Strategies for Navigating Graduate School and Beyond
Strategies for Navigating Graduate School and Beyond
Edited by Kevin G. Lorentz ii, Daniel J. Mallinson, Julia Marin Hellwege, Davin Phoenix, and J. Cherie Strachan
Download individual chapters by clicking the links in the table of contents below!
Earning a graduate degree in political science is the first step in pursuing an academic or alt-academic career. yet there is a large hidden curriculum in graduate school pertaining to strategies, norms, and practices which, when implemented, can help students navigate graduate school. yet these can be difficult to learn and navigate, even for the most successful undergraduate students and early career professionals who are beginning their graduate career. beyond gaining entry to graduate school, surviving, and thriving as a successful graduate student requires insights into academia and political science that most undergraduates, recent college graduates, or early career professionals simply will not know. additionally, lack of access to this hidden curriculum most disadvantages first generation and minoritized students, which maintains inequalities in the discipline.
Presently, the APSA leadership is enhancing its efforts to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion across the profession by addressing issues of climate and culture, as well as institutional and systemic inequality through a variety of measures: diversity and inclusion programming, presidential task forces, and other council-backed initiatives. this resource guide is an essential component of APSA’s effort to fill the knowledge-gap for prospective and current graduate students, as it provides insights into everything from applying for admission and finding a mentor to landing that first job—and everything in between.
“This book is a road map for students in graduate school pursuing a degree in political science—one that i wished i had 30 years ago! graduate students can gain real insight into how to apply to graduate school and whether that is the right choice for them. they also can learn the importance of mentorship and service to the profession. finally, after graduation—there are many helpful resources to navigate the job market and make the most of that first job in academia. Being a graduate student is a scary process and this book has answers to so many questions, all in one book. valuable!” —Dr. Terry L. Gilmour, Midland College and Executive Council, APSA
“Strategies for Navigating Graduate School and Beyond is a remarkably comprehensive resource for new and prospective students seeking to understand the “unwritten curriculum” of political science. Readers who are new to the field will get a broad overview of the culture of our profession and learn what issues they may confront during their academic career.”—Dr. Justin Esarey, Wake Forest University and Co-Editor of PS: Political Science and Politics
“This extensive volume, featuring advice from an impressive group of political scientists representing a diverse range of perspectives, is a helpful starter guide for anyone interested in pursuing a PhD in political science. For years, many of us have been cobbling together this kind of advice for prospective students—and now we can find it all in one place! Strategies for Navigating Graduate School and Beyond is an important addition to the professional development literature for early career political scientists.” Dr. Tanya Schwarz, Executive Director of Pi Sigma Alpha
“This urgently needed book provides comprehensive, sage advice to current and prospective graduate students who are entering the field of political science. From navigating mentor relationships to conferences to teaching to the perilous job market, it lays out the previously unspoken information which graduate students really need to know from insiders. A must-read for anyone seeking to succeed during and after a political science graduate program!” —Dr. Alison Rios Millett McCartney, Towson University and associate editor for the Journal of Political Science Education
Table of Contents
Click on a chapter title for a downloadable pdf version of the chapter!
Front Matter (TOC)
Preface
John Ishiyama
1. Nevertheless, We Persisted: Pathways Through Grad School (Introduction)
Kevin G. Lorentz II, Daniel J. Mallinson, Julia Marin Hellwege, Davin Phoenix, and J. Cherie Strachan
Section I: The Application Process
2. How to Get In: A Roadmap for Navigating Decision-Making and the Application Process
Kelly Piazza, Chris Culver, and Lynne Chandler-Garcia
3.Financial Concerns: Taking on Student Loans, Graduate Assistant Positions, and Funding Considerations
