Name

Jason Fitzgerald

School

Columbia University

Degree Program

Second year PhD student in Theatre

Previous Degrees

Master of Fine Arts in Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism from Yale, 2008; Bachelor of Arts in American History and Literature from Harvard University, 2007

Dissertation Topic

The manifestation of 20th-century postmodernism in theatre

Research Interests

Philosophy; critical theory

Advisor

Julie Peters

Advisor’s Research Focus

18th-century theatre history

Hobbies

Watching movies, seeing live theatre

Graduate School – Application Process

How did you select your graduate school and program?

I chose Columbia University for my PhD in theatre because I was looking for a graduate program that would allow me to write about theatre and philosophy. At Columbia, the theatre program is lodged within the English and Comparative Literature department, so I knew I would have the chance to work with critical theory and philosophy as it relates to theatre.

The other factor in my decision to go to Columbia University is that I wanted to attend a school that had a good job placement rate for its graduates. It often isn’t easy for doctoral graduates with a theatre degree to find employment after graduation, but Columbia University has historically had a strong placement rating.

What did you do to prepare yourself for graduate school?

I did not have a formal process to prepare for graduate school, but I put forth efforts to familiarize myself with the academic world so I would know what I was getting into. For instance, I attended several academic conferences and talked with scholars about the work they were pursuing. At minimum, I would recommend that prospective PhD students try to present a paper at a conference so that they have a little bit of experience with academics before they apply.

Did your application requirements include standardized test scores?

Yes, Columbia University requires its students to take the GRE. I didn’t put too much effort into preparing for the GRE because I am a decent standardized test-taker, but I did buy a couple Princeton Review books to help me study.

What kind of information did you include in your personal statement?

In my personal statement, I wrote about the work I have studied in the past and the questions I was interested in researching at the doctoral level. The point of a personal statement is for faculty members to see that a student is capable of imagining interesting research projects that are applicable to their field, so I tried to adhere to that formula.

How did you choose faculty to approach for letters of recommendation?

I chose to ask professors whom I was working alongside for letters of recommendation. At the time that I applied to my PhD program, I had just finished a masters degree at Yale University. It was easy to ask the professors who were overseeing my work to write letters for me because they could speak to my academic abilities.

Do you have any other tips for a student who is considering applying to graduate school in theatre?

My best advice for people who are applying to graduate school in any subject, including theatre, is to talk to students who are already engaged in the PhD programs that you are considering. That way you will be able to hear the truth about a program, which might not be evident from talking with a professor or browsing a school’s website.

Graduate School – The Program

How long is your program and how is the curriculum distributed?

My PhD program typically takes about 6 years to complete. The first 2 years are spent completing intensive coursework. In the third year, your main responsibility is to prepare for your oral exams. Assuming you pass, those exams are followed by at least 2 years of researching and writing the bulk of your dissertation. In year 6, you finish your research and enter the job market.

What is the focus of your dissertation research?

I am not sure what the exact focus of my dissertation research will be since I am only in my second year of the program. But I imagine that it will pertain to my major area of research, which deals with postmodernism and political theory. After I get through the rest of my coursework and my oral exams, I will have a better idea of what I want to write.

What role does your advisor play in your education?

The role of my advisor has been fairly minimal so far. I consult with a few different people from the theatre department about the courses I should take and the dissertation topics I am considering. I speak with them about once a semester, although I expect that amount of contact to increase later in my program. I have one “official” advisor, and I would consider the rest of them to be more like unofficial mentors.

Does your doctoral program require comprehensive exams prior to graduation?

We do have comprehensive exams, which we take at the end of our third year. I have to pass the comprehensive exam before I am allowed to begin work on my dissertation. The exam process at Columbia University takes an entire year. It starts at the end of the second year, when I have to compose reading lists in 1 major field and 2 minor fields. I also choose the advisors I want to work with for each field. I spend year 3 studying and reading from those lists, then I have an oral exam on all of that at the end of my third year. I believe there is a written component to the exam as well, but I don’t know how that works yet.

How does a doctoral program differ from graduate study at the masters level?

The major difference between my doctoral and masters programs is that my master of fine arts degree was from Yale University’s conservatory program (the Yale School of Drama). That means it was more of a professional school, in which I worked with actors, playwrights, directors and lighting designers. All of our work was production-based, meaning we worked together to produce a major project, like a play. At the doctoral level, work is more, well, academic. It is difficult to accurately compare the experiences that I have had at the PhD level and the masters level because they had such different aims.

Graduate School – Paying for It

How are you funding your education?

I am fully funded through the comparative literature department at Columbia University. I don’t know how much this program would cost if I were not funded, but it certainly wouldn’t be cheap. In fact, I would like for the funding to be greater, but I do have enough to live on, even in New York.

In order to keep my doctoral funding, I am required to teach undergraduate classes starting my second year. Right now, I am a teaching assistant in a lecture class, but next year, I will start teaching introductory freshman composition classes. I will be teaching every semester from here on, with the exception of one fellowship year to focus solely on my dissertation.

Graduate School – Living Life

What are the time commitments for a PhD in theatre?

I spend about 50 hours working on my program each week. This semester, I overloaded on coursework, so I am in the classroom about 15 hours each week. Then I spend an additional 30 hours or so doing homework. But I find it hard to give accurate estimates of how much time I spend engaged in a given activity like coursework, homework or research because my work and life seem to blend together. To sum it up, I don’t feel like I am being driven into the ground by the amount of work that I have, and it is a reasonable amount to do.

How has graduate school affected your personal life?

One way that graduate school has affected my personal life is that the commitment it requires has made it difficult to date. Dating takes a lot of effort, especially if it is not love at first sight. You have to invest time into deciding if that person is right, and it can be very hard to justify taking off 3 or 4 hours from graduate work for someone who might not work out.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any useful advice about how to balance your schoolwork with your personal life except to just find a way to do it. You have to force yourself to take time off now and then because otherwise you will end up totally consumed with your work and you will start to resent what you used to love. You have to keep your perspective.

Graduate School – After Graduation

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

I want to go into academia. But that is a scary prospect, because I feel like I put all of my eggs in this one basket, so to speak. But the basket isn’t very secure and that is unnerving. It is a difficult position to be in, since I don’t know what I will do if I can’t find an academic position in a department of English, theatre, or something related.

Graduate School - Advice

What insights can you offer a student who is interested in pursuing a PhD in theatre?

If you are going to get a PhD, you need to know why you want to do so. It is critical that you can articulate why you are taking this path because that will determine both your present focus and your future job prospects. Don’t get a PhD because you don’t know what else to do. For a theatre program, you should consider whether you want to be a historian or a literary analyst, for example. Think about the kind of scholarship that attracts you before you enter a program so that you won’t be surprised by what is required of you.