The NXX Files is recruiting a graphic mod for our upcoming collaboration with PAX! If you have a creative mind like Mr. von Hagen, we want YOU on our editorial team!
We will be extending graphic mod apps to 12 December 2021, 23:59 (GMT+8)! Remember to submit an application so you can be put on our editorial team to work with Mr. von Hagen!
Our writer and artist apps are now open, please check them out below! A guideline has been provided as well. We can’t wait to see everyone’s submissions!
✨APLICACIONES PARA SHIPPING MOD URGENTES / EMERGENCY SHIPPING MOD APPS✨
(You find the English version after the Spanish text)
¡Hola a todos!
necesitamos vuestra ayuda, ya que tenemos una EMERGENCIA.
Hemos abierto APLICACIONES PARA SHIPPING MOD URGENTES para nuestro zine InoShikaCho Beyond a Bond (Naruto)!
Debido a la ubicación de todo el equipo de moderación y gran parte de nuestros participantes, estamos buscando a un Moderador que este en Europa, idealmente ESPAÑA (debido a las limitaciones de la imprenta con la que inicialmente hemos elegido trabajar).
Sin embargo, si este puesto te interesa, solicitalo incluso si no eres residente en España o en Europa, ya que al final elegiremos a la persona cuyo currículum mejor se adapte al trabajo.
We are opening EMERGENCY SHIPPING MOD APPLICATIONS for our InoShikaCho zine Beyond a Bond (Naruto)!
Due to the location of the entire mod team and a large chunk of our contributors, we are looking for a mod based in Europe, ideally SPAIN (because of the limitations of the printer we initially agreed to work with).
However if this position interests you please apply even if you are not based in Spain or even Europe as in the end we will choose the person best fit for the job!
Contributor Apps for Stray Memories have been EXTENDED to November 12th at midnight EST!
Didn’t manage to submit an application? You’re in luck! We’re still looking for Page Artists, Writers, and Merch Artists for our zine! Check out our requirements before applying!
Contributors must be over the age of 18, as this work will be rated M/18+. If your work is decidedly more ~spicy~ in nature, there will be a NSFW addendum just for you!
Just a note: if you have plans to apply for multiple media (artist, author, or merch designer) you MUST fill out an application for each!
Bring your best work! Your A game! The team is so excited to see what you’ve got!
Come aboard and join our crew! ‘Feast’ is a One Piece food fanzine celebrating the various cuisines of the One Piece universe and the memories created throughout their journey! We traveled the Grand line within Feast Volume 1, and now with our second volume, we plan to explore the New World!
We’re recruiting for 7 different roles: page artists, merch artists, writers, chefs, graphic designers, coordinators and specialists.
Read our guidelines for more details about each role!
It’s Flick. I’m here to announce that we’re recruiting page artists and writers for the zine. Usually, I take commissions myself but the lack of bugs in this project just didn’t sit right with me—you know?
If you don’t mind, you should think about taking on a contributor role. The application forms are below and will close on 21 August, 23:59 (EST).
*Remember to remove the brackets in the links when you copy+paste into your browser.
For information on the job scope for contributors, please refer to our FAQ page. The zine schedule is also available here. If you have any questions, please refer to our FAQ page first. If your answer is not found there, feel free to send us an ask! We will update our FAQ page regularly.
Anyway, uh, if you’re interested in being a contributor, you should definitely apply! Follow your passions! … or something like that.
For more updates, check us out @acscrapbookzine on Tumblr, Twitter and Carrd.
Also, Tom Nook says he’s preparing a special discount code for the full zine bundle for people who subscribe forour brand new Nook Mail newsletter by August 1, 23:59 (EST). Subscribe using the link in our bio—Tom Nook says he’ll send the secret code when pre-orders roll around.
Wishing you all the luck of a ladybug…
I’m bugging off! (and if you want to commission some of my art, let me know…)
A FREE, non selective digital zine focused on creating pieces around the theme “job”. Join the project by filling this form: https://forms.gle/aosDsoaE4JhqfgLh9
[ID. An edited graphic featuring the actor Luca Marinelli smiling and wearing a shirt that reads: “Pen Paper Peace,” though the words are cut off within the circular frame. Above the frame are the words “mods - content creators” in gradient font, and to the right a gradient font that reads “Applications.” The background is blue hues of watercolor splashes, and a vector of blue torn paper. END ID.]