Courtney N. Haun and Jennifer Schenk Sacco
4.Don’t You Forget About Me: The Application Process and Choosing a Program
Tara Chandra, Patricia C. Rodda, and William D. Adler
5. Seasoned Professionals Applying to and Navigating Doctoral Programs
Marty P. Jordan, Erika Rosebrook, and Eleanor Schiff
Section II: On Campus
6. Moving Beyond the One-Shot Orientation: Understanding and Making the Most of Ongoing Orientations
Anthony Petros Spanakos and Mishella Romo Rivas
7. Building a Supportive Mentoring Network
Mary Anne S. Mendoza and Samantha A. Vortherms
8. Speak of the Devil and (S)he Appears: The Role of Academic Administrators During Graduate School and Beyond
Lauren C. Bell
9. When Do Titles Matter and Why? A Guide for Graduate Students in Political Science
Meg K. Guliford, Meena Bose, and Dan Drezner
10. Relax! They’re Important, But Not Defining Choices: Choosing Your Subfield and Committees
Mike Widmeier and Joseph B. Phillips
11. Does an Internship Have Value for Political Science Graduate Students?
Susan E. Baer
12. The Explicit, Implicit, and Unknown: Comprehensive Exams
Samantha R. Cooney and David O. Monda
13. Selecting an Adviser: Professsional and Personal Considerations
Chris Macaulay, Mary McThomas, and Alisson Rowland
14. Getting Started on the Doctoral Dissertation
Brady Baybeck
15. The Doctoral Dissertation and MA Thesis: Managing the Process, Your Life, and Your Data
Michael Widmeier and Dessi Kirilova
16. Balancing Pregnancy, Parenthood, and Graduate School
Kimberly Saks McManaway, Regina Bateson, Marty P. Jordan, Karen Kedrowski, and Kyle Harris
17. Practicing Effective Time Management
Samantha A. Vortherms and Coyle Neal
Section III: Professional Development—Scholarship
18. Professional Norms: Clearing a Barrier to Developing Meaningful Relationships
Benjamin Isaak Gross, Kevin M. Kearns, and Evan M. Lowe
19. Balancing Expectations for Research Transparency: Institutional Review Boards, Funders, and Journals
Mneesha Gellman, Matthew C. Ingram, Diana Kapiszewski, and Sebastian Karcher
20. Fieldwork
Kelebogile Zvobgo, Charmaine N. Willis, Myunghee Lee, Anne-Kathrin Kreft, and Ezgi Irgil
21. How to Conference
Kimberly N. Turner, Christina Boyes, Elizabeth Bennion, and James Newman
22. Hidden Expenses in Graduate School: Navigating Financial Precarity and Elitism
Devon Cantwell-Chavez and Alisson Rowland
23. Show Me the Money: Information, Strategies, and Guidelines for Applying to Grants and Fellowships in Graduate School
Angie Torres-Beltran, Cameron Mailhot, Elizabeth Dorssom, and Christina Boyes
24. Political Science Publications: Charting Your Own Path
Shane Nordyke
25. Turning Term Papers into Articles: Paths to a Productive Peer-Review Process
Michael P. A. Murphy
26. Managing Online Harassment in the Academy
Seth Masket, Angela Ocampo, and Jennifer Victor
27. To Twitter or Not to Twitter
Elizabeth (Bit) Meehan and Salah Ben Hammou
Section IV: Professional Development—Teaching
28. Serving as a Graduate Teaching Assistant: Tips and Strategies
Zoe Nemerever and Bianca Rubalcava
29. Preparing for the First Solo Teaching Experience: An Alternative to Learning as You Go
Christina Boyes, Mario Guerrero, Matt Lamb, and Mary Anne S. Mendoza
30. Resources for Teaching Excellence: APSA’s Education Section and the TLC
Megan Becker, Elizabeth A. Bennion, Colin M. Brown, and Eric Loepp
Section V: Professional Development—Service
31. Academic Service and Flourishing
Anthony Petros Spankos and Ignangeli Salinas-Muniz
32. Towards a More Holistic Graduate Experience: Professional Service to the Discipline
Courtney N. Haun and Ivy A. M. Cargile
33. Community, Solidarity, and Collective Power: The Role of Graduate Student Organizations and Graduate Worker Unions
Samantha R. Cooney, Patrick J. Gauding, Anna A. Meier, and Kevin Reuning
Section VI: Professional Development—The Job Market
34. Expect the Unexpected: Choices and Challenges in the Political Science PhD Job Market
Bobbi G. Gentry, Kyla K. Stepp, and Jeremiah J. Castle
35. Mental Health and the Job Market
Anna A. Meier, Adnan Rasool, and Annelise Russell
36. What Your PhD Advisors Can’t Tell You Because They Don’t Know: Landing a Job at a Student-Focused Institution
Karen M. Kedrowski
37. A Commitment to Teaching, Learning, and Student Advocacy: Community College Careers
LaTasha Chaffin DeHann, Josh Franco, Verónica Reyna, and Randy Villegas
