�鶹��Ѱ�����

I am very fortunate to have had the opportunity to mentor and advise a brilliant group of MA and PhD students during my time at the �鶹��Ѱ�����. Because my main appointment is in Linguistics not Anthropology, prospective students interested in working with me as their primary advisor must apply through the Department of Linguistics.

Applicants should submit a detailed 1-3 page “Statement of Purpose” as part of the application that describes their research interests and visions for either MA or PhD study. In your statement, you should outline previous courses you have taken and research projects you have conducted that have helped prepare you for graduate study. The strongest applicants will build a statement that proposes to work with at least three faculty members in the Department of Linguistics. It is unlikely that I will be able to take you on as a new student if other faculty are not also interested in your application.

As can be seen in the topics addressed by my MA and PhD students, I appreciate innovation and diversity in the projects my students pursue. However, I am especially interested in taking on students who want to conduct ethnography as a primary method in their research. This involves extended interaction with the communities and languages under study, together with the collection and analysis of discourse data. For me, this investigation necessarily involves deep engagement with critical social theory, such as postcolonial theory, media theory, feminist theory, queer theory, or other theoretical perspectives that may be relevant to research in linguistic anthropology and sociolinguistics. More information about how I view ethnography as a central method in the study of language, gender, and sexuality can be found in my 2021 article with Jenny Davis, titled Ethnography and the Shifting Semiotics of Gender and Sexuality. As much of my own research involves Hindi speakers in India, I welcome applications from students interested in pursuing projects in South Asia. 

The Department of Linguistics is typically unable to offer financial support to MA students, with the exception of occasional service, research, or teaching positions. However, many MA students are successful in securing TA-ships or other positions after arriving at �鶹��Ѱ�����Boulder. At the PhD level, we offer full support to our PhD students with five years of TA-ships or RA-ships. Our financial commitment to students at the PhD level makes the size of our PhD program relatively small and the application process quite competitive compared to our MA program.

I encourage students to send me an introductory email outlining their research ideas and interests before applying to the program!