therealhogwarts

Hello there. I finished my PhD at Emory last fall. Usually, you will receive an email or call about getting an interview. If you are in the US, that means an invite to the Recruitment week. If you are abroad, you will be asked to interview over Zoom. Still, any contact means you have made the first cut of 20 or so applicants. Ah! Just saw someone has provided this info above. Best of luck to those who get the interviews. Emory is a good place to study religion and Atlanta is a good place to live during your journey.

Why did so many people give this a thumbs down? That's great news! Congrats!

That seems rather odd. From what I have heard, interview candidates were finalized last Thursday. I would assume all invites have been sent by this point, as interview weekend is only 11 days away.

There is no more snow near the campus. Emory has been open since Sunday. Current students have already been invited to be on hand for interview weekend Feb 5th.

There are a few posts on the emory grad cafe page. So I'm assuming calls/emails are going out slowly. The University is officially closed today, but I don't necessarily see why that would impede a call or email.

Apologies. By soon, I meant one-two days!

If you applied to the Graduate Division of Religion at Emory, final interview candidates were decided today. If you were one of them, you should receive a call or email very soon.

Great! Well done.

Tough luck, mate. I know quite a few top candidates that were rejected. At the same time, the DPhil in Theology is almost never funded, and would have cost around 100,000 with living over three years. Although the US PhD is longer, you are given much better funding.

No doubt that Stanford offers the better likelihood of obtaining a teaching position in the US after your degree.

Does that mean you are starting the PhD at Yale?

I am not too familiar with the Oxford DPhil in History, but having done an M.St. at Oxford and being offered a spot for the DPhil in Oriental Studies, I would say take the Stanford offer. I turned down Oxford for Emory because of the vastly superior teaching and learning opportunities I would have at the latter. Moreover, I have no doubt that coming out of Emory, I will have far better job prospects than I would have had coming out from Oxford.

Anyone else coming to Emory this fall?

And let's be honest...UCLA is in California. Definitely miss Cali weather at Emory.

Although I know that most people already have some idea of where they will be in the fall and, hence, won't look at this thread any longer, is anyone still contemplating attending the University of Washington (Seattle) for the PhD in History? My friend is waitlisted there and it is kind of his last hope. So if you were accepted and decided to go elsewhere, would appreciate it if you let the department know. Thanks!

I have also heard from previous U of C students that it is extremely cutthroat. In fact one even mentioned that he chose a different PhD program, despite being admitted to U of C, for that very reason.

These are excellent suggestions. Perhaps just a few more: Tomoko Masuzawa's book The Invention of World Religions Robert Orsi's Between Heaven and Earth (A controversial figure because he focuses on lived religion) Russell McCutcheon's Manufacturing Religion (A lot of people seem tired of this guy as well) Mark C Taylor's Critical Terms for Religious Studies

Just so you are aware, it is very unlikely that you receive funding at Oxford. I am currently at Oxford for the MSt and have no funding at all. Moreover, coming from Harvard over Oxford, unless you plan on staying at Oxford for the PhD, will be viewed far more favorably by PhD admissions committees in the US.

Duke is certainly a top program for certain areas in religion. I tried to PM you but was told you cannot receive any messages.

What would you qualify as a top program? Yale, Chicago, Harvard, Columbia? I assume since you said "several" that you got into one of these. If so, that is incredible with less than 50% in quantitative.

I would advise choosing to work with faculty members that fit better with your interests, particularly if you are thinking about a PhD after. If you get on well with the faculty and can stay on at Emory, remember that PhD funding is very good. Granted, my advice is a bit biased as I will be at Emory in the fall to start a PhD.

A number of reasons actually. First, I am currently completing an MA at Oxford (second overall MA) and have gotten a chance to see the downsides to living in the UK. Second, the DPhil is only three years and allows for little-to-no time for actually gaining teaching experience, taking graduate seminars, and having extensive contact with supervisors. A traditional PhD in the U.S. allows for two years of coursework and the ability to teach your own courses after qualifying exams. Finally, it is indeed the money. Oxford is strapped for cash when it comes to the humanities. A good U.S. program will cover all tuition and give a sizeable stipend to boot. For me, there is little comparison between the two. Although I will admit that when I was younger I would have been attracted to Oxford for the name, there is far more important criteria, such as funding, support, etc., in getting a PhD in Religion than just a name.

I got in for the West and South Asian Religions course of study. Totally stoked! Will be focusing on Hinduism.

Finally some closure! In at Emory! My number one choice!

Unfortunately, I still do not have much closure. I have an offer at Oxford, but am waiting it out to see if I can get in off the wait list at Emory. Chances seem very high, so just keeping my fingers crossed.