Greetings all,
I previously wrote on this forum well over a year ago as an entering undergraduate in history. There was some exceptional advice shared with me that allowed me to develop myself in a manner that has positioned me to graduate with honors in history. I am currently a third-year student, and I plan to graduate in 2018. My current plan is to apply to graduate programs in history in the fall 2017 application cycle (I have already begun looking at programs, and potential POIs). I plan on doing an senior honors thesis, and I recently met with the department's undergraduate advisor to discuss the timing. Most undergraduates at my institution finish the senior honors thesis in two semesters. I would like to utilize my undergraduate thesis as the writing sample for my applications. I realize I could utilize a seminar paper as the writing sample, but my thesis will utilize sources in German and Polish and will fit more broadly with my research. My plan is to start the seminar in the spring semester, utilize the summer to write more, and finalize the thesis in the fall.
For those of you that went directly from your undergraduate institution to a history program, can you discuss some of the challenges you had with preparing the writing sample? For those of you that did not jump straight into a graduate program, did you find the time you had between finishing your undergraduate degree and entering a graduate program was valuable? I am slowly beginning to create a timeline for the next year and I want to ensure I am on top of these multiple demands.