By Marc Stein
June 2001
Members of the Committee on Lesbian and Gay History (CLGH), an affiliated society of the American Historical Association (AHA), have long been concerned about the status of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (lgbtq) history and historians within the historical profession. While CLGH discussions have often focussed on the problems and possibilities faced by historians who themselves identify as lgbtq and on the failures and successes of the profession in incorporating lgbtq history into college and university teaching and research, the Committee has also concentrated on the graduate school and job market experiences of those who complete PhD dissertations on lgbtq history topics. Collectively, these individuals have been responsible for many of the advances that lgbtq history has enjoyed in the last 30 years, but they are also the people who, along with independent scholars, have often been most vulnerable to institutional, professional, and departmental discrimination. A recent survey of 44 scholars who have completed or are completing PhD dissertations that deal with lgbtq history, in graduate programs based in the United States and Canada, highlights the difficulties faced by many in the field.
The survey was conducted from August 2000 to January 2001. The analysis that follows is based on 44 of the 51 responses received. Of the seven respondents whose answers are not discussed here, two did not indicate that their dissertations dealt with lgbtq history; four completed PhDs in comparative literature, sociology, art and art history, or French studies; and one completed a PhD in Europe and lives in Europe. The remaining 44 responses are believed to cover the vast majority of lgbtq history dissertations produced or in production in history, American Studies, or liberal arts programs in the United States and Canada. Please note, however, that the survey has not captured all people who have completed or are in the process of completing dissertations that deal in part or in full with lgbtq history. One person who completed such a dissertation in the 1970s has died; three people who completed such dissertations in the early 1990s did not respond. This survey also has not captured people who left their PhD programs in the course of doing dissertations on lgbtq history. At least four people did so in the 1990s. For a bibliography of lgbtq history dissertations, see the CLGH Newsletter 14, no. 2 (Fall 2000): 8-11. Finally, the survey does not cover the experiences of people who have produced scholarship in lgbtq history as independent or post-tenure scholars; nor does it discuss the relative successes that lgbtq historians have had with undergraduate and graduate student enrollments, journal publications, book publishing, and research grants and fellowships. In fact, it is precisely the gap between these successes and the job market problems discussed in this study that requires further analysis and action.
This report has two purposes. One goal is to provide information that will be valuable for those who are contemplating doing graduate work in lgbtq history, those who are doing such work currently, and those who are thinking about job prospects in lgbtq history. The second goal is to provide all historians with information that will help the history profession deal better with the field of lgbtq history in the future than it has done in the past.
Overall, the data suggests that despite a significant increase in the number of lgbtq history PhDs produced over the past decade, U.S. history departments have not made a commensurate increase in hiring such scholars to tenure-track positions. Unless change occurs, scholars completing PhDs on lgbtq history can expect to meet with some success in gaining part-time and temporary academic employment, but less success in gaining tenure-track or equivalent (TTE) positions. About half of the part-time and temporary positions will not be in history departments, but they will likely be obtained within a relatively short period of time after lgbtq history scholars begin applying for them and within a relatively short period of time after (and in some cases even before) completing the PhD. Only about half of those completing PhDs in lgbtq history can expect to meet with success in gaining TTE employment. The rest are likely to find themselves working in part-time or temporary academic positions, in educational administration, in libraries and archives, in public history, or in other non-academic jobs. Some may do so because of personal and professional preferences, but the majority will take non-TTE jobs because of their inability to secure TTE positions. Of the TTE positions obtained, more than half will be in history departments outside of the United States, in women’s studies/gender studies units, in American Studies units, or in other nonhistory units. Some lgbtq history PhDs will prefer to work outside of the United States and in nonhistory units, but the majority will do so in the context of difficulties obtaining TTE positions in U.S. history departments. Those who succeed in obtaining TTE appointments will likely do so within three years of first applying for them and within two years of completing the PhD. The evidence of two decades thus suggests that, unless things change, the majority of people completing PhDs with dissertations on lgbtq history will not meet with success in gaining tenure-track primary appointments in U.S. history departments.
