Starting Up
3 July 2008 by jafitz
So…
Starting things can be difficult. I know I usually have trouble knowing just where to begin. That goes for this blog as well.
We’re supposed to track the research process as we go along, unfortunately I’m already rather far in. So, I’m going to have to make some stuff up, because I don’t quite remember just what I did, or how I got certain ideas.
My mom hassled me a bit after freshman year; she told me I wasn’t doing enough at school besides classes and that I’d better find something else to spend time on than hanging out with friends. She was right , as I told her repeatedly in order to get her off the phone, and I’d had the idea to see if there were any internships available in anthropology, since I already knew that’s what I wanted to major in. I also knew that I wanted to be an archaeologist, and that made things easy. There are four archaeologists in the anthropology department, not counting those who work for CW and teach some classes. I went to the one who’d taught my Intro to Archaeology class and asked 1. would he be my adviser 2. did he have any idea where I could do an internship that semester.
Luckily, the answer to both was ‘yes.’
It’s a good idea when looking for an adviser not just to make sure the professor works with what you’re interested in but also that s/he is someone you get along with. If you get along with your advisor you can pop in to ask questions on everything from what classes to take, to finding internships or grad schools. Thankfully mine has the patience to put up with all three subjects and more. Your advisor is also normally the source of research, whether they have their own projects going or know someone working on something you’d be interested in. Of course people also seek out research separately if they have other interests, but that can be a lot more work.
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for sharing your experiences in selecting your adviser. I’m curious–what’s the part of archaeology that nobody likes?
Jenn, I like your point about finding an advisor that you mesh well with- that is very important!
Great advice about choosing an advisor, Jen. Personalities can be really important when you’re working so closely for a year. Keep it up!
The part of archaeology that no one likes is the write up. Archaeologists are infamous for not writing up their excavations because they love the process of discovery and hate having to get all their information in one place and in a form that other people can understand.