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There are benefits and options to attaining your Master's degree debt free. If youre undergrad gpa is low a masters might even help show an upward trajectory in grades. Plus your master's courses may waive some doctoral classes. It might not be the best choice for everyone but it is a valid choice. Look into programs that will pay for a masters such as NIH NSF funded programs (RISE, MBRS, etc) they provide a stipend and cover tuition similar to a phd but for masters. Good luck on your applications!!

Hi all, I have already submitted my apps, so I am not looking for feedback on my own sample, but I would be happy to look at a paper for anyone who might need it. In terms of subject matter: I can be of most help with papers on (1) Plato or Aristotle or (2) contemporary or historical aesthetics or philosophy of literature. I can be of some help with papers in Ancient Greek philosophy more generally, French continental philosophy, or contemporary or historical philosophy of education. In terms of methodology and language: in my own sample, I tried to incorporate both analytic and continental perspectives on the relevant topic. So, I would be able to comment on papers using either or both approaches to the subject matter. I am a native English speaker so papers written in English would be ideal, but I could comment on papers which use source material in French or Ancient Greek. If anyone has a paper that fits into the areas I could help with, just message me. Good luck to everyone!

Nope, don’t kid yourself on that.

Thanks, I'll be checking it out! Could be of use to my students. I hope you've written to Justin to promote it on DN!

Just came back on here today and I'm thinking "there's the panic I'm familiar with" 😅

Refreshing this page every 5 mins. Can someone take the F5 from my keyboard?

None of my letter writers have submitted their letters for me and the deadline is tomorrow... I have to laugh.

I definitely took this to mean in every instance that they wanted to know the writer's relationship to me, so I always put "Professor" or "Senior Thesis Advisor", etc.

Usually 11:59pm Dec. 1st. This year that's likely a very safe bet given that Dec. 1st is a Sunday

I think the range of schools you're applying to is fine, although I don't think you'll get into the top 6 on your list. Agreed on adding more 20-50, although you could go higher. Your low GPA won't be a huge issue because you obviously turned it around after freshman year. I wouldn't bother explaining.

Yes, there is some truth to this. English class enrollments are at an all-time low, so classes have had to get "trendier" to attract non-English major students. So you start to see a lot more classes these days in science fiction, Harry Potter, graphic novels, film adaptation, etc. Anything to entice students who "hate to read" to sign up for an English class. The only students who take things like Chaucer and Shakespeare and Milton and 18th-century novels are English majors, and we don't have many English majors anymore. Truly, that's what's driving the slump in the job market. People aren't eager to drop $200k on a degree in a major they perceive (wrongly) as qualifying them only to teach high school or work at Starbucks.

I would also be happy to swap writing samples (with all three of you). Mine is at the intersection of normative epistemology and the philosophy of mind, with a bit of possible world semantics and epistemic logic thrown into the mix - feel free to PM me if anyone would like to swap.

Definitely meant Western Michigan University. I apologize for the mistake. As far as I understand it, Houston does fund most (if not all) it's MA students and has some pretty great philosophers as for as I'm concerned. I'd be more than happy to add Texas A&M to my list. I know less about Texas Tech. Edit: Just checked A&M's website. They seem to have instituted a PhD program and discontinued the terminal MA?

Hey guys, I figure I'd start (early) a thread for this year. Where is everyone applying to? I just finished all my applications and I ended up applying to 5 PhD programs. Am I the only one feeling extremely stressed by all this?

Just thought I'd get the ball rolling.

Another UGA applicant that has not heard anything yet!

Definitely not. Even between POI's at the same school the process can vary. I'd say the norm is mid to late December or January. Don't stress just yet!

I concur with @MaybeMaybe2020, very dependent on the POI. Some may have already completed a Skype or phone call with potential participants before applications were due. Also, THANK YOU for using this thread and not the interview thread! Every time someone posts something on there I think it's another invite 😅

This comment is spot on. It's really hard to offer advice about where to apply without knowing more about your specific interests, NTGal. Tell us more about what you envision working on.

You may have already submitted. I'm very familiar with UMD and the psyc department. They really pride themselves on diversity. I think as long as you have the information in there, you're ok but I would definitely double check to make sure you address diversity.

