Postbib Yeshuist

Same, but accepted to Iliff School of Theology (Religion and Social Change) and recommended for a high spot money-wise, so in with at least one school. Still waiting to hear from Drew. interestingly enough, I applied to SMU's Religion and Culture Ph.D. where they'd "never had a Ph.D. student accepted" and still got wait-listed. Visited all the profs, had one review my SoP, etc. Had a friend who was outright rejected. Looks like SMU/Perkins is a tough one this year.

You think showing that an attempt was made before Jan 1 would suffice to prove I wasn't "late?"

I'm getting ready to send in my Ph.D. app (Drew University Graduate Department of Religion) and the app says "due BEFORE Jan 1." OK, no biggie. USPS Overnight, here I come. My concern is... their offices are closed all week. There's no one there to accept the mail. I'm not sure I want to take the chance of assuming they'll extend the deadline to next week since I'm already having to include unofficial copies of my transcripts (big mess up there). So, what would you all suggest? I assume USPS could at least keep a record of attempted deliveries that I could use in my defense. Any advice is welcome.

My understanding is that ~85th percentile is the unofficial cutoff (I think the "official" cutoff is usually around 75-80%). I believe that equates to something like a 650 on each test. Also, I believe writing is 5.5-6.0. 5.0 is on the line and 4.5 or lower is usually not looked at favorably. Still, GRE is often the third or fourth criterion, so strong SoP's, references, etc make up for weak GRE scores (to a point).

Thanks for the comments. Excellent points everyone.

Never use a first name unless it's explicitly stated to do so. I know several professors who use pre-made sig lines and don't even realize it always says "Bob." I also know of more than one professor who gets annoyed when a student moves too quickly to a "personal" mode of address. First names are for close acquaintances/friends or situations where there is not a power differential. When contacted a professor, realize that neither of those conditions exist. Remember, they've worked harder to earn their title than you have worked to not use it. In the end, it's your choice, but an error on the side of formality will never hurt. An error on the side of familiarity may cost you an acceptance letter (or worse).

Context: This summer, we had a visiting professor from one of my "Top 3" Ph.D. program choices teach a 5-day intensive course. I took it for credit and did rather well. One day, during lunch, I asked her about the school and the end of the conversation was "Either I or Professor X would be happy to work with you on ." Issue: After a bit of refinement, the summer prof is going to be less ideal than the other prof. Since I only had her for 5 days, I'm not sure I should ask her for a reference. That's not to say she couldn't write a strong one, but because I'm not able to follow up with her easily and she doesn't have semester-long experience with me, I think it might be better to ask her for some kind of help. The thing is, I have no idea what kind of help would be appropriate. Write a "letter of support" or some such? Keep an eye out for my app? Speak with the other prof (which whom I'll be meeting in a few weeks)? What are some ideas? I'd hate to let a resource at the school I'm looking to get into go to waste.

Thank you. That's very helpful.

As an ex-Baptist who applied to a Disciples Th.M. program, it had no effect that I could discern, aside from financial aid. Many schools actually want a mix of perspective, so having a denomination that is "other" might actually help your chances.

I'm beginning the app process for Ph.D. in Theology ("and whatever"). I feel like I have strong references and I believe I'll have a solid writing sample by the time my apps are due. My CV is what concerns me... In writing my SoP, I see many references to "include c.v." Personally, I can't figure out if I have a good cv or not, primarily because I have yet to write one. However, when I think about it, these are the following things that come to mind: I have no memberships in professional organizations aside from the AAR (everyone has that) I haven't been involved in many committees, primarily because I've been working full-time as a High School Math teacher and taking courses at night My Undergrad and M.Div. GPA's were not overly strong (though my Th.M. GPS is 3.94 and moving up) I have not been published (though my thesis this Spring (2010) may be good enough to get into a top-tier journal, though apps will already be in) Those are the negatives and they feel *huge* Possible positives are I did Adjunct some World Religions classes at a local Comm College one year I have TA'ed (but only for one semester due to my first son's birth and the decision to have some time to be there and help my wife during the first few months) I am on one advisory committee this year (that has yet to meet) and that is with the School of Education I'm sure there's more to add to both the negative and positive columns, but overall, I feel like this is a real weak point in my application. Is this common? I feel like I should have been published 3x by now and have chaired this committee and been active on that one, but I just haven't had time with working 50+ hour weeks as a teacher/coach and taking classes. What are y'all's thoughts/ideas on this? (Sorry if the above rambles a bit. I'm typing this in-between classes )