gubidal092

Hello everyone! I'd appreciate some help along the same vein it seems everyone is looking for help in: Finding a grad program. I'm currently at Georgetown's Linguistics PhD, unfunded, and with little hope of moving to a funded situation (I'm not a good fit research-wise, it turns out: My area of interest is Historical Sociolinguistics). I'm doing what I can, but I am working towards a masters-in-passing for the Spring, and planning to send out applications to other PhD programs for Fall 2015. This brings me to my request: if anyone knows of a linguistics department with anyone working in historical sociolinguistcs (even as a pet project), I would appreciate if you would share it with me. Bonus points if its in the United States, especially near/in a big city. Also, if anyone else here is into historical socio, I'd love to know I'm not alone!

There's a language evolution MsC at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland...

I would consider writing the professor an email explaining your interest in and appreciation for the course; be specific and reference class discussion where relevant. Explain that you seem to be having "stage fright" but are eager to talk about the course. Most professors are very understanding about how different students participate in different ways. Remember, you're in grad school and you have to be your own advocate now. The squeaky wheel gets the grease! I would also consider finding a professional to talk to about your "paralysis" in class, whether its a university councilor, or someone who teaches public speaking. If there is a participation element to the course (as in, you are being poorly graded for not speaking), ask the professor if there is a way you can make up the participation aspect, perhaps through email or blackboard if your school uses it. Perhaps you could write an extra paper for the class? You might even want to ask about maybe doing a small talk during class; give a brief lecture over the course/your relevant experiences; you might find talking to the class easier than trying to add to a preexisting discussion, since you can rehearse and script yourself as much as you like. (This may also be even more terrifying to you, but sometimes these anxieties can work in interesting ways.)

It's a shame that you're having these issues, and first as someone who struggled with stress in the past that you need to carve out time to at least speak to a psychiatrist at your university (you should be able to do this for free as a student). You may feel like you don't have enough time for this, but a councilor/psychiatrist can help you learn stress management techniques that may make it easier to function and therefore save you time in the long run. It'll be worth it. Most of the people I know on fellowships (especially TAs) are working a little bit more than what they are paid for... That's just how it works. I also knew of a girl who was assigned to two projects at once (that couldn't be feasibly done in the amount of time they paid for, and she was just very clear that she would be only working the hours she was paid for, but that wasn't a TA position so it was a bit easier. Your professor should not be randomly handing you classes, but as her superiors seem unwilling to deal with that it is unlikely to change. Sounds like you'd be better off switching advisors/programs and be clear with the professors that while you are very capable and have experience TAing you do better when able to plan far in advance. You can probably even register with the school as having a disability (if you go to a psychiatrist and get formally diagnosed), which most schools allow for mental illnesses like stress and anxiety disorders. So the professor you work with would have to accommodate your need for advance planning. Since you've already been accepted at your new university they can't very well rescind their offer once you accept if they suddenly learn you have a stress disorder, though it could impact you for future applications to things, I don't know. You should move to the new university, IMHO, and it won't look like you "quit"; what you are doing is taking a new, better opportunity. And that's how you should approach it. Things aren't working out, and this is a PhD program over a masters. Most PhD programs (in fact, none that I've seen) do not require masters degrees. You just have to start at the same level as a masters and do the coursework before research, which they mostly make you do anyway. If anyone asks or thinks it's weird you just explain that this university was a better opportunity, and if you have to talk about issues with your old advisor, mumble something about ideological differences, differing teaching philosophies, or changing research interests. No biggie. Everyone who has been a grad student understands that some professors are hell to TA for or work with. They'll get the code and probably drop the issue, if it even comes up. Hope some of that helps!

In general, if you are caught between two programs, look at how much support there is for students like you in your department. If there is only one professor with your interests, how likely is it that they'll be there for the whole time you are (if you're in for a PhD starting from an undergrad, that could be well over 5 years)? How many graduate students at the university share your particular interests? If you are the only one, then its likely you'll be lost among all the other students. Opportunities that would be perfect for you might not be announced the same way that they would be if there are 10 students with your interests. More competition that way, but you'll also be more catered to. Also, just in case you aren't guaranteed funding in your program, I wouldn't choose the program with only one professor who shares your interests: I had a friend who went into one program specifically to work with a certain professor, and wound up not being able to deal with the high stress level of working with that particular professor. Also, that one professor cannot offer you as many opportunities (generally speaking) as several professors can, just by the fact that more professors researching = more opportunities to work for them/ take classes under them/ etc.

I'm attending Georgetown in the fall and still in the middle of nailing down exactly where I'm going to live, but I have figured out a few things so far that I thought might be helpful to other people on here: If you can't decide whether you should shell out more money for less space in DC (especially around Georgetown), or live more in the suburbs and commute in, bear in mind that commuting can be VERY expensive. Traffic can be really bad in DC and at times the Metro can be unreliable (apparently it was pretty bad in 2012). Also, metro rates go up durring peak hours --they practically double-- and there are no university student discounts for the bus or metro. And if you're not living on a metro line, you might have to either drive a car there and pay to park ($$) everyday or take the bus to the metro, and then possibly another bus(each of which you will probably have to pay for separately). Commutes 20 minutes from Georgetown can turn into 1 hr on public transit. Limited parking on campus makes driving even less attractive. I decided that it would probably be cost comparative to live in walking distance rather than live somewhere cheaper but take the bus, and it would save me a horrendus commute. Parking spaces can be upwards of $100/mo. Don't have a car if you can help it (more money saved! No insurance and taxes!) Street parking in most DC neighborhoods will require you to have permit of sorts to park in that neighborhood... and you'll have to register the car in DC to get one, and thus pay taxes on it there. I found a few neighborhoods walking distance from Georgetown that had apartments in my price-range (~$1300 including utilities): Foxhall, Palisades, Glover Park, and sometimes Rosslyn (though that's just across the river in Virginia). However, I haven't checked with my relative who lives nearby yet, so I can't comment on the saftey of these areas. I am focusing mostly on basement apartments in people's houses. Most of them aren't the dreary nightmares you'd imagine, and if your landlord lives right above you, he's just as concerned as you about a leaky pipe or a bug problem. You're also more likely to have an in-suite laundry (or just share with the house above -- not a bad deal!) and it's free, which means you can eliminate one more expense. You're also more likely to be able to just split the cost of their pre-existing internet or cable service, another reduced fee! Finally, with few exceptions, the price floor for shared and non-shared apartments near DC (~20 min drive) is about $800-1000, no matter what. Even if you see something cheeper, they're usually not including any utilities or any parking in the pricing, and those things can add up. Hope this helps! DC people, if I've gotten anything wrong please let me know.

