I've previously posed a few questions to CMers before, so thanks for always giving feedback.
My issue: I accepted a prestigious graduate fellowship over "fit." Was it a mistake? No, unfortunately, I had few options; my other choices weren't much better in terms of fit, and my funding was contingent on state budgets (sigh).
Q: So, does fit matter in graduate school? Did you fit in your department? Were you odd man out, meaning no one knew anything about your regional hamster weaving? Are there any benefits to not fitting?
My options at this point are to finish my MA in another year and apply to different schools or to stick it out and attempt to find some outsiders for my dissertation committee. I try not to think about this but it haunts me because I don't fit (no one studies what I study) and haven't "clicked" with any professors yet.
You may be wondering why they accepted me, right? Well, that baffles me too...
I've based much of my professional biography on not fitting. It does open doors. At a number of junctions, I got opportunities because I was the only one who could weave that kind of basket. I am, professionally, however, washed out, a failure. But I don't think not fitting was the reason. When I look at the mistakes made on my part and the systemic problems which combined to produce my failure, none of them had to do with "fit."
ReplyDeleteNow, if "fit" has to do with personalities, I can imagine that would be a killer. I don't want to get on the wrong side of that thread a few posts down about students being "liked," but at the PhD level, you should click on some level with your advisor. If there is a hostile or competitive relationship with your superiors, I can imagine that could turn sour in a bad way. But I don't know. Personality-wise, I fit. Content-wise, I was, and gladly, and I think to my profit, a misfit.
The only possible problem I can see, looking back, was that I might have gotten too used to those doors opening to me because of my misfittedness and thinking, at some subconscious level, that this replaced blood, sweat and tears. At some point, you have to be brilliant. Being unique won't be enough. The job will go to the better hamster fur coat, not to the one woven from the fur of a rare breed.
I second AS's idea that clicking with a potential adviser is key -- but this has to go for both personality and area of expertise. If there is really NO ONE in your current department that does what you want to be doing, then it's better to shop around. At the PhD stage, a stellar adviser in an otherwise just-OK department (it can happen!) can be more beneficial than causing hassles in a stellar department that has to bend over backwards (or, worse, bend its own rules) to clear a path for you to pursue your chosen field. (Which is to say that cobbling together a ragtag band of outsiders as your dissertation committee is not likely to go over well.)
ReplyDeleteFWIW, I knew who my adviser would be from my first year of grad school. And s/he wasn't even in the field I thought I would be in, so for me it was a personality plus a conversion to the field that sealed the deal. That was the major reason I decided to stick with my department for the PhD instead of applying elsewhere -- I couldn't imagine working with anyone else. It's probably worth another roll of the dice to find that kind of connection.
I think money is more important than fit. Besides, the person you "fit" with might just up and leave to find a better "fit" for themselves. I think you did the right thing. But that's just my two cents.
ReplyDeleteI picked my initial Ph.D. adviser on reputation rather than :"fit" and that was a huge mistake. The guy was a total prick and threw every roadblock he could in my way. After suffering for 3 years I said "screw it' and switch to a professor that I liked and respected and we got along great.
ReplyDeleteoh yeah, Dr. Reputation switched universities right after I left, going to an Ivy, and he left his grad students stranded.
I'm in a similar position. Frown-y faces all around. I didn't have a lot of choice when deciding between programs--the decision was pretty much made for me. That's actually kind of comforting when I think about it.
ReplyDeleteFWIW, I think that sometimes people play up "fit" as more important than it is. And I think it's also a way for less reputable departments to puff themselves up: "We may only be #84 on U.S News and World Report, but we are the ONLY department to offer a concentration in the study of baby gerbils, so when you go on the job market for baby gerbil studies, everyone will be super-impressed."
In reality, I've been told that the program's overall reputation is what determines your degree's currency--not the fact that you worked with the famous Dr. So-and-so who wrote that book in Hamster Poetics. Really, who on the job market doesn't have a supposedly famous advisor who wrote the ONLY book out there on such-and-such? That title basically describes every professor I've ever had.
I'm confused. Why did you apply for that particular fellowship or graduate program if it didn't fit in terms of your interest? It's good to get paid while attending graduate school but it will be a real slog if you don't feel like you fit with the department. Of course, I'm interpreting fit here as mutual interests. Maybe you mean it in a different way?
ReplyDeleteIf it's a situation where you can get work done, then go for it. If you think you'll be hindered in getting work done and finishing, then find a different career.
Bison: I applied to this university as a back up plan, in case I didn't end up getting in anywhere else (which was like 75% the case). Most students that apply to grad schools have back up plans, or at least I thought. But the university ended up giving me big bucks (for five years) to attend so it was hard to turn it down. But, by fit, I mean no one studies the region I study or what I want to study in that region.
ReplyDeleteHey, nice work landing a 5 year fellowship, at your back up nonetheless!
DeleteSo the question is, will they train you or allow you the ability to train yourself in the things you need to study? Another option is adjusting your own interests to a middle ground that aligns better with what the department/faculty currently does. Not knowing your specific circumstances, they might have the latter expectation if they are giving you such generous funding.
A sit down with your potential adviser(s) would probably be in order to map out a plan. Who knows, maybe that particular faculty member would be excited for you to do all the learning for a new region and then share your expertise with them.
FWIMBW, I went to a grad school with the intention to study Provençal Gerbil Troubadours, but the Medievalist in the Gerbil Studies department left three months after I left. However, I found a Renaissance Mongoose professor who agreed to direct my thesis. She shepherded me through the dissertation process like a dream; contents-wise, I was on my own.
ReplyDeleteYes, it matters--well, it did for me. I was mother-tea-partying miserable in my R1 PhD program. Many people were. Brutal.
ReplyDeleteIt really depends on you. I too succumbed to the almighty dollar and chose my faculty over two other programs that were much better fits for me because of their (unmatchable) funding/fellowship and the school's cachet! I'm making the best of it, and it's not all bad. The fact that I get crazy departmental funding for conferences and was able to land external government funding for my research is just gravy - not entirely sure that I would have been able to secure the latter if I had chosen one of the other institutions. PLUS, all of my teaching is paid in addition to my fellowship/funding as well, so I really can't complain. As well, I pretty much have complete autonomy in terms of my research - so that is a HUGE bonus!
ReplyDeleteOf course, one's supervisor is important. But, despite only having our general field as a commonality, my supervisor has been quite helpful in the process. With that being said, I'm still shooting for a rock star icon as my external reviewer to offset any possible shortcomings that my committee may have.
I also have very little in common with a few of my colleagues and faculty members and absolutely nothing in common with the rest. I find that I was much closer to those that I did my Master's with. No one here speaks the same language or views things the way that I do. And my school's in a big city, so the camaraderie and closeness just isn't there since everyone's so busy and doing their own thing.
I'm a humanities dude who is now living/working in the social sciences. Try articulating the difference between the two to the social scientists without them tearing a strip off you. YIKES!
At any rate, the point is that you need to figure out what's best for you and where you'll be (relatively) happy. And once that decision is made, just the make the best of it - especially if you find yourself in the same position as me and end up choosing funding over fit!
So much luck! :)
CB