Sarah1983

Thanks for the responses. I think I'm going to particularly use danieleWrites deflection suggestion. I'll hold off switching and I do see, as all the responders suggest, it might turn out to be a nonproblem. If it came down to it I would choose my advisor for a committee over the professor she hates just because her research interests would be better for taking my work to the next level. My style is closer to the other professor but I came to grad school to grow so I guess I should focus more on that and just keep out of the rest of it. I think I feel much less secure in grad school so office politics that would never have bothered me before freak me out now. I worked so hard to get where I am that I don't want to end up mucking things up by getting stuck in the middle of some bs like this. I had a career before grad school. I've been around office politics and I'm weary of them. I've seen offices turn toxic and know well how stressful those situations can be to balance. I'm used to that sort of gossip amongst my equals, not between employees and management. So having someone I perceive to be above me in rank trying to gossip with me was surprising I think part of the issue, that I didn't mention in my original post, is that the professor she hates came highly vouched for by professors from my undergraduate institution. who had been doctoral students with this professor. Anyways, thanks again everyone. I'm chilling out a bit!

I'm here for some at least sort of anonymous advice about a situation with my advisor. I'm a first year doctoral student and went to meet with my advisor for the first time last week. We chatted a bit about coursework, potential thesis topics, etc. Then she asked me what courses I was taking. One of those is with a professor that came highly recommended by professors at my previous institution, a fairly big name in my major field. I told my advisor I was taking the course and she immediately burst into a tirade about how much she hates this professor, he's a terrible person, and he has terrible attitudes towards women. She even offered to get coffee with me so we could trash talk this professor if I realized how terrible he was. All the while her office door is wide open. I was...surprised and speechless. I just kind of mumbled something about how there didn't seem to be a book about gender on the reading list and booked it out of there. Now I've heard the complaint that the professor I'm taking the course with is critical of feminist scholarship and my advisor has a heavy emphasis on gender in her work. So it seems there is an intellectual disagreement between the two which is fine and even healthy. My work tends more toward the style of the despised professor but I feel it could benefit from incorporating scholarship on gender. But her tirade struck me as incredibly unprofessional and put me in an awkward position particulary given the power arrangement. I am not my advisors equal in the department and sat through a week of orientations saying to not gossip and particularly not to gossip on the department floor where others could overhear. My concern is not so much her complaints about this particular professor...my bigger concern is that this will become a pattern. Or that she would run her mouth if not happy with me. So should I swtich advisors? This advisor is the best match for my potential future work. I do have secondary research I could consider adopting as my main topic and that would necessitate an advisor switch. Or am I overreacting here Edit: typos and and added that my work fits with both professors.