THE SAMPLE
Of the 44 whose survey responses were analyzed, 59 percent are male, 41 percent are female, 82 percent live in the United States, 14 percent live in Canada, and 5 percent live in the U.K.
| Male | 26 (59%) |
| Female | 18 (41%) |
| U.S. Residence | 36 (82%) |
| Canada Residence | 6 (14%) |
| UK Residence | 2 (5%) |
As the figures in Table 2 indicate, 32 respondents (73 percent) have completed their PhDs. Of these 32, 18 (56 percent) are in TTE positions. When the four non-respondents who are known to have completed lgbtq history dissertations are included, 18 of 36 people with completed PhDs (50 percent) are in TTE positions. The majority of respondents with completed PhDs (59 percent) are male. The majority of graduate student respondents (58%) are male. The majority of women with completed PhDs (62 percent) have TTE appointments. A smaller majority of men with completed PhDs (53 percent) have TTE appointments. This difference may reflect the hiring of more female lgbtq historians in women’s studies and women’s history positions.
Table 2: Current Positions by Rank, Sector, and Sex
| Tenure-Track/Equivalent | ||
| Professor | 2 | (5%) (2M/0F) |
| Assoc. Professor | 6 | (14%) (2M/4F) |
| Asst. Professor/Lec | 10 | (23%) (6M/4F) |
| Visiting Professor/Fellow | 2 | (5%) (2M/0F) |
| Part-Time Lecturer/Adjunct* | 3 | (7%) (2M/1F) |
| Graduate Student* | 12 | (27%) (7M/5F) |
| Academic Administration* | 1 | (2%) (0M/1F) |
| Public History/Library* | 4 | (9%) (3M/1F) |
| Non-Academic/Non-Public | 4 | (9%) (2M/2F) |
| Total | 44 (26M/18F) |
| Completed PhDs | 32 (19M/13F) |
| Completed PhDs in Tenure-Track/Equivalent Appointments | 18 (10M/8F) |
Total 44 (26M/18F)
Completed PhDs 32 (19M/13F)
Completed PhDs in Tenure-Track/Equivalent Appointments 18 (10M/8F)
*Graduate students, academic administrators, and public historians/librarians who also work as part-time lecturers or adjuncts have been counted as graduate students, academic administrators, and public historians/librarians and not as part-time lecturers or adjuncts.
GRADUATE SCHOOL
The 44 respondents earned or are earning their PhDs in 31 programs at 29 universities in the United States and Canada. Eleven programs (at Duke Univ., NYU, Queen’s Univ., Rutgers Univ., Stanford Univ., UCLA, Univ. of California at Santa Cruz, Univ. of Chicago, Univ. of Minnesota, Univ. of Pennsylvania, and Univ. of Wisconsin at Madison) each account for more than one respondent. These 11 schools account for a majority (55%) of the respondents. No one program has produced a large number of lgbtq history PhDs.
Table 3: Graduate Universities and Programs of Respondents
American U., History 1 Brown U., American Civilization 1
Columbia U., History 1 Duke U., History 3
Emory U., Liberal Arts 1 Harvard U., History of Science 1
Ohio State U., History 1 New York U., American Studies 1
New York U., History 2 Northwestern U., History 1
Queen’s U., History 2 Rutgers U., History 2
Stanford U., History 2 SUNY, Binghamton, History 1
UC, Berkeley, History 1 UC, Los Angeles, History 2
UC, San Diego, History 1 UC, Santa Cruz, History of Consciousness 2
U. of Chicago, History 2 U. of Iowa, American Studies 1
U. of Minnesota, American Studies 1 U. of New Mexico 1
U. of Pennsylvania, History 3 U. of Minnesota, History 2
U. of Southern California, History 1 U. of North Carolina, History 1
Vanderbilt U., History 1 U. of Rochester, History 1
York U., History 1 U. of Wisconsin, Madison, History 2
Yale U., History 1
Over 80 percent of all respondents, respondents with completed PhDs, and respondents in TTE positions earned or are earning their PhDs in history programs. The remainder were or are in American studies or liberal arts. All 32 respondents with completed PhDs earned their PhDs at universities in the United States.
