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Journal Articles

Discussion in 'Baptist Colleges & Seminaries' started by Martin, Aug 8, 2006.

  1. Martin

    Martin Active Member

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    I need a little help from anyone on this board who has published journal articles (theology, church history, etc).

    FYI...
    I have a Masters (Religion) degree and I am in the process of working on a second Masters (History). When I am finished with that degree I will start teaching history/religion in a community college (etc) and begin work on entering a PhD program (hopefully ancient history). My goal, when I have finished my second Masters, is to teach history at a University (hopefully Christian). I have been doing some reading on getting into PhD programs, and getting jobs in the college teaching profession, and I have discovered that it really helps if one has had papers published in journals (etc).

    That being said...

    Does anyone here know of any journals that accept "first time" articles (etc)? Where should I start?

    Any information would be helpful.

    Thanks!
     
  2. RandR

    RandR New Member

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    I've never had something published in a peer-reviewed journal. BUT... I once had a professor tell me that he thought I should submit a paper I'd written to a particular journal.

    All that to say...ask some of your profs if anything you've already written is publication-caliber. It they think "yes" or even "maybe" perhaps they could also direct you from there.

    Just a thought. I'm sure some of the other guys have been published and can be a lot more helpful.
     
  3. Rhetorician

    Rhetorician Administrator
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    Professional Conferences

    Martin,

    One thing you may want to do is to do the "Graduate Teaching Assistant" (GTA or TA) thing. You get experience teaching, it helps defray the costs of PhD tuition, and "it puts you in the know" so to speak. This is what I did and it was a real education in itself.

    Then start attending the professional conferences in whichever discipline you prefer. Pick one of the smaller regional conferences to start out. Finagle one of your favorite professors to let you read a "student paper" from one of your seminars. There are even "student paper" contests at the conferences. Again this is what I did in grad school.

    You must be thick skinned. Your peers will critique your paper for you and give you helpful feedback. But sometimes you will be cut to the quick b/c this atmosphere can be "cut throat." Those other students to whom you read the paper and who will be critiquing your work will be hitting the job market at the same time that you do when you graduate.

    I would also suggest that you apply and study for the PhD in whatever discipline via one of these three different routes:

    1. Study with someone who is an outstanding scholar in a field or sub-field if and when (s)he will take you on as a project.

    2. Study at a big name school if you can afford it like, "H," Princeton, Yale, Vandy, Emory or such. If you cannot get to one of them then go to a state school that has an outstanding rep. like UNC, Georgia, U of Texas, U. of Virginia, etc.

    3. Lastly, I would suggest you come up with an idea/thesis that has never been studied before. Then you can possibly get a world class scholar (#1 above) to take you on as a personal project.

    I used these and have seen them work well in Rhetoric and Religion mainly but should work in some attendant discipline as well.

    Forwhatitisworth!!:smilewinkgrin:

    sdg!

    rd
     
    #3 Rhetorician, Aug 8, 2006
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 8, 2006
  4. Martin

    Martin Active Member

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    ==Yea my brother is doing that. He is earning a MA in Sports Administration and wants to coach at the college level. He is actually teaching three courses this fall. I wanted to do the GTA thing this fall, but the history department is very small and I was unable to get a position. I will, however, keep an eye open to that. I am working in the computer department at the University so I will start getting some connections in the University itself.

    I think most history PhDs require student teaching at some point. At least the ones I have looked into. Most of the programs I have looked into, btw, are ancient history programs since that is what I wish to focus on (mainly the first century Roman Empire). However I am keeping other options open as backup since PhDs in ancient history are sort of difficult to come by. Some of my "backups" are American History (focusing on Christianity in the colonies) or, as a really last resort, European History (focusing on the period of the reformation).

    If, at the end of the day, I can't get a PhD in ancient history I would be most pleased to get a PhD in American History. However American History is like theological studies. There are more people than jobs.:eek:



    ==This I will certainly do during my MA/History studies.


    ==Great advice, thanks! :thumbs:

    ==I have looked into the PhD programs at UNC, Vanderbuilt, Western Michigan, George Mason University, and the University of South Carolina (among others). When it comes time I will probably apply to several of them.


    ==I have been working on that (yes, even this early). I have not come up with anything yet but I can be a slow cooker :laugh: .
     
  5. Martin

    Martin Active Member

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    ==Wow. I never had that happen. During my first MA program one professor did say that he really enjoyed one of my papers but he never suggested I submit it to a journal. Sad thing is that I can't recall which paper he was talking about :( .
     
  6. gb93433

    gb93433 Active Member
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    Good luck getting a teaching job without any experience. One of the best ways is to be a graduate assistant. It provides money and tuition expenses along with getting to know the professors better.

    Take a look at http://chronicle.com/jobs/
     
  7. Martin

    Martin Active Member

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    ==Thanks, and I agree. I do hope to get into a GA program next semester if I can. I also plan on teaching at one of the local community colleges whenever they get a opening in religion or after I graduate with the history degree. So I will get experience before I even start a PhD program or before I seek to work at a University.
     
