In this section...
Professional Development, Job Search, & Graduation
- Professional development & the job search
- Participating in the graduate commencement ceremony
- Filing for graduation
Professional development and your job search
Many students entering the Ph.D. program will be interested in careers in academia. Most graduate students begin the search for faculty positions during the summer preceding their final academic year of dissertation writing. The most common place to search for faculty openings is through the Modern Language Association (MLA) and its sub organization the Association of Departments of Foreign Languages (ADFL). You may search for openings in the Job Information List (JIL) at https://www.mla.org/Resources/Career/Job-List. Create an account using the Department ID and password, available annually from the graduate coordinator. Successful applicants to postings on the JIL are often invited for a first interview at the MLA Convention in late December or early January. Of these applicants, successful interviewees are typically asked to campus for a second interview. These interviews often require applicants to present a lecture.
Mock Interviews
Spanish graduate students can work with the Graduate Program Coordinator to arrange a mock interview and/or job talk in preparation for the interview processes. Typically students wait until they have an invitation for at least one interview before scheduling the mock interview. They then work with the Graduate Program Coordinator to identify faculty to serve as mock interviewers. Many students find it helpful to have faculty with whom they are less familiar on their committee to make it feel more like a “real” interview.
Another excellent source of information for jobs in academia is H-net: http://www.h-net.org/, Humanities & Social Sciences Net. This organization has various email lists organized by areas of interest. Both for professional development early in your career and your job search later on, you are encouraged to join h-net list-serves that overlap with your areas of interest. In addition to job postings, information about conferences and calls for papers are posted to these email lists.
Other students choose to pursue careers outside of academia. The Internship and Career Center (ICC) offers comprehensive career advising for graduate students within academia and beyond. The ICC also partners with the Office of Graduate Studies to offer various Professional Development workshops throughout the year. Please see their website for details: https://iccweb.ucdavis.edu/graduates/index.htm.
Participating in the graduate commencement ceremony
Graduate commencement is held annually at the end of Spring Quarter. Registration for commencement takes place during Winter Quarter. Please see https://gradstudies.ucdavis.edu/current-students/commencement for details and registration instructions.
Filing for graduation
M.A. students don't need to make an appointment with the office of graduate studies upon passing their comprehensive exam. All they need to do is complete the Exit Survey [pdf] and turn it in to the graduate coordinator.
Ph.D. students can find the information on filing your dissertation on the Office of Graduate Studies website: https://gradstudies.ucdavis.edu/current-students/academic-services-information/filing-thesis-or-dissertation
You will need to make an appointment with Spanish’s designated Student Affairs Officer in the Office of Graduate Studies, Jean Telford. At the appointment, you will hand in the items on the checklist (see the link above). Even though you will file your thesis/dissertation electronically, you will need to hand in the cover page with original signatures. The appointment will need to be after you have obtained all of the approvals from your committee, as it is the last step in the completion of your degree.
At the link above, you will also find information on acceptable margins, page numbering, fonts, etc. Make sure to pay attention to these formatting requirements as dissertations will not be accepted until they conform. Finally, when filing electronically, make sure not to submit your thesis/dissertation online until it is the final version approved by your entire committee. (There's no un-submit button.)
Your Student Affairs Officer will send you a letter that says you have completed the requirements for your degree (which you can use for job hunting), but your diploma will not be available for another 4 months. See https://registrar.ucdavis.edu/records/diploma for details and mailing information.