Program Development: Reinventing the PhD for the Humanities

Georgetown University
September 15, 11:30 AM—1:00 PM

​This session focuses on possible curricula for ​interdisciplinary ​graduate programs ​in public humanities. Building on Georgetown’s experience developing an interdisciplinary PhD in public humanities, the session will explore the following questions:

• What courses are necessary or useful to prepare students for public scholarship, public engagement, and careers outside of academia?
• ​What courses should be required and how should they be structured?
• How could faculty construct a proseminar or introductory seminar for such a program?
• What readings best introduce graduate students to sophisticated critical understandings of major terms like “interdisciplinarity,” “humanities,” and “the public”? ​
• How can existing courses adopt components of public humanities?
• What alternative forms of coursework should be encouraged and how should they be assessed?
• How should applied work experience (in the form of internships or public fellowships) be integrated into the curriculum?
• What kind of mentoring structure is needed for such a program?

Invited participants include members of Georgetown’s Course Development project and the PhD Development Team.