"Public Pathways: Lessons about PhD Careers from 10 Years of
Mellon/ACLS Public Fellows" Provides Insights on Career
Opportunities Outside the Academy
NEW
YORK, May 20, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/
-- There is a persistent false perception that the humanities
PhD is primarily a training program for future university faculty
researchers. In reality, PhDs in the humanities and interpretive
social sciences have meaningful careers in a variety of sectors,
from academia to industry, government and nonprofits. The American
Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) is pleased to release "Public
Pathways: Lessons about PhD Careers from 10 Years of Mellon/ACLS
Public Fellows," a new report that provides insights into some of
those career paths. The report reflects outcomes of the Mellon/ACLS
Public Fellows Program, including illustrative examples of alumni
career pathways, as well as career development resources and advice
specific to humanities PhDs seeking to explore careers beyond the
academy.
PhDs in the humanities and interpretive
social sciences have meaningful careers in a variety of sectors,
from academia to industry, government and nonprofits.
From 2011-2022, the Mellon/ACLS Public Fellows Program placed
nearly 200 humanities and interpretive social sciences PhDs in
two-year positions in government and nonprofit organizations across
the United States. Through
fellows' work and accomplishments, the program demonstrated the
broad applicability of advanced humanistic training to work and
careers beyond the academy. Fellows built capacity at hosting
organizations while demonstrating the dynamic potential of
humanities PhDs.
"The Public Pathways report is a glimpse into the significant
impact of the Mellon/ACLS Public Fellows Program and into some of
the lessons we can learn from the fellowship about graduate
education and career pathways," said ACLS President Joy Connolly. "We hope it can be useful to
current PhD students who seek to understand the range of possible
futures before them and to those who support every element of
doctoral education—faculty, administrators, and beyond."
From program data and interviews with program alumni, the report
explores the shared experiences of PhDs translating their advanced
training in the humanities to diverse portfolios of work while also
highlighting the unique perspectives of individual fellows. These
insights led the development of online resources created
specifically for graduate students and recent PhDs seeking
information and inspiration for envisioning their careers. These
resources, which will evolve over time, currently include
information about career initiatives from ACLS member scholarly
societies and an array of job postings from the program, which are
meant to demonstrate the range of venues and roles across
employment sectors in which PhDs can not only add value, but
thrive.
This report reflects the longstanding commitment of ACLS to
advanced training in the humanities by demonstrating its value and
impact in communities beyond the academy. Similarly, the "Preparing
Publicly Engaged Scholars" report, released earlier this spring,
provides examples of how doctoral humanities training can be
designed and leveraged for community-based research that is
ethical, impactful for communities, and productive for student's
professional development. Current ACLS programs and initiatives
continuing this work include the ACLS Leading Edge Fellowships,
Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Innovation Fellowships, and The Robert H.
N. Ho Family Foundation Buddhism Public Scholars. Information about
these related programs, initiatives, and reports can be found on
the Public Pathways page.
Formed a century ago, the American Council of Learned Societies
(ACLS) is a nonprofit federation of 81 scholarly organizations. As
the leading representative of American scholarship in the
humanities and interpretive social sciences, ACLS upholds the core
principle that knowledge is a public good. In supporting its member
organizations, ACLS utilizes its endowment and $37 million annual operating budget to expand the
forms, content, and flow of scholarly knowledge, reflecting our
commitment to diversity of identity and experience. ACLS
collaborates with institutions, associations, and individuals to
strengthen the evolving infrastructure for scholarship. In all
aspects of our work, ACLS is committed to principles and practices
in support of racial and social justice.
Media Contact
Anna Polovick Waggy, American
Council of Learned Societies, 6468307661, awaggy@acls.org,
https://www.acls.org/
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SOURCE American Council of Learned Societies