rising_star

It's not ideal but it also sounds like it will be a strong letter. Given that the other two letters will come from those with a PhD, I think you'll be okay.

I don't think that I or anyone else here would say that fit can be quantified. But, that doesn't make it any less relevant when considering where to apply. I would also say that the current course offerings aren't a clear indication of faculty interests. I know, for example, that the course catalog for my PhD department listed a number of courses which were no longer being taught because the faculty person who was teaching them had shifted their research interests away from that particular topic.

Mine was only ever a few emails here and there. I didn't have sustained conversations with any POIs until after I'd been admitted with funding. I'm honestly not sure that the sustained conversations are really and truly necessary, especially since they have the potential to become aggravating or a burden to the POI rather easily. As a faculty member, I get way more emails than I can really give a good response to at the time so a lot of things get pushed until I have time to write more than a two minute reply, even if they're things I'm interested in or want to do.

Oh, that's a bummer, flea61. Can you get more information on the placement for SDSU's program?

I wouldn't say not having replied yet is a sign of being disorganized. Most adcoms haven't even started meeting yet (I'm guessing the deadline for applications is probably December 1 or later) so it's difficult for any POI to be in contact with anything about your status. Patience is key here, as is keeping in mind that dealing with applications is one small part of a professor's job. The rest of the job is ongoing as current students still have needs (you have to teach them, grade their work, write exams, hold office hours) and there are research-related tasks to be done too (applying for funding, getting actual research done, writing it up, submitting it to journals, etc.). While applicants are really focused on their applications, they really don't rise to the forefront just yet for faculty (or even for current grad students).

I would submit the strongest paper you can. That means one which shows off your research, analytical, and writing abilities and highlights your potential as a scholar. If it's on the same topic as your SOP great but, if it's not, that can be okay too.

Unless philosophy works very differently from other schools here, I'm not sure that there really is a better chance of attending a lower ranked school, especially if the fit isn't as good. There are so many tales on this board of people who get rejected from all of their lower ranked schools but admitted to the higher ranked ones, largely because the fit--and consequently the SOP--were much better for the higher ranked schools. If you're thinking about ways to winnow down the list of schools you apply to, I'd think long and hard about two factors: 1) placement record (for the type of thing you want to be doing*), and 2) funding (that is, years of funding, funding compared to cost of living, amount of teaching/TAing to get that funding, etc.). A third factor I'd include is time to degree. Even if you think you'll be able to finish on the shorter side of the average, it helps to know what that average is... *What I mean is that if you want to work at a liberal arts college, then you want to go to a school that has a good track record of placing their graduates there. Even better if your POI or potential committee members have a good track record doing so. If you want to work at a RU/VH, it's the same kind of consideration. A program that's great at getting their students jobs at RU/VH may be absolutely terrible at it for LACs (and vice versa). Similarly, if you want to be in a particular region after graduation, it can help to look for programs with strong placement in that region (such placement could be at regional state universities, community colleges, LACs, etc.). I realize it's way early to be thinking about where you might want to be a professor but these things definitely matter.

Sending a thank-you note is the polite thing to do. Go ahead and do it. That said, you could probably leave out the admissions office without anyone noticing or caring.

Did you apply for spring 2016 or fall 2016? If the latter, I wouldn't contact your POI yet. If you really want your exam results in your application, you could contact the graduate program administrator about updating your application and then find a way to include them somewhere.

I have answers to a few of your questions but don't know your field well enough to answer all of them. In general, you'll need to articulate a clear interest in education policy in your statement of purpose, one which connects what you've already done (economics background) to what you want to do going forward. 1) A PhD is a research-based doctorate and is what most professors have, even in schools of education. The Ed.D. is more of a practice-based doctorate. While both are terminal degrees, there are generally differences in the coursework you do and the dissertation. If you look closely at the requirements for the degrees, this should become (more) apparent. 4) As an international student, they will also be looking at your TOEFL score. Your verbal and writing scores are a bit low so a good score on the TOEFL will really help you out. I'm sure others can chime in with advice on the rest. Best of luck!