Update 2. May. 2022:even though our Google forms are closed for applications we are excited to share that with mutliple mods helping, we are open to applications throughout the summer - so if potentially still interested in contributing, please don’t hesitate to DM us and we will be checking this blog on a weekly basis through August before final checkins in September.
Mods
We understand that it is more than likely that mods will be doubling up on some of these, but many hands make light work :)
Social Media Mod
Helps with social media, posts and Q&A
Point of contact person between platforms
Handles any follow-up emails to artist submissions/questions
Updates and keep tracks of content creators’ applications/contacts/assignments
Graphic Design Mod
General graphics for the social media platforms
Content creator promo graphics
Product mock-ups for the kickstarter
Zine cover and interior format
File check for print
Finance Mod
Helps coordinate the web hosting site for the digital platform
Sets up the paypal account for funds
Processes orders on things made
Provides quotes on printing/merch costs for potential bundles
Provides receipts for the final donation
Formatting Mod
Works with the graphic, finance and shipping mod for zine specs
Determines readable fonts and text formatting
Formats art and writing submissions into booklet
Coordinates with the graphic mod to maintain overall aesthetic
Shipping Mod
Coordinates with finance and formatting mod to create the zine specs
Handles the physical copies and merch bundles, and labels and ships the packages
Manages and observes any tracking for shipments
Beta Mod
Goes through submissions to ensure basic spelling/grammar and give constructive feedback if needed
Manages all submission links to hand over to the other mods for the zine production
But the highlights include, though are not limited to:
Asking for basic information
How you would like to contribute to the zine
If you would like to work independently, or collaborate
Additional optional questions
Top three Luca characters
In order to provide a variety, we will be going through applications and potentially asking content creators to make something for their second or third option of characters listed. Though every effort will be made to allow first choice - if there is a large number of first choices for one character we will go by first come, first serve and cap it at a specific number dependent on the amount of applications.
Doing a Ph.D. is a really scary thought. Especially in humanities and social sciences. Especially in today’s job market.
Here I’m going to speak a little about my approach to Ph.D. applications, why I chose to do what I did, and how I put it all together including examples.
1. The Doubt
After coming out of my Master’s degree, I already had a year of research set up, so I didn’t have to think about jobs like all of my friends I had made during that degree. I watched many of them struggle to find a job offer. Some were successful in attaining a job in Cultural Resource Management, a couple got smaller jobs in local museums, but for the most part it induced a lot of stress to have come out of a Master’s degree with no prospects.
How I imagined my future at that time: I knew I didn’t want to work in a museum, I knew I didn’t like Cultural Resource Management, I knew that after all this hard work I didn’t want to end up underpaid somewhere doing data entry.
A Ph.D. has always been something that I wanted. Ever since entering the Anthropology discipline, I imagined myself working towards becoming a Professor.
Here’s what I was told when I started to consider a Ph.D. Program:
“Don’t do it” (said by someone who already had her Ph.D.)
“I wish I had gone into something with more money, even after my Ph.D. its been difficult to find stable work”
“If you’re doing a Ph.D. in social sciences, ONLY go if you are fully funded, otherwise it is not worth the financial debt”
“Most people don’t get in their first try, that’s why people apply to 10+ schools”
Coming up with a plan: After hearing this, I came up with a couple different options. Plan A: Apply to Ph.D. programs, if I get into one my first try and it’s fully funded then I’ll do it. Plan B: Find a job in Environmental consulting, I could put my GIS experience to use, make some money, and then try again for a Ph.D. later down the road if I wanted. Plan C: Move to Japan and live out my weeb dreams (I’m part Japanese and have a lot of family there so this wasn’t as crazy as it sounds).
