏩
- Should You Do a Residential Fellowship? ⏩
- Protecting Time and Getting S*** Done
Work-Life Balance
- Childcare ⏩
- Dating ⏩
- How to Have a Social Life ⏩
- Parental Leave ⏩
- Leaves of Absence ⏩
- Activism: On and Beyond Campus ⏩
Department Meetings
Tenure
- Preparing Your Tenure File
- Who Will You Be Compared To (the “Comparison Set”)? ⏩
- Should You Go Up Early for Tenure? ⏩
- What If? What Happens If You’re Denied Tenure?
- What Have You Done for Us Lately?: How Will Your Institution Count Work You Completed at Your Previous University?
- Who Will Write Your “Outside Letters” ⏩
Applying for Jobs
- Should You Apply for an Outside Offer? 🌍
- How to Negotiate Contracts (without Losing Your Soul) ⏩
Money
- Honoraria: How Much to Expect for Giving an Invited Talk ⏩
- Reviewing Articles and Manuscripts: How Much Will You Get Paid ⏩
- Other Ways to Make Money on Campus ⏩
Conferences
Climbing the Ladder
- Becoming Chair ⏩
- Treating Administrators and Office Staff with the Respect They Deserve ⏩
- What Kind of Career Do You Want to Have? ⏩
- Committee Assignments