Info Favorites Register Log in
myArmoury.com Discussion Forums

Forum index Memberlist Usergroups Spotlight Topics Search
Forum Index > Off-topic Talk > Looking for some advice. Reply to topic
This is a standard topic  
Author Message
Josh Maxwell




Location: Michigan
Joined: 01 Jul 2009
Likes: 1 page

Posts: 55

PostPosted: Tue 16 Apr, 2013 8:43 pm    Post subject: Looking for some advice.         Reply with quote

Hello all,

My name is Josh Maxwell, and I am currently a student enrolled at Southern Illinois University of Carbondale. I am in the process of finishing my senior thesis for a Bachelor of Arts in Art History, the topic of my thesis is the analysis of a sword in our museum archives that we had little information on.

In the process of researching this sword, a paluoar from Afghanistan, I had to delve into the history of this sword type in order to piece together how this particular form came about as well as looking into possible relations that the paluoar type might have to swords of surrounding regions (talwar, shamshir, khanda, saif, etc), a process which I enjoyed very much.

I have had a love of arms and armor since I was little, informally conducting research since I was able to look at images and read about them. My curiosity of them led me to study metalsmithing here at school before I found that I like researching arms just as much as I like working with the materials and techniques surrounding them.

Now that my undergraduate studies are coming to a close I must make a decision concerning graduate school. I have a strong background in art history and am familiar with the field. However, I also have backgrounds in cultural anthropology, some archaeology, and museum studies including a basic introduction to conservation.

My dilemma comes down to deciding what field I want to focus in on for a master's and possibly a doctorate. I know I wish to continue studying arms and armour, and I feel sticking with art history might be the best option for a career based in research and teaching. However, I am also very interested in Museum Conservation and the possibility of me working hands on with these items makes this option tempting.

So, I come to you asking for advice. I know we have some individuals that are a part of this forum that work professionally in the fields I am interested in, and I was curious as to any input you might have. Any advice you might have is very welcome.

Thank you.
View user's profile Send private message
P. Schontzler




Location: WA, USA
Joined: 15 Apr 2013

Posts: 99

PostPosted: Wed 17 Apr, 2013 11:59 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

My advice would be to do a little research on professors, at your school and others, and find ones who appear to specialize in your areas of interest. Then reach out to them and get a discussion going on your goals and their experience and expertise should provide you some insight.

I did the same with my professors and ultimately decided to not continue with graduate studies in history, as it didn't fit my goals / desires. History is now one of my hobbies.
View user's profile Send private message
J.D. Crawford




Location: Toronto
Joined: 25 Dec 2006

Spotlight topics: 1
Posts: 1,903

PostPosted: Wed 17 Apr, 2013 8:00 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

P. Schontzler wrote:
My advice would be to do a little research on professors, at your school and others, and find ones who appear to specialize in your areas of interest. Then reach out to them and get a discussion going on your goals and their experience and expertise should provide you some insight.


Thats good advice for anyone interested in research/thesis-centered graduate work. Your research project will largely depend on your supervisor's area of specialization, and Its generally the project you work on and the quality of the supervisor's mentoring/research that will determine your future, moreso than the school, program, or courses. Some additional hints are to look not only at the quantity and quality of the professor's publications, awards etc., but also the track record of success of his/her past students. Most research Profs indicate such things on their web-sites these days.
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Josh Maxwell




Location: Michigan
Joined: 01 Jul 2009
Likes: 1 page

Posts: 55

PostPosted: Mon 22 Apr, 2013 6:15 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Thank you both, very helpful replies. Whatever I intend on going into, I'm sure it won't be a straight forward path.
View user's profile Send private message


Display posts from previous:   
Forum Index > Off-topic Talk > Looking for some advice.
Page 1 of 1 Reply to topic
All times are GMT - 8 Hours

View previous topic :: View next topic
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You cannot attach files in this forum
You can download files in this forum






All contents © Copyright 2003-2024 myArmoury.com — All rights reserved
Discussion forums powered by phpBB © The phpBB Group
Switch to the Basic Low-bandwidth Version of the forum