@hotsaranghae : If you're sure that you're going to accept Cornell, the polite thing to do is reject/withdraw your applications to other universities after accepting Cornell. This allows these universities to make room for other waitlisted students. Congrats on your acceptance!

@M1K1 : I know that Ohio State released it's results a while ago, but that was for regular linguistics, not hispanic/spanish.

While this post may be more in the vein of the 'waiting it out' section, I thought a linguistic-specific response might be helpful to some people. Many of us are waiting for results still, and we all know, sometimes you don't get in anywhere your first try. So, if the worst were to happen, what would be your contingency plan? What would you do with the additional year you had to wait to re-apply to strengthen your application? Certainly, one could take non-degree seeking graduate or undergraduate courses and attempt to earn As, but that option can be costly. Internships are another option, but there are very few linguistic specific internships, and would an internship or job in a completely unrelated area really strengthen your application that much?

This wasn't something spoken to me, but I was watching a figure skating show, and while one of the competitors was waiting 2 minutes maximum for her results, the announcer says: Naturally, I started taunting the screen about how hard waiting two minutes for results must be. Much harder than waiting over a month to hear anything from universities! My mother keeps unnerving me by sayng, "Well, hopefully it will all work out and you'll get in somewhere if that's what you really want." Yeah, because I've been obsessing over these applications because I've decided that being a secretary (her suggestion if I don't get in), is what I really want out of life.

@hotsaranghae; I applied to Cornell, no word from them yet...

I am pretty terrified of possibly not getting any anywhere I applied; I reached for the stars, but even when I directly asked my mentor if I was being unrealistic, he seemed optimistic and so did all my other recommenders. However, due to time constraints I essentially completed all the aspects for my applications including studying for and taking the GRE, writing sample, and 7 statements of purpose in about 2 months. (A true measure-twice-cut-once sort of situation.) But really, despite the potential feelings of personal rejection and the shame of telling my family and colleagues that I was not accepted, I simply really want to go to grad school. I cannot imagine myself being happy as anything other than a grad student and eventual professor. There are no real comparable areas in my field outside of professorship, and I love my field dearly. I would simply have to take a job in a relatively unrelated field or pay to be a non-degree seeking student for the year I'd have to wait to re-submit applications (try to build a graduate-level gpa). Because of the narrowness of my interests, I was kind of forced to direct my attention towards higher-end schools and was unable to find any sort of local or safety school; it wouldn't do me any good to be accepted to a program that doesn't cater to my subfield.

Should the unthinkable occur I suppose I'll try to get an internship somewhere, though I don't know what kind of internship would be applicable to historical linguistics. Or I could always be a non-degree seeking student and try to get a good graduate level gpa going. Though that would be pretty expensive. I am also currently filling out a Teach For America application as a safety measure. Though, hopefully, I won't need any backups! Good luck everyone!

That is interesting, that you haven't received an official acceptance. But, this seems to imply you have been accepted. With my undergrad applications, I was notified that I received scholarships at the schools I applied to before being mailed an acceptance letter. Sometimes the letters get sent a bit out of order. But, if you're worried about not receiving information about your acceptance, such as possible funding situations, then you can always email your department or the graduate studies department and explain that you've never received official notification.

I completely understand; this whole waiting game has got me mentally revising my entire statement of purpose and questioning all my application decisions.

I had a similar problem with a few of my applications, but haven't done anything to correct it. I don't think you need to be too worried. If anyone asks about this semester and how it went, you can address the courses and what changed then. Professors understand that some courses don't make and you're not responsible for your schedule changing.

By the way, it seems Ohio State has released most or all of it's acceptances on their webiste.

That makes sense funchaku, I just read that you'd heard back at midnight last night and my half-asleep brain freaked out. :-( I'm more focused on historical linguistics, so hopefully I'll hear something back from them soon, as this waiting is pure torture!

You heard back from UPENN already? I think my anxiety level just went through the roof! That's one of my top choices. Anyone else heard anything?

I'm applying to Linguistics PhD programs with a historical focus/concentration as well. I looked around and it seems the best are (in no particular order): UPenn, Yale, Harvard, UC Berkley, UCLA, Ohio State U, U. of Illinois Urbana-Champagne, I think university of Michigan might be worth a look, UNC Chapel Hill is good but no longer accepts PhD students (I think they're phasing it out), Stanford... If you're interested in Indo-European historical linguistics, UCLA has an indo-european studies program that is closely tied in with the linguistics department, and from my understanding you can do the program from a linguistic pov. Anyway, that's just a couple of them...