Great school, great location, full funding and stipend but no POI?

[neeny]

I'm currently deciding whether to accept an offer to a liberal arts PhD.

 

I applied to this school early, before I had fully narrowed my area of interest, and while there are several professors peripheral to my subject area, there isn't really anyone specializing in my research interests. Offers from other schools have been unfeasible due to location or financials. I've spoken to the DGS who was kind and supportive but didn't really offer a straight solution to this problem. 

So, is it worth it? 

[perpetuavix]

It might be worth it. You should talk to as many of the peripherally related professors as you can about how comfortable they would feel supervising a dissertation for your research interests. There might be a professor who does actually have the knowledge to supervise, or someone who is willing to learn more about your research interests. Even if you find someone who is willing to supervise you, you will still probably need an outside expert in your area, so make sure your school allows that. 

Another consideration: you might change your mind about your interests, and if you go to this program, your interests will probably change in a way that is compatible with the faculty members there. Your coursework might change your interests, and unless something weird is happening, the topic of your coursework is probably an area the faculty member teaching the class knows a lot about. 

[juilletmercredi]

I have heard that in the humanities (of which art history is one), it is less important and likely that you have someone in your small niche field for a dissertation. That's because humanists don't work in labs, meaning you won't need to use the equipment, resources and grant funding of your advisor. Your advisor - in your case - will be more there to guide you along the process of learning, developing, and writing. Now, the best thing is if it's someone kind of close to your field because they might have ideas for fellowships, know people in your subfield, know what archives or other research resources you might need...etc. But if you're fairly independent, then having someone in a related but not exactly the same field might work out for you.

[rising_star]

I personally wouldn't be super worried about it. I'm in the social sciences and my advisor is not (and never will be) a specialist in my narrow research area. We work within the same theoretical framework but on completely different topics. He was fine with it and so was I.