I'm applying for the second time for the ThD at Duke (Systematics, not NT though so YMMV). Just providing a datapoint for Duke. I have an MS/PhD in a science discipline and was briefly a professor and chaplain at an EMEA campus of an R1 US university. I also have an M.Div (cum laude, not that anyone cares) from an evangelical seminary. My GRE was 170/170, and I have 5 years working in finance and 10 in tech. My LoRs were good, but not stellar. I didn't get a second look from Duke. There is a bit of a special circumstance, as I had selected Huetter as my PoI and he stealth left Duke before my application cycle during the recent Catholic faculty bloodbath (oops!), but still. I took one cycle off to write a paper that I presented at SBL and that is in submission to JBL, found another PoI and established a relationship with him (he's writing a supplementary LoR/LoS), completely rewrote my personal statement, and got a couple of new recommenders who are writing much stronger statements, including a MacArthur Fellow with whom I worked. I'm still not confident. Duke had a lot of internal admits from the ThM, which means that in effect external candidates are competing for fewer spots. 100% of the current students with whom I have conferred came through the ThM, some of them after being punted down after a doctoral application. And for those vanishingly few spots, while they're looking for interdisciplinary people, a cursory reading of abstracts from the PhD and ThD dissertations over the last ten years indicates that "interdisciplinary" means "social sciences and nothing else." The impression I get from speaking with students is that if you're in the general pool (i.e. not with a PoI who already really wants to work with you), the first-cut criteria used to desk reject or move you to the next round are not really flexible - GPA, GRE, research track record. In your case the last two are mutable, and while there's not really a downside other than the application fee for applying this year, it would probably be worth it to improve those two in order to stand a fighting chance for a Duke admit.

It varies widely depending on the program and university, but graduate assistants can end up in many different roles. Serving as a teaching assistant is one role, but you could also end up as the actual instructor for a course. In my clinical program, graduate students teach Intro to Psych and Abnormal Psych. Graduate assistants may also end up in administrative roles as office assistants in various university departments, although I think this is more rare.

AkraticAgent, I will message you after I have finished this first round of edits as per the feedback of some of the others in this thread. Duns Eith, Unsolicited but welcome advice. Also, you're invited to read our samples if only out of love for reading philosophical works under 6,000 words!

I would reach out to the admissions office. I had a similar situation at a school where I reported my LSAT score (from my old backup life plan but the score was stellar and the app had a box for it so why not) and they added it to the app checklist as waiting for an official report. I sent an email to check that my app was going to go through anyway (im not paying to send an unrelated bonus score). They sent me a form response but it clarified that applications would be sent on to the department as long as everything marked mandatory was in.

sounds good, feel free to tag me in it. I usually don't check in too much on the weekends.

Finally received the email that I was included in the Pool of candidates. Best of luck to you all!

Mentorship is certainly necessary. It just doesn't have to be as part of a lab or programme. If you have developed a decent relationship with a professor, see if you can discuss the possibility of some minor assistance with abstracts/posters. In the first semester of my clinpsych PhD, we're being pushed to submit to as many conference as possible. We being told directly to feel free to develop our own work, especially lit reviews to identify gaps in the literature. The senior students are advising us to be proactive and telling us not to rely on faculty guidance for everything. Don't go rogue, but don't be afraid. Create possibilities. Get a mentor excited in something you're produced.

Apply!! Many incoming grad students get the award. You can write about whatever you want because there’s no expectation you’ll actually complete the project. Most importantly, it makes you look much more attractive to programs since there’s a chance that you’ll be bringing your own funding and saving them money. It’s a good way to show your top choice programs that you’re a serious applicant. I’ve also seen situations in which the CGS-M was the deciding factor on who to admit, so it’s always good to do everything possible to improve your application.

This is definitely a bizarre situation. I don't know if I've ever seen a formal policy against it, but common sense alone dictates that the TA should not be a current student for a variety of reasons. 1. How can you judge the quality of someone's work when you are not as fluent in the subject matter? A TA is usually someone who did well in a course and then assists in the instruction and grading of material in subsequent semesters/years. It's like the in-between stage of student and professor. 2. How can the TA be impartial if they are grading their fellow classmates? This is another reason why TAs are usually more advanced students because the likelihood of there being much interaction and "history" with the students in the class is unlikely.

