For her dissertation in art history, Mikaela examined the Christic body in performance. Internal scholarships funded her degree, and her department made sure that there was funding in the form of work opportunities. She did a lot of research assistant work, as well as teaching; she co-taught two courses and taught one class on her own. As a result, her first three years in the program were relatively comfortable, but the last two were, financially, more difficult.
Because Mikaela’s PhD was interuniversity, she took courses at Université de Montréal in addition to her alma mater of Concordia. After coursework, what sense of academic community that existed slowly dispersed. She worked with colleagues to teach some courses, but it was more collaboration than community-building or mentorship. Although she appreciated the research groups that she participated in with her supervisor, they were not the same as having a strong student community.
Mikaela finished her degree in five years. A switch in topic and supervisor during her coursework was a slight setback, but her limited funding and her supervisor kept her motivated to finish quickly; partway through her doctorate, her advisor moved to Université de Montréal, and he was under pressure to finish supervising his students based at other universities.
After her degree, Mikaela worked a series of part-time and freelance jobs. She continued translation work that she had started while at Concordia, did some bookkeeping for a journalist, and worked part time at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, where she had previously worked as a summer intern. Then, she shifted to teaching at Champlain College in Québec City part-time for a year.
Building on her experience at Champlain, she then received a position at Dawson College, where she started as part-time, but has received more teaching assignments over the years until she is now a full-time faculty member. She teaches courses in the Humanities on art history, aesthetics, and philosophy, areas that relate to her doctoral research.
Reflecting on her PhD experience, Mikaela thinks that more mentorship and community would have been beneficial. Even informal meetings would have helped to stave off the isolation of independent research. She appreciates the structure at Dawson, where a framework for mentorship between experienced and newer faculty contributes to a strong sense of community.
For her dissertation in art history, Mikaela examined the Christic body in performance. Internal scholarships funded her degree, and her department made sure that there was funding in the form of work opportunities. She did a lot of research assistant work, as well as teaching; she co-taught two courses and taught one class on her own. As a result, her first three years in the program were relatively comfortable, but the last two were, financially, more difficult.
Because Mikaela’s PhD was interuniversity, she took courses at Université de Montréal in addition to her alma mater of Concordia. After coursework, what sense of academic community that existed slowly dispersed. She worked with colleagues to teach some courses, but it was more collaboration than community-building or mentorship. Although she appreciated the research groups that she participated in with her supervisor, they were not the same as having a strong student community.
Mikaela finished her degree in five years. A switch in topic and supervisor during her coursework was a slight setback, but her limited funding and her supervisor kept her motivated to finish quickly; partway through her doctorate, her advisor moved to Université de Montréal, and he was under pressure to finish supervising his students based at other universities.
After her degree, Mikaela worked a series of part-time and freelance jobs. She continued translation work that she had started while at Concordia, did some bookkeeping for a journalist, and worked part time at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, where she had previously worked as a summer intern. Then, she shifted to teaching at Champlain College in Québec City part-time for a year.
Building on her experience at Champlain, she then received a position at Dawson College, where she started as part-time, but has received more teaching assignments over the years until she is now a full-time faculty member. She teaches courses in the Humanities on art history, aesthetics, and philosophy, areas that relate to her doctoral research.
Reflecting on her PhD experience, Mikaela thinks that more mentorship and community would have been beneficial. Even informal meetings would have helped to stave off the isolation of independent research. She appreciates the structure at Dawson, where a framework for mentorship between experienced and newer faculty contributes to a strong sense of community.
Discussion