I was genuinely okay with any of these options. They all involve things that I enjoy, none of them are bad options, none of them would feel like “failure” if I ended up not getting into a program. I think this step is very important because it forces you to figure out what you care about, and allows you to be open to change if plan A doesn’t work out.
2. Choosing a Program to Apply to
I knew that I didn’t just want to apply anywhere. Getting a job outside of a PhD is already hard enough, and I wanted the school that I chose to reflect the work that I would put into it. As much as we want to think that name brands don’t matter when it comes to education, it sure as heck does help when it comes to opportunity and being selected amongst 100′s to 1000′s of applicants. Therefore, why not shoot for the stars? What’s the harm in trying. For this reason, I decided to only apply to schools that:
Had a prestigious name
Had a program that supported what I wanted to study and allowed for cross-disciplinary research (Digital Archaeology focused on SE Asia)
Had an advisor that had done research paralleled to mine (whether that included SE Asia or just Digital Archaeology in general).
I started research into programs with the Ivies and went down from there, also cross-comparing programs that had been ranked as best schools for studying Anthropology.
At the time of researching, the programs that stood out the most to me were:
Stanford (ideal because it was close-ish to home, fully funds their Phd students for 5 years, has opportunity for additional funding, had professor working with digital archaeology in Asia)
Harvard (had professor working in Digital Archaeology though it wasn’t in my preferred region, also has good funding, and its Harvard)
U Chicago (traditionally one of the top schools for Anthropology, however I had heard that a lot of this is because of “legacy” professors, and not much has come out of the department in recent years. Did not have someone specifically in my region of focus)
ASU (Also considered one of the top Anthropology schools, but funding is often fought for between students)
UC Berkeley (Had professors studying Asia, but it is a public school and also has limited guaranteed funding)
I sent e-mails to advisors that I thought I could support my research (this was probably around May, when applications are due Sep-Dec).
Hello Professor______,
My name is _______ and I am interested in applying to ________’s Doctoral program in Archaeology beginning in the fall of 2020. I would like to inquire whether you are accepting graduate students for this period, as my research interests align well with your research. I received my B.A. in __________ from _________ in 2017 and am currently _______. [Enter what you’re doing now, and any relevant experience that shows what you’re interested in researching]. [Enter something about their research, and why you’re interested in working with them/why you think you would work well with them]. I am eager to continue along this path and I feel as though your experience with _______could provide an interesting opportunity for future research. I would also be interested in working with [enter any other faculty that have similar interests, this shows that you’ve done some research into the program and the school in general] For your convenience, I have attached my CV here. If you have the time, I would appreciate the opportunity to speak with you further about the program and future research.
Best,
Full name
I also researched the financial aid provided to incoming Ph.D. students. After doing this, the only schools that sounded good to me were Stanford and Harvard.
Yeah, I know, only applying to Stanford and Harvard was a “big risk,” but this is how I thought about it:
I don’t want to commit to a Phd program for 5+ years if it’s not fully funded, doesn’t have a big name, and isn’t going to guarantee opportunity after graduating.
I wanted an environment where I knew I could be happy under immense amounts of pressure (California by family, Boston by friends).
If I didn’t get in, I had back up options that honestly sounded really fun to me, so I was okay with pursuing those instead.
I didn’t want a Ph.D. just to have a Ph.D., I wanted a degree that would set me apart from others so that I could give myself the best chance for success afterward. I wanted one that, if pursued, could lead me to become a professor.
So I applied to 2 Schools.
I got scolded for this by many people… but whatever…I got in, so ha. Why spend money and time on an application for a school that you don’t really want to go to? :P
3. Applying to a Program
What an application looks like:
1. At least 3 recommendation letters:
Mine were:
Undergraduate Anthropology Advisor who has been helping me throughout the years with grant applications, etc. She knows me well, can speak well to my accomplishments. She is also a very well decorated anthropologist.
Undergraduate Professor of Geography who can speak to my GIS coursework. I’ve been updating him with my whereabouts and successes since graduating, so we have kept in touch regularly since taking his course.