Table 4: Graduate Program Disciplines
All Respondents Completed PhDs Tenure-Track/Equivalent
History 38 (86%) 26 (81%) 16 (89%)
American Studies 5 (11%) 5 (16%) 1 (6%)
Liberal Arts 1 (2%) 1 (3%) 1 (6%)
There has been a sharp increase in the number of graduate students working on lgbtq history since the 1970s. Three respondents began graduate studies in the 1970s; 17 began in the 1980s; 24 began in the 1990s. More respondents began graduate studies in the 1990s than began graduate studies in the 1970s and 1980s combined. Two respondents finished their PhDs in the 1980s; 24 finished in the 1990s. Twelve times as many respondents finished in the 1990s as finished in the 1980s.
Table 5: First and Final Years in Graduate School
First Year Final Year
1970-1974 1 (1M/0F)
1975-1979 2 (1M/1F)
1980-1984 4 (1M/3F) 1 (1M/0F)
1985-1989 13 (10M/3F) 1 (1M/0F)
1990-1994 21 (12M/9F) 9 (5M/4F)
1995-1999 *3 (1M/2F) 15 (8M/7F)
2000 6 (4M/2F)
Not Completed 12 (7M/5F)
*There are likely more people who began graduate school in 1995-1999 than is suggested by this number.
The majority of respondents (70 percent) are working or worked on U.S. topics. The remainder are working or worked on Europe (9 percent), Canada (7 percent), Asia (5 percent), historiography (5 percent), Latin America (2 percent), and US/Canada (2 percent).
Table 6: Dissertation Topics
U.S 31 (70%) Canada 3 (7%)
U.S./Canada 1 (2%) European 4 (9%)
Asian 2 (5%) Latin America 1 (2%)
Historiography 2 (5%)
Almost half of the respondents (48 percent) indicate that 100 percent of their dissertation deals with lgbtq history; 27 percent indicate that 50-90 percent of their dissertation deals with lgbtq history; 25 percent indicate that 5-35 percent of their dissertation deals with lgbtq history.
Table 7: Percentage of Dissertation Contents Dealing with LGBTQ Topics
100% LGBTQ 21 (48%)
50-90% LGBTQ 12 (27%)
5-35% LGBTQ 11 (25%)
A total of 142 people have served or are serving as dissertation supervisor or dissertation reader for the 44 respondents. Five people have supervised more than one of the dissertations. Seventeen people have served as supervisor or reader for more than one of the dissertations.
Table 8: Dissertation Supervisors and Readers
Total Number of Dissertation Supervisors 39*
Total Number of Dissertation Readers (Not Including Supervisors) 103
Dissertation Supervisors Who Have Supervised or Are Supervising More Than One Dissertation (William Chafe, George Chauncey, Sara Evans, Linda Gordon, Carroll Smith-Rosenberg) 5
Dissertation Supervisors and Readers Who Have Supervised, Are Supervising, Have Served as Reader, or Are Serving as Reader for More Than One Dissertation
(George Chauncey, William Chafe, Lizbeth Cohen, John D’Emilio, Lisa Duggan, Sara Evans, Estelle Freedman, Lawrence Goodwyn, Linda Gordon, Nancy Hewitt, Martha Hodes, Thomas Holt, Michael Katz, Vanessa Schwartz, Bonnie Smith, Carroll Smith-Rosenberg, Daniel Walkowitz) 17
*One supervisor (Carroll Smith-Rosenberg) accounts for three dissertations; four others account for two dissertations; one respondent had two supervisors.
The average length of time it has taken respondents to complete their PhDs is 7.8 years. More than three-quarters of those who have finished (78%) did so in 6-9 years.
Table 9: Years of Graduate Study
2-5 Years* 3 (3M/0F)
6-7 Years 13 (5M/8F)
8-9 Years 12 (9M/3F)
10-17 Years 4 (2M/2F)
Not Completed 12 (7M/5F)
Average For Completed PhDs 7.8 Years
Male 7.4 Years
Female 8.3 Years
*One person finished in two years; this person completed a book as an independent scholar before beginning graduate school; the book was then accepted as his dissertation.
