natsteel

Sorry for the double post. Either way, I'm not surprised we're applying to the same schools as the number of top departments in early American history have dwindled in recent years and the field itself is in a significant period of transition.

We are most certainly in competition against each other, though I don't really deal much with religion on its own terms. I expect to focus on colonial political culture and intellectual history. I know the trend in the field has been to focus on the early republic, but my interests lie in the pre-revolutionary period, say 1720-1776, and I am focused primarily on colonial New York City, but also other urban areas. What aspects or areas are you most interested in, Emerson? Also, have you been in contact with many of the professors. McConville told me he can only take 1 student per year because of funding issues and W&M's PhD admissions, as I'm sure you saw, will also be limited this year. Who would you expect to work with if you were accepted to Harvard? I wish you the very best of luck...

armouredapple, if many of your programs have deadlines in December, you're leaving that a bit late and should probably start contacting professors as soon as possible.

Once again, I agree with fuzzylogician. I am sure we are all experiencing something like this. One of my mentors is also a highly respected graduate advisor but the program at my undergrad institution is not highly regarded (read: highly ranked). This mentor told me when I was a junior that they would take me on as a graduate student... so I always considered it as a safety, but in the last few weeks I've wondered if I should even apply there since out of 10 schools it would be my 10th choice. But I think I am going to do it anyway... The ranking of the school alone will not get you a job. I would think that someone who has done extraordinary work at a Top 50 school is probably just as likely to get a job as someone who did okay at a Top 10 or Top 20 school.

I agree completely with fuzzylogician... I also would not recommend talking about poor aspects of your record in your SOP, but your case is a bit different. I think a sentence or two along the lines of, "After having my undergraduate studies constantly interrupted by a medical condition which required five surgeries, I received my MA..." Or something like that... this way you're not drawing too much attention to it and coming off as making an excuse, but rather use it as an intro/aside to your solid work for your MA.

I second the suggestion to adhere to the professional standards in your field. In history (Chicago-style), double-spacing is standard as is 12pt font. Rules are to give everyone a level-playing field. My sample was twice the standard limits of 20-25 pages and I just omitted a few whole sections and summarized them with a note italicized in brackets. I have heard some people say send your whole sample and disregard stated limits, but it seems a bit risky to me. Sending a 50-page writing sample when the maximum allowed is 25 pages is essentially the equivalent of sending a 2000-word personal statement when they say "no more than 1000 words." Why take a chance on annoying even one committee member by flagrantly disregarding explicit instructions?

Huh? I have never heard that before... Is that supposed to establish that you have developed some kind of personal/informal relationship with the professor beyond the classroom? I've visited my letter-writers' homes and had much contact outside of the school setting and all three refer to me as Mr. xxxxx in their LORs.

Back in the day, BA-MA-PhD used to be the standard route... but no longer. EVERY one of my professors have said not to bother with an MA. Just look on department websites and you will see that most of the admissions information is geared toward those applying with only a BA and then they include additional information such as, "Those coming in with an MA...." I know this is not the case for everyone and I might get flamed for saying this but I think those who have areas which may need improvement or are without a defined focus are the ones that benefit the most from going the MA route first. And there's nothing wrong with that. Some, like Katzenmusik, will be in a better position to get into a better PhD program after an MA than immediately after their BA. But PhD programs nowadays are designed primarily for those coming in with only a BA. Basically, apply widely to MA as well as PhD programs to hedge your bets and then sit back and go crazy for four months with the rest of us waiting to hear...

It may not be post-1945, but one of my mentors here is Carol Berkin, who has done mostly 18th and now 19th-century women's history.

I do the same thing, though when I first walk into a professor's office, I immediately begin scanning their bookshelves. For the OP, once you've taken a class and visited a professor a couple of times, you can ask if they'd be willing to do an independent study. This is an ideal way, as someone said before, to further develop your relationship with a professor and help secure a very good letter. Most independent studies I've done consisted of me and the professor making a reading list and then reading a book meeting to discuss it every two weeks. Some professors may want to meet once a month, but it is a great way to get more meaningful interaction with a professor.

But there is a back side to that... For example, 3 professors whom I emailed told me that they were retiring within the next 3-4 years and so were not taking any more students. In 2 cases, there was no one else in the department that fit my interests and so I was able to rule those schools out and not waste $200 on application fees, GRE reports, transcripts, etc.... In my experience, contact prior to submitting your application is crucial and I get the feeling that your professor is an aberration in this case. As for sending a professor a PDF of your application... I've never heard of that nor had any professor request such a thing. I can imagine some professors thinking that might be overkill. Besides, they will see your application in January and February anyway.

