Art History Graduate Student Susanna Reynolds
My IE Pre-Grad intern informed me that half of the students in her undergraduate Art History Methods course wanted to continue on to graduate school to study Art History. Yet, none of the undergrads knew what a typical graduate class would be like or what life would look like as a graduate student. Therefore, the first aspect of this internship involved my sharing with my undergrad the real day-to-day realities of graduate study. We discussed courses, advisers, and workload and she accompanied to a graduate seminar. We also discussed the admissions process.
However, my undergrad decided not to pursue graduate school immediately, but instead to try to work in New York City in the art world first. Fortunately, I was able to help in this regard as well, as I myself took several years off to work in New York. Therefore, we shifted our discussions to cover practical matters like searching for a job and the professional options available in the art world. I was pleased to be able to add this practical, professional advice to what began as an academic endeavor.
Being a mentor caused me to reflect on the value of graduate study in relation to the working world and to recall some very important tips about job searching--something I will be engaging in quite soon!