Course selection? (Fall 2015 Entry Applicants)

[sillyrabbit]

Hi all!

 

I haven't been on this forum in a while since we all made our final decisions for PhD programs. Since fall is quickly approaching, I'm curious if people have selected courses yet for the upcoming school year. If so, what courses have you picked (and with what advisors)? Are you choosing courses very close to your proposed areas of interest? Or, are you trying to branch out just a bit in the beginning?

 

 

[echo449]

I picked my courses a little while ago, and I feel that my courses are pretty spread out. My program has a pretty big range of distribution requirements, so one of my courses was chosen to get that out of the way (medieval lit). My other two courses are closer to my area, though neither are quite "in" it. One is right before it (late 19th century rather than modernism), and the other is a different genre than I normally work in (drama rather than poetry). Next term it looks like I have at least two courses in my area that I have to take--since those classes are taught by potential advisors--so I'm fine spreading out this time, and am excited to get some breadth down. 

[Dr. Old Bill]

Yup, I've picked my courses! Two of them are ones I needed to take in my first year -- an intro to graduate research methodology and an intro to teaching freshman comp, but both are courses I would have taken regardless, since the first of the two is with Theresa Coletti, who is a potential advisor for me, and the second is required to teach anything at UMD (and Jessica Enoch is supposed to be quite fantastic). The third course is a research seminar with an up-and-comer named Gerard Passannante, and it has the long and slightly pretentious title of "Seminar in Renaissance Literature; On Thinking in Images: Analogy and Metaphor as Critical Practice." But Passannante is a strong candidate for a potential advisor for me, given our shared interests, and it really DOES sound like a course that is completely up my alley. I'm a little concerned about balancing three courses with a busy full GAship, but since I now live very close to campus and have my own office, I'm hoping it works out.

 

Honestly, I don't know the process of selecting an advisor. I've met with Professor Coletti at length in person, and we have had a few solid email exchanges, so I suspect she would be a great option, but I want to meet Professor Passannante before I "pop the question," as it were. Both are well-regarded academics, and I think they could both help me a lot. Then again, Kent Cartwright is also in the ballpark of my interests as well, and we got along very well at the UMD open house...AND he's a huge fan / friend of my UG advisor, so... Long story short, I'll probably be dithering about this question until mid fall.

Edited July 3, 2015 by Wyatt's Torch

[shinigamiasuka]

I'm not in PhD (yet), but: I'm going to finish off with the required ones for my area first before I broaden my scope. One of the courses I wanted to take but didn't is taught by a PI. The reason I left it out was 1)I'm familiar with most of the material and 2) time conflict with a lab course. However I did take a course that's taught by another PI. I have in total of 3 PIs here. The other remaining one is going to take a course required course for my area in the winter semester (aka spring everywhere else).

[thepriorwalter]

I had a question about course selection and I figured this was one of the better threads to ask it in! To preface, one of my main research interests is trauma and disability studies.

 

In the Fall, a professor in my department is teaching disability studies with a focus on rhetoric and composition. Though I am not a rhet/comp scholar, the class seems pretty interesting to me, and I am unfamiliar with every text on the syllabus. In the Spring, the professor I want to serve as my advisor--who is going on sabbatical my second year in the program--is also teaching disability studies (same course number but coming at it with a different focus). There is a strong possibility that this class is the only class I will be able to take with said professor while I'm in coursework, and it's definitely the only one I would get to take with them before I need to have selected an advisor. 

 

The department has students undergo a "third-term review," during which a student's progress in the program is evaluated; one of the categories by which students are evaluated is whether they used the first year to study a broad range of topics. 

 

Given this information, should I forego the disability studies class in the fall? Does the fact that it's from a rhet/comp perspective help categorize my studies in the first year as having been "broad," indicating that I can take them both? Should I take the class in the fall just in case I can't get into the one in the spring? 

 

And, in keeping with the thread as a whole, the other courses I am taking are a required intro to grad studies class, a class on Henry James, and a class about education and literacy. If I don't take the disability studies class in the fall, I'll replace it with a class on Latino trans culture. 