JOB SEARCH
Thirty-one respondents have applied for some type of faculty position; 29 have applied for TTE positions. In line with the growing production of PhDs in lgbtq history, more than six times as many respondents with finished PhDs (25) first began applying for faculty positions in the 1990s as had first begun applying for faculty positions in the 1980s (4). More than five times as many respondents with finished PhDs (22) first began applying for TTE positions in the 1990s as had first begun applying for TTE positions in the 1980s (4).
Table 10: Year First Applied for Faculty Positions for Respondents with Completed PhDs
All Types of Positions Tenure-Track/Equivalent Positions
1980-1984 1 (1M/0F) 1 (1M/0F)
1985-1989 3 (2M/1F) 3 (2M/1F)
1990-1994 10 (5M/5F) 9 (4M/5F)
1995-1999 15 (10M/5F) 13 (8M/5F)
2000-2004 2 (1M/1F) 3 (2M/1F)
Did Not Apply 1 (0M/1F) 3 (2M/1F)
Most respondents with completed PhDs (84 percent) have been hired as faculty (TTE, part-time, or temporary). There was a significant increase in the hiring of respondents in the 1990s: 11 times as many respondents were hired as faculty in the 1990s (22) as were hired as faculty in the 1980s (2). (Three more were hired in 2000.)
Table 11: Year First Hired as Faculty (Including Part-Time and Temporary) for Respondents with Completed PhDs
Completed PhDs 1980-1994 Completed PhDs 1995-2000
1980-1984 1 (1M/0F)
1985-1989 1 (1M/0F)
1990-1994 8 (4M/4F) 3 (1M/2F)
1995-1999 1 (1M/0F) 10 (7M/3F)
2000-2004 3 (2M/1F)
Not Hired 4 (2M/2F)
Did Not Apply 1 (0M/1F)
On average, the 27 respondents hired as faculty were hired one year after first applying for faculty positions and six months before completing their PhDs. The range was from 0 to 6 years after first applying for faculty positions and from eight years before finishing the PhD to four years after finishing the PhD. The later cohort was hired more quickly than the earlier cohort, though this may change as more of the later cohort is hired.
Table 12: Number of Years Between First Applying and First Hiring (Including Part-Time and Temporary) for Respondents with Completed PhDs
Completed PhDs 1980-1994 Completed PhDs 1995-2000
0 4 (2M/2F) 6 (5M/1F)
1 4 (2M/2F) 7 (5M/2F)
2 1 (1M/0F) 3 (0M/3F)
3 1 (1M/0F)
6 1 (1M/0F)
Not Hired 4 (2M/2F)
Did Not Apply 1 (0M/1F)
Average for Those Hired 1.4 0.8
Average For Those Hired in Both Cohorts 1.0
Table 13: Number of Years Between End of PhD and First Hiring (Including Part-Time and Temporary) for Respondents with Completed PhDs
Completed PhDs 1980-1994 Completed PhDs 1995-2000
Less Than 0 3 (1M/2F) (-1, -1, -2) 7 (3M/4F) (-1, -1, -1, -2, -2, -5, -8)
0 4 (2M/2F) 6 (6M/0F)
1 3 (3M/0F) 2 (1M/1F)
2 1 (0M/1F)
4 1 (1M/0F)
Not Hired 4 (2M/2F)
Did Not Apply 1 (0M/1F)
Average for Those Hired 0.3 -1.0
Average for Those Hired in Both Cohorts -0.5
Respondents report finding part-time and temporary employment in a wide range of fields and academic units. Of the 72 part-time and temporary positions that have been or are currently held by respondents, 20 (28 percent) were in lgbtq and/or sexuality studies, 25 (35 percent) were in women’s and/or gender studies, 29 (40 percent) were in other fields of history; and 11 (15 percent) were in other disciplines. Most of these appointments, 43 (60 percent), were in history departments or centers, but 10 (14 percent) were in women’s/gender studies units, 5 (7 percent) were in American studies/civilization units, and 4 (6 percent) were in English, literature, or writing units.
