jobs – Monica L. Mercado, Ph.D.

Exit Report

June 28, 2016June 29, 2016 Monica L. Mercado1 Comment

Women's History in the Digital World conference, May 2015. — Bryn Mawr, my postdoctoral home. [Women’s History in the Digital World conference, May 2015.]

This month marks the end of my two-year Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) Postdoctoral Fellowship at Bryn Mawr College. Twice a year, CLIR asks all fellows to report on our accomplishment, goals, and challenges, and I’ve decided to make public and expand upon my most recent entry, the exit report. Keeping a copy here, in my little corner of the internet, is a way for me to document the end of one chapter, and also provide future CLIR postdoc applicants a glimpse into the possibilities of such fellowships in the small liberal arts college context. [And if you’re reading this wondering about the many paths of the CLIR fellows, I highly recommend two blog posts from my cohortmates: Emily McGinn on the “interstitial PhD,” and Rachel Deblinger on alt-ac advocacy.] Continue reading →

Moving On

June 1, 2014June 1, 2014 Monica L. Mercado1 Comment

I’m taking a break from packing boxes to show off two new t-shirts: one, from my first trip to the (16th Annual) Berkshire Conference of Women Historians, the other, my official University of Chicago History Department Alumni t-shirt (not available for sale, they’ll have you know).

About that alumni tee? Yes, I passed my dissertation defense on May 19! So with that, Dr. Monica, Ph.D., will see you in Philadelphia on July 1. Now, back to those boxes…

“Research in a Digital Age” Links

March 6, 2014June 1, 2014 Monica L. MercadoLeave a comment

Are you interested in making your research available to a wider audience using digital resources? Have you considered the possible benefits of using social media, blogs, or video to expand your reach? The use of online resources for academic and professional research purposes is a growing yet largely underdeveloped and oftentimes ambiguous field. This workshop will discuss different avenues for disseminating your research beyond the traditional route of journal or manuscript publication, why development of these skills is becoming more important in a competitive job market, and pitfalls to avoid…

[update: view my presentation on YouTube]

When the SSD asked me to participate in Friday’s Leadership Lab conversation, Research in a Digital Age, it provided an opportunity to reflect on the choices I made (and continue to make) about building a web presence and sharing my work online. The following links are a useful reading list for graduate students weighing similar decisions:

Miriam Posner, Brian Croxall, and Stewart Varner for ProfHacker: “Creating Your Web Presence: A Primer for Academics“

Jentery Sayers for ProfHacker: “Do You Need Your Own Website While on the Job Market?”

Ryan Cordell for ProfHacker: “How to Start Tweeting and Why You Might Want To“ and “Creating and Maintaining a Professional Presence Online: A Roundup and a Reflection“

Menachem Wecker for Vitae: “Should You Share Your Research on Academia.edu?“

Journal of Women’s History, “Roundtable: Women Gone Wild: Reflections on the Feminist Blogosphere”

Scott Jaschik for Inside Higher Ed: “Embargoes for Dissertations?” (and the AHA debate)

Have anything to add? Leave a reply!

“Lady Historian with a Futuristic Job”

February 10, 2014February 11, 2014 Monica L. Mercado2 Comments

dinosaurs! — “Are these Bryn Mawr Students America’s Brainiest Girls?” n.d., courtesy Heather’s Blog.

I’m delighted to announce that on July 1, 2014, I’ll be joining Bryn Mawr College Libraries as Director of The Albert M. Greenfield Digital Center for the History of Women’s Education – or, as a dear friend has described, “Lady Historian with a Futuristic Job.” [Then again, I recently found the women’s history website I made my first year of college, so maybe I’ve been a digital historian this whole time and I just didn’t know it!]

Readers of this site may remember I first got involved with the Digital Center as a presenter at the inaugural conference, “Women’s History in a Digital World,” last March. You can find my paper, and the work of so many brilliant people working at the intersection of women’s and gender history, feminisms, and digital history in the conference’s online repository – a part of the College’s larger open access project, Scholarship, Research, and Creative Work at Bryn Mawr College, which was established in 2012. I’m energized by the Digital Center’s mission, and I can’t wait to get started this summer.

For more on my appointment, check out the Digital Center’s blog: Educating Women. And be sure to follow the Digital Center on twitter (@GreenfieldHWE) – there’s much more to come!