Minnesotan

Okay, to all the people who are arguing on the results page (i.e. the University of Minnesota PoliSci "discrimination" debate), please move your argument here. If stupidity such as this need occur, I would rather it happened in a moderated forum than on a results page that is supposed to be helpful to people for years to come. Imagine, for instance, what someone is going to have to weed through if they want information on Brown's Business MA program. 90% of the comments are about being rich, owning us other "fools" in the humanities, being "serviced" by members of the opposite sex, and various references to "pimping" - "big" or otherwise. Maybe it'll do us all some good to vent some aggression. Just remember, I am supposed to be a responsible moderator and member of this community, so don't abuse this forum for adult debate by turning it into a place for personal attacks. So we're clear, personal attacks and blatantly racist, sexist, theist (basically anything ending in an "ist") language will be deleted. And, yes, white males can be the victims of racism/sexism, too (sorry - someone made a disturbing comment to the contrary in the results yesterday). I am an equal opportunity comment deleter! =) Adult debate of these themes is fine, though.

The AHA site has a list of phd programs by field, region, or various other criteria. I'd check there.

Sewing, huh? That's a new one, as far as criteria for grad assistantships go. heh Yeah. They're probably trying to 'feel you out,' see if you'll be good to work with, and that you know what you're talking about. I would be encouraged by a phone contact.

I'm at York right now. If you have any questions, let me know. It's a good school, respected in the states, and there are a ton of grad students (as well as undergrads - nearly 60k people total) here. The rep is comparable to a major research/large land grant university in the states. It's not quite canadian Ivy, but you have access to U of Toronto's library and facilities. It also has the same potential for a very good learning experience, as there are some famous profs here (and then, there are plenty of obsure ones, too), and some rigorous programs. I can't speak to Spanish history, but the Ancient History program here is very good (joint program with U of Toronto). Not quite as warm as the UC choices, I'd bet, but it's balmy compared to Minnesota.

If it didn't take enormous amounts of time and effort, it would be a worthless phd.

U Chicago is swarming with unfunded (or underfunded) grads. But it's prestigious, so every sucker pics Chicago over any other non-ivy choice.

This has been floating around for a while, but I thought it would be appropriate if you hadn't seen it yet: http://interweavers.com/brett/humor/reject-letter.html **Edit: I forgot - no HTML. Blah!

Yeah. And Canadian universities give out "E" grades, too (at least they do where I'm studying, though I would shoot myself if I ever saw one on my transcript). Anyway, I agree with the others. Don't convert unless requested; and if you do convert, write out your method and justification.

Yeah. Abortion probably isn't the best topic to cover in your writing sample.

I would be so lost in grad school without my laptop. I'm in the humanities/social sciences, though, so I write a lot more than the natural sciences peeps.

Ask. I'd guess it's reimbursement from a fund after you've already bought the ticket and filed some forms, so the initial investment is still going to be on you.

You probably learned your lesson the hard way, but grad apps are like shooting craps with your professional life. You need to put out as many apps as possible to as many schools in as many cities in which you can stand to live. I know my second round of grad school apps (for my phd this time) are going to cost me about $1,000.00 for eleven schools. It's the only way I can feel safe, though. I would hate to be stuck in a bad position after all the work I've done. And it would be nice to have a few more (fully funded) offers to choose from this time.

Keep in mind Yale and Hahvahd are private institutions, who can set their own quotas for int'l students. Public universities are going to differ somewhat.

Most people I know who have lived there hated New Haven. I know that's not particularly helpful, but I thought I would mention.

I wouldn't feel bad about not hearing yet, because: A) Acceptances get sent out in waves at most programs. When people in the first wave reject offers, more offers are made. Rejection letters arrive much faster than acceptance letters in many cases. If you haven't heard back, that means you still have hope (a.k.a. no news is good news). C) Each program sets its own schedule. Most of all, this level of stress can kill you. Go work out, or meditate a few times a day. I know it drives you nuts - it did me - but worrying won't help; it'll only wear out your stomach lining.

Hard to say, really. Sometimes colleges really like those little libarts schools. My main advice would be to spread the love as far as your budget will allow. Apply to lots of programs of varying quality. Better to get a phd from southern mississippi baptist tech than a pile of rejection letters from the ivy leagues.

Way to go! I can only comment on the university I am currently attending, but here it is much easier to get into Ph.D programs if you took your master's here as well (in a similar discipline). It makes sense that if you get good grades and make the connections you need to make, you'd have a much easier time getting in than if you applied out of nowhere and nobody knew what you were like.

Wow! Look at the big brain on me! =) Seriously though, disregard my advice about retaking the GRE, then. I thought it was easier than it really is to get a high verbal. Either way, it seems to me that the process is about presenting a complete package that has some outstanding positive aspects, without too many negative bits standing out. If you see something you think is negative, then do what you can to fix it. Once you've fixed all you can, it's time to go have a margarita and try very hard to not obsess for the next few months. lol

You realize the score is out of 800, right? Either way, it's very easy to ace the GRE verbal with a small amount of study. But, I suppose, if 680 is considered a good score, then there's probably no need to retake it.

To keep the discussion going for this year's crop of social climbers, you realize very quickly (at least, I did) that the only things that separate one student from another at grad school are: -Ambition -Desire -Work ethic -Organization -The ability to find money from obscure sources* * this one should be listed twice I didn't go from obscurity to Ivy, but I did go from tiny, tiny state university in tiny, tiny city to a major research university - the largest arts school in Canada - in the impressive city of Toronto. It's quite an adjustment having 60,000 people to deal with on campus, as opposed to 5-6,000 at my undergrad u.

A lot rests on her statement, but my position is that every little thing helps. If you have the time to spare, might as well do what you can (then completely wash your hands of the process, if possible).

Good luck all. I went through the process last year, and it was hell!

I would think seriously about doing a couple of things to improve your chances: -Retake the GRE. Your verbal score is barely at the minimum for a decent humanities program. Nobody cares about the quantitative, unless you really screwed it up, which you did not. You're probably on the higher end of the spectrum for history applicants. -Track down some other professors, advisors, even janitors if you must. It's unbelievable how many times I've heard of people who, when they get any personal comments at all with their rejection letters, have found their boss did not have the same clout as someone who actually works at a university. -Make a note of any external funding you've received, or for which you are applying. The space limitations in grad programs in the public research universities is based primarily on economic considerations. If you can somehow fund yourself, you should let them know (and repeat it somewhere else) - your chances will be much better. Regardless, you've selected a good mix of schools. I would bet you could expect a 1/3 acceptance rate, provided your statement and supporting materials are top notch. Then again, what I tell everyone is that the whole process is a crap shoot - I got acceptance letters to some top schools I didn't think I had a prayer of attending, yet I got rejected from most of my backup schools! It's all about "fit," finding a mentor within the program to grease the wheels, and catching the comittee on a Friday instead of a Monday.

That's getting quite annoying. You only need to post the link in one forum.

There are more 4.0s in a straight letter grade system, but in a +/- system, average GPA rises. I would be careful doing any sort of conversion from one system to another. Better to list your per centum score, and let the adcoms figure it out. They aren't completely daft (all the time).