[Question about masters programs- research experience]

Are any of your professors around this summer doing any research? For the first few summers of undergrad I worked a full time job, but this summer I have made research a priority. It means I'll have less money, but I consider it a small investment in my future. My school is small but all my professors still work on projects throughout the summer. For example, one of my professors had a big survey data set that she just never had time for during the school year, so we spent a couple of weeks analyzing it, and now we have a conference poster submission sent in. Ask your professors if you can help out with anything at all, big or small. If publication/presentation doesn't come out of it, you can still put down on your CV that you assisted your professor for summer/fall semesters.

 

Also, if you think some of your larger research papers are good, you can look for places to submit them for a research award. I'm in psychology, so for things like this I look at the Psi Chi International Honors Society website. Not sure about your field, but there's always something!

 

I wouldn't say that this lack of experience would hurt your chances for a MA. Other candidates probably don't have tons of experience, either. As long as the rest of your stuff is good, such as GPA and GRE, I think you will be just fine. I'm pretty sure those two things are what most MA programs care about the most. At least you have the graduate level class to prove that you understand to workload and emphasis on research.

 

I don't know much about MA funding since I'm not applying to any, but from what I've heard in my field you're definitely more likely to get funded for a PhD than a MA. I'm only applying to PhDs because I took out lots of loans for undergrad and don't want to pay much more. Depending on the rest of your stats, it might be worth a shot to apply to PhD programs. Maybe others can provide more insight because I haven't even applied yet so I'm no expert!

 

Whether or not you should take out loans for a MA and be okay with it depends on a lot of things, such as the debt you already have, and how well a job in your field will pay. 

Thanks VulpesZerda!  I didn't even think to submit my papers for research awards.  I think I will look into that!  What's funny is that the one I think is best was actually for a psychology grad class, but since I wanted to take a psychology based approach to the field of communication, that might be okay!

[Question about masters programs- research experience]

I don't have any real research experience.  I've written a few 20 page or so long research papers (one for a graduate level class I was taking as an undergrad) but I don't have any publications or presentations under my belt.

I am hoping to get a little bit of experience with this with the capstone course I'm taking next semester but I will be doing that during the same semester I'll be applying to grad schools.

 

So my first question is, will this lack of research experience make it difficult for me to get in to a good MA program?

I purposely am not applying to PhD programs this time arond because I don't think I would have a competitive application.

 

Also, I was told that it wasn't worth pursing a program that didn't offer full funding.  On the other hand, I've been told that MA programs don't generally offer full funding.  The programs that I'm applying to all have TA-ship opportunities but all on a competitive basis.  So should I just be happy if I get any funding at all since it seems hard to come by at the masters level?  Should I be okay with taking out student loans for another two years while I work on my MA and prepare for applying to PhD programs?  Or is it not worth it to go to an MA program that won't fund me fully?

 

Any insight into these questions would be aweseome and so very appreciated.  I just want to know if I'm wasting my time and money or if it would be reasonable to take another two years worth of loans out so that I can (hopefully) get into a fully funded PhD program.

 

Thanks! 

[How to get research experience in comm]

Obviously, in order to strengthen my application I want to look into getting some kind of research experience in the Comm field.

I'm still unclear about the best way to approach this at the undergraduate level...

Maybe you all could share some stories about how you ventured into the world of research before grad school and maybe even post anything you published then as well.

 

Thanks!

[Applying to Colorado schools for Fall 2015]

JLRC,

 

Based on my research CU Boulder, CSU, UNC, AND DU all offer full TA-ships to a few MA students.  CU Denver and Colorado Springs both offer TA-ships for stipends and possibly tuition waivers but I am not clear on how much.  I do plan on going to whatever school (if any) funds me with a TA-ship.  I just think the time and money it costs to move out of state for what might only be a few years seems like a huge waste to me if I can get funding in the state I love am grounded in.

[Only applying in state- good or bad idea?]

I am currently finishing up my undergrad at University of Northern Colorado.

After a lot of thought and careful consideration, I decided that it wouldn't make sense financially or personally for me to go out of state for my MA.  

Therefore I have decided to only apply to Colorado schools.

There are 6 schools in Colorado that I think would fit wonderfully with what I want to study.

At the same time, I haven't heard of anyone applying to schools in just one state.

 

Thoughts?

[Applying to Colorado schools for Fall 2015]

So I will be graduating next Spring with a BA in Communication Studies and minor in Psychology from the University of Northern Colorado.  I am doing what I can to prepare for applying to grad schools, but I just want a little bit of advice.

First of all, I have decided that I want to stay in state for grad school.  Financially, it's the only thing that makes sense.

 

So I plan to apply to the comm programs at: UNC, CU Boulder, CSU, CU Denver, CU Colorado Springs, and University of Denver.

Does anyone know much about these programs?

Anybody in these programs?

They all sound like they could be a great fit under the right circumstances.  My research interests float in the area of female sexuality and homosexuality and how they are (mis)represented in the media and in our culture along with social change/activism regarding those misrepresentations.

 

I will be graduating with a 3.8, possibly a bit higher, and solid GRE scores (my prediction based off lots of practice tests).

 

I don't really have any research experience, that's something I want to look into this next semester, I'm just not entirely sure how.

Other than that, does anyone have any advice for me?  What else I can be doing to improve my chances?  Also, do I have much of a chance of getting into the programs I mentioned?  (They are all MA programs.)

 

Thanks!