My Master’s dissertation advisor (he stressed me out submitting his letter 3 hours before the deadline >:| )
It’s good to have your recommendation letters come from people within the academic world. These people can write on your ability to achieve your research goals, your drive, etc. It’s okay to have maybe one letter from a workplace environment, however, it’s best to get as much street cred as you can from these letters, and this comes from Professors that know what they’re doing.
2. Curriculum Vitae (C.V.): This is important because it shows everything you’ve accomplished up to this point. This is how mine was set up:
Full Name, Current Position, Email, Phone Number
Education: University Name, City, Degree in ____
Publications: In Edited Volumes, Journal Articles, Manuscripts in Preparation
Conference and Workshop Participation: Papers, Presentations
Grants, Awards, and Fellowships:
Research Experience: Project Roles, Fieldwork
Teaching Experience
Additional Employment History
Leadership and Extracurriculars
Skills/Languages
A C.V. is a list of EVERYTHING you’ve done in your career, unlike a resume which is tailored to the specific job that you’re applying to. If you’d like a specific example, send me a DM.
3. Personal Statement: This is where you tell them why you want to be there and what makes you qualified. Why should they consider you?
Personal Statement Example
1st paragraph, introduce the program and your research interests: I am applying to _____ for admission to the Ph.D. program in Anthropology with a focus in Archaeology. My research interests are to explore [the consequences of ….. on the environment and human responses to environmental change] in [region of the world], and how these actions of the past can be visualized through the use of remote sensing and GIS applications to archaeology.
2nd paragraph, why you’re interested in what you’re doing: I learned the value of digital applications in archaeology through my undergraduate and master’s degree. [Digital archaeology] is appealing to me because [………]. I first became interested in [example of why you’re interested in the topic/what inspires you]. After witnessing this, I began to seek out opportunities to partake in similar research.
3rd and 4th paragraph, what makes you qualified to pursue this degree?: I have many research experiences that qualify my pursuit of a Ph.D. dedicated to using digital methods in Anthropological research. [Talk about your undergrad experience, do some name-dropping of professors you’ve worked with], [why did these experiences inspire you to take the next step?], [how are you where you are now because of them?]
5th paragraph, what are you doing now?
6th paragraph, why this school in particular?: This is where you name drop the professor you are interested in working with, talk about how their research aligns well with yours by mentioning specific things that they’ve done such as theoretical approaches. What are you interested in doing that would fit well within this program? Are there any facilities on campus that you are particularly eager to work with? Show that you’ve done your research.
7th paragraph, what do you plan to do after you get your Ph.D. from this institution?: With goals of continuing archaeological research in ________ and expanding off the networks that I have established in _______, ________’s doctoral program in Anthropology is the ideal match to further my career as a Digital/Landscape Archaeologist. The Ph.D. in Anthropology at _______ allows for _________[reasons why you like the program]. Ultimately, my postgraduate goals are to remain in academia by continuing research and gaining a university faculty position. My foundation in archaeology gained in my undergraduate, graduate, and ______experiences have equipped me with a unique set of abilities to offer to ______’s Anthropology graduate program, and I look forward to the opportunity to exchange ideas with faculty and students alike.
Have your resume and statement looked over by as many eyes as you possibly can. It took me a good 6-10 revisions before settling on something that I liked.
4.Let the professors that you’ve been in contact with know
This puts you at the front of their minds when application review comes around. They’ll be like “oh yeah, this person messaged me about this.”
I hadn’t spoken to the professors that I reached out to since those first few exchanges back in May, so sending this message was very valuable to remind them of my existence.
This email can be as simple as: Hi Professor ____, I hope you have been well since we last spoke. I am writing to inform you that I have submitted my application to _______. Since our last chat I’ve been [whatever you’re up to now that’s relevant]. I look forward to hearing from _____ soon. Best, Me.
5. Productive Waiting
Yay, you’ve submitted! That was hard, but you made it through. Time to start diving into those other plans you’ve been thinking about. What will you do if you get into your top school? What will you do if you don’t get into your top, but you do get into your 2nd or 3rd choice? What if you don’t get into any of them?
