Teaching Series: Professional Development

Part IV: Professional Development

Professional Development in Teaching for Graduate Students

Tawnya Ravy

How can we learn to be better teachers? No matter how long you have been teaching, there is always something new to learn. Taking time to explore your teaching methods and develop your techniques is challenging and time-consuming, but also a great idea. I have not been teaching long. I started out in the fall of 2009, but ever since then I have challenged myself to engage with a variety of learning and professional development communities. Teaching is my passion, but it is not enough for me to just love it. I want to cultivate it. In this post I am going to explore some of the ways that I have workshopped my teaching methods and course materials, and hopefully provide you with a useful roadmap to similar opportunities.

 Since I teach mainly literature classes, I set out to tackle a common problem that many literature faculty have: how to balance the teaching of literature with the teaching of writing in the classroom. Luckily, GWU has a WID (Writing in the Discipline) program which shapes the instruction of writing throughout the school.

On the WID webpage you can see an example UW (the required University Writing class for all undergraduates) syllabus and helpful guides for students and faculty. Also of use for faculty, whether you are teaching a designated WID class or not, is the WID Board which is a valuable collection of writing-instruction materials. You can find materials on everything from peer review to assignment design, research and citation to writing pedagogy. WID also offers a number of useful workshops for the various faculty teaching WID classes. Starting this year WID has offered a year-long workshop for non-WID-funded student teachers which explores pedagogy, syllabus and course design, and includes a workshop component. I am currently enrolled in this workshop, and it has been a great experience. While some participants are still unsure about how exactly to achieve that writing/content balance, I find that I can now appreciate the immense importance of WID in the larger learning objectives. If you are interested in applying for this workshop, look out for information emails in August.

In recent years EGSA has tried to become a valuable teaching resource and professional development tool for our graduate student teachers. As a member of the EGSA board, I wanted to create a forum and resource list for student teachers because such a platform of information would have been very helpful when I started teaching my own classes. Last year, EGSA organized a Teaching Seminar consisting of three major areas: composition, pedagogy, and technology. Take a moment to see the generative advice, ideas, and resources that we collected from that event: EGSA Teaching Seminar Part 1 – Teaching Composition, Part 2.1 – Issues in Pedagogy, 2.2, 2.3, Part 3 - Technology. Also, check out last year’s EGSATeaching Resource List not only for the pedagogy-related links, but also course content resources like MERLOTand The Chronicle of Higher Education. I would like this list to also include: Hybrid Pedagogy – A digital journal of Teaching and Technology. I am always looking to add to this list, so please contribute! What are your teaching resources? Please feel free to share your favorite websites and archives in our comment section or shoot an email to gwegsa@gmail.com.

Last summer, I also became aware of a valuable teaching resource and professional development organization right here at GWU. The Teaching and Learning Collaborative is a faculty-driven center for teaching excellence where you can find a wide variety of teaching resources, sign up for workshops and seminars on pedagogy, and even request a consultation with a TLC instructional designer who can help you with your course materials. Their resources tab covers classroom assessment, preparing students for class, and a teaching assessment tool. This past Fall they organized a day-long conference focusing on Pedagogy which was open to the community. They are also responsible for organizing two wonderful professional development communities: the Future Faculty Program and the FLC for Junior Faculty. Both of these groups require you to apply for the sessions each semester, and the FFP is limited to GW PhD Students who are teaching. In these groups you will cover professional development techniques like presentation skills, how to teach hybrid/online courses, and course design. Last semester, I participated in the FFP which was intensive with once-a-week sessions, reading assignments, and a lot of group work. I found the experience immensely helpful in shedding light on my teaching practices including everything from the verbs I used in learning objectives to my lecture style and my course design. A bonus activity was learning how to write an effective teaching statement. This program is experimental, but if they offer it again, I highly recommend it. Both the FFP and the FLC for Junior Faculty are great opportunities to workshop your teaching methods, and gain some expertise. Good for you, your students, and your resume!

Currently I teach in two different higher education institutions, so I am offered a wide variety of professional development workshops. Outside of GWU, I have taken Blackboard courses on Blackboard competency, hybrid classroom instruction, and I am currently taking two small courses on collaboration in an online class and creating community for online courses. My recommendation is to make sure you are taking advantage of the technology workshops offered by your institution. Even if you will never teach an online class or only use Blackboard sparingly, it is a smart move to have training in these areas – not only for the benefit of your teaching, but also for your resume. Has a new version of Blackboard come out over the summer? Are you dying to use new software or technology in your class, but don’t know how? The Instructional Technology Lab at GWU is a great place to start. The ITL is there to assist you in learning to incorporate new technology into your teaching. They offer workshops on Blackboard, PowerPoint, and Elluminate Live, but more importantly, they are there to help you figure out the tech side of your teaching goals.

