{"657921":{"#nid":"657921","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Alumni Spotlight: Patrick Zander","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EName:\u003C\/strong\u003E Patrick G. Zander\u0026nbsp;\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EDegrees:\u003C\/strong\u003E M.S. and Ph.D in \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hsoc.gatech.edu\/graduate\/phd-program\u0022\u003EHistory and Sociology of Technology and Science\u003C\/a\u003E, 2009\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EJob Title \/ Employer: \u003C\/strong\u003EAssociate Professor of History at\u003Cstrong\u003E \u003C\/strong\u003EGeorgia Gwinnett College\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E1. What do you do?\u202f\u202f\u202f\u202f\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EI am an associate professor of history.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E2. What\u2019s the coolest part of your job?\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe coolest part of my job is teaching young students about history and its importance to our understanding. History, after all, attempts to teach us the biggest lessons\u0026nbsp;of all: What is the world like, and how did it get that way.\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E3. Why are you passionate about this work?\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EI am most passionate about teaching for the thrill it provides when young people (and older people) come alive to learning about their world. But, I am also very passionate about research and writing books. While so much in our lives is temporary, publishing a book about history is a kind of permanent addition to the world\u2019s knowledge, or at least your own take on that particular subject.\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E4. How did you find your job\/what\u2019s the best resource for jobs or networking you\u2019ve found?\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EI was incredibly lucky in that in the year I went on the market, there were only two jobs across the country that were appropriate for me (and that I would have been willing to take). One was here in Atlanta at Georgia Gwinnett College, and I got it. I simply used H-net for the jobs site, and there it was. Again, I was very fortunate.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E5. What\u2019s the most surprising detour you\u2019ve taken from your career path? What did you learn from it?\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe most surprising detour is the one I\u2019ve only JUST taken, which is that I\u2019ve published a work of historical fiction \u2014\u0026nbsp;a novel. What I\u2019ve learned is, first, how much I love the process of writing a novel, and second, how incredibly difficult it is to break into the world of mainstream fiction \u2014\u0026nbsp;It is not for the faint of heart! HA!!\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E6. What\u2019s the greatest challenge you\u2019ve faced since graduating, and how did you overcome it?\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe greatest challenge was surviving without benefits while I was looking for a \u201cpermanent\u201d tenure track job. I overcame it by teaching at multiple institutions as an adjunct professor \u2014\u0026nbsp;enough classes so that I could make my way financially. This meant six to eight classes per semester and was quite difficult. It meant a great deal of work, but it also piled up a great deal of teaching experience which helped me when it came to applying for permanent positions.\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E7. What\u2019s your #1 tip for students and alumni interested in your field?\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMy number one tip is a simple one, but I would simply say that if you are going to pursue this career path \u2014\u0026nbsp;academic history \u2014\u0026nbsp;make certain you are passionate about it. The job market is, of course, extremely tough, so you will go through difficulty to get to your destination.\u0026nbsp;So be sure you are absolutely committed before you take that on.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E8. Can HSOC students and alum contact you if they\u2019re interested in following in your footsteps?\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EYes, by all means! My email address is\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:pzander@ggc.edu\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Epzander@ggc.edu\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EMeet more \u003C\/em\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hsoc.gatech.edu\/alumni\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003Efeatured alumni\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cem\u003E in the School of History and Sociology!\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EPatrick Zander is an associate professor of history at Georgia Gwinnett College and has published books on history and historical fiction.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Patrick Zander is an associate professor of history at Georgia Gwinnett College and has published books on history and historical fiction."}],"uid":"35766","created_gmt":"2022-05-03 18:29:28","changed_gmt":"2025-01-14 17:23:25","author":"dminardi3","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2022-05-10T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2022-05-10T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"676017":{"id":"676017","type":"image","title":"1600 x 900 (6).jpg","body":null,"created":"1736875248","gmt_created":"2025-01-14 17:20:48","changed":"1736875248","gmt_changed":"2025-01-14 17:20:48","alt":"Patrick Zander","file":{"fid":"259719","name":"1600 x 900 (6).jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/01\/14\/1600%20x%20900%20%286%29.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/01\/14\/1600%20x%20900%20%286%29.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":591270,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2025\/01\/14\/1600%20x%20900%20%286%29.jpg?itok=1j-J3gPB"}}},"media_ids":["676017"],"groups":[{"id":"1288","name":"School of History and Sociology"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EDi Minardi\u003Cbr\u003Edi.minardi@gatech.edu\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["dminardi3@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}