 

Thanks for the help! 

[hypervodka]

Take it, absolutely. If breadth of study is only one of the criteria they use to assess your performance, it doesn't seem too dire to take two (out of what? eight courses your first year?) disability-centered classes. You'll be able to make up any lapse in "breadth" next semester. In any case, your classes do seem to be covering a broad range of topics regardless.

[rhetoricus aesalon]

thepriorwalter - Two things:

 

(1) You might want to double-check this with your advisor, but in my program if you are not a comp/rhet student and take a comp/rhet class (no matter the focus), that counts toward your breadth requirement.

(2) Is this class taught by Melanie Yergeau?

Edited July 21, 2015 by Chadillac

[thepriorwalter]

Thank you, hypervodka! 

 

thepriorwalter - Two things:

 

(1) You might want to double-check this with your advisor, but in my program if you are not a comp/rhet student and take a comp/rhet class (no matter the focus), that counts toward your breadth requirement.

(2) Is this class taught by Melanie Yergeau?

 

(1) I will look into this, though it's slightly complicated by the two courses being offered under the same course number. But the content of the courses is different, so it does provide breadth in the field, at the very least. 

(2) It is! Is that a recommendation? 

[bhr]

Thank you, hypervodka! 

 

 

(1) I will look into this, though it's slightly complicated by the two courses being offered under the same course number. But the content of the courses is different, so it does provide breadth in the field, at the very least. 

(2) It is! Is that a recommendation?

 

 

I'm not HV, but I highly recommend any course you can take with Melanie Yergeau. She's an engaging speaker (I've been to both keynotes and panels she's been on) and brilliant scholar. Whenever I dip my toes into access and disability in my research I find myself starting with her writing. Also, fwiw, she's got an adorable dog.

[rhetoricus aesalon]

It is! Is that a recommendation? 

 

Absolutely. Melanie is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after DS scholars in the country, let alone in rhet/comp. As someone interested in DS as a subfield, you have a fair chance (I'd wager) of wanting to include some of her work on your exam reading list -- and if not, the material she assigns you will absolutely be. Plus, she is still in the junior stage of her career (which is pretty surprising given her publishing and presentation record), is approachable to grad students, and very possibly someone you'll consider having on your dis committee.

 

In other words, you'll be taking a class and networking with someone who is actively and broadly recognized as an emerging leader in her discipline--and the course she is teaching is her discipline. Even if you had no interest in DS, I'd recommend the class. 

Edited July 21, 2015 by Chadillac

[rising_star]

(1) I will look into this, though it's slightly complicated by the two courses being offered under the same course number. But the content of the courses is different, so it does provide breadth in the field, at the very least. 

 

Not in your field but, it's really common for graduate students to take multiple courses with the same course number. If it's an area that you're interested in, then taking two courses in that area in your first year is a good idea because while you need breadth, you will also need depth. The sooner you can start on the depth portion, the better off you'll be in the long run. 

 

But also, talk to whomever your interim advisor is about your course selection too. As long as they're on board with your plan, you'll be fine during your third-semester review (at least in regards to the courses you've taken).

[thepriorwalter]

Not in your field but, it's really common for graduate students to take multiple courses with the same course number. If it's an area that you're interested in, then taking two courses in that area in your first year is a good idea because while you need breadth, you will also need depth. The sooner you can start on the depth portion, the better off you'll be in the long run.

Yesh, definitely. It was common in my MA program, and I did confirm that the course is one that can be repeated multiple times for credit (up to 9 credits). I just meant it wouldn't necessarily show up as a rhet/comp course even though it is also one of those (at least the course offered in the fall), but I agree that it is unlikely to be an issue anyway. I'm sure I'm doing my tried and true "worrying about nothing" anxiety pattern and I appreciate the perspective from others. It has eased my mind.

[ProfLorax]

Thirded on Melanie Yergeau. Check out her essay in DSQ; she weaves the personal and the political, the everyday with the academic so expertly.