Table 14: Part-Time and Temporary Job Descriptions and Departments (for All Respondents)
U.S. History and U.S. History of Sexuality (History) 1
U.S. History of Sexuality (History) 2
Gender and Sexuality Studies (Anthropology) 2
Gender and Sexuality Studies (Native American Studies) 1
Gender and Sexuality Studies (American Studies) 1
Gender and Sexuality in U.S. History; U.S. Women’s History (History) 1
Gender, Sexuality, Immigration, Ethnicity (Metropolitan Studies) 1
History of Sexuality and U.S. Women’s History (History) 1
LGBT Studies (History) 1
LGBT History (History) 2
Latina Lesbians (Chicano Studies/LGBT Studies) 1
European Sex and Sexuality (History) 2
History of Sexuality (Continuing Education) 1
History of Sexuality (History) 2
Gender, Sexuality, and Oral History (History, Women’s Studies, Documentary Studies) 1
Total: LGBTQ and Sexuality Studies 20
Women’s Studies (Women’s Studies) 5
U.S. Women’s History (American Civilization) 1
U.S. Women’s History (History) 3
U.S. Women’s History (Women’s Studies) 1
Women of Color (History) 1
U.S. History and U.S. Women’s History (History) 1
Gender Studies (Gender Studies) 1
U.S. History and Women’s Studies (History/Women’s Studies) 1
Masculinity and Feminism (Women’s Studies) 1
Total: Women’s and Gender Studies 15 (+10 Above)
U.S. History (History) 11
History of War (History) 2
Russian and Soviet History (History) 1
Working Class History (History) 1
Modern Canadian Social History (Continuing Education) 1
World History (History) 1
Dimensions of Culture-Diversity (History) 1
Race and Ethnicity in the U.S. (History) 1
History of the U.S. in the 1950s (History) 1
History of the U.S. in the 1960s (History) 1
African American History (History) 1
U.S. Cold War (History) 1
Western Civilization (History) 1
Cultural History (Social Sciences and Management) 1
History and Ethics of Science and Technology (Science and Technology) 1
Total: History (Not Including LGBTQ, Sexuality, Women, Gender) 26 (+3 Above)
American Studies (American Studies) 3
African American Studies (African American Studies) 1
Liberal Arts (Liberal Arts) 1
Identities (History Research Center) 1
English (English) 1
The Beats (Literature) 1
Child Psychiatry (Neuropsychiatry) 1
Vietnam War (Writing) 1
War and Society (Writing) 1
Total: Miscellaneous 11
TOTAL 72
Of the 32 respondents with completed PhDs, 18 (56 percent) have been hired as TTE faculty. If the four non-respondents are included, 18 of 36 (50%) have been hired as TTE faculty. Of the 29 respondents who completed PhDs and applied for TTE positions, 62 percent (18) have been hired as TTE faculty. There was a significant increase in TTE hiring of respondents in the 1990s. Fifteen times as many respondents (15) were hired in TTE positions in the 1990s as were hired in the 1980s (1). (Two more were hired in 2000.) Of the respondents who completed PhDs between 1980 and 1994 and applied for TTE positions (11), 82% (9) have secured TTE positions. If the four non-respondents are included, 9 of 15 (60%) have secured TTE positions. Of the respondents who completed PhDs between 1995 and 2000 and applied for TTE positions (18), 50% (9) have secured TTE positions.
Table 15: Year First Hired as TTE Faculty for Respondents with Completed PhDs
Completed PhDs 1980-1994 Completed PhDs 1995-2000
1980-1984 1 (1M/0F)
1985-1989
1990-1994 6 (2M/4F) 1 (0M/1F)
1995-1999 2 (2M/0F) 6 (3M/3F)
2000-2004 2 (2M/0F)
Not Hired 2 (2M/0F) 9 (5M/4F)
Did Not Apply 3 (2M/1F)
On average, the 18 respondents with TTE positions were hired 2.8 years after first applying for TTE positions. The range was from 0 to 15 years. The average for the cohort of nine who completed PhDs from 1980 to 1994 was 3.8 years; the average for the cohort of nine who completed PhDs from 1995 to 2000 was 1.9 years. The later cohort was hired more quickly than the earlier cohort, though this may change as more of the later cohort is hired. Seven respondents secured TTE positions within one year of first applying. Seven secured TTE positions 2-3 years after first applying. Four secured TTE positions 4-15 years after first applying. Most respondents who have been hired in TTE positions (78%) have been hired within three years of first applying.