38. More than Reordering the Cover Letter: Preparing for Careers at Small Liberal Arts Colleges
Kelly Bauer and Shamira Gelbman
39. Preparing for a Career at a Regional Comprehensive University
Elizabeth A. Bennion, Monica E. Lineberger, and Eric D. Loepp
40. Succeeding at a Research-Intensive Institution (R1 or R2)
Karen M. Kedrowski and Benjamin Melusky
41. Pushing the Boundaries of Your PhD: Exploring Careers Outside the Ivory Tower
Danielle Gilbert, S.R. Gubitz, Jennifer Kavanagh, and Kelly Piazza
42. Weighing Up the Options: The Adventure of an Academic Career Outside of the United States
Dale Mineshima-Lowe, Pablo Biderbost, and Guillermo Boscán Carrasquero
43. Making a Statement: Research, Teaching, and Diversity Statements for the Academic Job Market
Kelly Bauer, Colin M. Brown, Melissa L. Sands, and Maricruz Ariana Osorio
44. A Limited Time Offer: Exploring Adjunct, Visiting, and Fixed-Term Positions
Austin Trantham, Connor J.S. Sutton, Margaret Mary Ochner, and Jennifer E. Lamm
45. The Academic Interview/Marathon
Christopher Macaulay and Michelle D. Deardorff
46. You Have an Academic Job Offer…Now What? Negotiating Advice from Two Perspectives
William O’Brochta and Lori Poloni-Staudinger
47. Started from the Bottom, Now We’re Here: Navigating the Job Market Without a “Top Tier” PhD
Rachel E. Finnell and Alexandra T. Middlewood
48. Getting “Us” a Job: The Two+ Body Problem and the Academic Job Market
Tyler P. Yates
Section VII: Climate and Culture in the Department and Profession
49. Climate and Culture in Political Science: Diversifying our Institutions, Methods, and Identities to Combat Implicit Bias and Microaggressions
Natasha Altema McNeely, LaTasha Chaffin DeHaan, and Verónica Hoyo
50. Feeling Like a Fraud: Imposter Syndrome in Political Science
Thomas S. Benson, Bobbi G. Gentry, and Sarah Shugars
51. Discrimination and Sexual Assault: Resources and Options for Responding and Reporting
Devon Cantwell-Chavez, Asif Siddiqui, and Christina Fattore
52. Sexual Harassment in Academia: What Every Graduate Student Should Know
Rebecca Gill and Valerie Sulfaro
53. What Do You Need to Know About the Culture of Overwork?
Thomas S. Benson
Section VIII: Strategies for Addressing Implicit Bias, Harassment, and Assault
54. Concerns for BIPOC Students and Scholars and a Model for Inclusive Excellence
Aleena Khan, Jair Moreira, Jessica S. Taghvaiee, and Andrea Benjamin
55. Political Science & LGBTQ Identity: Thoughts & Suggestions for LGBTQ Graduate Students
Monique Newton, Brian F. Harrison, and Edward F. Kammerer, Jr.
56. Gender and the Political Science Graduate Experience: When Leaning In Isn’t Enough
Maya Novak-Herzog, Alisson Rowland, Kimberly Saks McManaway, and Tabitha Bonilla
57. Concerns for International Graduate Students in Political Science
Thomas S. Benson and Silviya Gancheva
58. Teaching as an International Graduate Student
Irmak Yazici
59. Religious Minorities and the Graduate School Experience
Sierra Davis Thomander and Andrea Malji
60. Concerns for First-Gen Political Science Graduate Students
Thomas S. Benson and T. Mark Montoya
61. Disabilities and Chronic Health Issues
Eun A Jo, Sally Friedman, and Alan Babcock
Section IX: Health and Wellness in Graduate School
62. Why You’re Doing This: Sustaining Joy and Inspiration in the Scholarly Vocation
Yuna Blajer de la Garza, Patrick J. Egan, and Sarah Shugars
63. No Rapunzel in This Ivory Tower: Finding Your Collective and Overcoming Academic Isolation
Devon Cantwell-Chavez, Siobhan Kirkland, Hannah Lebovits, Maricruz Ariana Osorio, Natalie Rojas, Rosalie Rubio, Sarah Shugars, Rachel Torres, and Rachel Winter
64. Health and Well-Being in Graduate School: Preventing Burnout
Thomas S. Benson and Christina Boyes
65. Things that Can Go “Wrong”: Finding Our Own Way in Graduate School
Misbah Hyder, Dana El Kurd, Felicity Gray, Devon Cantwell-Chavez, and Alisson Rowland
66. Should I Stay or Should I Go? Making the Decision to Leave Your Graduate Program
Carmen J. Burlingame
67. Rest in Graduate School: Boundaries, Care-Taking Labor, Racial Capitalism, and Ill Health
Pyar Seth and Alexandra De Ciantis
68. Mental Health and Well-Being in Grad School: Dealing with Isolation, Depression, Anxiety, and Turmoil
Nasir Almasri and Dana El Kurd
69. Health and Well-Being in Graduate School: Counseling and Other Resources
Mikaela Karstens and Anne M. Whitesell