Finally, I am going to close by saying that the most important factor in professional development in teaching is your own initiative. This semester I set out to improve my instruction in specific time periods for a survey course that I teach regularly, and some of my colleagues have kindly agreed to let me observe a couple classes so that I can see their approaches to the same material. My previous experience with class observations was great and extremely useful, so I am confident that I will come away from this semester inspired with new ideas. I realize that with everything else tugging at our time (course work, dissertation, publications, conferences – not to mention a personal life?) that spending a significant amount of time on professional development opportunities like this can seem daunting, especially if your teaching days are a few years off. But let me say that I have found the time spent on these activities rewarding and motivating; not to mention incredibly beneficial for my future job prospects. Consider taking some time, even a small amount, to cultivate that passion you have for teaching. And please share your experiences with our community – some of the best ideas I’ve ever used in my own classes came from informal conversations with colleagues.

Tawnya Ravy is currently a PhD student at GWU in the English Department. She is the current EGSA President. Feel free to contact her for advice, comments, or to share resources at gwegsa@gmail.com.

Funding Your Dissertation

The Office of Student Fellowships and Grants will be hosting a series of Academic Success and Professional Development Workshops. This Thursday, November 8, 2012 in Marvin Center Room 403, 4:00-5:00 pm the Professional Development Series will be hosting an information session on "Funding Your Dissertation Research." PhD candidates will learn about specific competitive programs that can provide funds for doctoral dissertation research, funding strategies, and tips for successful proposals. Interested PhD candidates can RSVP to gradfell@gwu.edu. 

This information session will provide helpful information for funding your research at different stages. Although our department gives us funding for tuition, there are other great opportunities for funding, both pre-ABD and dissertation research. The talk will cover the variety of types of funding available to PhD students. Below are the highlights from last year's talk. Make sure you stop by the OGSAF office to pick up informational handouts - they have helpful lists with funding requirements and deadlines. 

I.                   Types of Funding

a.       Tuition (i.e. Phi Delta Gamma, Scottish Rite, D.A.R., Liebmann)

b.      Basic Necessities (like photocopying, travel, equipment): i.e. Cosmos, Economic Club, Consortium, Research Fellows Program.

c.       Overseas Research (i.e. Fulbright, Boren) and Language Acquisition (i.e. CLS)

II.                Tips

a.       Look for funding at least one year in advance of when you need it.

b.      Make sure you read the elligability requirements very carefully. Some funding is only for students at a certain stage in their program.

c.       Read the literature supplied by the institution. What is the mission of the agency?

d.      Make sure you have all the necessary documents for each submission

e.       Give Faculty plenty of time for letters of recommendation, and send helpful reminders

f.       Many funding deadlines are in early fall or early spring

g.      Ask people in your department for other funding opportunities

III.             Examples of Support

a.       Travels to Collections (i.e. Loughran-Oxford, Mellon Fellowships for Dissertation Research in Original Sources, The Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library Dissertation Grants)

b.      Pre-Dissertation (i.e. SSRC Dissertation Proposal Development Fellowship)

c.       Dissertation Writing (i.e. Spencer Dissertation Fellowship Program, GW Dissertation Fellowship)

d.      Dissertation Research (i.e. NPSC Dissertation Support Program, Jack Kent Cooke Dissertation Fellowship Award, White House Historical Association Research Grants Program)

IV.            Finding Funding (Note: All of these must be accessed on-campus or through the GW VPN because they are subscriber-only access)

a.       OGSAF (GW’s office) Fellowship Finder

b.      The Illinois Research Information Service (IRIS)

c.       Community of Science Funding Opportunities Database (COS) (Note: This database is for all disciplines, not just science)

V.               Help from OGSAF

a.       They will read drafts of your proposal

b.      Make copies of your application and proposal (as well as scan items)

c.       Consult on specific fellowship questions

d.      Publish your accomplishment on their website

Conferences and Abstracts

Thank you for those of you who could make Maia's "Writing Abstracts and Attending Conferences" session on Monday. For those of you who couldn't make it, we recommend checking out our blog post on Conferences and Abstracts. Also, Erin announced her plans to run a Public Speaking workshop this semester, so stay tuned for more information on that. In the meantime, please feel free to send us interesting CFPs that we can share with everyone. We also want to know which conferences you are attending so that you can carpool/room share with other grads!

