As a final year PhD student in sociology who is also in the middle of applying to jobs, I can relate to everything you say. The chatty parts are very much needed as they capture the complexity of research and this whole journey that we are on. What you said at the end of the video about the job market when you want to go for academic positions is also very true. It’s hard not making this your entire life or heck, even your entire personality when everyone around you is doing just that. We really need to be careful because even if we love it but still want to live a normal,enjoyable life, it is so easy to get overwhelmed by projects and eventually burn out. Best of luck to you on your journey! xx

Hi, new subscriber here! I just started my second PhD year out of officially 3 that I have (mind you this is the EU system). I’m working on different papers/projects at once and constantly feel like I’m not making enough progress. Recently it’s been frustrating to me to see a lot of content creators I used to enjoy watching have a very different lifestyle to me (lots of overseas travel etc) and becoming somewhat unrelatable. Your vlogs seem so authentic and it’s really a breath of fresh air. Wishing you very happy holidays from across the pond (Vienna, Austria) :)

Good luck with your interviews! Currently finishing up a seminar paper that will (hopefully) turn into a diss chapter 😅

Thank you for doing this! I'm writing papers for my dissertation / R.A. job and 2 final class projects

Sarah, I wish you good luck in all your interviews. Writing chapters in dissertations are difficult because the chapters need to flow from the next chapter from another and you have to reference your work and organize your ideas and not to repeat the same material.

sarah <3 <3 i love the vlogs and i worry about how you're publicizing your partnership with AI companies in your videos and how that will be viewed by hiring committees (have you discussed with your advisor?)

Thank you for this video! I'm wondering if you could speak about the differences in job-search experiences for English PHDs in rhet/comp vs. literature? I'm thinking about doing a PhD but heard to not go into literary studies specifically because of job prospects.

stop using ai. omg

I’m waiting for an official offer on a job. 😬 So stressful! 🤞🏽

I am starting my PhD in history on the Roman Inquisition 😊

Just finished my seminar papers on Friday! Getting grades for first semester of my MA program tomorrow 😅

Good luck with all of your interviews. I dropped out of my PhD program and I have the opportunity to go back and finish my dissertation. I start on Jan 6. All my fingers are crossed I get through it. Happy Holidays!🎉

Love your videos! Just finished my masters thesis! 🎉 Good luck with interviews. 😊

Thank you so much for your videos! I always watch but never comment 😅 I’m also doing a PhD, currently in my third year, and your videos help a lot! ❤

Morning from Hawaii well done on this video and good luck on your interview

CONGRATS & GOOD LUCK ON THE INTERVIEWS!!!! Awww the bit with your nephew is adorable <3

Good luck on your interviews! ❤

Sarah I am always always waiting for your New Vlogs You made me smile throughout the vlog, it was too Wonderful Beautiful 🤗🩷🩷 sending you lots of love and blessings to you always

oh my gosh, i just found out that you're at IU bloomington!!! i am too, currently a junior in my undergrad studying psychology and English! i saw one of your vids from a few weeks ago but somehow missed that part, what a small world :)

Throne of glass is NOT a great example of fantasy writing. I suggest if you want something quick, read one of the Tamora Pierce quartets its YA fantasy so the barrier is low and VERY feminist in their themes.

It really is excellent to have smart siblings and friends who can help us think through our dilemmas, isn't it? Even when they know nothing about our topics--or perhaps because of that remove--they can so often share insights we've overlooked.

These videos help me not feel so alone going through job searching! Also the Christmas Corelle was a total throwback since my family had that growing up 😊

So as an autistic person who masks, I feel like an object and subject a loooot of the time. Might be why I don't feel super weird on camera/performing. Because I'm always performing.

How is it having a male advisor? Do you think your project or the advise be any different if your advisor was female?

Sarah, do you watch Christmas movies? Did you ever watch Dolly Parton's 'Christmas of Many Color Circle of Love' and 'Christmas Confidential Part 2'?

First off: Ice Age is iconic. My favorite character is Sid! . I've really appreciated all of your vlogs, but these last few have been SO freaking comforting. It's been cold here in Texas and, being from Miami, I'm just not built for it. I was filming myself for a farewell compilation a friend is putting together and it was so weird - I was so accutely aware of my body and monitoring how I was speaking and expressing myself. Afterwards, I wondered, "is this what Sarah talks about?" I would love to start a YT channel because I LOVE editing videos, but the constant awareness of how I see myself and how I might be perceived (both while filming and after) is 😬 right now

I've been using your vlogs as a way to inspire myself to write my final papers, one of which is a first attempt at a portion of my MA thesis. Did you feel this kind of self-doubt about your thinking and ideas while you were writing during coursework? This is my first bout of explicitly rhetorical research, and I am feeling absolutely, incredibly not qualified to be making the claims I'm making or that someone else has already said what I'm saying (even though I can't find anything talking about explicitly what I'm discussing). Writing is so hard, and it helps me so much seeing that I am not the only one who feels this way.

