may · contain · language

Where to begin...

The seminar (back on Thursday June 16) went well. The folks at the institution (Svenska språket, University of Gothenburg... which would be ”The Swedish Language”, but I don't think that's the official English name) seem genuinely interested in my paper on language use in tabletop role-playing games. I won't go into details on the paper in this post – it will eventually be on the institution's web site and then I'll post a link and an English summary here. I got the highest grade (of two, or three counting ”fail”), though it may have been a bit of a close shave. They liked a lot of things in the paper content-wise, but not so much certain things about the structure and language. Still, I'd certainly rather have it that way than the other way around – and of course I'm very happy about the grade. That counts for two courses and the equivalent of one whole semester of studies in itself, and could have been decisive for my ”total” grades for two different semesters (though at least one of them would have been the same with a simple ”pass” here). The ”two courses” thing is because the project got a little bigger than was the plan when it was begun – in 2005! - and somewhere along the way I got the offer to do a little polishing and have it count as two papers (on two different ”levels”). 2005... There are things about the circumstances when I began to work on the paper that I have trouble recalling now. And then, for four years, the thing's been with me during everything else that's happened. (I've done a few other things than work on the paper.) It feels good now, if a bit odd, to have it finished. Or almost finished – I'm still working on a few little things for the version that will be archived and put online.

I have this plan to be a researcher and get a PhD. I've even put in my first application for a job as a graduate student. (I don't know exactly how this compares to other countries, but in Sweden these days the places in graduate school are jobs (with pay, which is nice of course) and not necessarily very easy to get into.) The application was even put in before the seminar (so that, technically, I was quite a bit away from being formally qualified), which was not something I had planned. It was, however, necessary if I was to apply for these two particular posts (at the University of Linköping), and the same person who first suggested I apply thought I might as well at least ask if it was ok to apply and then send the grades for my paper later... With some hesitation, I was told it was. So now Linköping is waiting – holding their breath, no doubt – for that, and the final version of my paper, and an outline for the research project which would then eventually be the basis for my doctoral thesis – which would be a study, or rather several linked studies, of Wikipedia. (Mainly text- and discourse analysis, but there are also some things I'm interested in that fall outside of that.) Anyway, the part of the application I could send did get to Linköping on time, and I've got an official note telling me that it did and that I'm competing with 42 other people about the two positions, which will be given to two happy people probably in October. So that's good, I guess.

What I am very happy with is that I feel I'm taken seriously about this here ”at home”, in Gothenburg. And they're telling me to write articles, both on role-playing games and on Wikipedia, and offering me some help with that. This, of course, I'll try to do – getting published would be both seriously cool and – from a somewhat more crass perspective – not hurtful to my CV.

Yes... With the paper done, I can get an ”old” Swedish ”Filosofie magister”-exam, which I'll do. I lack some things, I'm not sure at the moment how much, for the ”international” Master exam, and I'll look into working on that come autumn. It's possible that would look a bit better, and also there's at least one course I'd read for that which I think I could learn a lot of useful things from. (Scientific writing.)

Can't write much more now for lack of time, but I got the important news about my academic life in, I think. In other news: Birthday coming up (July 8). Work coming up a bit closer than that, a bit more than an hour from now. I have not been at work since Monday, and that was three hours, so I'm a bit like... but I was having such a great time not working! But it'll be ok, I guess. Ok, bye now.

Current Mood:

rushed