Remember that none of these options are bad, and in this world, you have to be open to change and welcome it. A Ph.D. is a really long commitment, and it doesn’t have to happen right away.
If you get in, accept only if:
It has the research you’re looking for
It has an advisor that’s supportive of what you’re doing
It’s transparent about what it offers its students
The current students are happy with the culture of the program and quality of life
The location is something you’re comfortable with (for me having family nearby was a very important factor)
The money you are offered is enough to live the lifestyle you need to maintain good mental health
There is an opportunity for networking and expansion of your research outside of the university
As always, feel free to reach out with any questions at @aal.archaeology on Instagram or DM here! I’m happy to share my documents with you.
I have revived my Tumblr to find many messages asking “what do I do next” when it comes to Archaeology/Anthropology. So I thought I’d create a post explaining what I went through to get to where I am now, and hopefully give some information to those who are pondering on the next steps to take in this truly wonderful field of study.
Quick academic about me:
Undergrad: Ivy League, Major: Anthropology-Geography, Minor: Religion
After Undergrad: 1 year of Cultural Resource Management (CRM) & Substitute teaching
Graduate School: England MSc in Archaeological Information Systems
After Graduate: 10-month long research grant in Cambodia
Now: (USA) Ph.D. Candidate in Anthropology, Archaeology Track
I come from a low-middle class family, all of my academics have been funded through financial aid or through grants that I’ve applied for. A lot of the time school and research can get expensive, but that doesn’t mean you have to be wealthy to pursue it!
Per usual, please feel free to DM me at any point with questions (here or IG @ aal.archaeology), I’m always happy to help to the best of my ability. Success in this field is really dependent on networking!
I’ll set this up based on the various landmarks of my academic career:
1. Undergrad
Themes: Ask for help, build your resume, write down everything
No matter where you are going to school, it is so so so important to use the resources around you. Becoming a professor is HARD work, and each one of your professors went through a lot to be able to stand in front of you and teach you. They’ve likely had years and years of research experience, which is probably still happening behind the scenes of teaching and grading papers. More often than not, professors want to help you, they want students to be excited about the research they’ve worked so hard on, and they want to do what they can to help you achieve your career goals.
Therefore, if there’s a class you’ve taken or a professor whose research you’re interested in, tell them. This is how I got my first experience with archaeology (before I even knew that I wanted to do archaeology). I randomly took an Anthropology class that sounded cool, and after the first class, I was like WOW I love this topic so much and I really want to know more about it. I went up to the professor that was teaching it, told her I was really interested and asked if she knew of any research opportunities available. She then hired me as a student researcher in her lab to do data entry for one of her archaeological projects in Mesoamerica, and after working for her for a few months, she asked me if I wanted to go with her and her team to Mexico for fieldwork.
(my timeline at this point: 19 years old, end of Sophomore year)
From this experience, I learned how to apply to grants within the University and funding outside of the University, and was able to FULLY fund my research experience in Mexico. During this fieldwork, I got to work with 3000-year-old artifacts, do archaeoillustration, and eventually got my own chapter published in the book that my professor wrote about the research that was done.
After I got back from Mexico, I started exploring archaeology further. A new professor entered the department who specialized in “digital archaeology,” and his research involved tracking looting patters in Syria using satellite imagery. I thought this was crazy so I then went up to him and asked if I could help him with his research. (the common theme throughout this entire process is just asking for help). From this experience, I learned that I loved the possibilities that technology brought to the study of archaeology, everything from 3D modeling to identification of sites in satellite imagery to spatial mapping in GIS. With this professor, I was able to form an “internship” with him, and continued doing that and other minor projects within the department. I ended up modifying my major to incorporate coursework from the Geography department and created my own “Digital Archaeology” major.
(my timeline at this point: 22 years old, Senior year)
As graduation began to creep closer, I had been able to get a good amount of lines on my resume. I had:
research assistant/ data entry
fieldwork in mesoamerica
x2 internships with digital archaeology prof
multiple “small” projects around the department i.e. making posters, painting 3D prints of bones,
all of the coursework I had done on GIS/ relevant digital experience
started a drone club at my school (it flopped, but it still counts as a line on the resume!)
