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dr. t

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Posts posted by dr. t

  1. On 6/20/2022 at 8:32 AM, Prophecies said:

    I've been learning Russian these past 18 months, and have reached a Beginner to Immediate level. I am self-taught. What's the best way to convey this in my application?

    A writing sample using the language in your primary and secondary sources.

  2. Yeah, I'm with @psstein - I don't see enough information to make a good judgement. How much is the difference, and is the financial difference $30k vs $35k or $15k vs $20k - the same difference matters more in different circumstances. How does cost of Living in the respective cities factor in?

    (NB: as of this year, most Ivy+ schools are offering $40-45k as a stipend. Unionization works )

  3. 19 hours ago, bookshelforganizer said:

    Anyone know anything about UMass Amherst decisions? I applied for the MA and haven't heard back. Just wondering if the radio silence is normal or if it spells bad news... Would it be rude to email them and ask for an approximate timeline of when I can expect an answer? 

    MA decisions usually lag PhD decisions significantly. 

    "All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone." - Blaise Pascal 

  4. 37 minutes ago, LaVieilleDame said:

    Is this also true if the two (1 admit, 1 WL) were for Am Hist and I'm Euro? I dont mean to sound like I'm desperately grasping at straws, but I'm desperately grasping at straws. 

    Yes. Usually, the department makes all its recommendations, which the graduate school approves (there are rarely objections by that stage), and then acceptances are sent out in bulk.

    I don't know why rejections lag. It sucks. 

  5. 1 minute ago, teaANDanxiety said:

    this is a bad year for South Asianist?

    I think this year will be quite tough in general. Many programs did not take a cohort last year, but are not taking extra students this year to compensate, adding an extra layer of selectiveness to an already quite selective process. 

  6. 52 minutes ago, censoredbybigtech said:

    ep, my other account had limited action warnings and I assumed it was likely a glitch or restriction by mod.

    This is, quite simply, a lie. Your account had no warnings or restrictions before you tried trolling. It now requires a mod approval on all posts until April, as everyone can see here:

    dyjNRbb.png

     

     

    The second account has been banned as trolling and abuse, as has this account. If you have difficulty logging into your original account, please follow the steps outlined there, rather than creating a new one.

    In any case, none of this stands up to the supposed story of a longtime lurker who hadn't spoken up sooner, and I'm not interested in debating the point. Further accounts will simply be deleted as spam.

    Sorry to the rest of the forum for clogging the thread with these, but this is my attempt to be absolutely transparent about mod actions.

  7. 1 hour ago, earlymodernist123 said:

    Longtime lurker here and I'm wishing I would've spoken up sooner. 

    Are you really? 'Cause you have two accounts registered on this site, @anxiouslurker. Hope you don't get a bad rap on twitter.

    Enough. That's one easy ban, and I'm in a grumpy mood. I'll turn this car around if I have to.


    iBsdYAq.png
     

  8. 14 hours ago, charmsprof said:

    thread that people wanted to post about admissions stuff? At least that's what various people have expressed that's what they're wanting/thought they were getting/what they had prior to yesterday from the thread? 

    Ok, putting on the mod hat.

    First: people will talk about what they want to talk about, and threads will drift over time. I'm not enforcing subject discipline or splitting threads. I don't get paid for that. Heck, after the recent sale of this site, I don't even get an amazon gift card and a thank you at Christmas anymore. If you find people talking about stuff you're not interested in, I encourage you not to read it.

    Second: Application threads have never been a place just for results and vibes. They have always been a place where new members could post questions and old members could offer what advice and wisdom they had. And that includes this thread, even before this past weekend.

    Third: Bullying and negativity. I let these comments, some of which were aimed at me, slide, because my initial response—if this is bullying, I'm interested to see what you make of seminar—was uncharitable, counter-productive, and one of those snide remarks that @charmsprof rightly objects to above. But I'm also not going to let this thread descend into the weaponization of safe space and inclusivity language to silence those speaking uncomfortable ideas; I'm already having to pull apart that mess in the MFA application thread. At least the post-reporting wars haven't started here, I guess?

    Anyway, this is all to say: this thread is not simply a place for comfort, congratulations, and commiseration. I suppose that makes it not a "safe space", though spaces are never in a binary of safe and unsafe. That's not to say that such spaces can't or shouldn't exist on this forum, but that one should not expect the general thread to be one.

  9. 2 hours ago, TheGradCocaCola said:

    I'm not mad at decisions, but I have an honest curiosity: what is the mechanics behind universities sending acceptations and waitlistings notices first, and then, days later, sending rejections?

    It's usually how the close-out process works. No one noticed in the era before the internet. FYI it's how job searches work, too.

    Or it's to enculturate you to expect the dispassionate disdain with which university administrations view graduate students. 

  10. 4 minutes ago, anxiouslurker said:

    No one in this thread is suggesting I'm "special" or giving me hope of a TT job here, nor am I asking them to.

    You have suggested several times now that your reasons to get a PhD mean that the advice given here does not apply to you.

    7 minutes ago, anxiouslurker said:

    Again, I'm very disturbed by the diversity comment posted today.

    Again, if you could specify what you are referring to?

    8 minutes ago, anxiouslurker said:

     Like all of us (myself included), you have certain privileges and blind spots. 

    Of course. But that does not limit me to discussing only my own experiences. Again, I don't know you, so take what advice you find useful. 

    12 minutes ago, anxiouslurker said:

    I'm stepping away from this discussion for now.

    Classic.

  11. 7 minutes ago, kapuzenernie said:

    So what's the solution?

    The solution to what? Having a BA in history? 

     

    12 minutes ago, anxiouslurker said:

    Yes, but I wasn't one of them. My concerns shouldn't be automatically and unfairly lumped in with them and dismissed.

    It's concerning that the recent race/diversity hiring comment received the least amount of attention and pushback out of all the posts in this particular discussion. In a lot of ways, Grad Cafe often feels like an extension of the old boy's club. I hope we can all work to make this a more fair and equitable space as the academy is already problematic enough as it is. I agree with the other users suggesting that we divide up the forum more neatly. 

    I don't know you. No one here knows you, no should they. Since that's the case, at best, what you get here is advice based on probabilities, not tailored to your individual experience and ability. And some people are actually special, and go immediately to a TT job after a 5 year PhD. One of my cohort-mates did last year. I'm certainly at least very lucky. But for anyone on a forum to suggest that you might be special, to give you hope, is quite simply academic malpractice. 

    I'm honestly not sure what post you're talking about, but GC is the opposite of a good old boys' club. The good old boys aren't here. They don't need to go on the internet for advice on how to do a PhD, they already know. Most people on this forum are first generation (PhD, if not college), and/or have taken unusual paths to get where they are. 

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