Information for Faculty
The Connected PhD supported faculty to innovate curriculum that prepares graduate students for diverse career paths and creates professional and skill-building opportunities for graduate students. Faculty had the opportunity to apply for funding for two types of proposals: course development and program innovation.
Please note: funding is no longer available.
Course Development Proposals
These grants provided opportunities for faculty to propose new or revised PhD-level courses that connect humanistic training to developing competencies and familiarity with other professions. Faculty were encouraged to partner with professional schools at Brandeis (the Heller School of Social Policy and Management, the Brandeis International Business School, and the Rabb School of Continuing Education) to expand course-based professionalization opportunities for PhD students.
Examples
- Skill building courses - that incorporate public scholarship, digital humanities, grant-writing, project management, pedagogy, and other professional abilities into the core curriculum
- Internship courses - where students are supervised by a faculty member while they are engaging in an internship experience of their choosing.
Program Innovation Proposals
These grants provided support for programs to develop and restructure Mellon-affiliated PhD programs and degree requirements to better account for professional development and purposeful skill building as a part of the doctoral curriculum. Programs were encouraged to create change in partnership with program alumni and current students.
Examples
- Attending workshops and hiring consultations to support faculty members to analyze and restructure curricula.
- Creating or restructuring pro-seminars to incorporate meaningful professional development during doctoral training.
- Understanding the diverse career pathways of program alumni and creating support structures for current and prospective students’ transition into the workplace.