Note: the deadline for abstracts for the NeMLA is coming up! Check out their site for more information.

Upcoming Department Events - September

Borrowed from PhD Comics

Welcome to a new year! We hope your first week of classes was not too stressful. As you know, we are currently working on developing the Mentor Program, so stay tuned for more information about that. In the meantime, we have drawn up a long list of upcoming events for our department. Many of these events are great opportunities to network with members of our program and others from outside the department. As these events approach, we will showcase them on this blog. If you have one you would like to add to this list, please leave a comment below or contact us at gwegsa@gmail.com. You can also Like us on Facebook and/or follow this blog via email using the box to the right.

September 7 Inaugural Dean Lecture 3:30pm Mt. Vernon Campus 

September 13 M.A.T.C.H. Theory Reading Group 5-6pm Rome Hall (Dinner to follow)

September 14 EGSA September Happy Hour 4-7 Location TBA

September 17 EGSA Board Meeting 5:30 Rome 771 (EGSA meetings are open to GWU English Grads)

September 20 American Literature and Culture Organization Event (Details TBA)

September 22-23 EGSA National Book Festival Outing (Details TBA)

September 24 Professional Development: Attending Conferences and Writing Abstracts

More information about our first event - the Dean's Lecture:

Please join us for the Inaugural Dean's Lecture on Friday, Sept. 7, at 3:30 p.m. on the Mt. Vernon Campus.

Dr. Gail Kern Paster will be delivering her talk entitled:  "Shylock, Othello and the Theatrical Coding of Difference: Picturing Shakespeare at the Folger" Images of Shylock and Othello from the Folger Shakespeare Library image database show how these figures of the Jew and the Moor as Other have been represented since the eighteenth century. These images also show how they have been presented for consumption and display. Setting images side by side has great potential for understanding the theatrical coding of difference in an historical trajectory. The talk is designed for a broad audience.
This event is open to the public and will be followed by a reception. Please see the attached flier for more information.

There is a free shuttle service available from Foggy Bottom:

http://parking.gwu.edu/tve/

NeMLA and Other Professional Organizations

Hello! As promised we are dropping in with a few posts this summer with news, tips, and motivational articles. We wanted to pass the notice (below) from NeMLA and encourage you to consider what professional organizations would be useful for membership (MLA, SAA, ACLA). Becoming a member of groups like these not only connects you with scholars who share your interests but also provides you with exclusive access to news, awards, fellowships, CFPs, and conference information. Be prepared to pay a fee (but often greatly reduced for students) to become a member, but also take a moment to check out LinkedIn for free groups to join. After you create a LinkedIn account (another step we recommend for professional development), you can become a member to hundreds of literary studies groups. Finally, there are plenty of graduate student organizations (like our own MEMSI) and related professional associations (like Smithsonian, the Folger Library, and AMA). Stay tuned, we are planning a post about our newest organization the American Literature and Culture Interest Organization (ALCIO) - a revamped GW English Department group that hopes to lend its voice to the conversation of American literature and culture within a larger hemispheric perspective. In the meantime, check out the organization's Facebook page.

NeMLA Book Award Deadline 10/30/2012

As you plan your summer, please note that NeMLA members are eligible to submit unpublished manuscripts for the Annual NeMLA Book Award.

The Northeast Modern Language Association (NeMLA) solicits unpublished book-length manuscripts in modern language literature and cultural studies and on related areas for its annual book award, given for the best unpublished manuscript by a NeMLA member; this award is meant for a first publication. The manuscript may be under consideration by another press, but not under contract at submission date. (Applicant must be a 2012 or 2013 member).

Normally two manuscripts are selected for prizes, one in Anglophone studies, and one in the area of modern languages. Please note that all manuscripts must be written in English.

Each manuscript submission must include an abstract (not to exceed 2 single-spaced pages), consisting of a general description, or overview of the proposed book, as well as a round-up of competing books (if any exist), and a brief explanation of the uniqueness of the proposed book. Manuscripts should be prepared for blind submission, with no personal references in the introduction, acknowledgments, title page, or table of contents.

NeMLA will not consider unrevised dissertations for this award (i.e. those not revised as a book manuscript, as expected for submission to any Press).

Each award includes a $750 cash prize and a recommendation for publication to Fairleigh Dickinson University Press or Ohio University Press. In any year, the NeMLA book committee may choose to make no award, or award just one prize, if it feels the manuscripts do not meet publication standards. The winners will be announced at the annual business meeting, held during NeMLA's spring convention. Honorable mentions may also be offered publication.

