Averroes MD

Yeah I know, but these are people who are reading my paper and must know/see that it is in MLA format. And they are very highly qualified readers.

I used to use justified, but then I took a class on academic writing and they told us that MLA requires left aligned, so I stopped using justified. Now, multiple people have told me to use justified, so now I'm just confused.

I think you will have a very good shot at Harvard. Good luck!

I don't know how good of an idea it is to post the full text of the email on a public forum.

I understand what you are saying, and it's a good point. But you can only control certain factors. Age is a difficult one. Maybe easier on the younger end to titrate, but harder on the other side. It seems a little much to me to use this solitary reason to decide when to apply. If the OP wants to do something else in a gap year, then that's different. EDIT: Shrug, maybe I'm wrong. I don't have strong feelings on this.

I'm on the other end of the spectrum. Who cares? Just do good work and silence any critics that way.

I disagree with you that these are the only two schools in the entire world that you need to get into. (I say that as someone who only applied to two schools for my master's degree--one of them being HDS.) I certainly can understand that you want to get into one of these two schools, just as I narrowed my pick to two schools as well. However, you are (obviously) a strong candidate for both programs. (You knew that, right?) Good luck.

If you use your nickname would you put it in quotation marks? Like so: FirstName "Nickname" Lastname ? For me, I have a "foreign sounding" name and I hate having to correct people or hear their butchering of my name. So that's why I want them to just call me my nickname which is easy to say.

Can you elaborate?

Thanks for your input. I came to fairly similar conclusions. I wonder if uk schools are more accepting of theological approaches whereas american ones insist upon an R.S. one?

I'm reading Oxford's theology program's handbook, and it says the following about one's PhD thesis: I *think* I know what these different approaches are, but I just want to confirm. Specifically, can anyone tell me what they think a theological approach and a textual-interpretative approach would be towards a PhD thesis? (I'm specifically interested in "doing theology" and not religious studies, so this quoted section appealed to me.) Thanks!

^ And anyone here interview for Clarendon or Ertegun?

Considering it is now April, if one has not heard a peep from Clarendon or Ertegun, then does this mean rejection? (Posts from previous years seem to indicate this.) Really, it is quite stupid that Clarendon and Ertegun just don't have a decision date and send out rejection emails. It would be common courtesy and would not be difficult to do.

I third what sacklunch said.

Great, thanks!

Question: what's the process of getting such teaching gigs at a community college?

As for journal articles, I don't know about that. I know I'd regret it if I had put something out during undergrad, just because my thoughts and ideas have matured significantly since then. I've heard conflicting things on publishing early but personally I'd not focus on it.

I'm in religion/theology, but here's my input: 1) Good on you that you're already thinking about this. I so wish I had done that! So, this answer is basically what I wish *I* had done. You're already ahead of the pack by taking out the time to plan now! Kudos! 2) I agree with the post above about figuring out a general field to narrow in on... You don't need to know EXACTLY what you want to study, but you should have a general idea. For example, I'm in Islamic studies. What exactly within Islamic studies is something that develops over time. 3) Languages, languages, languages. By doing #2, you can start on the critical languages you need NOW. It takes years to learn languages. On that note, I'd probably dump Spanish unless it is relevant to your field. Instead, I'd work on French and/or German, which are generally useful across the board. 4) Related to #3, do targeted travel abroad programs, especially during summers. Or go to Middlebury Language School. If I could go back in time, I'd use ever summer in undergrad to do immersive language study. 5) As for your school name and prestige, sadly this does matter. However, you can more than make up for this by getting good grades and then getting into a master's program at an elite institution. The master's will be the glitter you need to get into a PhD program. 6) Develop relationships with professors in your field to get good letters of recommendation. Good luck!

Nice! I've secured funding for Oxford, so I'll be going to the UK with you!

Thanks. I did apply for the scholarships I could apply for. I just haven't heard anything back about this yet. I'm wondering if I would have been interviewed for funding or not. Anyways, I've emailed my PI but I'm just anxious/excited.

I thought I was out for the count, but I just got a surprise acceptance letter to Oxford..... AH! Now, we await funding decisions. Oxford would be a dream come true, especially since it is very strong in my field of interest and has a perfect PI. How sad it would be to turn Oxford down. Are there interviews for funding? Is there any way to know if I still stand a shot at funding?

I read this on the FAQ for Georgetown's PhD in Arabic & Islamic Studies: How long will it take me to complete my degree program? The Ph.D. program takes approximately 5 years to complete--4 years of coursework and 1+ years to work on comprehensive exams and dissertation. The Graduate School places a limit of 7 years on a Ph.D., and a limit of 3 years on a MA, but some students are able to extend the program if extra time is needed. Four years of coursework... Even if you come in with a BA and MA in the same field?? And you are supposed to do your comprehensives and dissertation in 1 year? lol I'm assuming two years of coursework are cut off if you come in with an MA? Then, you don't earn an extra M.A. like many other universities after finishing the first 2 years of coursework?

This is very helpful. Thank you !

Having struck out this year for PhDs, I'm taking advice and improving my writing sample by including lots of primary sources to flex my language skills. My question is: how does one make it clear in an article that translations are one's own? Where is this noted if anywhere?

My impression is that MAR is slightly more competitive to get into than MDiv, but the same principle should apply. I think you will be fine. As for getting a PhD in philosophy afterward, that is a different ballgame altogether, and a master's in philosophy may be a better route for you. However, this is beyond my scope of knowledge as I am in religious studies / theology. Good luck!