June 2021
June 2021 - The Journey of a Perpetual Student: Art School Dropout to PhD
Laura Courto (ESR 9 - Cambridge)
“Why are you doing a PhD and how did you get there?” A two-part question all PhD students are asked and one that strikes fear into the hearts of many. Or at least it certainly freaks me out. Why? Because I don’t really know. Why a PhD in Archaeology at the University of Cambridge? Why SeaChanges?
It all started back in 2011 when I first applied to University and went to Art School. That’s right, for a whole 72 hours I was a Visual Communication student studying graphic design and illustration. It took one day, a single three hour lecture, to know that I was not going to survive three years talking about symbolism and making dioramas. Over the next two days I skipped 6 classes (already on track to being a fabulous student!) while attempting to enrol in my ‘second choice’ - Music. This turned out to be the first degree shift of many and one that I have questioned several times. However, I put my interest in art and illustration to good use over the years and continued drawing and painting as a hobby, taking inspiration from the things I was studying.
Photos and artwork by Laura Courto.
Studying at the Conservatorium of Music (UTAS) was challenging. I was a contemporary pianist, and later saxophonist, that was both terrified of, and terrible at, improvisation. A recipe for success! While my love of music theory and history carried me through the first two years of my degree, I quickly lost the passion I had for playing and eventually had to acknowledge that I was staying for the wrong reasons. I loved learning and had a wide range of interests that I had been pursuing personally throughout my degree. In particular, I had attended several events, performances and lectures examining the intersections of art and science, with specific focus on art and music created in connection with Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Not wanting to completely lose my love of music I decided to pursue my interest in polar science. So at the end of my second year, with no background in science, I told my friends and family I was quitting music to start a Bachelor of Marine and Antarctic Science (BMAS).
Would you believe that this was emphatically NOT a popular decision?! At the time I was utterly outraged by the lack of support. Looking back, I understand why people were sceptical. The words ‘you can’t just degree hop forever Laura and finish nothing,’ were repeated by many, but I was convinced that this was the right choice. I was almost ready to give up on my music degree entirely, but a conversation with my saxophone teacher, in many ways, changed my life. Not wanting me to have wasted the time and effort I had invested into my music degree, he suggested I complete the few credits I needed while simultaneously undertaking the first year of a BMAS.
Should anyone ever recommend that you complete two degrees simultaneously that aren’t designed to be taken that way - RUN. Run far. While I’ll be forever grateful that I was encouraged to complete my music degree, 2013 was, in hindsight, an unmitigated disaster (and administratively a very grey area). I think I survived on pure stubbornness alone. The end result may have been the completion of a music degree AND the first year of a BMAS, but my results and level of engagement across the board were average and the scoreboard of Laura vs Insomnia was lying heavily in favour of the latter.
Photo: The second of three graduations (so far) - University of Tasmania.
Photos: Fieldwork degrees are the best degrees!
I graduated with a BMAS in 2017 after a few internal degree restructures and a semester abroad (because nothing is EVER that simple). If you ever have the chance to spend a semester on exchange, do it. From an academic perspective, studying biological oceanography and climate change science and policy in the Northern Hemisphere (University of East Anglia), was exactly what I needed to round out a VERY Southern Hemisphere focused degree. However, perhaps more importantly, it was my first time travelling outside of Australia, and getting out of my very narrow ‘Tasmania’ bubble opened up the world in a way I hadn’t anticipated.
It was very much my time on exchange that encouraged me to continue studying. It hadn’t been the plan. I was sick of being broke. Sick of people telling me it ‘must be time to get a real job’. Sick of the lack of sleep that comes with working 100 part time jobs to support full time study. Part of me thought ‘perhaps they’re right, perhaps it’s time’, but a greater part of me decided that while financial stability may be nice, a full time office job would crush my soul.
So while applying for jobs (including interviewing for the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) Graduate Development Program), I also applied for several Masters degrees across Australia.
In the end it came down to two possible paths, Archaeology at the Australian National University (ANU) and Cultural Materials Conservation at the University of Melbourne (I also got offered a place in Diagnostic Radiography at the University of Sydney, but that’s a story for another time). Having studied zoology for several years, bioarchaeology/zooarchaeology was what interested me the most. So after some soul searching and a series of complex pro/con lists I moved to Canberra to start a Master of Archaeological and Evolutionary Science (MAES) majoring in Bioarchaeology and Forensic Anthropology. I will note at this point that the only way I financially survived my Masters was the fact that I could teach music.
A year into my Masters a fellow student forwarded me the SeaChanges PhD ESR9 project application link as a joke with the caption ‘This would be perfect for you. Shame you won't have finished your Master's!’ It was perfect. A project combining art, marine science, and archaeology?! I couldn’t have merged my eclectic interests better. Well the joke was on her! Having lost the concept of ‘spare time’ sometime during degree number 2, I had taken winter, spring and summer school and was well on track to graduate early. I was not optimistic going in. I only had 11 days between seeing the advert and the position close date; not a lot of time to put together a competitive application while working three jobs and attending classes full time. To be honest I was shocked when I received the notification that I had progressed to the interview round and even more shocked to be offered the position, but in many ways, I believe that the reason I’m here is simply down to ‘right place, right time, right project’.
Photos: Scott Polar Research Institute - sperm whale scrimshaw. A project combining art, marine science and archaeology!
Artwork by Laura Courto
Now coming to the end of my second year, I couldn’t be happier with the path I have taken (as complex as it has been). Absolutely nothing has gone to plan. Let’s face it, most of my time as an ESR has been spent in various stages of COVID-19 lockdown trying to convince people that my ever growing LEGO collection is still cheaper than long term therapy. However, I’ve learnt that sticking to a plan is far less important than being adaptable; and sometimes the process is more important than the end result.
Over the last two years I have met an amazing group of people (well at least the top ⅓ of some amazing people and their equally amazing zoom backgrounds); been immersed in a fantastically supportive research community; and participated in conferences, seminars, workshops, and training sessions all over the world. Although it has been challenging, I absolutely believe that pursuing this project was the right step in my chaotic journey.