Sarah I am always always waiting for your new vlogs And You made me smile throughout the Vlog, it was too Wonderful Beautiful 🤗🩷🩷 sending you lots of love and blessings to you always

Morning from Hawaii you put out good vlogmas

Awww the bit with your nephew is so precious <3 I feel like at home you just seem more happy and motivated! I totally understand your anxiety about not knowing where you will live because that's how I feel about the idea of applying to several PhD programs...looking on Zillow for each area as certainly been helpful in making me feel better regarding that anxiety.

Hi .... i almost completed my phd. Thesis... You are always my motivation

Sarah, can you please show the type of spreadsheet you're using to take note of the positions you want to apply to, the ones you're already have, etc.? I'll most likely be on the job market this time next year and I'm trying to understand what's the best method to keep everything organised!

omg I have the same thing with banana and avocado!!! and I LOVE avocado. : (

I watch both you and Kaelyn, and I actually enjoy your down-to-earth and seemingly unpolished style more. Maybe because I can relate to it more. Kaelyn’s vlogs are more aspirational, I suppose. But both have their merits!

I love your kitty! RJ

I wish you the best of luck in your job interview and another wonderful vlogma.

Thanks for answering my question about social media! I've been doing a lot of thinking about how I'll address (or not address) my use of it in future job interviews. This is helpful to hear your perspective!

Your advisor has good advice. I ❤ that for you! 😄

"well you can't put that genie back in the bottle" 😂

You def have said you had approval to use student work and over the months I've been watching you've said it frequently! Love hearing you talk a little bit about being the fun aunt, I have a memory as a kid while camping with my whole family where my Aunt let me have ice cream for breakfast and it is still a memory I cherish. I really hope when I eventually start a PhD (if I get into a program) that I have someone like Megan, y'all seem to provide such good critical support and friendship to one another <3 Love how supportive your advisor is! I so appreciate the insight you give us into academia. You're my favorite PhD-based youtuber and I so appreciate your ethical intelligent approach to it, seriously Sarah appreciate you! ALSO have you seen RHONJ...because that is my current TV show and I am on Season 6 and it's just WOW. Sorry for the long comment just had a lot I wanted to share or say.

Hi Sarah! I'm from the Pacific Northwest but I went to the University of North Florida for my undergrad in English. I lived in Jacksonville, FL for nine years (2013-2022) and I visited Gainesville a few times. UF is a beautiful school! I miss pubsubs so much!

Love this thank you for sharing ❤️

hey sarah, i really appreciate how open and honest you are about your anxiety regarding interviews! it’s refreshing to see that this is a universal experience, even for someone like you who is so dedicated to what you do and qualified for academia. as i am someone who plans to apply to graduate schools next fall, is this similar to how you felt preparing for grad school interviews when you were applying?

Another Wonderful Beautiful Vlog By Sarah and I really really enjoyed watching it 😀😀😀😀

Morning from Hawaii good job on vlogmas 2 and 3 goo luck on your job interview here to support you

I think adding hashtags would be helpful 1.#VLOGMAS2024 2.#dissmas2024

When you use AI to generate ideas, do you have to put that in your references list?

I know I'm like a year late to this vlog (I follow you daily on Insta but I don't watch your vlogs in order lol). But in case you see this, I just wanted to say, thank you so much for uploading your "meltdown / breaking down" video a few years back. I completely understand why you privated it as it was obviously a very vulnerable time for you, but I'm also thankful that I was able to see it. I find that grad students tend to euphemise their feelings when they talk about getting too anxious, burnt out, doubting themselves, thinking of giving up... Like they'll say they went through it, but idk why it always seems to me that a lot of people experience those feelings in a milder way and are still able to keep it under control. When I went through moments like this in the past, I felt like I let it get to me way too much, that I was getting way too messed up over it, that I couldn't keep it together like I saw or perceived others did. And I remember seeing your video and feeling like "Oh, there are actually brilliant grad school / PhD students who do experience those emotions as strongly as I do !". At the time I felt like I failed even in the way I was dealing with it, like not only did I feel bad and lost, I also "failed" in the sense that I "let it" really damage my self-esteem. Which amounts to punishing yourself twice, right !? It fed the imposter syndrom I had at the time, the part of me that thought that if I was getting myself in such a state, then it was a sign that pursuing a reasearch master's and a PhD really wasn't for me. But seeing you go to similar mental places reassured me so much because it helped me see that other people, probably a lot actually, do go to quite dark mental spaces in high stress situations, and it's okay, and we can get over it, and it's a consequence of exterior factors like living and working conditions, as well as emotional and self-esteem wounds, rather than a sign of one's inadequacy in those spaces. Happy to say that I'm doing so much better nowadays and on my way to find funding for a PhD ☺ Forever grateful for all the people in the world who have the courage to show true vulnerability online, always helps me understand and care for myself better, as well as nourrish my empathy and understanding of humanity 🩷 (probably because I'm on the autism spectrum and sometimes struggle to understand other people's feelings if I don't witness it or hear/read a description of it 😅)

Forgive me if people have already said this, but your diss topic and vlog concept tooootally reminds me of Lizzie Bennet from the KZbin series adaptation of Pride & Prejudice, if you've seen it!

So excited for Diss-mas!! <3 But please take care of yourself so you don't burn out!!