Haphazardsoc

For undergrad applicants, institutional reputation is largely driven by USNWRish rankings of the overall institution adjusted by any specific knowledge of the department (if the applicant was a sociology major). I don't have a great sense of the variation among terminal MA programs, so recommendation letters are often helpful in this regard when they state what PhD programs former students enrolled in and how the applicant compares to those students.

I'll have to read the book. This hasn't been my experience. Probably the highest hurdle for non-US applicants is translating their GPAs and institutional reputation.

1. Include a full writing sample, not just a lit review. I understand that because of when applications are, many folks don't have a completed senior project to show us, but something with data is always better, even if the stats is not super sophisticated. 2. Make sure your statement is clear that you understand what you are getting into and that you have the necessary background. Have a faculty member you know look it over.

Varies, but I think most cutoffs are for each test. A high verbal score won't do you much good if you have a low math score.

Multiple professors in the area is the best fit. There is a second, larger dimension to fit which is fit with a sociology PhD program in general. We are primarily interested in training folks to write a PhD thesis in sociology. If your primary interest is working to end poverty, many top programs probably won't be a good fit. If, on the other hand, you are interested in advancing our understanding of some specific components of poverty, with the understanding that your findings might help inform policy choices, a PhD in sociology might be a good fit.

You should address this issue directly in your statement. You might also ask your letter writers to address your MA GPA. It's not obvious that a 3.6 is "high" in a graduate program, since a B+ is the lowest grade some departments give.

One of the reasons it is rare is that you (usually) have to start all over again. At UNC, you might get credit for the MA thesis, but you would still need to take a decent amount of courses. For most folks, I suspect doing PhD work away from campus is much better than starting over somewhere else. I don't think there's any stigma associated with an application, you would just need to demonstrate that you were a strong candidate and that there was a compelling reason for switching. Family reasons would definitely count as compelling. Unfortunately for the student, this sort of signaling is best done in recommendation letters ("I wish X would stay, but X's spouse recently began medical school in the Triangle..."), so it is somewhat out of your control.

It depends on what type of MA it is. Transferring from a peer PhD institution after getting an MA in Sociology is quite rare. Transferring from a peer PhD institution in another field, such as political science, is possible, but we would want to see evidence both that you succeed at your old program and that you would be a better fit over in Sociology. More common are MAs applying from lower ranked institutions. Again, we would want evidence that the person excelled along with a kick-ass writing sample. This is hard to do in two years. I should note that in general, I think this is a bad strategy, since it is unlikely to work and you are likely to rack up some debt along the way.

1. I don't think publications or conference presentations are particularly meaningful. Having a great writing sample that demonstrates your ability to do sociology is important, but folks generally don't care whether it was presented or not. 2. GRE scores, along with GPA, writing sample, statement and letters of recommendation, are important. Which factor is most important likely varies by department and individual. Good scores can probably help a mediocre GPA, but they won't compensate on any of the other factors. Bad scores can doom an application. In particular, if you can't do math, you probably aren't going to do well in graduate stats sequence. 3. We don't judge non-US applicants any differently. For folks who did not do their undergrad at an English speaking institution, we generally like to see some additional evidence that the applicant will feel comfortable writing and speaking English.

I'm an Associate Professor in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Sociology department. I'm currently Director of Graduate Admissions and occasionally Director of Graduate Studies. Feel free to ask me questions about the application process, either specific to UNC or more generally. I'm also happy to answer more general questions about getting a PhD in Sociology.