Intro, Statement of Purpose, Methodology, Broader Significance

Yes, that is a horrible title isn't it? Well, so it goes. Must start with what one knows in order to get comfortable with what one doesn't know.

I'm a sociocultural anthropologist and I work on issues of race, class, and the city within the United States. I'm about to get my PhD. (Okay, I use "about" loosely here. ETA for the PhD: 8-16 months.) I want a job that uses my research findings and expertise. I do not want my workplace to be a classroom.

The purpose of this blog is to catalog, comment on, and share information that might be useful to other soon-to-be PhDers who are looking for jobs beyond the college or university classroom. My posts will focus on jobs that use the skills I have (qualitative research, grant writing, analysis, teaching experience, publishing and editing experience) and that make a difference in the world. There are lots of websites out there on this topic. Whatever. Incessant facebook posts and emails are annoying and I don't want to lose the few friends I have. Reading a blog whenever you don't feel like doing what you're supposed to be doing: that's a win-win for everyone.

I will always try to credit where I get my intell--this is both the honest way to disseminate knowledge and the best way to find more information on whatever it is that has struck my fancy. If you subscribe to the same listservs as I do and check the same "career opportunities" websites, then much of this will probably be redundant. Another advantage of the blogformat: the "close tab" button.

The motivation to do this blog is to 1) Organize my job search materials in a better way than just a file full of spreadsheets. 2) Cut down on annoying emails to fellow jobseekers. 3) Most importantly, I wish someone had told me all of this stuff three years ago. Even back when I thought that I could maybe do teaching, it would still have been nice to know what else I should be doing. You know, how to make sure a plan B was actually feasible?

I could go on a rant about how academia does not prepare us for the reality of the job market. Over at Chronicle of Higher Ed, those conversations are going on. I have them plenty enough privately (and not so privately). But I'm really tired of the idea that you are not a good intellectual if you do not work in a university or college setting. I hope to prove to myself, through this blog, that I can hold onto my intellectual identity, and my desire to do-good without having to be in a classroom. I'm also really tired of the hand wringing that the academy has been doing lately over its future. Stop talking about the doomsday and start doing something about it.