TMP

I was in a position to decide between two advisers all other factors equal (i.e. funding, personal networks, job placement). I asked the following questions and their answers were starkly different so it ended up being pretty easy to choose one. 1) What kind of questions in (insert field) occupy you? (we're going beyond their projects) 2) Here are my project ideas... what do you think? (Often times, they'll have forgotten what you're really interested in doing so refresh their memory) 3) What do you value as a historian? Adviser? 4) What are your requirements and expectations of me as your advisee? By this point, you should have a clear idea of which of the two POIs you want to work with. You want to work with someone who can generally agree with you on 1 and 3 and like your project ideas and you can deal with their expectations/requirements.

Don't make a huge deal out of it but simply say that you hope to finish in December . What is a realistic timeline given your and your adviser's calendars. It's a chance for your adviser to reveal herself that she's pregnant and can do this or that.

It's not very well updated. You're better off just asking about recent dissertations defended. Departments, in general, will have trouble explaining their graduates' employment because there's a very strong culture in academia of not sharing perceived failures. Sometimes graduates who don't wind up with jobs just leave without reporting because the'yre too ashamed that they did not get a tenure-track job at a good university. There's also not always a strong sense of affinity between the department and its graduates as it is at the undergraduate level. But departments are now working to track down to start putting together a clearer picture of placement record (or "outcomes" as a recent CHE piece puts it). You should definitely ask your potential adviser about his/her past students. HOWEVER, know that professors don't like to talk about "failures." My POI hid the fact (or maybe forgot?!) that his first student had chosen not to go into academia and stuck around to teach at the local high school. I found this out by asking the graduate program coordinator (s/he is your best bet). There are a number of combinations though graduates of hands-off advisers will find more difficulty in getting a job than an adviser who just gets out there, network, and sell their students. Sometimes advisers bank on their students' "amazing' dissertations and fellowship successes and do not realize that networking still needs to happen. You should also ask graduate students what they'd like to do with their PhDs to get a full sense of your colleagues' ambitions. If someone is very interested in teaching may find fitting in a group of research-oriented colleagues more challenging. You want to be able to find some people whom you can talk to about professional development as you all move towards graduation. Otherwise, you're left to totally network and keep in touch with like-minded peers via e-mail and other forms of contact. In general, the department responds to that culture. So if you're very interested in teaching, just ask around for teaching resources on campus and you can just go there to satisfy your need to talk with others about excellence in teaching. Feel free to ask the DGS about exams and dissertation completion- how often does it happen that people fail? It should tell you how hard the faculty will work with you to help you become an ABD.

Sure. Be honest. But sometimes such an effort doesn't have much of an effect especially when it's a TOP 3 school with a strong funding package. Professors at those places sometimes underestimate the importance of contact and overestimate the name brand and strength of the funding package. Then again, they may be the types to prefer to talk in person.

czesc, it happens a lot. That's why there are warnings for ABDs to think very carefully about expecting to have a job offer if they wish to go on the market as ABDs. I have heard far more finalists not being ABDs in various searches than ABDs (ironically, the most "senior" the person is, the worse their job interview performance is). I have very little desire at the moment to go on the market as an ABD unless the job was perfect or am promised a campus visit.

Here's the thing- the others are on the money- more often than not it is NOT about you. You will learn that quickly once in a program too- not everything is about you. There are far, far too many variables in play. The best you can do is to put your best foot forward and hope you win that round of Russian roulette. And it is NOT the end of the world to be a re-applicant. I applied three times. Those were the most miserable years of my life yet I gained life experience that's been put in good use thus far in my program.

For my most expensive year, I spent over $500. You get the first 4 GRE transcripts for free. After that, it's $25 a pop. Transcripts all depends on your schools (All of my schools didn't have fees). Application fees ranged from $55 to $125 (damn you Stanford!). As for "campus visits," don't even bother unless they're within easy drive. You don't really know whether or not the professor is making decisions based on personal contact. The POIs who accepted me were in strong favor of "knowing" the applicant though they didn't tell me until middle of our conversation. Everyone else? It was just nice to meet and chat.

My department also received fewer applications as well. There has been very scary rhetoric in the last few years about the job market and I suspect that more and more people are being transparent. It is also the economy improving a bit. The profs here still scare the shit out of graduate students into thinking hard about strategizing their programs of study. Sometimes I shake my head in disbelief that I made it through the roughest years of graduate admissions when I really did truly want to go for my PhD while a number of applicants were looking to escape the reality.