All of these lines became useful when starting to think of jobs and the “next step”
UNDERGRAD HIGHLIGHTS & TAKEAWAYS:
Ask for help, your professors are there for a reason, it will almost always lead you to new opportunities. These relationships last well beyond your graduation and definitely come in handy later, make it count!
Write down EVERYTHING that you do. Did you help out with a conference? Write it down. Did you do a couple hours of data entry? Write it down.
Follow your leads! I started my anth journey in Mesoamerica and ended my undergrad in Near Easter digital archaeology (and I entered college wanting to do astronomy?). Change is natural, let it happen.
2. Gap Year Between Undergrad and Grad School
Highlights: Job applications, field school, CRM, uncertainty
Something that I was always told during my undergrad was that you really need to do a field school and some CRM to be taken seriously post-grad. This shows that you actually want to be an archaeologist outside of the classroom environment. Field Schools and CRM give you valuable experience such as: excavation methodology, report writing, grant applications, teamwork, leadership, etc.
I started applying for jobs probably about 5 months before I graduated and ended up securing a job at a CRM company in LA. They liked how much I had done during my undergrad, but they really wanted me to have a field school under my belt before I started working for them. Because I had already graduated and didn’t need course credit, I was able to do my field school at a discounted price (these things really do get expensive, and this was a difference of about $2k). I think this worked out in my favor waiting until the summer after I graduated because it saved me a lot of money in the end.
After my field school was done, I started work that September inCRM. This job ended up being nothing like what I thought it would be, to be honest. I was an Archaeological Field Technician that was part-time/on-call, meaning I only got work when they needed someone to go monitor a construction site. I only got work once every month, sometimes every couple of months, so I was making hardly any money. I realized this quickly and decided to become a substitute teacher to supplement the CRM job. I HIGHLY recommend doing this if you end up in the same situation. Not only does subbing fill up all of your non-working days, but it also gives you the flexibility to choose when you can work and gives you teaching experience that you can put on your resume. That CRM experience can be really important, so it’s good to stick it out long enough to quit.
Why didn’t I like CRM? For me, my job was very sparse, included driving long hours to a construction site, sitting there all day in case archaeological material popped up, and then driving home. Sometimes it was just walking back and forth across a massive field full of cow poop looking for arrowheads, and often it felt like I was just clearing land so that a big building could be erected. I was really missing the research component to all of it. The pay was also not great.
GAP YEAR HIGHLIGHTS AND TAKEAWAYS:
What I got from this year was very valuable, even though it wasn’t necessarily that fun, however.
I got the experience I needed in CRM
I got some teaching experience (also volunteered to mentor clubs and research at local high schools during this time)
I started doing some networking (I found some alumni that were doing work that I wanted to be doing and reached out to them)
and most importantly, I realized that I really do love school and wanted to go back for my Masters
So I started looking into Masters’s programs. This is kind of a scary thing especially in the US because school is expensive. I still really wanted to do Digital Archaeology, and I couldn’t find a single program in the US had a focus in this topic, and especially couldn’t find one that I was willing to pay for.
The UK, however, had plenty of Digital Archaeology programs, and the programs were only a year long and a fraction of the price in the US. I decided to take a chance and apply, got in, and then suddenly I was moving to England. (in hindsight I really didn’t spend much time at all making this decision, but it worked out in the end).
3. Masters Program
(my timeline at this point: 23-24 years old)
I chose the program I applied to based on its focus on the techniques that I wanted to use, namely, remote sensing, GIS, and 3D modeling. I really wanted a degree qualification that spoke for itself, and therefore applied for an MSc in “Archaeological Information Systems.”
I had done some networking during my gap year and connected with an alumnus who was doing research in Cambodia using digital methods, and she offered me the opportunity to join her fieldwork. I agreed to join her in Cambodia during my degree, and also applied for a research grant for the year following my master’s degree to continue fieldwork in Cambodia.
I used this opportunity to fuel my dissertation topic and focused all of my writing and coursework throughout my grad school experience around Cambodia. While I was surrounded by people studying Roman architecture and Medieval Studies, I spent my time doing independent work and building a network in Cambodia.
