Comparative or American?

[davet73]

So, simple question (which usually never has simple answers)...is the current job market in the US more favorable for comparativists or Americanists? In addition, how is the market for behavioralists regarding voting behavior?

The reason why I am asking is that I am filling out my PhD "statements of purpose" and I really have two research ideas that I am interested in. The first one is looking at American voting behavior, which will primarily, if not exclusively, look at attitudinal data (mostly ANES). The second research interest is looking at political parties in a comparative manner (Europe and North America for now) which will use both attitudinal and aggregate-level data. I don't want to get into the specifics regarding my research ideas, but as you can see, there is quite a bit of difference between the two research proposals. Of course, I want my statements to be extremely focused in one area. And regarding "which one do I enjoy more", they are probably about the same. Also, I do have my MA from McGill, so I already do have some comparative experience. 

So, thoughts? Does the job market favor one over the other, or is it six of one, half-a-dozen of another? Thanks. 

[Rockerika]

You typically have to select two subfields for a PhD, so you could do both (Is this the case where you are going?). American is almost always the safest bet in the US, every school  seems to need 5 sections of Intro to American Government for some reason. The combo of American and any other second field is probably the most career-safe choice. What really matters is whether you are prepared to devote your professional life to  a particular subfield or not. In regard to behaviorism and voter behavior, yes and no. It is the dominant strain of American PSCI right now, so a lot of people are doing it. It is hard to set yourself apart doing that sort of thing anymore. However, it also makes you a safe hire for other behaviorists who don't want someone vastly different joining their department. It's a double edged sword.

Hope that helps.

[PizzaCat93]

Since you're interested in parties, you could viably do both. This is one of the only situations in which one may want to do comparative and American. As for which one you choose as your major and which one as your minor, it probably does not matter much, just a matter of personal preference. Comparative obviously gives you more options down the road in regards to countries/subjects of interest, but as far as the job market, as far as I know, neither of these has a distinct advantage. 

Edited June 9, 2016 by PizzaCat93

[alphazeta]

APSA posts a fair amount of data about this sort of stuff at: http://www.apsanet.org/RESOURCES/Data-on-the-Profession.  You'll want to look under the "Employment Data" tab.  

One of the statistics they collect is the number of students on the market in each subfield and the number of them that get jobs.  Going back as far as the data go (unfortunately, the data pool TT on non-TT jobs together as "academic" jobs)

For the Americanists:

• 2009-2010: 178 on the market of whom 135 placed in "academic" jobs (76.3%)
• 2010-2011: 214 on the market of whom 133 placed in "academic jobs" (62.1%)
• 2011-2012: 210 on the market of whom 127 placed in "academic jobs" (65.5%)
• 2012-2013: 257 on the market of whom 156 placed in "academic" jobs (60.9%)
• 2013-2014: 218 on the market of whom 96 placed in TT jobs (44%) and 45 placed in non-TT academic jobs (20.6%)
• 2014-2015: 265 on the market of whom 93 placed in TT jobs (35.4%) and 69 placed in non-TT academic jobs (26.2%)

For the comparativists:

• 2009-2010: 290 on the market of whom 184 placed in "academic" jobs (63.4%)
• 2010-2011: 341 on the market of whom 219 placed in "academic" jobs (64.2%)
• 2011-2012: 276 on the market of whom 140 placed in "academic" jobs (59.1%)
• 2012-2013: 275 on the market of whom 153 placed in "academic jobs" (55.6%)
• 2013-2014: 239 on the market of whom 64 placed in TT jobs (26.8%) and 45 placed in non-TT academic jobs (18.8%)
• 2014-2015: 286 on the market of whom 97 placed in TT jobs (34.3%) and 44 placed in non-TT academic jobs (15.5%)

Obviously, this is noisy data, but I think the general picture is fairly and corresponds to the take of everyone I know - the job market for Americanists is generally better than the job market for comparativists.  

It's worth noting that region matters a great deal within CP.  People studying China or the Middle East have by far the best prospects.  People studying Europe have, frankly, abysmal prospects.  

That said - you shouldn't really let this influence you too much.  You need to follow your passion - things don't tend to work out for people who select their field of study too "tactically".  If you don't actually love it, you won't succeed.  

[Determinedandnervous]

There are a few things that you may want to think about when making this decision. Obviously, you could study behavior with both the US and Europe. I am a Europeanist though I do quite enjoy American politics as well and wish to incorporate the US as one of my cases somewhere.

The issue that comes in with doing both is that in many cases it is difficult to straddle the line between the two subfields. Professional networks are incredibly different in the two subfields, and you would have to successfully navigate both. If you can successfully do that, it may open tons of doors for you in that you can apply for jobs in both subfields (teaching in both of these subfields can be quite desired at liberal arts schools and regional state schools). However, many departments (especially research universities) want someone who is purely comparative or American. If you're willing to take on that risk, by all means go for it. I would never discourage you, especially considering I hope to navigate these two subfields as well. I do think it is important, though, to make that choice with as much information as possible

There are two strategies that you can use in your SOP to increase your admissions chances and not make your research agenda seem too broad. The first is to advertise yourself as a comparativist who views the US as one of many great cases. The other is to advertise yourself as an Americanist (this is the easiest route by far since there aren't nearly as many applicants in American) and revisit straddling the line once you get admitted.

Also, just to add to @alphazeta's words about the job market, I concur that the market for Europeanists is pretty bad. However, EU studies people do protect their own, and you may be able to have access to some interdisciplinary area studies jobs. In addition, Europe is a far more studied region in universities outside the US. Getting placed at a foreign university is not a bad bet these days, especially considering the grant money they have for social scientists far exceeds that of American universities.

Edited June 12, 2016 by Determinedandnervous