[Air-L] Reminder: It's time to encourage students to consider Ph.D. programs (and: consider ours!)
Christian Sandvig
csandvig at umich.edu
Fri Nov 5 09:53:59 PDT 2021
Thanks Paula, absolutely! I meant for you to take my list and modify it
for your institution. The selfish reality is that I am also trying to
recruit applicants to my particular PhD programs with this list, so it
describes my program. But feel free to steal the text and modify as
necessary! Best, Christian
On Fri, Nov 5, 2021 at 11:53 AM Paula Todd <paulatoddmedia at gmail.com> wrote:
> Yes ... but a quick addition ... some universities do offer PhDs on a
> *part-time* basis, not just to full-time students. That might be worth
> adding as people in challenging circumstances (caregivers, and those with
> intersectional, physical, and income challenges) often work more than one
> job and/or have demands that put the luxury and joy of studying full-time
> out of reach. This is a painful reality for many, but as you so inspiringly
> point out, there are ways to get the education you deserve!
>
> PJ
>
> On Fri, Nov 5, 2021 at 10:17 AM Mark Chen <markchen at u.washington.edu>
> wrote:
>
>> Hi Christian,
>>
>> Thank you for writing and including that list faq. It's soooo useful
>> and does a great job of making the whole thing less opaque!
>>
>> mark
>>
>> On Fri, Nov 5, 2021 at 5:17 AM Christian Sandvig <csandvig at umich.edu>
>> wrote:
>>
>> > Dear AoIR colleagues,
>> >
>> > I sent this email out at about this time last year and I received some
>> > positive feedback from it so I thought I would send it again this year.
>> I
>> > decided to go to grad school when one of my profs suggested it. At that
>> > time I was not very clear about what a PhD was. That conversation
>> changed
>> > my life. If you are a professor I'm writing to ask you to consider
>> having
>> > this conversation with your promising students right now. If you are a
>> > student, maybe there is no prof like that who can have this conversation
>> > with you, so please feel free imagine that I'm having it with you.
>> >
>> > We are recruiting in my PhD program (
>> > https://lab.csandvig.people.si.umich.edu/join/). One of the challenges
>> for
>> > prospective Ph.D. students, especially those from groups that are
>> > underrepresented in doctoral education, is simply that it is hard to
>> figure
>> > out how Ph.D. programs work in plain language. Here's how our Ph.D.
>> program
>> > works -- many US institutions work the same way:
>> >
>> > - The deadline is usually December 1 every year.
>> > - The GRE exam isn’t required.
>> > - If the application fee (US$70-90) is a barrier to your
>> application, we
>> > will waive the fee. Write to the relevant graduate program’s email
>> > address
>> > for help with this.
>> > - The Ph.D. is full-time. Part-time degrees are not possible.
>> > - The Ph.D. takes about 4 years to complete. Usually the first 2
>> years
>> > involve mostly coursework, the last 2 years involve mostly research.
>> > - You do not have to pay tuition to get a Ph.D. Successful applicants
>> > are paid for 4 years as apprentice teachers and researchers. During
>> this
>> > time you make about US$23,000 per year for about 8 months of work.
>> > Summer
>> > funding is also possible. You receive health, life, and dental
>> > insurance.
>> > - You do not need to be a US Citizen to be admitted. International
>> > students are common. You do not need to be a US Citizen to have your
>> > tuition paid and receive the money described just above.
>> > - You don’t need a master’s degree to apply, but it may help you
>> stand
>> > out from other applicants.
>> > - You do need a bachelor’s degree to apply, but it does not have to
>> be
>> > in a particular field. You can apply with any bachelor’s degree if
>> you
>> > make
>> > the case that you have some relevant background or experience.
>> > - Ph.D. students are adults. It is completely OK to return to school
>> for
>> > the Ph.D. after working.
>> > - There is additional funding for students whose admission will
>> reduce
>> > disparities in graduate education. You do not need to apply
>> separately
>> > for
>> > this funding, but you must mention the relevant circumstances in your
>> > application, for instance in your personal statement. As one example,
>> > additional resources may be available if you are a US citizen, green
>> > card
>> > holder, or DACA and you:
>> > - have an educational, cultural, or geographic background that is
>> > underrepresented
>> > - have demonstrated a commitment to diversity
>> > - have experienced financial hardship
>> > - are the first in your family to graduate from a four-year
>> college
>> > - are the first in your family to be a US Citizen
>> > - It’s OK if you don’t e-mail your prospective advisor(s) in
>> advance, or
>> > if you do e-mail them and they don’t respond. Your application will
>> > still
>> > be considered seriously. A lot of profs don’t answer these e-mails
>> > because
>> > they receive so many, or they only reach out only to admitted Ph.D.
>> > students not prospective ones.
>> >
>> >
>> > Some additional details that only apply to our lab group: It's a little
>> > personally embarrassing, but in order to improve our outreach to
>> > prospective students I've been experimenting with video. My video is a
>> > little bit like a late-night TV ad for a used-car lot, except I'm
>> > advertising getting a PhD in Information OR Communication & Media with
>> my
>> > lab group: https://lab.csandvig.people.si.umich.edu/join/
>> >
>> > Infra.Lab is a multi-disciplinary research group at the University of
>> > Michigan dedicated to “just” technology (as in justice) at the ESC
>> Center.
>> > We investigate the intermingled social and technical aspects of
>> computing
>> > and digital media technologies and their implications for society. Our
>> > approaches include human-computer interaction; science and technology
>> > studies; policy research on politics, laws, and institutions; design;
>> > software development; artistic practice; and more. Our recent work has
>> > focused on racial and gender discrimination by algorithmic systems,
>> > negative consequences of targeted advertising, inequality and social
>> media
>> > use, and the future of technology policy. We are recruiting prospective
>> > Ph.D. students with interests in tech and human rights, civil rights,
>> > social justice, racial justice, and inequality.
>> >
>> > We are building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community. We
>> > particularly want applications from people who are interested in
>> addressing
>> > the perspectives or needs of groups that have been historically
>> underserved
>> > by academic research, computing, and digital media.
>> >
>> > Please feel free to forward this email or steal text from it for your
>> own
>> > purposes.
>> >
>> > Sincerely,
>> > Christian
>> >
>> > --
>> > Christian Sandvig
>> > Director, Center for Ethics, Society, and Computing (ESC)
>> > H. Marshall McLuhan Collegiate Professor
>> > Information, Communication & Media
>> > University of Michigan
>> > http://esc.umich.edu/ -- http://umich.edu/~csandvig/
>> > _______________________________________________
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>> > http://www.aoir.org/
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> You see before you *Mark Chen, PhD*.
>> Above his head appears a label that changes every time you look at it
>> between "*Hoodie-Wearing Games Scholar Thug*," "*PT Lecturer at UW
>> Bothell*," and
>> "*A very happy young girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful
>> future.*
>> "
>> Do you send him a tweet (*@mcdanger* <http://twitter.com/mcdanger>),
>> check
>> out his website (*markdangerchen.net* <http://markdangerchen.net/>), or
>> respond to this email?
>> His desk and surroundings are on fire as he smiles and says, "*everything
>> is fine*."
>> _______________________________________________
>> The Air-L at listserv.aoir.org mailing list
>> is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org
>> Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at:
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>> Join the Association of Internet Researchers:
>> http://www.aoir.org/
>
>
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