¶¡ÏãÔ°AV

English master's student in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

Tell us a little about yourself, including what inspires you to learn and continue in your chosen field

I previously did my BA at ¶¡ÏãÔ°AV (with a Joint Major in English and History, and a Minor in Indigenous Studies), and I realized quickly in the last year of my undergraduate degree that I have much more to learn past the end of my BA. I focused on Indigenous Studies courses during the final year of my BA, so I wanted to learn more about Indigenization in the academy as an ongoing process when it comes to how we can diversify and open the university space to more conversations and action. That development starts on an individual level, so reading and researching literature has led me to engage with personal and collective stories from my position as a mixed-race non-Indigenous student. By learning at a higher level in the MA program, I ultimately hope to also think about how these processes of diversification and opening space can lead to positive change outside the university, too, in terms of how research can inform the ethics we live by.

Why did you choose to come to ¶¡ÏãÔ°AV?

I chose to return to ¶¡ÏãÔ°AV after finishing my BA after discussing the MA program with various faculty in the Department of English. ¶¡ÏãÔ°AV’s Department of English has great faculty for those looking to study contemporary Indigenous literatures like Dr. Sophie McCall and Deanna Reder, so having the opportunity to work with them informed my decision to complete my MA at ¶¡ÏãÔ°AV.

How would you describe your research or your program to a family member?

I would describe my research as an analysis of contemporary Indigenous autobiography in Canada. Recent research includes how Indigenous writers connect to their communities through autobiography, so I hope to examine how Indigenous writers who experience disconnections from communities also assert these connections. I am interested in analyzing how contemporary Indigenous writers resist disconnections from their communities by instead achieving connections through autobiographical storytelling. Connection, here, navigates both individualized and communal senses of identity in these writers’ lived experiences. Indigenous autobiography further aids an understanding of Indigenous identity as a process of reconnecting to spaces, histories, and Peoples within contemporary realities.

What three (3) keywords would you use to describe your research?

Three keywords I would use to describe my research include ‘settler-colonialism,’ ‘contemporary autobiography,’ and ‘Indigenous identity.’

How have your courses, RA-ships, TA-ships, or non-academic school experiences contributed to your academic and/or professional development?

My courses have aided my academic development due to the opportunities I have had to engage with colleagues and faculty in closer-knit classes. The rigour and engagement required as a graduate student necessitates me to be creative with research interventions – along with keeping an eye on up-to-date scholarship in various fields of literature – with term papers, but those larger tasks are sown in the classroom and later sprout up at the term’s end with assignments. Learning the expectations of graduate work from coursework has been a crucial part of my academic development that requires being a creative and collaborative thinker in a classroom setting. My TA-ships have further aided in my professional development due to the opportunity to work with a diverse array of students with their own learning needs. Each tutorial group differs from the last, so learning to adapt my teaching style from group to group – and course to course – has been invaluable. My understanding of how the classroom functions as a social and collaborative space has also increased from my experiences as a TA, so learning how to manage a classroom as both a teacher and a mentor has been a valuable lesson since starting my MA.

Have you been the recipient of any major or donor-funded awards? If so, please tell us which ones and a little about how the awards have impacted your studies and/or research

I received the SSHRC-CGSM for this upcoming academic year, which I intend to use for various academic pursuits – like conferences and submitting to a journal article – in relation to my MA project. These interests will impact the second year of my MA program, but receiving the SSHRC-CGSM will aid me in expenditures relating to these interests.

What have been the most valuable lessons you've learned along your graduate student journey (or in becoming a graduate student)?

One lesson I learned after starting my MA program is how to deal with ‘imposter syndrome’. When I started the program, I felt in over my head, as the jump in expectations from the BA to the MA caught me off-guard. Knowing that this feeling was not exclusive to me, though, helped me adapt my mindset to being a graduate student, along with approaching faculty members for assistance in engaging with course materials.

What are some tips for balancing your academic and personal life?

If possible, I attempt to plan out a week by determining what I hope to accomplish (in terms of readings, assignments, grading, etc.) and on what specific days I intend to do tasks. Breaking up a novel, for example, in fifths across a week helps to frame larger tasks as manageable ones, and I schedule my week intending to have time in the evenings and weekends to de-stress. Making sure I do not have consecutive days of intense work, too, helps me to avoid burning out from my academic life. If I do not complete given tasks in a day, having weekends to buffer my workflow helps to divide and balance my days, too, as taking the time for self-care helps to reenergize my academic work for the following day.

Contact Alexander:astad@sfu.ca

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