Beginnings

Back to school. This could be a synonym for “fall”–it seems every year this time of year, I’m returning to some form of a classroom.  And, as you might expect, I’m not alone.  Over 15 million students make the trek back to campus each autumn.  Yet, hardly any of us write about what makes the journey worth it.  I’ve decided to document my seasonal migration.

This blog is dedicated to my pursuit of a Ph.D. in the Department of History of Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The posts will be a blend of reflections on the graduate student life, tips & tricks to managing people and paperwork, and random thoughts of the hour.

More than that, this blog will explore ways in which we find meaning in the student life.  What do we care about?  What do we complain about?  Are we professionals, slackers, refugees from “the real world”?  Where do we go for help?  These questions, and many more, drive the explorations of the university universe.

In addition, this blog will have a certain polar flavor. My research will focus on the roles of science and local knowledge in shaping environmental change in the Canadian Arctic. Hence, I will add the occasional post that gives the down-low on what’s going on up North.

When all is said and done, I hope this blog will have served a few purposes: 1) to act as a source of personal reflection on the particulars of the process; and 2) to live on as a resource for others embarking on their own educational adventures.

With those goals in mind for the end, I begin the journey toward the Ph.D.