For the next in our series spotlighting our amazing alumni, we sat down with Sophia E. Kroft, an art historian who graduated in 2010 with a thesis on “The Study Of Paleolithic Cave Art Through A Phenomenological Perspective And Its Reference In 20th-Century French Literature." Since Princeton, Kroft has served as a Curatorial Fellow in the Egyptian Art Department at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She recently received her PhD in Ancient Egyptian Art & Archaeology from the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University.

Why did you decide to major in FIT as an undergraduate? 

I decided to major in French as an undergraduate to learn the French language and to explore French culture in a challenging, academic way. The French department offered the opportunity to master the language skills and to gain insights into the history and culture through a multifaceted, immersive experience, namely challenging academic courses, independent research, and the excellent study abroad programs. I have always had a strong interest in understanding a culture, its history, and its identity via an art historical perspective. The French department allowed for my interests to be cultivated because it not only equipped me with the foundations of the French language but also facilitated a synthesis of multidisciplinary avenues in the independent projects. I was able to construct research projects that delved into topics such as the dynamic roles of French scholars, writers, and artists in the fields of Egyptology, Prehistory, and Impressionism. Unlike many departments, FIT prepares students with the practical language skills in addition to the other coursework, which I believe produces a stronger candidate for graduate studies and opens more options for careers. 

How did your FIT experience shape your career trajectory and the way you perform your job today?

By majoring in French, I developed an indispensable language skillset, deeper understanding of French culture, and extensive knowledge of French history. I have consistently drawn on these facets of my undergraduate training since majoring in French in more ways than I anticipated. First, the FIT major prepared me for the language requirements in graduate school for my ancient Egyptian art and archaeology concentration due to the amount of scholarship written in French, both historically and currently. Moreover, the skillset that I built, and continue to build upon, has allowed me to easily do research abroad with my language skills, both in France and in other European and non-European countries. I have conducted research trips in France, Belgium, Egypt, Italy, and Germany. Through such travel, I have acquired an extensive familiarity with museum collections via first-hand examination of the objects as well as visiting the galleries and engaging with the curators. This direct access to materials was instrumental in various projects I conducted that spanned several different fields, namely Egyptology, Prehistory, and French paintings of the 18th and 19th centuries. Travel and study abroad have also provided me with vital practical knowledge about the French culture and customs that I have consistently used while abroad for research in France and neighboring countries to navigate the arenas in which European scholars are interacting in dynamic ways. My early Princeton experiences were essential to my graduate studies, dissertation research, and beyond because in each stage, I was building on a strong foundation via first-hand, immersive experiences. I seized on the opportunity to explore different regions of France through various lenses, such as the summer language program in Aix-en-Provence, my semester abroad in Paris during which I wrote my junior independent project, and the Princeton early modern human excavations conducted across the Dordogne region.

Majoring in French at Princeton was also fundamental to establishing my interdisciplinary approach to research. One of the strengths of the department is that it invites students to consider how their independent research projects might incorporate a range of fields and the interconnected elements of such fields, an aspect in academic inquiry that is not obvious when considering a specific field. Given this opportunity, I was able to design several interdisciplinary independent projects that bridged the fields of French and Art & Archaeology. This strategy of research and academic inquiry has since informed my graduate studies, my teaching methods, and my career options. My research projects in the French department demonstrated tangibly to me the fluidity of fields and the boundaries that are often associated with them in traditional academic structures. Moreover, the skillset I developed as an undergraduate proved useful in more ways than I initially anticipated, from the range of topics into which I have been able to expand to allowing me to access primary materials as they are often in predominantly foreign languages. 

I have also found that the in-depth academic preparation and immersive experiences abroad of the French major prepared me well for introductions to scholars in the field nationally and internationally. Having a command of the French language and familiarity of collections abroad demonstrates a wide-reaching aptitude for research and the ability to engage with scholars outside American institutions. Moreover, the first-hand examinations of objects I conducted in such institutions provided both the material for my dissertation research and allowed me to build my own comprehensive catalogue of objects that I can reference in later projects. Object-based research and consultation of primary sources is one of the most important elements of my academic methodology, and it is a strategy that I developed because I majored in FIT. 

What would you say to an undergraduate who is considering a concentration or minor in FIT?

The skillset that the FIT concentration develops in its students is an invaluable one, with a wide range of applications outside strictly French or Italian studies. The major offers a robust training in language and prepares you to use these skills in diverse paths that can encompass various other fields. The department excels in offering multi-disciplinary approaches via the coursework and encouraging such avenues in the independent projects. The concentration provides an engaging way to discover other fields that may not be initially apparent, and the professors and alumni are exceptional examples of how dynamic these avenues can be in pursuing further research and in practical applications for career paths. 

Do you have a favorite memory or anecdote from your time in the department?

My favorite memory from my time in the French and Italian department is the summer I spent in Aix-en-Provence right after my sophomore year to learn French through the immersive language course. The summer in Aix-en-Provence solidified my decision to major in French because this incredible experience living in France and the camaraderie that developed between the students during the program were elements that I felt reflected what I was searching for in my academic career. The program not only used direct immersion to advance our language skills but also offered several activities and excursions to introduce us to the south of France beyond the classroom, such as through art, history, food, and travel. Aix-en-Provence itself was the perfect location to discover how much France and the French culture have to offer, and learning with fellow Princetonians was the most rewarding part of living abroad. The friendships that I developed with the students in this program are some of my longest-lasting and impacted the rest of my Princeton years and beyond.