Advisors in American Studies

[Hecate]

Hi everyone,

I will be applying to a range of American Studies PhD programs for Fall 2016, and I have a few questions about potential advisors.

Some schools don't actually list the faculty of the American Studies department but instead list all other affiliated departments (English, History, Sociology....). Does that mean that any professor in any of those listed departments could become an advisor to students in American Studies programs?  Also, are teachers who specifically teach only Undergrad courses off limits, or do they also take on PhD students? What about lecturers and postdocs - can I voice my interest in working with them or is that just " not done"?

Sorry if that all sounds a little naive, but as an international student I'm not exactly sure how the US system works and I can't really find any specific information anywhere. 

Thanks so much!

Edited September 7, 2015 by Hecate

[rising_star]

 

Some schools don't actually list the faculty of the American Studies department but instead list all other affiliated departments (English, History, Sociology....). Does that mean that any professor in any of those listed departments could become an advisor to students in American Studies programs?  

This is going to vary from one university to the next. The only surefire way to know is to consult the Graduate Handbook for that department, which should explain how students are to choose their advisors.

Also, are teachers who specifically teach only Undergrad courses off limits, or do they also take on PhD students? 

Again, this is going to vary from one university to the next. Whether or not these people are on the graduate faculty (that is, able to take on PhD students) likely varies. Some people just prefer undergrad courses, so they mostly teach those even though they can/could teach and advise graduate students.

What about lecturers and postdocs - can I voice my interest in working with them or is that just " not done"?

In the US, lecturers and postdocs are generally unable to take on PhD students, in part because they often have short, multi-year contracts (2-3 years), so they wouldn't be around for the duration of your PhD. You should definitely not list one of these people as your POI in a SOP. (Again, I'm speaking about the USA here. I'm aware that the title "lecturer" is used differently in the UK and Australian systems, for example.)

[Hecate]

Thank you very much rising_star, that's all really helpful!

Unfortunately, not all American Studies departments have Graduate Handbooks, and the websites aren't always particularly well-made - I suppose this has to do with the interdisciplinary nature of such programs. Most do have have contact information and urge prospective students to ask any additional questions they may have, so I always have that option if the information I'm looking for isn't on the website.

I did not know that about postdocs and lecturers, I definitely won't list any of them as POI's then.

Thanks again for taking the time to enlighten me on those admittedly rather obvious points.

[rising_star]

The department probably does have some sort of graduate handbook, though it may go by a different name. How else would graduate students know what they are expected to do in order to complete their degree?

[Hecate]

All departments do a program overview and talk about requirements, as far as how many courses I'll need to take, language requirements, and yes, every other thing that students are expected to do in order to complete their degree. But generally not much, if anything at all, is said about choosing advisors on such websites. I feel like they focus a lot on students that are already attending, not much is said about how to actually get there. Grad Café is super helpful for that part though!

I have thoroughly explored the websites of all programs I'm interested in, and some departments do have detailed Graduate Handbooks, but some don't. It's frustrating how little information some schools give... but it's the minority, and like I said there's contact information that I can use if need be so I'll be okay.