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/job_search_writing/preparing_an_application/writing_the_personal_statement/index.html https://www.prepscholar.com/gre/blog/graduate-school-personal-statement-examples/ https://www.csuci.edu/careerdevelopment/services/sample-graduate-school-admissions-essays.pdf Hello, I used these websites to get my mind going about what I wanted to say. Once that happened, I just wrote a very personal letter of intent that stated why I wanted to become a speech pathologist. Once you find and make that connection, everything should flow. Good luck!

No, they are entirely different exams. TOEFL “measures” level of English and GRE “measures” how you reason in English. I took the GRE twice but prepping for GRE helped with TOEFL. Remember the scores are just to pass the graduate school threshold of minimum requirements. At Rice are applying to work with Daniel Domingues?

The DGS where I did my master's said a strong intro and conclusion are particularly important and if/where I need to trim, some of the close readings would be best. My WS is a theoretical reading of three poets/four total collections, and I'm just going to summarize the whole analysis of the last collection to get to 20 pages. I may just include a paragraph or two from each collection for schools with lower page maxes. The DGS and gradcafe people have all said to just use brackets and a few sentences in place of where I cut and note on the cover page that I've done so.

As a researcher need to know about the what are the things to be followed in the conferences and to know what questions should know before signing up for a conference

Hey @KillerWingfield! Doing alright. Currently trying to draft my essays for URTAS as well. I am a TALKER when I write, so I am trying to keep things concise but still insightful and its a challenge. I am especially disturbed by the fact that our URTA recommenders don't get notifications to submit their letters until we submit our entire completed application! So I am trying to light a fire under myself and get these wrapped up sooner rather than later. The URTAS and Yale deadlines so close together are kind of killing me.

I agree with vondafkossum; I don't think it's something to worry about. But if you can find someone to write to a better recommendation, then go for it. As to your questions: I'm sure it's entirely possible that two strong letters of recommendation can offset one that is just OK. I also think that one letter that's just OK could harm two great letters. It really depends on the strength of the other two and on the meh-ness of the one you've seen. I think it's likely that almost every applicant's materials feature one letter that's the strongest, one that's in between, and one that's the least enthusiastic. That's not to say that third-place letters are unenthusiastic. It's just pretty unlikely that all letter-writers will voice exactly the same degree of enthusiasm for a given student. And I also think that different letter-writers express themselves differently. One writer might offer qualified or vague praise for even the best students. Another professor might hail a just-decent student as the next Empson. I think that adcomms are aware of the varying styles letter-writers employ, and take that into account when reading LORs. Not that I know for sure; I'm just guessing that's the case. The bottom line is that I don't think you need every letter to absolutely gush over you for your application to be competitive. Also, since you mentioned you're anxious, I'll add that ultimately no applicant has control over the content of LORs. We do have control over our writing samples, SOPs, CVs, etc. I, too, worried about the quality of my LORs until I recognized that my energy would be better-spent tweaking my SOPs (and eliminating the gajillion typos I managed to include in my first few drafts). Just my two cents, sorry if I'm overstepping.

Undergrad Institution: Queen's University - CanadaMajor(s): Life ScienceMinor(s): MathematicsOverall GPA(Undergrad): 3.83 Overall GPA (Masters):4.0Type of Student: InternationalGRE Scores (revised/old version):Q: 162V: 162W: 5.0 Research Experience: Two years summer lab positions in undergrad for reputable PIs. Two undergrad theses (bioinformatics, molecular genetics). Master's (molecular genetics) complete in May (expected). Visiting grad student in an HMS lab (synthetic biology).Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's list every year. Canadian Space Agency grant. A few smaller scholarships/awards. Two conference speakerships, one at an international conference (idk if this matters lol), one poster, one paper published in conference proceedings, one journal publication submitted.Pertinent Activities or Jobs: I've TA'd three undergrad courses in molecular genetics / bioinformatics, Won a ntl. research competition for conducting MSc. work in 0G w/ the space agency.Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Lots of extracurriculars and volunteering experienceSpecial Bonus Points: I haven't been in my current position all that long so I might not ask because idk if it's appropriate, but my current supervisor is pretty well known so she would definitely help as a reference. I don't know, I think space is pretty cool and unique on an application, not a lot of people have flown with their theses in zero gravity, but maybe I'm a bit biased, some adcomms might definitely view space life science as a bit fringe even tho its totally cool!Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I guess I have a pretty broad skillset, bioinformatics, laboratory work, mechanical/electrical engineering... I had to built my thesis before I could use it to test genetics things! but I feel like a lot of people have diverse academic backgrounds and stuff.Applying to Where: A few places in the States, I only really want to go down there if I get into a moonshot program so don't hate on my smaller sample size haha. Otherwise I'll tough it out at U of T and try to get a prof to let me do synthetic biology in their lab! Harvard BBS Harvard Systems Biology (dept. in which I'm working now) MIT Biology MIT Bioengineering Stanford Bio Stanford Bioengineering University of Toronto (maybe MolGen, maybe CSB, idk) My main question is really whether to include my GRE scores on applications where they are optional, like I know my scores aren't bad, but there are many applicants to the programs I selected with higher scores, will submitting a 5.0/162/162 help or hurt me? I would honestly be so appreciative of any opinions you may have!

