Gap Year After MA Before PhD

[mossyrocks]

I'm in my last semester of my MA program in religion.

 

To be honest I've had a really difficult time adjusting and doing as well as I had hoped. My grades are definitely not as good as they should be to get into a PhD program, and in consequence I've lost a bit of confidence and drive to keep going.

 

So I decided to take a gap year because I didn't feel like my application was strong enough or that I would get good enough recommendations. I was told by many people that taking a year off would look like a lapse from academia and that it would look bad on my application. It would look like I was lazy and tired of the academic life, but I do want to get away from it for a bit in order to get some perspective on things. I haven't given up on pursuing my PhD but I do feel like I need to do something different for a while. 

 

Have I shot myself in the foot and screwed up my chances of getting into a PhD program in the future? Does anyone have any personal experiences or advice they could give me?

[MBIGrad]

You have neither shot yourself in the foot nor screwed up your chances. My read is that advanced studies are an exercise in maturity and fortitude as much as in any learned competencies. In fact, a year off enabled me at one point to develop language skills, etc... at a slower pace and thus preparing for further study while in many ways resting and refreshing. I think this is also a great period within which one may examine and bounce off of other people whether the ardor and sacrifice required for a terminal degree is something that he or she wants and will be the best fit for that person's life situation.

 

As per the application, some schools will ask for an explanation of a gap year, and this provides an additional opportunity to distinguish yourselves from your beloved fellow students (read "competitors"). It can be made an advantage.

Edited January 16, 2014 by MBIGrad

[Kuriakos]

No. People come into PhD programs with all sorts of configurations in terms of degrees and years off and such. Don't sweat it. Just use the extra year to realllly work on those applications and to make connections.

[Guest Gnome Chomsky]

Sometimes advice can be bad advice. I can't understand how a year off from academia can look like a bad thing. You say it can make it look like you've grown tired of academia. So? We're real people, aren't we? Most of us have been in school nonstop since we were 4 years old. What's so bad about taking a year off before likely committing the next 50 years of your life to academia? 

[RedDoor]

The others have given great advice thus far. Continuing Kuriakos' last point, try to network during your year off. Go to SBL/AAR (if applicable) and get to know profs in your field. Just as in other fields, knowing the right people is incredibly important. I wish I would have begun networking sooner than I did honestly. A beaming recommendation from a well-known scholar can often cause admissions counselors to not so easily dismiss a lower GPA.

[belichick]

I'm in my last semester of my MA program in religion.

 

To be honest I've had a really difficult time adjusting and doing as well as I had hoped. My grades are definitely not as good as they should be to get into a PhD program, and in consequence I've lost a bit of confidence and drive to keep going.

 

 

Agreed with everything said above. Take the year to learn more about what you want and what makes you happy. A poor transcript isn't a total deal breaker, but is definitely something that will need to be accounted for--both for future admissions committees, and for yourself. If I were you, I'd want to become quite clear on why I didn't enjoy my MA, and why I didn't feel like I had developed solid relationships with profs, esp before setting out to make this my life's work.

Edited February 2, 2014 by belichick

[theotokos1]

I'll also add that many programs prefer people who aren't straight through from undergrad-masters-to Ph.D.  My experience is that programs are starting to favor applicants with more experience outside of being a student.  That's not to say that people who go straight through don't get in- I just think the field is turning into an environment where there is value in both paths.