For consideration, please email file copies to Dr. Bill Waddell at nemlabook@gmail.com by Oct. 30, 2012; a bound copy may be requested. E-mail any questions concerning the award tonemlabook@gmail.com

NeMLA congratulates the 2012 Book Award in Modern Languages:

Colleen Kennedy-Karpat, Ph.D. Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey.
 Title: Rogues, Romance, and Race: Exoticism in French Fiction Cinema, 1930-1939

Honorable Mention:
Renée M. Silverman, Ph.D.  Florida International University
Title: Mapping the Landscape. Remapping the Text: Spanish Poetry from Antonio Machado's Castilian Countrysides to the Abstract Territory of the First Avant-Garde (1909-1925)

Elizabeth Abele, Ph.D.
Executive Director
NeMLA

End of Semester Tips and Summer Productivity

The semester is finally over and, for many of us graduate students, the summer stretches out in front of us, promising mental recovery and long-forgotten normality. We probably all begin the summer with worthy goals in mind. We are going to do all our lesson prep in the summer, submit abstracts to 10 amazing conferences, finish that chapter, etc. However if you are at all like me, summer slowly sucks me into a state of euphoria and stupor. I find myself putting off important work because the summer seems like it will go on forever. Rather, we should be looking at it as a golden opportunity. Wrapped up in end-of-term grading, paper writing, and looming deadlines, we often take for granted what this moment has to offer. The end of the semester is a crazy time, but it is also the time to get organized, reflect, and plan. The summer is a much needed time of rest and regrouping, but it can also be the most productive period in your year. Below we have a bunch of links we pulled from the net about how to maximize your summer, starting right now with an End of Semester Checklist and Scheduling the Endless Summer.
    As these links suggest, this is the prime moment to gather any notes you took on your teaching, to go back through old files and make sure you aren't hanging on to what you no longer need, and update your own professional materials (CV, Linkedin profile, teaching statement). I also take this moment to go through the stacks of PMLA books, magazines, and articles I have collected over the semester to evaluate what I really want to keep. Find a system that works for you, but consider organizing your course work, articles, and student papers so that they are easily retrievable (and for heaven's sake - back up your files now!).
  Now many of us use the first month of summer to catch up on things we put off during the semester - the haircut, the oil change, the personal emails - this is just fine. One of the tips in Lessons for Summer Productivity is to go ahead and check items off your to-do list. However instead of getting bogged down in repainting your living room because it has been on the to-do list since you moved in, we suggest refocusing your energy to maintain momentum in May and to get the most out of the remaining summer months.
   Use this time to begin/update your CV, check out CFP sites for promising conferences (see our conference/abstract posts for some tips), catch up on important journals in your field, begin that theory reading / dissertation writing group (it may be easier to meet regularly in the summer months), prep for your Fall classes (go over your notes from the semester), catch up on some teaching tips (composition, pedagogy, and technology), create your dream-class syllabus (this will come in handy!), carefully consider your funding options for the coming academic year, and finally - take the time to peruse our blog! We have tried to collect helpful information throughout the year, and link to tried-and-tested resources for graduate students.
    Finally, we realize that some of our readers are facing a tough job market this summer, so we pulled together a few posts on how to Use Your Summer Wisely while on the market, and Making the Most of Your Off-Season Part1 and Making the Most of Your Off-Season Part 2. Some of these links are general Summer Advice for Job Seekers and some focus on How to Spend Your Summer Vacation if you already have a job lined up for fall.
   We will be reducing the number of blog posts over the summer, but please check back from time to time as we plan to post items periodically. Also, check out our new blog tabs at the top of this page (Documents and EGSA Board). We encourage you to follow our blog via email with the widget to the right, or "like" us on Facebook to receive updates. Your new EGSA board is gearing up for Fall, so stay tuned for an exciting new year.

Plan Your PhD Event Today

Please remember to stop by Rome 771 from 3:30-4:30pm today for our final professional development event "Plan Your PhD." We are going to cover all the necessary information for making it successfully and thoughtfully through our PhD program. We also have updates on department policies, a new program tracker called DegreeMap, and a group of students who want to share some strategies and tips for handling each "step" in the path to a PhD. Also, don't forget to stick around to meet your new EGSA board from 5-7 (drinks provided).

As a preview for the event, we would like to share this article from the Chronicle with some helpful advice about your Graduate experience. This article comes highly recommended by your EGSA board and GW faculty.

March 27, 2012

Graduate School Is a Means to a Job

Brian Taylor for The Chronicle

By Karen Kelsky

One of the most common questions I hear from graduate students, whether they are in their first or their final year, is what they can donow to prepare for the academic job market.