It would depend on how prestigious and competitive the grant is, how much money you were awarded, and whether the fellowship money can be used to pay your tuition as a grad student...

For a conference presentation, practice, practice, practice. Seriously. And don't just read from your paper. It's boring and everyone hates it. There are some fields where this is acceptable but, in general, it's bad form to do this. So don't. In your delivery, you want to seem like you aren't reading from a script or reciting from memory even while you are. This isn't the easiest thing to pull off but, when you do, it's awesome and people will compliment you on it. When you're actually presenting, bring your presentation in multiple file formats (PowerPoint, KeyNote, PDF) and on different devices (saved to the cloud, on a thumb drive, etc.) in case there are issues with the computer, the internet, etc. in the room you're presenting in. Wear clothing you're comfortable in. Try not to wave your hands around too much as it's distracting. The turning a conference paper into a journal submission has already been covered but, in general, they have a different style and tone because when is for oral delivery while the other is written. Reading recently published papers in that particular journal and mimicking their structure is never a bad idea.

If you'd specified that originally, then you likely would've gotten a different response from gatorgrad316. That said, I'd recommend using the Cornell Fellowships database and similar resources to search for programs that meet your interests. Just saying you want to go to Western Europe isn't all that helpful.

Could you ask San Diego State to defer your acceptance until the fall semester? That would give you time to hear from Oregon and mean that either way you'd be starting grad school in Fall 2016, at the latest.

Eigen, do you mean that STEM students are still taking courses while writing their dissertation?

I've definitely never heard of this. Are the lectures about a topic related to your dissertation? Is the class operating in a workshop model where people share and present their research to get feedback from others? I ask because I have heard of the latter, with some describing it as a waste of time and others commenting on how useful it was.

There's a difference between hours you're meant to be working as a TA/RA and hours you shuld be spending in your office to get your research and coursework done. No, you shouldn't be doing 40 hours a week of work related to your TA position but, that doesn't mean you shouldn't be in your office. So, I guess I'm not entirely sure what you're asking.

Generally speaking, yes. Also, think about how much time you've spent on this proposal versus your other potential writing samples. You want to make sure your writing sample showcases your best work. If you really want them to know about this research proposal, I'd find a way to include a line or two about it in your SOP.

Definitely do not send them a proposal for research you haven't conducted.

I haven't but I've heard mixed things from people who have. One friend said it was useless while another said it was helpful.

I'm not saying that departmental culture should be hidden. But in my experience, even in departments where some/most of the students and faculty drink, there are also events held in spaces where those who don't drink, don't want to, or can't be around alcohol are also welcome. As an example, my PhD program held at least a couple picnics a year at city parks. We got ramadas/pavilion areas near the playground so those with children could bring them and let them play. But, if every departmental event you have centers around alcohol, then by all means, make every visit event that way too. My point though is that since it's unlikely that every single departmental thing involves alcohol, planning a visit which suggests that is the case is misleading and the planners could do better.

Definitely true. But it's worth keeping in mind that international students are eligible for the NSF DDRI (doctoral dissertation improvement grants) because those are submitted by the PI/university, rather than the student.

madbiochemist, this is about a male grad student doing similar things but you may still find the advice from Captain Awkward about this helpful.

Eigen, two things come to mind. The first is that I realize it's not common but, if graduate programs want to be open to students of diverse backgrounds, then these are things they may wish to think about. I mean, they should probably also rethink a lot of things, such as having female presenting students room with other female presenting students who may not be comfortable with this, but I'm of the belief that every little bit that's done is a step in the right direction. Second, if your department is really so drinking-heavy that someone who doesn't drink wouldn't be comfortable, then you should probably blatantly advertise that so those with alcohol issues (whether that's being an alcoholic or religious avoidance) don't waste their time/money applying to your department. And, quite frankly, your department should maybe rethink being so alcohol-centric because it does and can exclude people even if it's not intentional.

For me, it's not the combination or balance so much as the fact that some people's religious beliefs prevent them from going into any sort of bar. So, having an alternative that is somewhere they can go, without being made to feel like a pariah, is generally a good idea. I'm not trying to say that this is common but, it was the case in both my master's and PhD programs.