I know what you mean... the application work been the equivalent of taking another 3 credit class. I was advised to apply to approx. 10 schools just to be safe, but if I'm honest, there's only four that I REALLY want to go to and another 2 to which I would happily go.

I voted August but I've known who my three letter writers were gonna be since January at least. Luckily, all three offered to write so I didn't have to worry about asking, but they are my mentors so it's kind of expected. I would think that you should be pretty certain a professor is not only going to be willing to write for you but will write a very strong letter if you're going to wait until September.

The plain truth is that adcomms will not attribute the same weight to letters that you chose not to waive your rights to. The accepted wisdom is that if a professor knows the student may see the letter, they would be less willing to be completely honest in their assessment. Most adcomms will not take letters seriously if you don't waive your rights. I completely understand your curiosity but the trade-off would mean negating the value of the letters and that is something you definitely do not want to do. Just waive your right for each of them and worry about more important application-related issues.

Some programs I am applying to actually ask in the application as a question: "Have you contacted any professors at xxxxx?" And then it asks you name them and the date of the communication. Also, to a poster above, I have gotten some very detailed and lengthy emails from potential advisers including one that included 3 phone numbers and the times I could reach him at those numbers. Most of them say something like, "Please keep me updated on your doings and let me know if I can help with the application process." So, I also plan to email them all back in mid-late December just to say, "I just wanted to let you know that I have submitted my application to your program, etc..." It's like one last chance to get your name in their head after the initial email but before the review process begins.

In sections that big, you MUST go to office hours. You don't have to be having trouble in the course to go talk to the professor for a few minutes. That's what "office hours" are for. You can just mention something that interested you during the course so far and it will go from there... don't overthink it. I'm actually quite shy and really had to force myself to do it in the beginning but now I talk to my 3 mentors all the time with no problem. Developing a relationship with professors who will ultimately write for you is crucial and since you are still only a sophomore you have enough time to do this. However, don't put it off... It's not as hard as you think. Just do it!

Thanks for the responses, guys. My GPA is 3.92 (4.0/maj), my honors thesis won an award and is very strong and my letters are as strong as can be expected from 2 people extremely really well-known in my field. However, I think you are right that I can't let that 4.0 AWA stand. I never imagined that I could get less than a 5 and still don't understand why. I always expected the GRE to be the weakest point of my app only because I am not a good "test-taker" and when it comes to writing, I'm the kind of writer that develops his thoughts through the process of writing which you obviously don't have time to do in a short-timed essay. I'm just going to have to take it again. I really appreciate all the responses. Thanks alot.

Here's my conundrum... I scored passably with a 660v 560q but only a 4aw. I am actually a very strong writer with an honors thesis as my writing sample. I also have 3 letters from highly respected professors in my field. I am applying to 4 or 5 top 15 programs in early American history (and 3-4 lesser ranked programs) but now I am worried that my 4 on the writing may get my app junked before it's even seen by an adcom expecting 300 or more apps for my department alone. Do you think it is imperative that I take the test again to improve the AW score, if not also the V score?

I plan on using an ellipsis on its own line in between the paragraphs, i.e... the last line of the paragraph. [...] (centered on the line) The beginning of the new paragraph... Anyway, that's how I'm going to do it.

I have searched all over the Dun and Bradstreet looking for a way to apply for a DUNS number as an individual in order to complete my application for the Javits Fellowship. Yet, I just can't seem to figure it out. The application is so vague about it that it makes it seem as you are supposed to have an individual number while D&B appear to only give them to businesses. Am I supposed to use the number of the institution I am at? Can ANYONE that has applied for the Javits Fellowship tell me how they went about the DUNS number? Please!?!?

sra08, when you applied what did you about getting a DUNS number?? Do you just use the number for your college?

The same came up for me, but after over 3 hours, I couldn't be bothered with 30 more math questions for no reason, especially since I would have had no prayer at getting a "highest score." I just exited the section and left.

Yeah, I've realized that, Riotbeard. Their funding situation has effectively made me rule UVA out as a possibility. I read on their website that their funding is around 12k/yr. Meanwhile, William and Mary's stipend is 18k/yr. As of right now, I am looking at: Yale, UPenn, Temple, BU, Rutgers, N'western, and a few others.

Just for the record, I will likely be applying to 10 schools (4 dream w/ 2 really good fits, 4 possible w/ good fits, 2 safe bets). Though I am considering dropping two of the "dream" schools.

Most "fair" and "straight-forward..." Yes. But competition would surely be more cost-effective for the consumer, i.e. "us." I mean, $23/per school is a ridiculous price just to send scores. I have to send to 6-8 extra schools which means my cost for reporting scores will likely be higher than the cost of taking the test.