Excellent question. As a graduate student, your fate is in your own hands, and every decision you make—including whether to go to graduate school at all, which program to go to, which adviser to choose, and how to conduct yourself while there—can and should be made with an eye to the job you wish to have at the end. 

 To do otherwise is pure madness. I have no patience whatsoever with the "love" narrative (we do what we do because we love it and money/jobs play no role) that prevails among some advisers, departments, and profoundly mystified graduate students. But for those graduate students and Ph.D.'s who actually want a paying tenure-track job and the things that go with it—health insurance, benefits, and financial security—here is my list of graduate-school rules, forged after years of working in academe as a former tenured professor and now running my own career-advising business for doctoral students. 

Early in Graduate School

Never forget this primary rule: Graduate school is not your job; graduate school is a means to the job you want. Do not settle in to your graduate department like a little hamster burrowing in the wood shavings. Stay alert with your eye always on a national stage, poised for the next opportunity, whatever it is: to present a paper, attend a conference, meet a scholar in your field, forge a connection, gain a professional skill...(click on the link to read the full article). 

Upcoming Campus and Department Events

Check out these exciting events coming up in April and May. Many of these events offer unique opportunities for academic enrichment and professional development. EGSA would like to personally invite you to two of our end-of-the-year events: "Plan Your PhD" and Elections Party. Meet your new EGSA board and get together with your fellow colleagues. We hope to see you there!

April 19 “Plan Your PhD” 3:30-4:30pm Rome 771 Come discuss the PhD program, new requirements, and helpful tips/resources for success. Light refreshments provided. Hosted by EGSA.

April 19 Elections Party 5:00-7:00pm Rome 771: Come welcome your new EGSA board and celebrate the end of another year. EGSA will provide libations, but please bring an appetizer to share.

April 20 Symposium at Maryland, Friday, April 20.  This event honors the work of Samuel R. Delany but also features a number of other invited speakers, including Robert Reid-Pharr, Tavia Nyong'o, Jordana Rosenberg, and Kevin Floyd.Note that our own Peyton Joyce is presenting in the afternoon (you can see the full program by clicking through to "program" using the link below).  Register online and you'll even get a free lunch.  Hope to see you all there.

April 25 Reorienting Global Shakespeare: Touring Productions to England, 1955-2011
Presentation by Alex Huang 12:00-1:00 pm, Wednesday April 25 2012 Board Room, Folger Shakespeare Library 201 E. Capitol St SE, Washington DC 20003

April 27-28 The UMD Graduate Field Committee in Medieval and Renaissance Studies and the Department of English present an interdisciplinary conference, GEOGRAPHIES OF DESIRE, to be held at the University of Maryland, College Park on April 27th and 28th. The event is free and open to the public. However, we please ask that you RSVP to rob.wakeman@gmail.com by Sunday, April 22. All events will be held in Tawes Hall. Please see attached program or visit our website.

May 14  Inaugural job market 2012-2013 meeting on Monday, May 14, from 10 am to noon in Rome 663.You should attend if you're going on the market in the fall or just thinking about it.  We'll plan for the summer, look ahead to fall meetings, and, in general, explain the process of the job season, which will run through spring 2013.  The Graduate Committee and I are preparing a GWU English Guide to the Job Market.  We expect to have it ready by the meeting.
Please RSVP by April 16 (amlopez@gwu.edu), indicating your dissertation title, the names of your committee members, and whether you've been on the market before.

Conventions, CFP web resources, and upcoming CFP Deadlines

In the past year, we have repeatedly emphasized the importance of applying to conferences. Even as a new graduate student, it is useful to apply for graduate and local conferences to get used to the process, and to thinking about your work in larger contexts. It is also useful to consider at what point you will attend large national conventions. Even if you do not have work to present, it is valuable to attend at least once to experience the convention and network. This year, the MLA is hosting its convention in Boston January 3-6, 2012. Consider attending if you can because it is so close this year and it is fairly affordable for student members (become a member as soon as you can!). We have also included links below to other large conventions, and those we know have upcoming CFPs. We also want to share two great CFP links that will allow you to stay on top of CFPs over the summer:
Penn U (a comprehensive and searchable archive of CFPs)
CFPList (allows you to sort by upcoming deadlines, location, and subject)

NEMLA - Northeast MLA with a convention in 2013 (CFPs will be posted in June)
SAMLA - South Atlantic Modern Language Association's Convention November 9-11, North Carolina. This convention features a wide variety of panels and special sessions. Deadlines range from May to July. Click on the link to access all the available information on the extensive list of CFPs.