Table 16: Number of Years Between First Applying and First Hiring as TTE Faculty
Completed PhDs 1980-1994 Completed PhDs 1995-2000
0 2 (1M/1F) 2 (2M/0F)
1 3 (2M/1F)
2 1 (0M/1F) 1 (0M/1F)
3 4 (2M/2F) 1 (1M/0F)
4 1 (0M/1F)
5 1 (1M/0F) 1 (0M/1F)
15 1 (1M/0F)
Not Hired 2 (2M/0F) 9 (5M/4F)
Did Not Apply (2M/1F)
Average For Those Hired 3.8 1.9
Average for Those Hired in Both Cohorts 2.8
The average number of years between PhD completion and first hiring for these 18 respondents was 1.5. The range was from two years before PhD completion to 10 years after PhD completion. The average for the earlier cohort was 2.4 years; the average for the later cohort was 0.6 years. The later cohort was hired more quickly than the earlier cohort, though this, too, may change as more of the later cohort is hired. Six of 18 respondents (33%) who have been hired in TTE positions have been hired before or in the year in which they completed their PhDs. Six of 32 respondents (19%) who have completed PhDs have been hired in TTE positions before or in the year in which they completed their PhDs. Fifteen of 18 respondents (83%) who have been hired in TTE positions have been hired within two years of completing their PhDs. Seventeen of 18 respondents (94%) who have been hired in TTE positions have been hired within four years of completing their PhDs.
Table 17: Number of Years Between End of PhD and First Hiring as TTE Faculty for Respondents with Completed PhDs
Completed PhDs 1980-1994 Completed PhDs 1995-2000
Less Than 0 1 (0M/1F) (-2)
0 2 (1M/1F) 3 (3M/0F)
1 2 (1M/1F) 4 (1M/3F)
2 3 (1M/2F)
3 1 (1M/0F)
4 1 (1M/0F)
10 1 (1M/0F)
Not Hired 2 (2M/0F) 8 (5M/3F)
Did Not Apply 3 (2M/1F)
Average for Those Hired 2.4 0.6
Average for Those Hired in Both Cohorts 1.5
On average, the 18 respondents with TTE positions were first hired in these types of positions after six AHA convention interviews and six campus interviews. The range for AHA convention interviews was 0 to 16; the range for campus interviews was 1 to 41. About one-quarter (22%) of respondents who obtained TTE appointments did so without any AHA convention interviews. Half (50%) did so after 0-3 AHA convention interviews. Half (50%) did so after 5-16 AHA convention interviews. Five of 18 respondents (28%) who obtained TTE appointments did so on their first campus interview. Thirteen of 18 (72%) did so on their first, second, third, or fourth campus interviews. Five of 18 respondents (28%) did so after 5-41 campus interviews.
Table 18: Number of AHA Convention Interviews Before Obtaining TTE Appointments
Interviews Respondents
0 4
1 2
2 1
3 2
5 1
8 1
9 1
10 1
11 2
12 1
16 2
Average: 6.0
Table 19: Number of Campus Interviews Before Obtaining TTE Appointments
Interviews Respondents
1 5
2 2
3 4
4 2
5 1
6 1
8 1
12 1
41 1
Average: 5.6
Twenty schools (16 in the United States, two in Canada, and two in the U.K.) have hired respondents in TTE positions. No school has hired more than one respondent. Five of the schools are in the U.S. Northeast (all in New York and Pennsylvania); four are outside of the U.S.; four are in the U.S. Midwest (all in Illinois and Missouri); four are in the U.S. Southeast; three are in the U.S. West. Nine are in or near the largest cities (New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Toronto, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C.) in the United States and Canada.
