Post-Grad research?

[whatwewant]

alright, this thread is guaranteed lame, but I need some advice. I'm going into my second year of a post-grad degree and getting ready to start working on my thesis/research project (I have a couple of options... not sure which I'm doing yet). I'm in a really broad program, so I could do my research on basically anything media/culture related. Trouble with that is, I have no idea how to decide what subject I'm going to go with.

For any of you who've done a thesis/dissertation/etc. or are working on one, how did you decide on your topic?

Thanks!

[Ryan Mills]

Well, what is your Masters going to be in?

Also, this might sound bad, but, most people who go to graduate school do so for a specific reason. Most people already have an area of interest, and thus that's what they research.

[whatwewant]

Well, what is your Masters going to be in?

Also, this might sound bad, but, most people who go to graduate school do so for a specific reason. Most people already have an area of interest, and thus that's what they research.

it's an MA in communication and cultural studies. I went into the program with a bunch of interests (secular music + religion, violence/social transgression + gender identity in american fiction, online communities and gender IDs, post-adolescent subculture participation, the relationship between nostalgia/authenticity in 21st c. popular music, etc.). I can work on any of them. It's now a matter of choosing what I want to spend the next year on. I'm just having trouble committing to one in particular, so I figured I'd ask around and see if anyone else has been in the same position.

[Ryan Mills]

Well, what do you plan on doing with it? Might that influence you're decision? I don't know anyone who did or is doing a masters in communications, so I don't know much about it, and as a medical student, although I do research, I have no thesis/dissertation to complete. There has to be something that stands out and interests you most, or that you'd feel good spending a year doing.

[cantnokdahustle]

I did my undergraduate thesis on the devolution of Judaic Eschatology, though I was torn between that and The Problem of Heaven. I mulled the two because they were topics I was wholly interested in, and it didn't hurt my philosophy degree. You have to do something that interests you or interests your adviser.

I switched gears as soon as I graduated and became interested in Education. Now I'm a grad student in Educational Policy. I have a semester more before I start my Grad Thesis, but I have a bunch of topics floating at the moment. I will probably settle on Predatory Charter Schools.

There has got to be an idea you keep coming back to.

[FeynmanWannabe]

I did my undergraduate thesis on the devolution of Judaic Eschatology, though I was torn between that and The Problem of Heaven. I mulled the two because they were topics I was wholly interested in, and it didn't hurt my philosophy degree. You have to do something that interests you or interests your adviser.

I switched gears as soon as I graduated and became interested in Education. Now I'm a grad student in Educational Policy. I have a semester more before I start my Grad Thesis, but I have a bunch of topics floating at the moment. I will probably settle on Predatory Charter Schools.

There has got to be an idea you keep coming back to.
Elaborate.

[cantnokdahustle]

Elaborate.

Charter Schools that are open for the sole reason of exploiting low income families and Juvenile offenders. These schools can open up anywhere in the state of Texas and are largely left to themselves for five years. When the charter ends, if the school is deemed unfit, all they must do is rotate their board of directors and apply for another charter. These schools get ridiculously ample federal funding for the populations they serve and many put none of that money back into the school or the students (and their teachers are paid well below the state's minimum). They work independently and their only stipulation is that they must administer the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills test. These schools typically court those students that have been kicked out of the regular public school system. These schools often act as alternative's to the juvenile justice program, and an offender need only to be in a group home to choose this option. The problem is, many foster care facilities are also drawn to these low income charter schools. The parents and or foster parents are not given any indication by these schools that they will be in classrooms with severe juvenile offenders (rape:convicted, attempted murder:charged) without so much as a campus security guard. These schools exist for their steady stream of income to local business owners. They flip their board every five years and start a new.

I started my teaching career at one of these facilities, and as shitty as it sounds, it got me into a top ten policy program.

[saysmydoctor]

Charter Schools that are open for the sole reason of exploiting low income families and Juvenile offenders. These schools can open up anywhere in the state of Texas and are largely left to themselves for five years. When the charter ends, if the school is deemed unfit, all they must do is rotate their board of directors and apply for another charter. These schools get ridiculously ample federal funding for the populations they serve and many put none of that money back into the school or the students (and their teachers are paid well below the state's minimum). They work independently and their only stipulation is that they must administer the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills test. These schools typically court those students that have been kicked out of the regular public school system. These schools often act as alternative's to the juvenile justice program, and an offender need only to be in a group home to choose this option. The problem is, many foster care facilities are also drawn to these low income charter schools. The parents and or foster parents are not given any indication by these schools that they will be in classrooms with severe juvenile offenders (rape:convicted, attempted murder:charged) without so much as a campus security guard. These schools exist for their steady stream of income to local business owners. They flip their board every five years and start a new.

I started my teaching career at one of these facilities, and as shitty as it sounds, it got me into a top ten policy program.
What you just described is legal? Jesus christ.

[FeynmanWannabe]

Charter Schools that are open for the sole reason of exploiting low income families and Juvenile offenders. These schools can open up anywhere in the state of Texas and are largely left to themselves for five years. When the charter ends, if the school is deemed unfit, all they must do is rotate their board of directors and apply for another charter. These schools get ridiculously ample federal funding for the populations they serve and many put none of that money back into the school or the students (and their teachers are paid well below the state's minimum). They work independently and their only stipulation is that they must administer the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills test. These schools typically court those students that have been kicked out of the regular public school system. These schools often act as alternative's to the juvenile justice program, and an offender need only to be in a group home to choose this option. The problem is, many foster care facilities are also drawn to these low income charter schools. The parents and or foster parents are not given any indication by these schools that they will be in classrooms with severe juvenile offenders (rape:convicted, attempted murder:charged) without so much as a campus security guard. These schools exist for their steady stream of income to local business owners. They flip their board every five years and start a new.

I started my teaching career at one of these facilities, and as shitty as it sounds, it got me into a top ten policy program.
Very interesting (and sad). Thanks for taking the time to reply.