I just looked at your original post again and saw that you wrote "suggested." Oops! In that case, I should think 12 pages would be perfectly fine – I wouldn't worry about condensing it to 10. But I definitely wouldn't go any higher, and I maintain what I said about 20 pages probably not being a good idea.

I think this is a bad idea. My understanding is that it's usually perfectly fine to go under the limit but never to go over. It might suggest to them that you haven't read their website or that you can't follow instructions – but worse, they will probably stop reading after page 10, especially because other applicants will have followed instructions. Can you condense your paper to 10 pages and talk about the paper in your statement of purpose? You could use a few sentences there to explain that it's an excerpt and discuss how the full paper fit within current scholarship in your field.

I don't have insurance, and my experience at a very low cost student training clinic was horrible. You have a point about having more access to support once in grad. school, though I want to at least get to a level where I could focus enough to keep up. I guess where there's a will there's a way (re: accessing therapy). Thanks again for the advice

I would throw this on biorxiv if it doesn't take time away from your applications. If it does, throw it on biorxiv after you apply. Why not put the info out there and put it on your CV

I just want to say - I find this VERY aggravating when people assume you didn't study/didn't try when getting low scores on the GRE. I will tell you, I took this test 4 times, I have consistently gotten the same scores. I have studied for upwards of 3+ months every day, I had a tutor at one point, I did an online class and I had a book/flash cards. I have a 3.6 undergrad GPA and a 3.9 grad GPA, 2 pubs, 8 conference presentations, my masters is from an Ivy League school .. you get the picture. Since taking the GRE the FOURTH time - my verbal went up to 76th percentile, quant - 13th, writing - 81st. My point is - don't rule yourself or others out if their GRE scores aren't great. I've been told a mix of things - "you won't get in anywhere" and "you're gonna get a lot of interviews" it is absolutely a MIXED bag.

Here is a list of public health programs for MPH, DrPH, MS, and PhD that do not require the GRE. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1j-7-kThlYphF9D0HX1aSNFYl8ksFrIgD68Qz0njHYAY/edit#gid=0

Hi all! I’m a double HGSE alumnus (masters mid 2000s and doctorate mid 2010s), and just wanted to wish everyone luck! I am a professor at a large state university now, but I very vividly remember checking these boards once upon an application season. I also wanted to encourage you all to diversify your application portfolio as much as possible. I obviously think HGSE is amazing, and I enjoyed my time as a student and adjunct there...but it’s not for everyone. The pace is fast and the pressure can be quite intense! You’ll find the right fit somewhere. Good luck!

Just a heads up that Maryland's PhD in Biostatistics and Biostatistics requires the Math GRE. I think it's probably the only one on your list that does. I agree with omicrontrabb that boosting your quantitative GRE score would probably help. You might have luck with Dartmouth's QBS program, they have a slightly larger cohort than some of the other programs you're looking at (like Vanderbilt, Brown, UMass, Drexel which are usually ~4), and have people coming from different backgrounds. I think the general focus of the department is more on epidemiology/bioinformatics than biostatistics though

It sounds like you have a lot of well-rounded experience to support your applications. The only thing that might hold you back is your GPA. You have selected a wide variety of schools that differ in a lot of things (geographical location, size, cost, private/public, etc). So my question is, how did you narrow it down to this list? I would re-evaluate every school on your list and pretend that that school is the only university that accepted you....would you be happy there? Hopefully that will help you narrow down your choices a little! By the way, I am an undergraduate at Concordia:) I can answer any questions about the school from a student perspective if you'd like. Good luck!

