To best understand how the Ad Hoc MA in Digital Humanities prepares students for the next steps after graduation, we spoke with two recent graduates from the program about their experience and career aspirations.
Meet Alayne Moody.
Her experience in the program
The most useful DH skills that Alayne applies are communicating research in teams and in presentations, programming skills (R, Python, Jupyter Notebook), and statistical techniques like regression analysis.
Where is she now?
Alayne is pursuing her PhD part-time and remotely at Flinders University and working as a part-time research assistant at the Tahatikonhsontóntie' Québec Network Environment for Indigenous Health Research. Tahatikonhsontóntie' means “the faces yet to come.” She is researching how universities in Quebec can best position themselves toward reconciliation and indigenization efforts.
The 5 year plan:
"I’m interested in data analytics jobs, so I would love in 5 years time to be in a role that is oriented around data analysis in the public sector either for a NGO or a Government entity or a University. I want a job where I feel like I’m doing good in the world - something socially or ecologically oriented."
Her advice for DH students:
"Think about your thesis topic early on and link every project component of your DH courses to it."
Meet Robyn Wang.
Her experience in the program
The most useful DH skills that Robyn learned from the MA program are text mining, data mining, and UX design.
Where is she now?
Since September, she's been living in Toronto and applying for entry-level jobs in data science and analytics. She continues to study statistics and business knowledge to hone her skills in data science in preparation for job interviews. Robyn also networks with contacts working for tech companies in Toronto and uses career resources like LinkedIn, Indeed, and attended a workshop series from McGill CaPS for graduate students.
The 5 year plan:
"I hope that I can have a job in data science or in data analytics. I’ll have more experience in programming, algorithm and data analytics."
Her advice to DH students:
"Get a clear idea of what you want to do after you graduate and what you want to learn from the program as early as possible."
Did you know about the The McGill Career Planning Service (CaPS)?
They provide services and advisors to help students with career development and job & internship placements.
Email: careers.caps [at] mcgill.ca | Phone: 514-398-3304