The rise of adjuncting feeds on desperate PhDs. If more people stay away from adjuncthood, then hopefully the whole issue will go away and better hiring practices will be made.

Adjuncts and Lecturers make less than graduate students. Unlike everyone else, including graduate students, they do not get benefits. Have you heard of the "Adjunct Project"? Google it. I seriously had a semester as a "Lecturer" in one of my funding packages. I thought it'd be a nice way to have my own class. Then the DGS said to me, "You have to pay your own dissertation credits. You don't get tuition waiver or health benefits as a Lecturer." My heart sank.

That said, HistoryPhD, just go to Miami. It really is not worth going into debt for the PhD. I have a colleague who did and she's still conflicted about it (she was an older student at the time so wasn't quite intending on going into academia). She had a wonderful, wonderful experience though. But think about it, what would you do with that $70K+ that you would spend on paying off the loans? I still ponder on what I would've done with the money I've been using to pay off my loans from my MA... Vacations... shopping...

HistoryPhD, what KIND of job do you want with your PhD? If you just want to teach, period, then Miami isn't a bad place to go. But if you are aiming high like research universities, you do need to aim high. There is no shame to turning down offers and re-apply. Seriously. The admissions are like winning a lottery and absolutely crapshoot. For me, it's like playing the Russian roulette. just gotta keep spinning until you win.

Don't worry. Grad students are very honest people. It's the faculty who might not be That's why I emphasize talking to the DGS, your potential adviser, and grad students. If the information isn't consistent, double check with original party that told you the info that the second party "revised." If nothing else, just ask the grad coordinator; s/he is the eyes and ears of the department. I did tell students at both campuses of my offers. The students were happy but if not a bit envious.. because in these days it is a rarity to have choices! Do tell them of your funding structures if they're that different. The students at a school where I had the fancier offer (but they didn't know the precise nature, only the framework of fellowships and TAship years) immediately told me to take the other package... simply because they would love to have that particular structure and did explain to me why it's worth it. I was quite very surprised considering that these students were attending a bigger brand name university. Their insights on funding the PhD were invaluable and I still keep their words in my mind. Also ask about teaching load- how many discussion sections? How many undergraduates each? Do ask students about their TA-ing experiences- how do the professors handle the TAs' assignments?

Re: summer funding... back to my post the first page. It is important to ask about students' survival in the summer. This is all truly no different from getting a job when you live on your own and make your own salary. When you see your stipend, break it down in 12 months, not 9 or 10 and that's your actual income before taxes (unless you're an employee as in being a TA). These are the kinds of questions your parents should be able to answer too, not just us. In fact, treat this moment as an opportunity to prevent a potential gap with your family. Talking to my parents about finances made them understand the kind of life I'm living in order to be able to do what I love to do. They can't relate to my work or relationships with my professors specifically but they can understand the economics and finances of a doctoral education. I do think giving them a picture of the financial reality of being an academic keeps our relationship strong- they can better appreciate the time I need to invest in my work to get it done including applying for grants and fellowships and the reasons behind my own spending on professionalization. And why I can't always take vacations when I'd like to or for how long I'd like. Also your family may be able to give you insights that you (or we) might not otherwise have from living on their own for a much longer time.

Get yourself out of those department politics by changing advisers. I'm not kidding. You don't want to deal with this guy. Find another faculty member who will support your work. You're ONLY an MA student, not a PhD, so another faculty member may be able to work with you even if your interests don't necessarily align. Graduate students can sometimes be victims of department politics and it is is our job to stay out of them as much as we can.

Strong LOR from Adviser > Publication for consideration into a PhD program x 10. I am sorry as well about your situation but remember this equation. You can also discuss this issue with the DGS... if there is one. If not, go to the chair.

Let it go. There is no significant difference between a 3.7 and 3.8. Just make sure that he will STILL write a STRONG and POSITIVE LOR. If he won't, just change advisers, period.

This is a black box situation where only you can talk to your adviser about this. But I can throw out some scenarios based on stories I've heard. Unless you wish to take candidacy exams all over again, you will have to keep your current affiliation. As long as you don't have to teach or do any work to maintain your funding at your current university and are taking dissertation hours, you do not have to physically stay where you are. You can move to wherever your adviser has her new job in order to take in personal contact (but then you'll have to deal with your committee members to some extent, depending on their particular roles in shaping your dissertation). To be affiliated with the new university, you and your adviser would need to have a conversation. Did she negotiate to bring along any of her graduate students? If so, how would they be part of the program (usually applying to the department as part of formality) and be funded? And for how long? It may be possible that the new department/university told her that she could not bring her graduate students and she have to make a choice. And she may be choosing not to take any graduate students. Usually advisers will bring along those who are very early in their graduate work, take the "best" one if s/he could only bring one, or not at all. There are just too many variables and a conversation can be the only way you will get a straight answer. Try to be patient and she will get back to you as soon as she able to.

