You know what? This is the second time I've been informed by a graduate student, "You are on my PhD committee." A colleague of mine has been putting me on committees without even asking me. It has also recently happened that I said I'd need to think about a request to be on a commitee, and later approached by the supervisor to sign the forms as if it were a done deal.
I'm sorry, but what the hell? Am I so lowly that I'm not supposed to even be consulted? But apparently not so lowly that I can't be their feminist theory slave. Fuck them. I want out of this place.
Also, being at the office, on crutches, and hopping around on one leg? NO fun. When what you do, by definition, at the office in the summer is pop in to scurry around doing photocopies and getting signatures, etc. I can't believe I have weeks and weeks more of this.
9 comments:
That is so not cool!
I wonder if getting a multifunction desk scanner/photocopier would help you. A friend of mine had one, and it was useful for him. It would cost you some money, but may improve your life.
Holy heck, Hilaire. You've really been beaten down lately. I have to believe that MASSIVELY GOOD THINGS are coming your way soon.
And, yeah, fuck them.
*hugs-a-plenty*
Ugh, Hilaire, I'm so sorry about your leg and messed-up summer plans and all the general suckiness that you've had to deal with lately! I fervently hope that khora's prediction (above) comes true.
{{{Hilaire}}}
Ick! Can you talk to the colleague who is "volunteering" you to be on committees? That's so not cool.
Hilaire,
I'm so sorry about your bad Hawaii trip and now you're hobbling about. What a pain in the butt! And then to have to deal with this crapola! But I do think that you have to deal with it -- and confront the colleague or colleagues who are just putting you on PhD committees without asking you. You should have the right to refuse a student if you don't feel good about it. I'm afraid for you that if you don't take a stand (hard when you're on crutches -- okay, that was a lame one) with these people, they will continue to tread all over you. I mean, fine, you don't want to stay there -- but this is beyond the pale. Especially because right now you should be relaxing with your feet up!
seriously, that is so messed up. especially when they make you the token "marginal" theorist, yep, cuz that's all feminism is anyway...
Thanks for all your support.
Plam - That's a good idea. I don't know if I can make the investment, though, since this is temporary. But we'll see how long this lasts - I may change my mind!
Sis and EE - I'm definitely going to have a word. I let the first one go because she put me on a secondary committee (don't ask - this place has the most messed-up grad studies structure) and also because at that point, I didn't have a lot of other grad students I was involved with. Now that I am involved with lots, in addition to having my own supervisee, I'm really resentful. What's crazy is that the person who has now done this twice is my former Chair - who was always telling me to protect my time and not take on too many grad students!!! Presumably, she meant, not too many of others' grad students - take all of mine!! Harumph. Anyway, I'm definitely going to talk to her about it.
I must admit that I am also irritated at the grad student, who wrote to me yesterday just to touch base because she is going to be my TA in the fall and is also going to be taking a seminar with me. I didn't like the sentence, "You are also going to be sitting on my PhD committee." It struck me as really entitled or something...even if she'd been told by her supervisor that I was on the committee, I think it's a little rich to approach me with that tone. I kind of wanted to smack her. But I swallowed that, and will be gracious, if non-commital, when I reply to her.
I can't imagine informing someone they were going to be on my committee. Even if her advisor told her it was true, I can't imagine not saying something like "and I can't wait to work with you knowing you're going to be on my committee" or "and thank you for agreeing to be on my committee."
Psych Post Doc - I know, right? It's hard to imagine writing to someone that way! It makes me ewary of her, in general, I must say. Not a great foot to start off on.
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