spellbanisher

If the school really wants you, your GRE score probably won't matter if you're above the cutoffs (which are probably around 310 combined, I would think). But I think it isn't wise to go in assuming that you're going to be the number one candidate that schools will fight over (though this very well may be true!). From what I understand, schools like Yale, Harvard, Princeton, etc give pretty standard funding packages across the board. Thus, your GRE might matter more for top public schools like Berkeley, as spellbanisher mentioned earlier, where funding packages can vary greatly. I scored 170V 168Q, and I've been explicitly told (from multiple DGS's) that this was a leading factor in why I received competitive university-wide fellowships. For these fellowships, the rigor of your writing sample matters less than the numbers, at least in the eyes of many university administrators.
 
Also, I wouldn't discount those applicants applying directly from China, haha. I do some grad school admissions consulting in Asia and most of our clients applying for humanities, even if they are not native speakers, pull perfect TOEFL/GRE scores all the time. It's absolutely amazing. 
 
That said, you're definitely right that the GRE is not the most important part of the application process. If it's a choice between a better writing sample and a higher GRE score, I'd choose the writing sample hands down. But if you have the time and resources to do both, I would aim a bit higher than what you've stated here.

I've had similar feelings, so it is not normal.

Yes, this is normal. You had 4 good options to choose from, and that means that you had to turn down 3 of those 4 good choices. That's a hard thing to do, even in a situation with perfect information about all the choices, and naturally that's never really the case when we make these choices.
 
Mind you, this situation does not change depending on what school you choose -- regardless of the choice, there remain 3 schools that you would have had to turn down. Each of them has some good things going for it, or you would not have applied there in the first place. So any way you look at this, you end up turning down a lot of seemingly good options and are left with just one, which you hope is all that you want it to be.
 
You just need to trust yourself and your ability to make good choices for yourself. Nothing has changed as far as your information about these schools is concerned, so there is no reason to doubt your decision now. It's absolutely true that there are opportunities that you will miss out on, but there is NO WAY to know what they would have been, and also NO REASON to think that they are inherently better than the ones you'll have. You've made a good choice (and this is important--all your choices were good!) and that means that you'll have good opportunities because of that. You can never predict how things will turn out, all you can do is give yourself a good chance for success -- and you've done that. I'm sure this feeling of uncertainty will go away once you start school. If for no other reason, then because you'll be too busy taking advantage of your existing opportunities to worry about vague options in other places that may or may not even be there.

I thought you were acknowledging that Full Sail (or the "nature" of Full Sail) is making you nervous about applying to grad school. Isn't that the point of your thread? I know about Full Sail. I live near there and know many people who went there. It's expensive but it's worth it if you're serious about making movies, music or other things in the entertainment world. However, you're wasting your money if you go there for creative writing, business or computer science. That's just being honest. It's a waste of money because those degrees are offered everywhere, are much cheaper anywhere else, and are accredited almost anywhere else. It's worth it for music or movies because you get access to all the equipment. You're worried that your credits won't transfer. Isn't that in itself proof that it might not be the best place to get a computer science degree?

And, by the way, Fun-Cookie didn't really give you any information besides "talk to advisors." Brilliant stuff.

I've had similar feelings, so it is not normal.

If I ask you to choose between an apple, an orange and a pear, guess what: "You get confused :unsure: ". After you have made your choice, , you feel damned. Its all natural. However, if I give you only an orange, you dont get any of those thoughts and terrible feeling and you still get to enjoy the orange :) .
 
To help yourself, simply assume school A and B rejected you and you just had to choose C. Also ask yourself, if school C was the only option you had , would you have a terrible academic career?
 
#learn to look on the bright side, no one knows the perfect decision, its just important to keep moving..

I also have to disagree with NicholasCage's comment.  90-95 percent of academic institutions in the United States are teaching-focused institutions; therefore, most of us will end up there.  Your teaching skills are going to be an important part of the hiring process at those places.  Plus, even research-intensive institutions would rather have a professor who can connect well with students AND is a great researcher than a professor who is a terrible teacher (unless that second research has mad money).

My advice:

1. Don't spend an inordinate amount of hours preparing...well, anything for class.  Learn to limit your prep time.  Part of that is because the students are going to ignore a lot of it anyway, but most of it is because you need to learn balance early in your career.  For example, I have a tendency to do line edits on students' papers, so I try to limit myself to editing only the first page to a page and a half and then add a comment like "You have errors like this throughout your paper; please proofread and fix."

2. Related to #1, learn to wing it.  I create slides for my lectures but I no longer write extensive notes.  I actually find I lecture better when I don't have notes, because then I'm more free-form.  And I don't just mean talking extemporaneously - I mean switching gears when your students look bored or aren't getting it.  As you get more experience this will become easier.  

