At present, I am not certain as an exact dissertation topic. Having always been interested in the relationship between the United States and the British Commonwealth, I am contemplating a dissertation that would examine how the armed forces of America and Australia interacted prior to, and during, the Vietnam War. Granted that a fair amount of literature covers such a topic, I hope further reading will afford me a better understanding of issues that require additional analysis. In between many summer commitments, I hope to read-up on Australia in the Vietnam War so that by the fall I will have a more refined dissertation topic.

After the fall of South Vietnam in 1975, U.S. Col. Harry Summers remarked to his North Vietnamese counterpart, “You know you never defeated us on the battlefield.” After a moment, the North Vietnamese officer replied: “That may be so, but it is also irrelevant.”

Read the full article here.

This semester I am taking a course solely on the Vietnam War. Incidentally, this is my first true post-Second World War American history course. Needless to say my understanding of the Cold War era leaves a lot to be desired. All of that aside, my escalating interest in Vietnam might cause me to shift my Civil War to Second World War focus to one that encompasses America’s more modern conflicts. The World Wars onwards might be a better focus simply because of the amount of literature that needs to be written. That realization has started to make me wonder what would happen if my interest in the Vietnam war led to changing my dissertation topic to one that dealt with some aspect of America’s turbulent foray into Southeast Asia. At present the idea of centering on 20th Century warfare seems far less drastic and would allow for my Great War topic.

Granted I have comps to worry about first, I still find it prudent to ponder these questions before I start asking certain professors to join my committee. For instance, if I shift to a more modern topic it would help to have professors whose strengths lie in Cold War-era topics. Alternatively, perhaps I just worry too much! Any outside thoughts and suggestions are welcome.

1. It helps to be as organized as possible. Losing syllabuses halfway through the semester must be avoided. Aside from the misplacing of syllabi, it would be beneficial to create a list of all assignments and their respective due dates. This technique can be attributed to a colleague of mine who demonstrated throughout the semester just how magnificent this method of consolation helps one keep track of the numerous papers due in multiple classes.
2. While a centralized list of assignments goes a long way in managing one’s time more efficiently, one must plan out and complete those tasks with enough time left for proper revisions and edits to be made. Consequently, having to write a couple papers over the course of a single weekend could be avoided if one planned ahead.
3. Be more confident in you reading abilities. While taking notes on the material is important, being able to express your understanding of the literature to professors is invaluable.

Again, these are just some suggestions on how to improve my academic performance while preserving my sanity. As always, outside input is welcome.

Unlike the many people you hear that say they knew they were PhD material early on, I need more time to figure that out. It is one thing to know you love history, but is an entirely different matter to make it your life. By my third year of undergrad I knew I wanted to get a history MA and perhaps even a doctorate. I obtained my MA within a year of obtaining my BA and was in need of a break from being a student. As a result, I spent the next two years as an adjunct instructor at my undergrad college. During that time I realized that military history was my field and that I was ready to become a student once more. I thoroughly enjoyed teaching it and was excited at the thought of expanding my knowledge through research at the PhD level.

What I wanted to study, as it does with everyone, dictated the universities I was interested in attending. Wanting to specialize in both American and European military history, coupled with who I wanted to study under, further reduced my program choices. A year prior to apply to any PhD program, I had the fortune of meeting and chatting with my soon-to-be advisor at a military history conference in Ontario, Canada. Future conversations with him and current USM grad students lead me to selecting USM. Many will tell you that you ought to choose a program based on the reputation of both the school and your future adviser. More importantly, the program should be strong in your desired field. USM is a rising star in the military history community, making my decision all the more sensible. To me, however, the person I wanted to study under was critical to the decision process. Having benefited from strong relationships with former advisors, I knew I need to something similar at the PhD level.

Funding should be the make or break factor when accepting an offer. If a program fails to deliver any funding, then the decision is easy: do not go. If you are offered solid funding (a tuition waiver, plus a stipend of some magnitude), then you should consider the offer very seriously. Do remember to factor in quality of your possible advisor as well as the reputation and abilities of the program. Together these three factors will help you choose a program that is serious about you, while placing yourself in an academic environment best suited to your interests.

A factor that many argue is important to the program selection process is the geographical location of the institution. Personally, I believe that the geographical location (i.e. North vs South) of a university is not crucial. The rational being that you are going to be spending most of the next four to six years indoors, knee deep in literature; so the amenities of the school’s surrounding environs fail in comparison to the quality of the programs faculty and funding. To that end, the physical location (i.e. urban vs. rural) of the school is important. Being married, the physical location of USM was discussed in relation to the job opportunities that might be available to my wife. In that instance, geography might be more important to your significant other than to yourself. Nevertheless, it does help to discuss what type of location would best suite the needs of both you and you’re loved one. Larger cities, in theory, afford ample employment opportunities. A small town setting might restrict the chances of your loved one gaining meaningful employment. To be blunt, the income generated by your partner can be significant in that it is an additional source of funding. Therefore the cost of living needs to be apart of the equation. Hopefully, your means of income are sufficient to cover living necessities.

Ultimately, I selected my program based on criteria I deemed the most essential to the selection process. On that note, picking a program is an extremely personal experience. Outside advice can point you in the proper direction, but it cannot choose a program for you. You are choosing to spend a considerable amount of time and effort at an university based upon the criteria you used during the selection period. So be true to yourself.

So, Beck, Hannity, Rush, Norris, Coulter, et al.—next time you feel like going off on a rant about how militias are going to rise up and overthrow the U.S. government, and how you think Supreme Court justices and presidential candidiates ought to be poisoned, and about how you plan to help break up the Union because you don’t like our current administration. . . .

Thank a liberal for your right to say it.

You stupid douchebags.

Well said Andrew, I could not have put it any better.