  8. preachinjesus

    preachinjesus Well-Known Member
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    I know of several journals that will accept first time articles. Usually they are a bit lesser known than mainline journals (JETS, Novum Testamum, SBL, etc.) A good place to start with getting published is to look to some major journals is checking on doing some book reviews.

    I know JETS in particular accepts book reviews and has various persons over each major discipline who assign the reviews to recently accepted works. That is an awfully good way to get started on publishing. Also check into presenting papers at society gatherings. ETS provides that PhD students, and even some masters students, can present at regional meetings. Just a thought.
     
  9. Rhetorician

    Rhetorician Administrator
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    Response to Book Reviews

    To all who have an ear:

    Now that you have brought it up; I have just received this week an "invite" to do another book review for JETS Journal (Evangelical Theological Society). Once you get started with them (any journal) they will use you possibly more than you would want to be used.

    You must, however, do a very good job. Shall I say an academic job? You must pick and choose your book well. You must have some level of expertise in the area of the academy where the subject matter of the book is related.

    Make sure you "do your homework." Learn how to do a book review. My students @ college have to learn how to do one. They want to make it a high school "book report." Readers will want to know from your personal and academic credentials why or why not one should read and/or spend money on the work. It also keeps you "on the cutting edge" of your field or a field that interests you.

    Obviously, I read & critique in the areas of Rhetoric, Public Address, and Homiletics. But, in my dossier I have listed other research interest like Social Ethics, Race Relations in the Churches, Denominational Dialog Concerning Unity, etc. So, one will have to be somewhat knowledgeable to do something outside your Master's or PhD field if you review books there.

    Let me also hasten to say: it is a very good way to get your name out there in the beginning. You can even write the major journals of your interest, speak to the book review editors, tell them your are trying to get a writing career started, and generally they will give you a chance. They may even give you more work than you want to do in the long run. Just remember those editors though, if they need you to do a review make sure you do a good job and do it in a timely manner.

    sdg!:thumbs:

    rd
     
  10. paidagogos

    paidagogos Active Member

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    Reason for writing?

    The biggest question is the reason for writing and publishing a journal article. IMHO, it should be because you have something worthwhile to say, not to build your portfolio. Because advancement and tenure are often related to published works, publishing has become rungs on the ladder. Furthermore, publishing is not an end unto itself although it has come to be abused in this way. Seeing one's name in print is not a good reason.

    Peter Medawar tells an interesting story when he was being interviewed to become a fellow at Oxford. When he responded to the question of how many journal articles he had published, the interviewer replied, "Oh, that's way too many." The idea was that volumious publication decreased the quality and originality. I somewhat agree. Nowadays, I find that researchers and writers spin a very small insight into many words and many articles.

    My advice is that you have something worthwhile to say, write it. Put it on the market and see if it has any value. There are a million wannabe writers. The free market in ideas is as viable as the economic side.

    From a personal standpoint, I have often found that my ideas are not always as important as I may think. Other folks have good ideas too. If someone else is saying what needs to be said and doing well, then I don't need to duplicate their efforts. To keep writing from becoming a matter of pride, I often try to use pseudonyms. Recently, I have foregone several opportunities for articles and book reviews and spent more time with my family.
     
  11. Martin

    Martin Active Member

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    My Time Here Is Dwindling

    ==To be perfectly honest I would rather not publish anything at all. I have little, or no, interest in seeing my name in print. However when I have finished my PhD I do wish to get out of the community college system (where I will be at that time) and get into the University system and getting published is a very helpful "rung in the ladder". While I love to study and do research I find writing those type of research papers frustrating and very stressful. I am much better at doing my own research in an area and then standing up in front of a group and teaching that material. I am required to do research for school and I will probably be required to do research "on the job" as well. Well, thats life I guess...

    ==Very true. I don't know how familiar you are with NT Wright, or his writings, but he is a perfect example of this. In reading several of his "major" books (Christian Origins and the Question of God) I have noticed many times where he spent 25 pages going in circles with something I could have covered in 5 or 10 pages. Maybe he is trying to cover every possible "if", "and", or "but", or something like that. However it is frustrating to read a paper or book where the author just keeps going on about something.

    ==Right now I have nothing to say and if I did I don't have the time to put it into written form (etc). I have several papers due by mid-September and a major project due by early October. The result is my personal time in which I do my own research is being restricted and my time on this board will also decrease alot over the next two or three weeks. This board must come behind school research/writing and personal research.


    ==My problem is that most people don't find interesting the things I find interesting. Sure some people in historical/theological studies do find it interesting, but few outside of that circle. You can be sure that when I do pick up my pin and start to write something to be published (journal, book review, etc) it will be when I have something unique to share. Something that will add to the academic library on that subject. If I am going to sacrifice my time and energy it better be worth it. However, being realistic here, one day soon I will be forced to write a article (etc) for publication and/or presentation. I am just looking for ideas on how I should go about doing that.
     
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