BC08

It sounds like you've already made your decision. Door B.

I've been to Harvard Square many times throughout my life, it's one of my favorite places in the Greater Boston area. I had the ALM in mind as a backup just because I wanted the funded PhD like everyone else, but the more I looked into it the more I realized it was a legitimately challenging program that would substantially upgrade my research experience, so I figured it's worth a shot. I'll probably sit out next year and try again for PhD admissions in the fall of '09 with some Harvard recommendations next time around!!!

Early American Republic (1607-1876). I totally forgot to mention that it was Harvard ALM, not the GSAS PhD program. I didn't mean to come off as misleading or disingenuous at all, but thanks for the congratulations all the same! It feels good to hear after the 'run to perfection' I've experienced so far with graduate admissions!

It's official: I'm going to Harvard next year. I think getting some real experience at the grad level will 1) allow me to make sure I REALLY want the PhD, and 2) give me some excellent credentials to pursue that end. I'm excited for the first class at Harvard Yard already.

Cornell07, very sorry to hear about your results. My girlfriend, an MS Business student at BC, read your posts and said, "Well, if an Ivy Leaguer is having that kind of trouble, you better get a job." I guess that was supposed to be backhandedly reassuring, but it does speak to this year's insanely competitive class of applicants. I guess misery loves company! I guarantee you get into a great program next year with your pedigree and a break or two. What are your plans in the meantime? I posted my options yesterday, but I'd like to see what others in 0-for club are seeking to fill the time next year.

Maybe we could drive up the market for stipends and teaching allowances like the NFL Draft slotting system. I'd love to hold out for a few thousand extra from whoever eventually picks me.

Since I'm running out of options and prospects are looking slim for me this year, I have a few choices for next year while I tighten up my application and try again next year. I was hoping someone might just let me know how these sound. 1) Stay at undergrad for 1 year. I'm 6 classes away from an additional A.B. in English and love to write (my SOP emphasized that I want to be a writer-cum-historian a la Foote and Tuchman, perhaps to my peril), so if I get a job at the University I can pick up the degree free of charge. I figure this will keep me busy and further develop my writing style while also allowing me to dig deeper into cultural history. 2) Enroll at Harvard University Extension for ALM. Again, this would be tuition-free if I can score a job at Harvard, and would hopefully allow me to network with GSAS faculty as I develop a thesis and further specialize my interests. I know it's not a 'back-door' into the Harvard PhD program but I'm sure it can only improve my chances of admission to a solid program. I don't know if I'd complete it or transfer right away, but it's an intriguing program. I'm also toying with sending out a last-gasp application to the Columbia-LSE MA program since my primary research interest is the theme of conflict in Western history, but I'm not optimistic due to my current lack of success. I'm still keeping my eye on the prize, but I'm trying to act relatively quickly so I will have stability in the coming months. Thanks for any input.

Just tell them you know a history major at BC who would love to jump on that offer!!!

I have a hard time believing that an MA from an Ivy League school could ever prove detrimental to one's career prospects.

Congratulations on your acceptance to UNC!

Who did you two speak with at Duke? I keep getting the Graduate Assistant's voice mail.

Thanks, getting 2 rejections in 24 hours blew things a little out of proportion. I'm still curious about the Harvard thing though! 8)

So far my graduate application process has resembled the final moments of Gallipoli. Since I'm already in the Boston area, I've been thinking of getting a job at Harvard after graduating from BC and working on an ALM in History. Is this a decent option to get me where I want to go, or am I better off going back into the pile this fall? It says in the program literature that their graduates have attended HYPC PhD programs, so I'm very intrigued.

Rejected, checked website a few minutes ago. That's my first decision so far, and it feels like I've been punched in the gut by the schoolyard bully and had my Red Sox hat stolen. :cry: Still praying for Brown, but each day that goes by without contact lessens my hope. Looks like I'll be enrolling at Harvard ALM if the trend continues.

Nothing yet.....

Everyday, my friend. It's gotten especially bad since so many people on this board have receive incredible offers and advance notice from faculty members, while I have heard nary a word from any of my 8 schools. Needless to say I've been obsessing over my GPA, senior year courseload, my admittedly diffuse SOP, and my thesis which I sent in its 70-page entirety as my sample, and which I feel is overly light on primary source material.

Wow, these silent notification deadlines just ratchet up the tension that much more. Will UT update the Direct board this week as well or are we going to receive confirmation first from the department?

Did anybody get into Brown yet? I'm guessing Tulane, Vandy, and Florida are a long way off but the lack of any real feedback on the wall regarding those three gives me the sinking, remorseful feeling that I chose a few TTT's as the Auto Admit folks would say.

I'll definitely invest in Rosetta Stone once I have an idea of where I'm headed and what my travel costs look like. This wait is absolutely killing me. Brown's letter is in the mail and I'm praying fervently that my interview with their leading Civil War-era historian put me over the top with the committee. If not, then its going to be a miserable midterm week!

Ouch. Looks like its one down, seven to go. I'll wait for the e-mail before I strike the colors, but the odds were long this year and I can't say I'm surprised. After the initial blunt force impact, it really doesn't hurt that much. I wasn't expecting to get in anyway.

I think you have just as much a chance as anyone, but I'd strongly recommend face-to-face interviews at your target schools. If the graduate committee is looking at you as a person and not an application you will have a much easier time overcoming any purported bias against foreign students within the U.S. field.

My application process was a nightmare as well. Only one of my recommenders was a History prof (my thesis 'advisor') due to BC's over-reliance on adjunct faculty in my program, with the other 2 being my dean and a well-regarded Philosophy/Theology prof who turned me onto Existentialism, which is a theme I'd like to explore in an historical context. While I submitted every application on time, most of my supporting material came in weeks late. The UNC and PSU people were particularly unhelpful, leading me to regret applying to the latter and nearly withdrawing my app from the former. The 'lone wolf' feeling and lingering uncertainty regarding the process forced me to adjust my field of schools significantly, so I decided to abscond with several top 10 schools and apply to schools where I felt reasonably competitive for admission and where I would feel comfortable pursuing my individualized work plan. Has anybody gotten accepted to Brown yet? If I go 0 for 8 or don't find an acceptable level of funding, I'm enrolling in the Harvard ALM program and trying again next year.

I felt it was too vague and didn't get the point across that I was trying to make (I guess this disappointment is common among writers). I'm exploring themes of conflict and society, and this paper was on the dialectic compromise between Catholic and Protestant elements of Boston society from 1845-1860, from the Famine-era revolutionaries to acceptance of the Union war effort. I can't even read it now because I felt like it was unbalanced, but I also wrote it without funding and was the first evening student at BC to write an Honors Thesis, so I was on the departmental backburner for 10 months while working on it. Brown is my top choice all around, but Duke is the reach as I heard they are only taking 9 this year.

I have a 3.75 at Boston College, a wacky GRE (650 V, 480 M, 5.5 AW), and a thesis that I was personally disappointed with (but I did get an A-). I had a great interview at Brown but of course will only be happy if I see some thick envelopes. I am obsessively checking the mail now, and get nauseous when I pull a thin letter out of the mailbox!