chtodelat

This is exactly the sort of arbitrarity that baffles me so much about the application process. So many of the factors that help one gain acceptance are down to the idiosyncrasies of the departments to which one is applying at the exact time that the admissions committee receives the application. Add to that the notion that a writing sample of (by European standards at least) miniscule size and an SOP where one can essentially have 500-1500 words of BS as a barometer for acceptance to a PHD is nonsense. I am also fluent in the language which pertains to my studies. I have lived in the country for two years now as well. I have a first class honours degree from a top british uni. I also have two masters degrees from a british university and one from an institution in the region I am studying. I am published (academically and as a journalist) with pieces related to the region I wish to study. Add to that I have been a teaching assistant and delivered lectures at a university here in the region based on my MA thesis. What more can I do, I really don't know. I guess I will just have to learn how to BS better the next time in my SOP. That was a bit of a rant, but overall very cathartic.

No worries. A glimmer of hope is better than no hope at all! Enjoy the weekend in NYC. After living here in Moscow for two years it was great to think of getting to study in the heart of America's most interesting large city. I'll still hold on to some irrational hope until I get an official rejection. Maybe I can pull off a Doug Flutie-esque hail mary to finish out the game!

Well there goes my glimmer of hope. I was thinking that because I am very far from NYC they may be have staggered some admissions for the non-US based applicants.

Does that mean 20 US-based or 20 US citizens? I am the the latter but currently not the former. Also, have they notified everyone already?

I spent a few days there as it is a treasure trove of documentation (though harder to navigate than pretty much anything I have experienced) and would spend most of my time there if admitted to a PhD. Some at INION (as I am a recovering social scientist) and a lot in the Higher School of Economics library archive; as they have a lot of documents pertaining to information following the fall of the USSR (also helped that I was studying there). My hope is pretty much gone though. Not in a bad way, just in a what can I do to be accepted next year kind of way. I fear that admissions committees are afraid of my American background with a UK/Russian post-secondary education trying to reinterpret Russian intellectual history from a post-structuralist (read Russians aren't evil) perspective. My POIs might be misleading me but I have gotten emails from most of them before official rejections go out saying that they were looking forward to working with me but they couldn't sell me to their respective admissions committees. I've had long Skype conversations with most of them talking about my research and how they find it is an understudied area which would be equally relevant to political science (blah, blah, blah). But admissions committees don't seem to agree. As my username here says что делать?

Agreed. Language proficiency is such a strange thing to have to judge. Admittedly, Latin is different insofar as it is a dead language; however, in my MA programme I had a few colleagues who had magnificent grades on their undergrad transcripts in the Russian language who needed help when at the archives here in Moscow. Language is the means by which we convey what we see and feel and it is vital that the programme to which you are applying knows that you understand the cultural context and how that translates into the english language. Ultimately, when undertaking a PhD which uses primary sources in foreign languages (sorry for my blatant anglo-centrism) we are reinterpreting or telling a story for the first time which the vast majority of the world cannot access, even if they speak the referent language. It is important the programmes know we at least show the potential to be able to tell that story faithfully. But then again what do I know; I have been rejected or not heard from every programme to which I applied so this may just be a cathartic quasi-rant.

My focus is late Imperial Russian nationalism and the government's shifting views of the narod (loosely translated as people) on their policy making process. A niche to say the least. But, it does inform us on events in Russia today so I thought that I would have at least decent chances of acceptance on that basis. Clearly I was wrong.

just got a rejection from Indiana. Surprisingly didn't phase me that much. Also, they only have ten spots this year. Best of luck to all those waiting to hear.

I see your location as UK and I am sure you are going through the same experience of angst that I am being abroad during the process. It's a hard process to go through in general and, at least from my perspective here in Russia, it can all seem very gloomy at times (though admittedly in my case that might be because I live in a country in deep economic crisis where anti-Americanism is the new cultural setting of many people). All that we can do is hope that someone sees the value in our applications and offers us a place. As many people have said on this forum, a rejection is not usually a rejection of your abilities or achievements so much as of your 'fit.' I have had hours long Skype conversations with potential advisors who have read my work and love it; however, if the admissions committee does not think that you have the proper fit the potential advisor's opinion of your value as a scholar does not always help with admission. This is a relatively arbitrary process (due to the many factors which various programmes put emphasis on) and being outside the country, and all the difficulties that are associated with that, make the process seem even more arbitrary. All we can do is hope that we have the 'proper' fit with one of the programmes to which we applied and get that fateful email (or phone call, or letter, or carrier pigeon). Until then, we can but wait. (BTW I've yet to be accepted anywhere yet, though have had a rejection from UC, Berkeley which means I've yet to hear from 4 schools)

That gives me some semblance of hope as I am currently based in Russia and visiting would be decidedly out of the question. Though, as I stated before, my POI shifted from upbeat to 'long-term prospects.' This process is doing my head in.

I figured as much. My POI went from positive to 'long-term perspectives' very quickly. I hope at least one Russianist was accepted. We need a win here.

Does anyone know if all the NYU results are out yet? I know a few came out recently but was wondering if there are going to be any more admits coming out?

I also applied to NYU, Indiana and Michigan. I have great fit POIs at all of those schools so I certainly hope that I will get some good news at some point. The problem is that the Russianist cohort at most schools is so small. I also am transitioning from political science/international relations (though all my degrees were done in europe and were interdisciplinary with a mostly historical focus). I'm convinced my POIs will go to bat for me, but the admissions committees may not feel the same. Needless to say I'm pretty worried about my chances but what is one to do but wait and hope.

как жаль. Not my best fit program but was hoping for some good news at some point. Что делать...только ждать...

Any news on the Illinois admits? My POI and online portal are still silent. I am worried because my POI at Berkeley reached out and told me she was not able to get anyone in this year, though my webpage for Berkeley is still at the 'submitted' stage.