DR. KATHERINE S. CHO

Despite the exhaustion of creating and maintaining scholar profiles (see article about this fatigue here), one of the main arguments for why we need profiles like these, are because as people learn about our work, they're going to Google us and search for us. So here are some tips about making, maintaining, and weighing all these things...

If you ask anyone who has talked to me recently, you know that my current favorite productivity platform is Notion. I use it to plan my semester (template and deeper explanation here) and started a Notion series on my Design section here.  For me, the platform has enough tailoring to suit my needs where I an use it as a landing page for links, articles, even syllabi, while also being pretty.

I decided to do a part 2 that build on a previous post I did about resumes here. While this post has some overlap, I want to focus on the importance of words and word choices for this one. More specifically, how we write about and describe ourselves sets a tone about our valuation and expertise. One of my common comments to students when reviewing their cover letter is: don't write like you are a student. What do I mean by this? 

(I updated this from the original post on January 10, 2020 to add a couple more things now that I've had some distance.)

The process is stressful. So stressful, and I feel like there's so much hidden knowledge, so to help fight that, here are some tips about how I managed the process, stayed organized, and resources I found most helpful. 

I want to say first off, that I feel VERY silly writing this post as I am about to start my faculty position. So to be explicitly clear, this is less about my own personal advice, but instead, an amalgamation of guidance and advice I've amassed in preparation for the role(s) I am about to step into. So with that, here are some of the things I've learned thus far... ​

Earlier last year, I got an inquiry from a journal and didn't think much of it. The email felt odd and I trust my instincts so I didn't reply back. (I also happened to be in the thick of data collection so didn't reply to many emails during that season). However, after sleuthing for my advisor on an email inquiry, I stumbled into the world of misleading and potentially predatory journals...

Earlier today, a friend asked about how I wrote reviews (i.e. academic feedback for manuscripts). In our text exchanges (because we are still practicing social distancing #Covid19), I realized this might have been the first time I verbalized and realized that I even had a process. So, I wanted to share how I think through my feedback and how I write reviews. 

I might not be the best person for this, as I'm still figuring it out. But, in the spirit of moving forward in the ambiguity and learning process, here is what I've learned/been learning in constructing this website. 

The main thing for me has been the question of: but what is the point? What is the point of an (academic) website? 

I'm more at the stage of asking for letters of recommendation, as opposed to writing them. But I do remember writing some in the past and wish I had the foresight to think about the ways language and positioning adds to gender bias. Made by University of Arizona's Commission on the Status of Women, this resource is based on research from Trix Frances and Carolyn Psenka. Check it out!

I've written a couple of posts now about conference proposals (e.g.  types of conference proposals, and the difference between a class paper and a proposal). With conference proposal applications deadlines floating around the corner: (check out the DUE DATES page), I wanted to share some templates I use to help keep myself organized for conferences and applications.

I thought that once an article becomes published, then you're good to go. But what I have now realized (thanks to some great folks in my life who consistently remind me to do stuff), is what you do with the article— specifically that you need to share it. 

With social media, you have the usual suspects of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and so forth where you can share within your existing networks. In addition, some other places and spaces to house academic work include ​Academia.edu, and BePress. The nice things about these sites is that you can upload a PDF of your work, in case the journal is on its last issue or will no longer be in circulation. If you know of others, feel free to comment below! 

I have finished my coursework, so thankfully, I will not be writing (another) class paper any time soon. However, one thing I realized over the course of this year is that class papers and conference proposals differ quite a bit. ​

Here are some lessons learned in how I've translated my class papers to conference papers~

I often joke the PhD application process is easily in my top 5 of most trying times, which also includes a time I had bed bugs for a year.

But all jokes aside, my PhD application process was filled with a lot of doubt, questions, and concerns. It’s a big decision to make and after making it, can be hard to navigate through the applications.