June 1 Crossroads III: Deadends, Delays, and Detours  Massachusetts, October 5-7, 2012.

Alternate Career Session Part 2

Welcome to our final post on Alternate Careers. If you have not had the chance, check out our previous post on the panelists from the session. Here we offer a summary of the advice that the panelists offered us about preparing for alternate career options. We also include a list of potential careers and resources for exploring your career options as an academic.

All of our speakers offered great advice towards the end of the session which addressed some of the rising concerns about leaving the academy. They all encouraged us to actively combat the stigma of leaving, and the guilt of not pursuing a career in academia if that is not something we want. They also suggested to take a moment, and really consider your options. Do you like teaching? Embrace teaching at a community college if that is what it takes to do what you love. In other words, do not limit yourself with narrow-minded goals or attitudes. They also suggested that even if you are currently planning on a career in academia, to prepare yourself for other options now. You can only help yourself out by taking some of this advice: Build relationships shamelessly via events and list serves (we cannot emphasize enough how important networking is!). Finally, take advantage of your available resources. The GW Career Center offers one-on-one advice for CVs and other professional documents as well as job finding databases. Attend your EGSA professional development workshops! We cover a wide variety of areas that are designed to help you succeed whether you choose an academic career or an alternate career.

There are many professional opportunities for English graduate students, but here are just a few examples we have collected from research and personal connections:

Technical Writer

Journalist

Museum Coordinator

Law (lawyer, paralegal, judge)

Librarian

Elementary/Secondary Teacher

Education Administration

Film/TV/Productions

Creative Writing

Communication Career

Counselor

Public Relations

Analyst

Researcher

Marketing/Advertising

Copywriting

Publishing

Non-Profit Work

Non-Government Organization

Government Work

Resources

Chronicle of Higher Education

Versatile PhD

GWU Career Center

Media Commons

Twitter - #Alt-ac

Books

So What are you Going to Do with That? by Maggie Debelius and Susan Basalla

Do What You Are by Paul Tiegler and Barbara Barron-Tiegler

Outside the Ivory Tower by Margaret Newhouse

What Color is Your Parachute? by Richard Bolles

Alternate Career Session Part 1

Welcome to part 1 of our Alternate Career Series. We encourage you to keep an open mind and read these posts even if you are sure that you will stay in academia. What we offer you here is valuable advice to expand your marketability, enable you to support yourself in the meantime, and open up all of your options for your future. In our Alternate Career Session, we had the privilege of meeting three extraordinary people to talk about why they left academia in pursuit of other careers, and how they transfer their experience with academia into their current careers. The following is a summary of each panelist’s career history and tips for current graduate students. Stay tuned, our second post will contain a summary of advice and suggestions from our panelists as well as a list of resources for professional development and alternate careers.

Andrea Wiltse

Andrea has an M.A. in English Literature, and kindly agreed to address our session with her career trajectory and her current interests. Andrea’s initial interest in undergrad was in pre-Roman civilizations. Then she traveled to China to teach, and when she returned she began taking literature classes at the local community college. This interest developed into obtaining a Masters degree in English Literature from American University. At one point, Andrea pursued a freelance career in teaching business writing workshops. She got to travel to different places teaching 1-2 day workshops and expand her client base through networking. I met Andrea at Northern Virginia Community College where she was teaching composition and literature courses. I was impressed with her dedication to her students and passion for her classes. After teaching for a few years, she applied and took a part-time position at her current employer, The Center for Naval Analysis. Eventually she shifted into a full-time position where she edits the center’s reports, teaches writing workshops to other employees, and pursues her own professional development goals. I asked her why she decided to leave the world of academia and teaching, but she pointed out that she has not really “left teaching.” Part of the appeal, she said, of her current job is that she gets to teach on a regular basis (something she feels it would be hard not to do in some capacity). She also has time now to pursue her own writing projects including a fiction writing project and travel writing pieces. On a more practical note, she pointed out that it was refreshing being able to leave your work at work and have work-free nights and weekends (hard to do if you are familiar with teaching/academia life). Additionally, she noted that she brings something valuable to the table for her current employer: a unique perspective. She makes sure that the reports and documents are well-written, but also readable for larger audiences. She also finds that her background in academia and teaching offers the company a boon of transferable skills, including critical thinking, analysis, communication skills, independence, and reliability. One tip that Andrea shared with us about preparing for career options while in academia is to seek the opportunity to get involved in other projects (writing projects specifically). She also noted the importance of pursuing professional development in any career path – attend project management seminars/training, volunteer for new projects, develop technology and language skills, and network, network, network!