How much storage space does this BB's server have? I will limit the list to a top (bottom) five. While applying to graduate school, I sat down with my transcript and identified the choices I made in every class I took that lowered opportunities to get a better mark in the course overall. These choices included going to see a ball game the night before a midterm, not attending lectures in a class that would have been an "easy A" had I got to the lectures because the exams were 100% lecture based. I didn't lean in while preparing my honor's thesis. The thesis itself earned a very good mark but I didn't maximize the opportunity to develop my skills or my relationships with the supervising graduate assistant and professor. I failed to grasp and to embrace the importance of debates within my discipline. My approach to course selection prioritized short term advantages over long term needs. I don't like taking timed exams (especially finals) so I consistently picked courses that didn't have any. While preparing for quals as a graduate student, I had many opportunities to gain an increased understanding of how badly I'd screwed up developing the skill of writing to beat the clock. The application for Happyland University's graduate history program requires a book review. My dismissive approach to the debates in my discipline helped contribute to my picking arguably the worst possible book to review. When I didn't get in, a mentor, who'd gone there and had contacts in the department, asked around and charitably told me that it was "politics." But the bottom line was and is, I neither worked smart enough nor hard enough to deserve serious consideration for admission. @desertwoman this is at least the third thread you've started in which you share this unfortunate experience. This is an issue that you're going to be struggling with for years to come. I recommend that you focus on the feedback you've received, especially from @lkaitlyn here. https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/120033-has-this-happened-to-anyone-before-lor-problemrelationship-with-professor-damaged/?do=findComment&comment=1058706873 I also recommend that you figure out a way to understand that in addition to factors beyond your control, your choices played a role in the undesired outcome. The better you understand those choices, the sooner you'll be able to accept responsibility for those choices. Then, you'll be in a better position to make different choices down the line. My $0.02.

Yes, this. And also, more generally, it's comforting to tell ourselves narratives about why unsuccessful candidates are obviously so unsuccessful ("he's got a bad personality"; "she must have botched her teaching presentation"). Resist that impulse. In this job market, it's quite possible to do everything "right" and still be shut out not for multiple jobs but for multiple years on the job market. Regardless of what Karen Kelsky may try to tell you (i.e. sell you), there aren't tons of candidates out there who make it to the final round and then get up to give their job talk and do this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAanrkLn6bI&t=0m24s Most of us are pretty practiced at interviewing and job-talking by the time we get to the final stage. I don't know anyone who makes the ridiculous mistakes that get passed around as cautionary tales on social media (and I've also seen people give less-impressive job talks that resulted in a job anyway). It's possible to do everything "right" and walk away from the table without a job.

Yeah, I was pretty bummed when I found this out too. If you don't have much time to complete a course, you could take a CLEP exam to fulfill those requirements. It is a more affordable and timely option. It's like taking the final exam to test out of a particular course. If you have any questions, here are the links below. Also, feel free to ask me any questions-- I have taken three CLEP exams so far. Here is the one for Bio: https://clep.collegeboard.org/science-and-mathematics/biology Here is the one for Chem (No Physics offered): https://clep.collegeboard.org/science-and-mathematics/chemistry I took a chem course online last summer through my university instead and it was pretty easy, so I can also give you the info for that class too if you'd like. Good luck!

Good GRE scores will never hurt you, but even perfect ones won't save you if you don't have pedigree.

My wife and I are atheists, and we are raising our son not to be an atheist per se, but to think for himself, evaluate the evidence of things, and to come to his own conclusions. We live in a red state right now (Texas, as it says in my location), and he's getting picked on by *other six year olds at school* because he doesn't currently believe in God *or Jesus*. My Top Choice school is in a blue state and I can't imagine this going on nearly as often as it goes on here. This is actually becoming a factor in my hoping and wishing (though, heh, not praying).