Dream POI, Not so Dream Location

[annieca]

I was researching my POI's today, crossing most off of my list when I came across a professors who interests almost idenitcally mirror my own. I'm interested in Eastern European social history after the Cold War and his interests are very similiar.

Here's the thing, I'm not going for History, I'm going for Public History and Library Science. The professor is at a reputable school but it's in a small-ish town where I would have to travel for museum opportunities.

To sum up, is it more important for Public History to find that professor that fits your potential research field even if they aren't in a good city job prospect wise - or - is it more important to focus on the job prospect aspect since research isn't as important in the subfield.

[TMP]

I would think your training and experiences matter more than who your POI really is. I would look closer at the program and see how it provides internship/external opportunities. If it's straight coursework, it's not the program you want.

For the MA, especially of this kind, don't worry about POIs. Worry about the program's quality, reputation, and training. You want a JOB and the program can do that. Of course, it doesn't hurt if your "dream" POI has the network but more likely not unless s/he's demonstrated evidence of engaging with the community.

[annieca]

^^ Ticklemepink, thanks. I figured this was the case but I didn't know how important scholarship was to Public History.