This program was a great experience for the most part, I was surrounded by beautiful medieval architecture and had a great community throughout. I personally didn’t really like the UK school system compared to what I had received in the US, however. This was largely because of the way coursework was set up. (If you want to know more just DM me).
MASTERS HIGHLIGHTS AND TAKEAWAYS:
Follow networking opportunities, and find someone doing what you want to do (or close to it) and let them help you take the steps to get there
If you’re going to do grad school, do it in something you know you love. Don’t waste money on a program that isn’t right for you.
Make sure that the program you apply to allows for flexibility so that you can do research on what YOU want, not what THEY want.
Halfway through my Master’s degree, I received word that I had been accepted for the research grant (Fulbright) and would spend the next year living in Cambodia doing independent research.
4. Gap Year Between Masters Program and PhD
If you’re planning on a Ph.D., I think its a really good idea to do something before applying that relates to what you want to be studying. This shows that you’re dedicated to your research and to a life in academia, and have the ability to produce something from your work.
My master’s degree was nice because 1) it was short, only a year-long, and 2) allowed me to focus research on what I was interested in. This gave me the experience I needed to lead into a year of independent research.
This year of independent research was definitely contingent on receiving the grant in the first place, and I think that I would have started job searching again had I not received it. However, the small things I did leading up to applying for it really helped in qualifying me to receive it.
I had:
All of the undergraduate research experience
CRM experience
teaching experience
fieldwork experience
a master’s degree that focused on the region
established a network of people in the country beforehand
a couple “publications” from fieldwork
This grant fully funds me living in Cambodia, and has allowed me to participate in cultural exchange with some amazing people here in addition to allowing me to partake in archaeological fieldwork across the country.
Again, I cannot stress enough how important it is to network. If you like something, find someone else who likes the same thing, send them an email.
Networking got me my experience in Mesoamerica, Digital Archaeology, my CRM job, my research experience in Cambodia, and so so much more. All because I sent that first email.
5. PhD Applications
I applied to 1 school. I got in. Its a really good school. I’m still in shock.
However, I think I really did set myself up for success in this one.
The biggest advice I can give in the world of Academia is:
NETWORK
Talking to people who have gone through what you’re going through are the BEST help. They can mentor you through these experiences, offer you new opportunities, or lead you in the direction of someone else who can help.
PLAN AHEAD (but be open to change)
Okay, so you’re applying to grad school. What do you want to focus on while you’re there? What do you want to do with the degree when you’re done? Do you want to start working? Do you want to do more research? What opportunities are out there for research funding? What is the job market looking for? Is there anyone in my network that can help me get there?
None of these have to be concrete plans, they just have to exist in some shape or form so that you have the ability to latch on to one when the opportunity arises.
If you’re doing something that you love doing, you’ll find a way to make it happen. All opportunity comes from the amount of effort you put into getting it!
Thanks for reading and best of luck on your studies!
I’m interested in knowing what you guys are up to!!
As I enter the final term of my masters degree and begin writing my dissertation, I’m also starting to think about what my life will look like in the next couple years after graduation, and what/where I want to start planning and applying to for future experiences. Would love to hear about what you guys are up to, whether that’s in the realm of anthro/archaeology or something completely different!
Share with me your stress, accomplishments, uncertainties, and plans! Take this time to brag about what you’ve been doing, because we all deserve to feel good about our accomplishments!
Feel free to share, comment, or dm!
<3
What I’ve been up to lately:
I’m in the last term of classes for my MSc in Archaeological Information Systems, will start writing my dissertation very soon/have done a bit of research for it. Currently waiting on news from Fulbright about doing research in Cambodia for the 2019-2020 year on the site that I’m currently researching. Will be co-directing a project in Cambodia this Spring. Planning on doing a Phd, will depend on how the Fulbright turns out/ where that leads. Currently learning Japanese in hopes of living in Japan for a couple years in the future. Would love to make this relevant to what I’m doing in Digital Archaeology if I can.