Patrick Cooper

While pursuing his PhD. in English Literature, Patrick, like many of us, taught classes on campus. Patrick quickly realized that while he was working on his dissertation he should probably broaden his market appeal, and teaching offered an opportunity to do this. He began by adding a technology component to his writing classes, encouraging them to develop a web page and cultivate their online presence. He saw it as one way to show students that they would leave the classroom with a concrete benefit in addition to improved writing skills. Soon he was branching out into the field of technology and academia, showing other teachers how to creatively use technology in their curriculums. I asked Patrick why he decided to abandon academia after finishing his degree. He said that although he had an interest in teaching, he did not have an interest in teaching writing. That combined with a tight market and no major publications would make it very difficult for him to find a long-term career in academia. He decided then to turn this “problem” into an opportunity. With his interests in teaching and expertise with technology, he applied “everywhere.” He said it was a tough experience, and he had to “anticipate rejection.” However, he was able to develop a rewarding career in technology without leaving teaching behind. He told us that he initially faced skepticism from potential employers because he was “overqualified” and, at the same time, “lacking experience.” He said that he was able to emphasize the transferable skills that his background in academia afforded: finishing the dissertation demonstrates he can handle large, self-directed projects, he can work with or without deadlines, he can teach large groups of people, and he has the skills to be a good project manager. One of his tips for preparing for career options while in academia is to learn other skills, and make yourself more marketable.

Donna Scarboro

Donna received a PhD. in English Literature and immediately started teaching at a private school. Eventually she felt that in spite of her love of teaching, she could not keep up with the hectic pace and lack of compensation of teaching there, so she taught as an adjunct professor at George Washington University. Eventually she began working part-time on administrative projects, building relationships with the administration and continuing to teach. Donna credits her success with developing an administrative career to networking (“realize the power of a nice, well-written letter”). She found that working in administration offered her the chance to work with teams, and to go abroad. This experience took her to her current post as the Associate Provost for International Programs at GWU. She noted that being a part of the international programs field allows her to still get the thrill of teaching students because “what better learning experience is there any studying abroad?” In other words, Donna has found a career path that satisfies her interests and offers exciting challenges every day. Donna told us not to underestimate the number of book lovers out there when you are on the job hunt – own your background as a graduate student and lover of literature. She also urged us to consider how much we love teaching now – if we love it now, it will be hard to have a career which does not involve some form of teaching. Finally she encouraged us to realize if we decide to leave academia that it is an active choice, not a lack of choices. 

A big thanks to our panelists for sharing their experience and advice with our graduate students. Stay tuned for the next post in our series with links to valuable resources and a summary of advice from the panel. 

Alternate Career Session Today!

Please join us for the Alternate Career Session today at 5:30pm in Rome 771. EGSA and the GW Career Center are hosting this event where you can learn about alternate careers for English Graduates, where you will learn how to transfer your skills in an interview and on a resume, and where you can speak with a variety of professionals who have English Graduate degrees. Please come and support EGSA and your fellow graduate students. Light Refreshments will be provided.

Journal Announcement: Monsters and the Monstrous

This came across our desk recently, and we would like to share this unique opportunity for publication. They are accepting a wide range of items for this publication, but hurry - the deadline is March 21st. 

Journal Announcement and Call for Submissions

Monsters and the Monstrous

Volume 2, Number 1, Special Issue on Monstrous Memory

The Editors welcome contributions to the journal in the form of

articles, reviews, reports, art and/or visual pieces and other forms

of submission on the following or related themes:

Monstrous Memory.

Sethe: "It's so hard for me to believe in . Some things go.
Pass on. Some things just stay. I used to think it was my rememory. .
. . But it's not. Places, places are still there. If a house burns
down, it's gone, but the place-the picture of it-stays, and not just
in my rememory, but out there, in the world".

Denver: "If it's still there, waiting, that must mean that nothing
ever dies."

Sethe: "Nothing ever does." (Morrison, Beloved)

 Monsters of memory, monstrous memories, monsters as memories.

Keywords: memory, remembrance, history, trauma, the past, undead,
re-memory, undying, haunting, unheimlich, spectre's, monsters, ghosts.

The Call for Articles:

This special issue of Monsters and the Monstrous is looking for
articles and reviews that are based around the idea of Monstrosity and
Memory.

Memories of the past, whether individual, societal or national
constantly invade our everyday lives. Sometimes as the remembrance of
monstrous past events that can, and should, never die or be forgotten
but also as disruptive and destructive presences that upset, intrude
and invade our equilibrium and sense of self.

