mdiv2014

thank you for the posts - yes it was answered, but the hateful pm's were just gob-smacking whatever nerve was struck to evoke those responses was ...sad

you know, i have to push back and defend my ground here - given the hate messages I've received via pm (really,?!, sad it is or perhaps a drunk and lonely phd student on valentive's day with nothing better to do, and .... very cavish [allegory of the cave, duh] in the platonic sense). i read this website and its long history of posts/threads for general knowledge - which is served with a helping of salt - and see and hear what i see and hear in the day job of studying..... my view is the majority (?) of religion graduate students (masters and phd) couldn't go to a sister graduate school at their institution and know their 1st amendment from their 4th amendment, let only articulate eloquently something outside their field in religion which an up and coming undergraduate should know (e.g. the cocktail party questions "so, you're in div school, tell me about jainism...") and i ask "Are we too narrow in our focus?" are we, and the phd students who are giving me hate, one trick ponies? and you have no idea on my background, so don't go to the 'it's a matter of perspective' argument.... but fair is fair, a don't think a dba could spout off accounting, managerial complexities, financial investments, etc etc with ease - stop hating and just answer the question.......ghesh...

I'll try to frame this in an articulate, understandable way.....as yet it is a general observation, but one that is confirming itself over and over again.... From my limited exposure to wannabe PhD candidates and PhD candidates at a top tier school, I perhaps see areas of focus/concentrations becoming so consuming in the students' life and mind that they have little or no understanding of areas of religion (never mind the world outside the field of religion, gasp, you mean there's a life 'outside the cave'? No way.) outside their focus/concentration. If they go googoo on the Hebrew Bible, watch out - don't ask them about to name 5 religions in South Asia, liberation theology, etc. because you will only get a blank stare and a "Well, I don't take those classes" response. Tenured professors seem very well rounded or at least are able to spout out enough knowledge outside their field to seem so. For all you beenthere donethat PhD application and acceptance trial, is this a fair assessment of potential PhD applicants/candidates? How does one build a body of experience that shows well-roundedness if in fact this is to be a trait that is merited?

ditto - the guy is either a troll or clueless

HNV721, I guess you're saying a humanist shouldn't/couldn't spiritually serve others? Or wouldn't 'benefit' (your word) in serving others spiritually? So your basic premise is that one has to have a spirituality and/or faith tradition to serve spiritually? Really?! And the MDiv is as much about serving and preparing to serve as " spiritual formation and interreligious education" (your words) OY

'service' takes on many forms in the hds mdiv program - 20% are buddhist (with only one lama that i know of) and a sizable chunk of the class are social justice, ngo/non profit oriented. OP would have to do 2 field education units but that can be way outside the parish setting (to include teaching)......my last post had a typo, the mts humanist i know is also seeking a joint degree at the kennedy school of govt and the humanist chaplain is in the mdiv program ----- i know there are others, depending on OP's goals and SOP, he has a good shot

absolutely, a humanist chaplain is already in mdiv program another in joint mts and kennedy school programs it's all in your application

I've been offered to do a poster at a pretty big conference. Pros.... - Big name conference - Unusual topic, sure to draw interest, unconventional and perhaps controversial - In my local area so no traveling - Gets my name out there (but associated with a somewhat controversial topic/research) Cons - Cost/effort of preparing poster - Poster walk-through is only 1 hour of a 3 day conference (Will it really be noticed? At all?) Questions Is doing a poster 'a big (or noteworthy) thing?' Will it be noticed on CV on PhD applications or CV in general? (Keep in mind it's a highly recognizable conference) The poster thing, anybody been there/done that? Poster stories to share.

king's college and many others have 6 year part time phd

i don't read sop's but can tell you specific, heart-clutching and true anecdotes/or shorter specific points in your life that showed a decision point is what makes the adcom pause, raise their eyebrows and go hhhhhmmm. in other words, this is what distinguishes you from the pack in a VERY good way i normally don't read sop's but having looked at your ideas for first paragraph - they all suck, are boring, and are no different from the pack and do you realize in one of your paragraphs you trashed Mormonism? personally, i would have stopped right there and canned you seriously everyone at hds for example has a personal narrative and has had struggles, but no one trashes another religion that aside, paint the picture of your dysfunctional family - what decisions did you make and why? for mts and mdiv, be personal, but don't just repackage your resume/transcript, tell them about your struggles and decisions your transcript and lor's will flush out the academic strengths you have, get personal in the sop - but well crafted

for hds not for prospective students only for hds students going hds admissions goes on city tours and hosts days where prospective students visit the campus

depends on sop and other related 'make you look good' factoids honestly, i see many mts-ers at hds with similiar but you really have to nail the sop - cold - to rise above the pack i suspect you're assured getting into 2 of the 5.... you asked for my assessment.......

