PhD Futures Now Podcast Archive
About the Podcast
A project of Humanities Without Walls, PhD Futures Now! was a podcast on career diversity and graduate education in the humanities that was produced 2021–2022.
Episode Archive
Episode 1 | Introduction to Humanities Without Walls and Career Diversity (April 6, 2021)
In this introductory episode, you will meet the Humanities Without Walls (HWW) team and hear their thoughts about graduate education and career training for humanities scholars, and what you can expect to hear on this podcast this season.
Episode 2 | Is Higher Education in the United States in Crisis? (April 27, 2021)
In episode 2, host Maggie Nettesheim Hoffmann talks to Dr. Teresa Mangum (University of Iowa) and Dr. Leonard Cassuto (Fordham University) about the diverse challenges and opportunities facing higher education in the United States today. Our guests discuss whether there is in fact a crisis in higher-ed and outline some possible pathways to reform.
Bonus Episode: A Short History of Higher Education & Universities in the US (May 12, 2021)
In Episode 2, host Maggie Nettesheim Hoffmann talked to Dr. Teresa Mangum (University of Iowa) and Dr. Leonard Cassuto (Fordham University) about the diverse challenges facing higher education in the United States today. During the conversation Dr. Cassuto provided an articulate yet succinct history of the higher education institutions in the US and connections between the present problems in academia and that institutional history. In this short bonus episode (7 mins), we reproduce Dr. Cassuto's remarks in full.
Episode 3 | The New PhD (May 20, 2021)
In this episode, host Maggie Nettesheim Hoffmann talks to Dr. Leonard Cassuto and Dr. Robert Weisbuch about their book The New PhD (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2021) and ways of reforming graduate education in the United States. Len and Bob discuss the role faculty, senior university administrators and other entities within American higher education infrastructure can work toward meaningful actions and reform that can prepare PhD students for careers inside and outside the academy.
Episode 4 | Racial and Social Equity in Higher Education (June 11, 2021)
In episode 4 of PhD Futures Now! Podcast, Dr. Antoinette Burton talks to Lisa Betty (PhD student, Fordham University) and Timothy Emmanuel Brown (incoming Assistant Professor, University of Washington) about issues of racial and social equity (or lack thereof) in higher education. This is the first of our episodes focusing on student experiences and lived reality of graduate students in US universities.
Episode 5 | Career Diversity and Public Humanities (Part I) (July 8, 2021)
In this episode, Dr. Matthew Costello, Senior Historian at the White House Historical Association, shares his post-PhD career in the Public Humanities and advice for PhD and graduate students interested in pursuing careers in public history.
Episode 6 | Career Diversity and Public Humanities (Part II) (July 29, 2021)
In this episode, Dr. Kantara Souffrant, Assistant Professor of Nonwestern/Global Arts History and Visual Culture at Illinois State University and Curator of Community Dialogue at the Milwaukee Art Museum, joins us to discuss her work in the public humanities, and her transition from academia to a career in public art and community engagement.
Episode 7 | Non-Academic Higher Education Careers for PhDs (October 5, 2021)
In this episode, Dr. Derek Attig, Assistant Dean for Career & Professional Development at the University of Illinois, joins PhD Futures Now to discuss their role in graduate career advising and careers in higher ed administration. They also provide valuable resources and advice for PhD students seeking career diversity assistance. Please see the timestamps below for different sections of this episode.
Time Stamps:
- Intro to Derek Attig & his work 02:00
- PhD career diversity conversation 07:40
- Examples of career diversity initiatives through universities 19:15
- Career diversity resources for graduate students 27:34
Episode 8 | Technology Careers for Humanities PhDs (November 8, 2021)
In this episode, Dr. Andrew Keating, Senior Director for Industry and Customer Marketing at Qumulo, joined PhD Futures Now for a conversation about building a career in the tech sector with a humanities PhD.
Episode 9 | Non-Profit Careers for Humanities PhDs (November 30, 2021)
In this Episode, Dawn Opel, J.D., Ph.D., Director of Research & Strategic Initiatives, and General Counsel at Food Bank Council of Michigan joined PhD Futures Now for a conversation about the advantages and challenges of non-profit careers for Humanities PhDs.
Episode 10 | Collaboration and Career Diversity in the Humanities (February 1, 2022)
In this episode, HWW's Assistant Director of Operation and PhD Futures Now co-host Peggy Brennan speaks to Dr. Yan Pang and Dr. Elja Roy about their experience collaborating on Grand Research Challenge grants and how the project has helped shape their careers inside and outside academia.
Episode 11 | Faculty on Graduate Education in the Humanities (March 1, 2022)
In this episode, Associate Professor of Art History at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Catherine Becker, and Marquette University's Harry G. John Professor of History and Director of the Center for Urban Research, Teaching and Outreach, Robert S. Smith, discuss faculty perspectives on humanities and potential for graduate reforms.
Episode 12 | Campus Leaders on Higher Education Reform (April 1, 2022)
In this episode, Dr. Assata Zerai, Vice President for Equity and Inclusion at the University of New Mexico, and Dr. Doug Woods, Dean of the Graduate School at Marquette University, discuss career diversity, interdisciplinary scholarship, and how humanities doctoral training plays a role in the work of higher education administration.