Just file FAFSA anyway and consider yourself independent if your parents aren't claiming you as dependent. You'll get approved for loans and such even if you don't have much of income or/and assets. Consider it as a formality.

Re: conferences.... in my field (maybe it's just me) we actually have "nicknames" for people based on their current projects in order to remember who they are and where they work. I'm not sure how much I *love* mine but it certainly gets me motivated to keep moving forward and get started on something new! I do roll my eyes when people make references to my adviser because it sounds like it's all she does, which is not necessarily true. But it's unique and catchy. So there.

Make sure you ask about summer funding, especially at public institutions . Ask the following people and here's why: 1) Graduate students- may or may not complain, will offer insights on how they survive and get their research and language work done (after all, they DO cost money) 2) The DGS- Your objective point person 3) Potential adviser- his or her answers will depend on how willing s/he will be to get you funding when it's competitive, his/her letter of support matter a lot to funding committees who are trying to figure out if your project is worth investing. Summer funding will give you a glimpse of how "healthy" the financial situation is at the department and university level. While it may not need to be an ultimate factor but it is worth considering as you embark on an uncertain path for the next 5-7 years where funding support outside of initial package matters.

For me, it came down to my adviser. I could walk away from the more generous funding package. But I could not walk away from my adviser. The thought of doing so was unbearable. I still haven't regretted my decision. She's worth that extra year of funding. Location hardly mattered since i was so used to moving around. I'd emphasize the importance of the adviser when you are in a small field where your training with your adviser matters more than with the program.

Yes, Princeton decisions seem to have been released. A friend of friend just got in as well.

Don't worry about the "competitiveness" of your funding packages UNTIL you have ANOTHER funded offer. Without that, you just have a choice of whether to take that particular offer or just not go to the PhD program this fall. It's very hard to ask for more or know how *competitive* it is when you have nothing to compare/bargain with. it's like job offers- companies aren't going to increase your salary package unless you have another one and they want you to work for them. Here's a dirty secret about PhD programs: Money is a very sensitive topic for graduate students, even at well-funded programs. Pay close attention to what students have to say when you ask about stipends being livable and department support for research and summer funding. Pay very close attention- their responses will give you an indication of two things 1) Department's financial health and 2) Attitude towards the current (hierarchical) system. Tread lightly, even on these boards.

Congrats ot all of you with acceptances, you should be proud that your hard work on your applications has paid off. For those without something, this is very early. Just breathe. A few notes: 1) Remember, all you need is just ONE funded acceptance. Do NOT take an unfunded offer- you're good but not that good enough to be considered for funding. Don't let that down and just re-apply in ANY case if the PhD is what you want. So, no, no, one rejection doesn't mean you'll be rejected everywhere. I received 1 unfunded offer, 2 waitlists, and 10 rejections over the course of two cycles before I finally got 2 funded offers (in one day!) and they were the first schools I heard from for my third cycle (and then I got rejected everywhere else and withdrew one app). Maybe I just have a skin of steel to be able to say this. But you do need to develop that if you're going to survive academia. 2) Interviews- approach them as conversations. Professors are just interested in your ideas. Just tell them exactly what you think and how you see things in history. They will respect you all more for being honest. They are better judges than you are of your own ability and potential to become a scholar. If they don't like your ideas, don't take those personally, you won't want to work with them anyway. I have had that happen and frankly, I'm happy about that. PhD is hard enough as it is if you can't be comfortable sharing ideas with your (potential) adviser and committee members. 3) Even if you just get ONE funded offer, treat it as a choice between going for your PhD and committing yourself to 5-8 years of intense research, writing, reading, talking, and writing (did I say that again?) and constant balancing of your time and financial budgets, and having a "normal" life where weekends and vacations exist. Ask tons, tons, tons of questions about expectations from your adviser, the DGS, other professors, graduate students, and graduate coordinator. Even though I had gotten into my top choice and would go in a heartbeat, I realized that it was good to have this other funded offer (initially much more attractive package) in hand to force me to scrutinize these two programs. I learned more about each program than if I had not done that. Every since coming here, I haven't had too many awful surprises though my first and second year peers are still encountering them. As a result, I think my time here has been quite smoother with less drama than if I hadn't asked questions.