Table 20: Colleges and Universities That Have Hired Respondents in TTE Positions
Bryn Mawr College (US) Cal State, Long Beach (US)
Clemson U. (US) College of William and Mary (US)
Columbia U. (US George Washington U. (US)
New York U. (US) Portsmouth U. (UK)
Southern Illinois U. (US) SUNY Buffalo (US)
U. of Chicago (US) U. of Colorado, Boulder (US)
U. of Illinois, Chicago (US) U. of Manitoba (Canada)
U. of North Carolina, Greensboro (US) U. Pennsylvania (US)
U. of Utah (US) U. of York (UK)
Washington U. (US) York U. (Canada)
Of the 18 respondents who have been hired in TTE positions, 11 (61 percent) were first hired to teach U.S. history/American studies, two (11 percent) to teach lgbtq studies, two (11 percent) to teach Asian history, one (6 percent) to teach History/European Studies, one (6 percent) to teach Latin American history, and one (6 percent) to teach public history. Of the 11 first hired to teach U.S. history/American studies, five were hired to teach post-1945, 20th century, or 19th/20th century U.S. history; three to teach U.S. women’s history; one to teach U.S. political history; one to teach U.S. women’s and U.S. political history; and one to teach American Studies.
Table 21: First Tenure-Track/Equivalent Job Descriptions
U.S. History, Post-1945 1
U.S. History, 20th Century 3
U.S. History, 19th and 20th Century 1
U.S. Women’s History 2
U.S. Women’s History and Women’s Studies 1
U.S. Women’s History and 20th Century Political History 1
U.S. Political History 1
American Studies 1
History/European Studies 1
Latin American History 1
Japanese History 1
Chinese History 1
Public History 1
LGBT Studies 1
Lesbian Studies 1
Those who completed PhDs in history were significantly more likely to find TTE positions (62 percent held TTE positions, as compared to 33 percent with PhDs in American studies or liberal arts). However, there is a net outflow of lgbtq historians from history departments to other types of academic units and from the United States to other countries. While 86 percent of respondents earned or are earning their PhDs in history departments, 63 percent of respondents, 47 percent of respondents with completed PhDs, and 72 percent of respondents with TTE appointments currently have primary or joint affiliations with history departments. Less than one-half of respondents (44 percent) with TTE jobs have exclusive appointments in U.S. history departments. Just under one-quarter of respondents (22 percent) with TTE appointments work in Canada or the U.K. (after having earned PhDs in the U.S.), one-sixth (18 percent) work in gender/women’s studies units or have joint appointments in gender/women’s studies units, one-ninth (11 percent) have primary appointments in American Studies units. Of the 8 scholars who have exclusive appointments in U.S. history departments, two did dissertations described as 100 percent lgbtq in contents; the other six describe their dissertations as 10-30 percent lgbtq in contents. Thus, with only two exceptions, respondents who have completed history dissertations that are more than one-third lgbtq in contents are not currently employed in TTE positions in which U.S. history departments acted as the primary hiring units.
Table 22: Current Positions by Primary Discipline/Department
All Completed PhDs Tenure-Track/Equivalent
History 25 (57%) 13 (41%) *11 (61%)
History and Gender/Women’s Studies 2 (5%) 2 (6%) 2 (11%)
American Studies 2 (5%) 2 (6%) 2 (11%)
Women’s Studies 1 (2%) 1 (3%) 1 (6%)
East Asian Languages and Cultures 1 (2%) 1 (3%) 1 (6%)
Chicano Studies/LGBT Studies 1 (2%) 1 (3%)
Liberal Arts 1 (2%) 1 (3%)
Psychiatry 1 (2%) 1 (3%)
Continuing Education 1 (2%) 1 (3%) *1 (6%)
Academic Administration 1 (2%) 1 (3%)
Public History/Library 4 (9%) 4 (13%)
Non-Academic/Non-Public 4 (9%) 4 (13%)
*Two of the 11 history positions are held in Canada; one of the 11 history positions is held in the U.K.; the Continuing Education position is held in the U.K.
Marc Stein is chair of the Committee on Lesbian and Gay History and assistant professor of history at York University, Toronto. A shorter version of this article was published in Perspectives, May 2001, 29-31, and in the Committee on Lesbian and Gay Newsletter, Spring 2001. See http://www.theaha.org/perspectives/issues/2001/0105/0105aff1.cfm.
Notes