In less than 30 days, I will begin the comprehensive exam process--an open-note, at-home version that gives me one week with each question. That means for five weeks, I'll be eyes-deep in urban geography, political ecology, and pastoralism in America. The timeline took me a bit by surprise; I'd been anticipating a February start date. Instead, I'll begin just a week after the semester recommences and wrap up with time to spare before spring break--a break I fully intend to give myself for the first time ever.
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This semester, I needed quiet. I needed to let go of all nonessential tasks. I spent the first 20 weeks of my pregnancy rather sick, struggling to stay afloat in my course load. It was a struggle, & my department has handled the news with more compassion, support, & excitement than I ever could have anticipated. Academia isn't historically a female-friendly (let alone parent-friendly) environment. And that's among faculty. Add in the still present dynamic in many department of infantilizing graduate students, & the idea of a "student" having a child seems preposterous. We are often seen, through the student label, as children ourselves."
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