3. Create an organizational system for grading.  Buy folders or binders or trays or whatever you want to organize 1) graded papers 2) to-be-graded papers for different classes.  This way you won't have paper all over the apartment, which drove me absolutely nuts.  You also will be better able to keep up with assignments, lowering the risk of losing one.  If you have a choice, absolutely collect everything electronically through the course management system.  Forget all that paper.

4. Totally agree with not assuming that upper-level students know how to write properly.  If you are at an elite university, do not assume that your students are automatically good at whatever it is you're teaching them.  I was kind of shocked my first semester TAing at the quality of work I got from students at my elite university - I went to a not-elite place and assumed that the students at the elite place would be simply amazing, since the students at my not-elite place were great.  And they are amazing...in different ways...in the typical way that college students are amazing in their ingenuity and creativity (both for good and evil).  But they're not substantially smarter or better than students from other, less elite institutions. They're just richer and better prepared (on average).

A few years ago my younger sister asked me to help her with a paper that was very similar to a paper I was currently grading for a class very similar to the one she was taking at her regional public college, to which she commuted from home.  My family is blue-collar; she went to a regular public high school and was a slightly above-average student.  Her paper was better written than MOST of the students' papers in my class.

5. If you are TAing for a professor and it gets down to 2 weeks before the class starts and you haven't heard from them, contact them yourself.  Most times you will get an apologetic "Oh yeah, I'm teaching a class!"  If you get a brush-off equivalent to "Mmm, I'll think about it in two weeks," prepare for an interesting semester.

I think the most important to remember is similar to what hashslinger said.  Remember that we were the nerds in high school and college - we showed up shiny and excited to learn.  Particularly if you are teaching an intro class, your students will not be as excited as you, and some of them will never get excited.  They may be taking it because it's an easy GE requirement, or they need some extra credits, or they heard it was an easy A.  Perhaps 10% of your class will decide to major in the field; maybe another 10-20% will not but will be genuinely interested.  The rest will be some varying levels of "whatever." Visualize that 20-30% when you are preparing lectures, but realize that not even close to everyone is in that area and some people will be grubbing for grades.

Oh, also, don't be afraid to indulge in geekery, as long as you don't go down the rabbit hole too deeply.  One of the things that has reached my students is how geeked and enthusiastic I am about my interest area.  Even when they think I'm silly and uncool, they still appreciate my passion, and in some of them it has led to really productive curiosity.
 
ALSO.  I lurk on the "In the Classroom" threads on Chronicle of Higher Education's forum.  There are lots of experienced professors there and they have AWESOME advice (and really funny stories).

You're going to have bad days. You're going to have bad days a lot at first, but even after you've been teaching for 5 or 10 years, you're going to have bad days then, too. Just accept them and move on.
 
Related to that, if your students don't like your class or your subject-matter (or even you), don't take it too personally. Remember that you're an "authority" figure in a required class, and that people don't really like authority figures or their "required" courses. (I know that nothing is really "required" in college, but students often perceive general ed classes as a chore.) More importantly, students lose a lot of respect for instructors who seem to take student disinterest really personally. Be open to student feedback (in the form of midterm evaluations) but don't chase after their approval. That just makes you look desperate.
 
Resist the temptation to grade too hard or too easy. Devise a rubric (or borrow one from someone) and stick to it. If it's a choice between being kind and being fair, be fair.
 
Don't lose sight of your own work or the reason you came to grad school. Don't let teaching eat your professional or personal life.

A guy who just brings up babies with someone he barely knows is obviously cuckoo for cocoa puffs.

It is not uncommon for people to get graduate degrees in fields different from their undergraduate. Two of my letter writers got their BAs in literature. The fact that you are already doing research in history with notable historians already gives you stronger credentials than most applicants with BAs in history. The enthusiasm you seem to be showing, along with your research and collaborations indicates that you are a strong candidate.

To answer your question more directly: apply to any program where you believe you would be a good fit. As long as you provide letters of recs from historians, a strong historical writing sample, and a statement of purpose that explains why you are a good fit for the programs you are applying to, you should be a very competitive applicant.

Whining is my first passion, but I don't have the chops to be a comedian, so i went to grad school instead.

Whining is my first passion, but I don't have the chops to be a comedian, so i went to grad school instead.

I think you did the right thing. I also think you would likely have felt bad either way. Many people will pop up here to tell you that you should have just thought about what was best for you, but understand that more people acting ethically within the system will likely benefit you in the long run. People changing their decisions after April 15th can often wreck havoc on programs, and that in turn can make things worse for other applicants. As I've written in this space before, even people who have everything go exactly the way they planned in this process often end up with crushing buyer's remorse. In 6 months, you will be firmly ensconced in your program, living the day-to-day life of a grad student, and will barely remember this incident. 

It is not uncommon for people to get graduate degrees in fields different from their undergraduate. Two of my letter writers got their BAs in literature. The fact that you are already doing research in history with notable historians already gives you stronger credentials than most applicants with BAs in history. The enthusiasm you seem to be showing, along with your research and collaborations indicates that you are a strong candidate.

