a fragrant plant

Thanks! I totally forgot the option of 1.5 spaces!

Another dumb question - I'm struggling to keep it down to 10 pages for one school. Is single space acceptable?

How many schools are you applying to? My list has grown from 6 to 10-11. I'm not sure if I should apply to Washington University in St. Louis. Their program only admits 2-3 students every year so I don't know if I should even bother. I'm also not sure about living in the midwest. How is St. Louis? Any insight?

Yes, I called up some schools last Friday about my less prominent GRE score and many said not to worry about it. It's important for fellowship but not crucial for admission.

I know how you feel. I'm editing my writing sample AGAIN! This is like the 10th edition...

I'm told that a wonderful writing sample will offset a low analytical score. Do the programs you're interested in require a writing sample? If they do, by all means send in your best work to prove that you can write well!

That's amazing! I'm so happy for you! I think those scores are good enough for sociology program! I made an increase of 110 in my verbal section and I'm really pleased. I know my score is not brilliant but I've tried my best to improve as much as I can in two months. The experimental section is evil. Luckily in the UK the research section is optional.

I think it will take a while before I receive my official score report. Can someone infer what percentile I'll be at? Just to get a rough idea. Thanks!

One of my top schools emailed me and said they won't be taking any new students for fall 2010. This is after I submitted my application. I realize that this must be a difficult and unforeseeable decision for the department because when I contacted the faculty in the summer they mentioned nothing about admission suspension although they did warn me against the dearth of financial funding. I'm very disappointed about this. It's my top choice and the dept has a lot of good people. I can totally see myself being a happy grad student there. What should I do?

Yes - I took the GRE yesterday and the experimental section (it's called research section) was placed at the end of the test. Although the research section was optional it forced you to click "proceed" before you could quit. I was asked to do another analytical writing. I didn't want to do it because I was so tired after travelling all the way to London to take the test. I just wanted to see my score and go home. The experiemental section was optional. If you scored every well you'll get a prize.

In the UK (at least in my school) they use a A to F scale and/or a pass/fail scheme. I got a C in one of my master coursework. I am still quite indignant about it because I don't think the grade truely reflected the quality of my paper and I don't agree with the examiner's comments. :angry: That's why I decided to leave my last institution (it's a very prestigous school and I am offered PhD admission) and go back to the U.S. for my PhD. The red tape in the UK universities is intolerable. I know I sound apologetic but my supervisor also agreed that I was just one of the victims of these school-wide corusework. Because all papers are graded by anonymous examiners she really couldn't do anything about it. I'm still upset that there is a C on my transcript (I've never got a C before) but let bygones be bygones. I'm confident that my letter of recommendation and my writing sample will speak for themselves. If I were you I would choose the Pass/Fail option. C looks pretty bad in America although it's not uncommon across the Atlantic.

totally.

Today the research section was writing. I checked "exit" and didn't write a single word. I do not want to participate in the research. Why? I hope the GRE will be obsolete in the future.

So I woke up at 4:00am this morning to catch the plane to London to battle with the GRE (yes, this damn test only has one test center in the entire United Kingdom!) I'm back!!!! My verbal has improved by 100 points (540) and my quantitative is 520. I know my score is mediocre and uncompetitive but I'm happy that it's finally over! As a non native speaker I have encountered a lot of difficulties with the deluge of obscure vocabularies. I crammed over 1500 words in the past two months!!! I know some of you may say that you can't cram for the GRE because the test is to measure how well-read one is, not how much vocabularies one memorizes in a short period of time. Well, maybe this is true for the native speakers. But for a person whose first language is not English, I think the verbal part is a pure vocabulary test. Indeed, I doubt if I will make any mistake if the analogies and antonyms are tested in my native language! So yes it is a mediocre score but I have no compunction because I've worked my hardest in the past two months. My partner has been so supportive and caring during my study and I'm very thankful for that. Now it's time to focus on other aspects of my application and live like a normal person again! Sorry for the rant! I'm just really pleased. Anyone got a similar score? How do you feel about it?

Please pardon me to sidetrack to another question. May I ask if the programs you apply state "rolling application" on their websites? Mine just say "we strongly recommend you to apply by Dec 15 but the deadline is Jan 1." Does this mean they do rolling application? Thanks in advance!

Any insight into the cultural anthro program at Chicago? What's the atmosphere like?

I'm taking it tomorrow. Sigh...

Hi all, please help! If the graduate school is the designated recipients, should I just select the institutions at the end of the test? Sorry for the stupid question.

I also transferred from a community college to a public university that granted my B.A. in Anthropology. Neither does my B.A. university factor my CC grades into the cumulative GPA even though I had 86 credits transferred to this uni from CC. I guess that's the norm. My CC GPA is 3.85 and my University stand-alone GPA is 3.59. I've not done the math; neither would the admission committee. But what they would do is to consider your grades from all post-high school colleges. You did well in your first 2 years and your GRE is good so I wouldn't worry about chances. There is nothing you can do right now to alter your GPA so I wouldn't even think about it. Focus on the things that would enhance your application such as a polished CV and an excellent writing sample. Are you applying for 2010 Fall? Best of luck to your application!

Hello fellow anthro! In answer to your first question, I don't think the admission committee will do the math and figure out your four-year GPA. If 3.22 is your cumulative GPA, that's what they'll see. If you want to emphasize your "major" GPA, it's probably a good idea to highlight it in your statement of purpose. To your second question: I do think that a spectacular GRE will make up for your GPA. But that's just my assumption. Best of luck to your GRE! I'm taking it on Thursday!

I would like to learn more about the physical environment and the campus atmosphere of Boston University. Is housing affordable at or near BU? Do you need a car? Many thanks!

I agree with you. It all depends on how strong and mature the relationship is. I wish someone had told me this when I graduated from high school. I was in a long-distance relationship with my ex-bf from high school for three years before we finally broke up bitterly. I knew it wasn't going to work soon after I started university. Studying at a university away from home opens up a whole new world for me. It was something that he couldn't (refused) to understand as he was still around with the same people. Needless to say the break-up was dreadful. I thought I would never be in another long-distance relationship again but c'est la vie. My partner and I are committed to each other and we're going to try everything to make this relationship work.

I can't tell you your chances of being admitted but your GPA and GRE score are very impressive! You said you're traveling through South America at the moment - Have you done any volunteering during your trip? In addition to sight-seeing have you interacted with the local people? I heard that Graduate school does value travel experience so maybe you can weave it into your statement of purpose?

That was what I originally thought; then I found out some universities want the test-takers to send the score to the Graduate School rather than the department.

Thank you!