kirbyhy

Hey all. I'm new to the community and am in the beginning stages of the PhD application process. Here's my quandary: I want to study comic books. I know it's supposedly an up-and-coming field, but I can count the number of accredited graduate programs devoted specially to comics on one hand (discounting international programs -- I'm American). So, I'm looking for schools where I can make my relatively niche research interests work. Talking to some colleagues at the school where I currently teach, I have figured that I want to couch my comics studies in a more traditionally accepted PhD program, something like American Studies, or even an interdisciplinary American Literature/Pop Culture hybrid. So far I know that the University of Oregon and the University of Georgia have had recent PhD students doing work in comics, and the University of Texas at Austin's program looks promising so far. Reaching out to anyone listening -- any ideas? It's hard to look for potential programs when your area of study is on the periphery of academic acceptance. And I kind of don't want to live in Florida. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hey, friend. I just signed up, this is my first post here. I didn't do an MA in American Studies, but I graduated from my own MA in English in 2014 and I felt the same way that you did at the beginning of my first semester. My advice would be to stop holding yourself to the level of your cohorts and to start seeking help now. Graduate-level education isn't an isolated exercise: in my experience it's about community. At least my program was. So seek help from teachers, mentors, advisors, and even friends in your cohort. Get their help with stuff you don't understand. If you fall behind now, it's only going to get worse later. Is the reading just in different genres than you're used to?