To answer your question more directly: apply to any program where you believe you would be a good fit. As long as you provide letters of recs from historians, a strong historical writing sample, and a statement of purpose that explains why you are a good fit for the programs you are applying to, you should be a very competitive applicant.

Whining is my first passion, but I don't have the chops to be a comedian, so i went to grad school instead.

So you have the nerve to call music and English degrees useless with a sociology degree? Glad old age showed you the light. 

I don't know if they're "real" problems or not, but they're just regular ass problems. Everybody has problems. People struggle to pay the bills, hope to provide for their families, work shitty jobs, face discrimination, etc. Sure, things in grad school can be stressful, but most jobs are. And I would argue grad school is more manageable since you can set aside time to study and write. You can't call a time out on Wall Street. You mentioned PhD Comics. Most of those jokes are about them being swamped because they procastinated. Sorry if I can't sympathize because you dedicated the month of March to Netflix when your thesis is due in April.

I feel you. I get certain parts of grad school can be hard, but the shit people on GradCafe complain about is ridiculous. Look at the status updates on the side. You see shit like this:

Week 1: OMG soooooo stressed. Applied to 10 schools. Hope I get in.

Week 2: OMG soooooo stressed. Got into my top choice. Hope I get funding.

Week 3: OMG soooooo stressed. Got full funding. Hope I find an apartment.

Week 4: OMG soooooo stressed. Found an apartment. Hope I like my roommate.

Week 5: OMG soooooo stressed. My roommate rocks. Hope I find a parking space tomorrow.

Shut. The. Fuck. Up. Nervous much?

You people need more religion in your lives. Here are some words of wisdom from the reverend Donne.

I can love both fair and brown,
Her whom abundance melts, and her whom want betrays,
Her who loves loneness best, and her who masks and plays,
Her whom the country formed, and whom the town,
Her who believes, and her who tries,
Her who still weeps with spongy eyes,
And her who is dry cork, and never cries;
I can love her, and her, and you, and you,
I can love any, so she be not true.

Will no other vice content you?
Will it not serve your turn to do as did your mothers?
Or have you all old vices spent, and now would find out others?
Or doth a fear that men are true torment you?
O we are not, be not you so;
Let me, and do you, twenty know.
Rob me, but bind me not, and let me go.
Must I, who came to travail thorough you,
Grow your fixed subject, because you are true?

Venus heard me sigh this song,
And by love's sweetest part, variety, she swore,
She heard not this till now; and that it should be so no more.
She went, examined, and returned ere long,
And said, Alas! some two or three
Poor heretics in love there be,
Which think to ’stablish dangerous constancy.
But I have told them, Since you will be true,
You shall be true to them who are false to you.

First world problems.

Well, they better start having babies, especially those in the sciences, because the anti-science crowd reproduces like jack rabbits.

I've had a rather pathetic upbringing, where my parents wanted me to be one of those school nerds, get straight A's, go to private school, and become a doctor. I resisted with every fucking fiber of my being by participating in sports, because I actually liked it. But the cost of it all was that our household became extremely dysfunctional, which caused a ripple effect in my personal/family life as well as my academic career, some of which I believe still affects me to this day, with grad school admissions in particular. I have some terrible grades on my college transcript that I don't know how to explain in a professional manner other than something along the lines of "due to personal reasons" or something vague.
 
I could've been a good nerd, but there are nerds who are born that way, and then there are sock puppet nerds whose parents got their hands so far up their asses that it builds a bubble until the bubble bursts. I refused to be a latter. Sometimes, tiger mom tactics work, but I won't be taking any part in it.

Damn. What is this, Oregon Trail? 

You people need more religion in your lives. Here are some words of wisdom from the reverend Donne.

I can love both fair and brown,
Her whom abundance melts, and her whom want betrays,
Her who loves loneness best, and her who masks and plays,
Her whom the country formed, and whom the town,
Her who believes, and her who tries,
Her who still weeps with spongy eyes,
And her who is dry cork, and never cries;
I can love her, and her, and you, and you,
I can love any, so she be not true.

Will no other vice content you?
Will it not serve your turn to do as did your mothers?
Or have you all old vices spent, and now would find out others?
Or doth a fear that men are true torment you?
O we are not, be not you so;
Let me, and do you, twenty know.
Rob me, but bind me not, and let me go.
Must I, who came to travail thorough you,
Grow your fixed subject, because you are true?

Venus heard me sigh this song,
And by love's sweetest part, variety, she swore,
She heard not this till now; and that it should be so no more.
She went, examined, and returned ere long,
And said, Alas! some two or three
Poor heretics in love there be,
Which think to ’stablish dangerous constancy.
But I have told them, Since you will be true,
You shall be true to them who are false to you.

If you feel unworthy of the money, you can always donate it to charity. The spellbanisher relief fund is a very worthy cause.