EXAMPLES:

Monstrous events and people that live on today:

-the holocaust and national geneocides, hiroshima etc.

-natural disasters, tsunami's, eartquakes and volcanic eruprions.

-monstrous figures from the past such as Rasputin, Jack the Ripper,
Stalin.

-the national and cultural disparities in the conceptions of all of
the above.

Monstrous entities from the past in fiction and film:

- Manifestations of the national past and political extremism, The
Grudge, Godzilla, Dead Snow, Frostbite

- Representation of monsters that lived before humans, Cthulu
(Lovecraft), Jurassic Park, Starship Troopers, Priest.

-

Ghosts and Spirits that Haunt the Present:

-Popular series such as Medium, The Ghost Whisperer, Supernatural,
Buffy the Vampire Slayer

-Discontented figures that want justice or revenge, Woman in Black,
Death Watch, Ringu, Nightmare on Elm Street

- traumatic events that cannot be escaped, Silent Hill, Triangle,
Inception

Whether Proustian flashbacks or actual embodiments , metaphorical,
psychological, or phantasical the monsters of the past will not
relinquish their hold on our times, lives and imaginations.

Submissions for this Issue are required by 31st March 2012 at the
latest.

Contributions to the journal should be original and not under

consideration for other publications at the same time as they are

under consideration for this publication. Submissions are to be made

electronically wherever possible using either Microsoft® Word or
.rtf

format.

Length Requirements:

Articles - 5,000 – 7,000 words.

Reflections, reports and responses - 1,000 – 3,000 words.

Book reviews - 500 – 4,000 words.

Other forms of contributions are welcome.

Submission Information:

Send submissions via e-mail using the following Subject Line:

‘Journal: Contribution Type (article/review/...): Author Surname’
and marked "Monstrous Memory."

Submissions E-Mail Address:

monstersjournal@inter-disciplinary.net <javascript:location.href=>

Submissions will be acknowledged within 48 hours of receipt.

Contributions are also invited for future issues of the journal which
will include: "Twilight and Teaching the Monstrous", "Monstrous
Spaces."

We also invite submission to our special features on Non-English
Language Book Reviews, and Monstrous Pedagogy. Please mark entries for
these topics with their

We look forward to folks getting involved in and with the journal.

Warmly,

Rob



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University Job Opportunity

Following up on our last post, we have come across announcements for University job opportunities for Graduate students. The GW Student and Academic Support Department lists several part-time and full-time fellowship opportunities for current and continuing Graduate students. Check back later in the week for additional positions, and be sure to check out the External posts as well (which includes a long list of positions open at American University).
Check back with us this week for posts about upcoming Academic Enrichment events as well as CFP and Journal posts. Remember to "like" us on Facebook to receive updates and/or subscribe to our blog via email with the box to the right.

Upcoming Calls-for-Papers

We have been collecting CFP notices for the past two months, and here are some additional CFPs with deadlines in March and May. Note: These are organized by Abstract Submission Deadline (not by conference date). Please click on the links to get full CFP details. If you have a CFP that you would like to share, please post it in a comment below or email us. And remember that you can "like" us on Facebook or subscribe to this blog via email to receive updates.

March 1 Deadline:

Cross-Cultural Encounters in the Middle Ages

March 17 Deadline: 

The St. John’s Humanities Review

The St. John’s Humanities Review is a graduate student-run journal at St John’s University in New York City that publishes book reviews, essays, and interviews on a broad range of topics in the arts and humanities. We encourage submissions from graduate students and accomplished scholars interested in these discussions locally and around the world.  

This year’s issue hopes to feature work that fits under the broad heading of Nationalism: Roots and Transgressions.  The focus is on the areas of national identity or transnationalism, acculturation, cultural diffusion, or culture shock.  The approach may be primarily sociological and historical, or literary in nature.   What we want are submissions that address these theme(s) in new and exciting ways that express the multiplicity of angles and issues these broad headings generate.

We seek scholarly essays, book reviews, and interviews suitable for a broad academic audience. Book reviews should be similar to The New York Review of Books and The New Republic and should be under 2000 words. Essays should be no longer than 25 pages and in Times New Roman 12 pt. font in MSWord and follow a citation system suitable to the pertinent discipline. Footnotes should be minimized, but use depends on the material.

Please send your submissions by March 17, 2012. 

Send them to:

Danielle Lee, editor

St John’s Humanities Review

sjuhumanities@gmail.com

danielle.lee10a@stjohns.edu

May 4^th Deadlines

Communication and Conflict

Immersive Worlds and Transmedia Narratives

Bullying and the Abuse of Power

14^th Annual British Graduate Conference