being at harvard, i can say there is a fair handful of M students with 'unrelated' bach. degrees. take a look at hds courses and how they (into 2017) match your interest and keep in mind you can cross enroll to greater harvard community (gsas, etc) sop should show passion. what you can bring to the table. i see many specific and many broadly interested mts students here. you have a shot , feel free to pm me

If you're speaking about interview questions, they would NEVER ask such a specific and potentially biased question. In an application, I can't remember if 'marital status' is listed. If it would be, it would be for administrative purposes and like ethnicity, be in a portion of the application which is withheld from the adcom. Believe me, any potentially bias provoking question or detail has been removed from the admiss. process. If your statement of purpose involves an incident which reveals you have or don't have children, you would not earn any points of sympathy. Applicants want to mention irrelevant facts in their statement of purpose (interest in LGBT, social justice, prison reform, the care of little animals, etc etc) thinking it will help paint a favorable picture of themselves. Read the university's instructions for the SOP very carefully - and do what it says. Your status of a parent has NO bearing on your admission.

agree w/ doobie. i heard long sitting chair of Harvard Divinity School ThD adcom say that GRE scores are way down on the list of what they look at.....

Don't take anything for granted. Your SOP needs to be laser targeted. Candidates can overcome burbs on transcripts only if they have a brief and justifiable explanation. As a Christian, you'll have to show that you can work in a multi-faith environment. Your recommendations should touch on that..... Your resume should be tight yet glowing distinguishing you from the pack. You've got the makings of a potentially successful application, but don't blow it. PM me if you wish

i have no advice to give but am curious about this thread......i know of experts of everything on-line who do business consulting and i know 'brand image' consultants but i have yet to hear of an expert/guru/consultant who handles personal on-line image consulting for individuals (with knowledge of academics) - and would be their client if one existed! have you tried googling pr and image consultants just to see what they offer repolishing one's on-line presence is good for the long run - i would advice having a consistent message throughout without looking packaged - and showing passion, wholesomeness and ..... pluck (but the last one is me) my instincts say your on-line presence wasnt the kill shot of your application and neither will a well polished on-line presence put you over the top but it would support your application or not good luck dobbie

REAL bad idea - because of parking and fines should you leave your car even a few minutes over while parking on the street . back in the 90's i knew a fellow student who insisted on having a car. she eventually gave up moving the car every night and budgeted 800 usd a year for fines. and as i understand even the paid ($$$$) parking lots get full and so a place inside is not guaranteed and i don't know where you are coming from but re insuring the car in ma will also mean a bump up in insurance - to get a parking sticker for cambridge (which does not mean a spot) i believe requires local tags after a reasonable amount of time having a car in boston is a nightmare in general

100% sure americans do not need visa. i go to uk all the time. you WILL be asked where you're going and for what reason by the immigration official. their job tends to get boring and they may get chatty or just stamp and send you through

due on signing lease

only first month.

this is an interesting question I have never heard of a Middle Eastern student with full funding from their government taking 7 years to do a PhD after they already have a Masters. Never. In any field. PhDs in Petroleum Engineering for instance didnt take 7 years..... Mind you none of these foreign students that I know of have been to TT US schools and none have been in religion per se (one I remember was at Uni of New Mexico and I cant remember if it was 'Islamic Studies' or an PhD/EdD with specialization in teaching Islam....) but they were in top schools for their field Uni Houston/Tulsa/Oklahama.Wyoming/West Virginia for Petroleum Engineering for instance Therefore I would say you 'can' opt out of TAing doing only course work and dissertation, but you probably get NO discount in tuition. As a side note, Kings College has a part-time EdD for working professionals that is 7 years tops - and that time-line is in an accredited part-time EdD program.

Is having conferences under your belt in grad school help in phd application? If so, how much? If so, how many?

another hds incoming student here, but with over 50 years in this incarnation and currently in ME i bring a totally different perspective (and as for MY run on sentences....hey, grad forum is not a paper for publication) statistically your significant now is unlikely to be your significant years from now.....i blew off a choice job in my 20's because of someone. poor choice.....unless it is a committed soulful - i need this person more than life itself - relationship, the relationship will not be there 20 years from now based on statistics here. young 20 somethings need a dash of statistics once in a while. often actually.... as for the immersion, i am more familiar with the one at american uni of cairo and the one in yemen ......but what i can say is - don't pass these opportunities up - never. arabic is i think the 3rd hardest langauge to learn. it takes time, committment, time, and more time. to get the us military or state dept language bonus ppl have had to study fulltime 56 weeks and pass a really hard test but frequently when they come to the ME require top up tuitions - constantly. arabic is not french. MSA is the language of instruction in immersion places - asking for a shwarma on the street is different though - the shwarma vendor will understand MSA but what he says is not in your MSA books. And you should be in class for around 6 hours a day for 6 weeks on a summer immersion.... it should be hard work .....

I know many 'Reverends' who merely bought the title....