Deadwing0608

I am a first generation student. Neither of my parents went to college. I grew up well below the poverty line in a single-parent household and was completely supporting myself by 17. Academia has been a huge adjustment. I know some working-class students, but I did not grow up in the working-class. I do not have supportive but clueless parents. It makes for awkward conversations when faculty ask very basic questions about my family (what do your parents do? where did you grow up? are you going home for the summer/holiday/etc?), and I can't answer because I don't really know them, when i did live with my mother we moved constantly, and the home I have built for myself here is my year round home. At first I as intimidated by all things academia, being in rooms with people that had tutors, went to Ivy league undergrad (I'm in an ivy league phd but went community college to no-name state school for the BA), but that mostly faded. The only real, persistent difference I notice between my peers who come from middle/upper (and sometimes working) class backgrounds and I is the ease with which they express themselves and how quickly they can articulate their opinions. Believing that you have something worth saying and knowing how to say it are skills that I know I lack, and I am sure many other first generation students do as well.

I am a first generation student. Neither of my parents went to college. I grew up well below the poverty line in a single-parent household and was completely supporting myself by 17. Academia has been a huge adjustment. I know some working-class students, but I did not grow up in the working-class. I do not have supportive but clueless parents. It makes for awkward conversations when faculty ask very basic questions about my family (what do your parents do? where did you grow up? are you going home for the summer/holiday/etc?), and I can't answer because I don't really know them, when i did live with my mother we moved constantly, and the home I have built for myself here is my year round home. At first I as intimidated by all things academia, being in rooms with people that had tutors, went to Ivy league undergrad (I'm in an ivy league phd but went community college to no-name state school for the BA), but that mostly faded. The only real, persistent difference I notice between my peers who come from middle/upper (and sometimes working) class backgrounds and I is the ease with which they express themselves and how quickly they can articulate their opinions. Believing that you have something worth saying and knowing how to say it are skills that I know I lack, and I am sure many other first generation students do as well.

I am a first generation student. Neither of my parents went to college. I grew up well below the poverty line in a single-parent household and was completely supporting myself by 17. Academia has been a huge adjustment. I know some working-class students, but I did not grow up in the working-class. I do not have supportive but clueless parents. It makes for awkward conversations when faculty ask very basic questions about my family (what do your parents do? where did you grow up? are you going home for the summer/holiday/etc?), and I can't answer because I don't really know them, when i did live with my mother we moved constantly, and the home I have built for myself here is my year round home. At first I as intimidated by all things academia, being in rooms with people that had tutors, went to Ivy league undergrad (I'm in an ivy league phd but went community college to no-name state school for the BA), but that mostly faded. The only real, persistent difference I notice between my peers who come from middle/upper (and sometimes working) class backgrounds and I is the ease with which they express themselves and how quickly they can articulate their opinions. Believing that you have something worth saying and knowing how to say it are skills that I know I lack, and I am sure many other first generation students do as well.

So, I am an advanced PhD candidate in history who did exactly what you hope to do, except I went the other way from America to Europe. I did not have to deal with the political issues that you are describing. In many ways my decision to change fields was (I think) somewhat of a relief to my initial advisor, but that's a whole different conversation (feel free to PM, or I am happy to elaborate here).
I would just like to emphasize (and I cannot emphasize enough) the part of Sigaba's post that I quoted. Just saying "I have been interested in U.S. history for a long time" or "hey this person I like left" will satisfy no one ( I am sure you have more to say than that!). What you need to do, and what I did not do and so learned the hard way, is have a clearly articulated way of framing how and why your interests shifted. You need to be able to explain how the questions that animated your earlier work do in fact come into the new project, and you need to be able to connect up the path you are traversing from European to American history. It is there. I did not see the long-term development of my work toward Europe until much later on, and I think if I could have articulated it sooner the transition would have been smoother. So, sit down and really have a think about how you will address those questions. Setting aside the political issues that I can't comment on without knowing more, it will be your answers to those questions that do (or do not) get your new possible advisors excited about you and your research.
 

So, I am an advanced PhD candidate in history who did exactly what you hope to do, except I went the other way from America to Europe. I did not have to deal with the political issues that you are describing. In many ways my decision to change fields was (I think) somewhat of a relief to my initial advisor, but that's a whole different conversation (feel free to PM, or I am happy to elaborate here).
I would just like to emphasize (and I cannot emphasize enough) the part of Sigaba's post that I quoted. Just saying "I have been interested in U.S. history for a long time" or "hey this person I like left" will satisfy no one ( I am sure you have more to say than that!). What you need to do, and what I did not do and so learned the hard way, is have a clearly articulated way of framing how and why your interests shifted. You need to be able to explain how the questions that animated your earlier work do in fact come into the new project, and you need to be able to connect up the path you are traversing from European to American history. It is there. I did not see the long-term development of my work toward Europe until much later on, and I think if I could have articulated it sooner the transition would have been smoother. So, sit down and really have a think about how you will address those questions. Setting aside the political issues that I can't comment on without knowing more, it will be your answers to those questions that do (or do not) get your new possible advisors excited about you and your research.
 

Some people thrive in cultures that are toxic to others.

I am a first generation student. Neither of my parents went to college. I grew up well below the poverty line in a single-parent household and was completely supporting myself by 17. Academia has been a huge adjustment. I know some working-class students, but I did not grow up in the working-class. I do not have supportive but clueless parents. It makes for awkward conversations when faculty ask very basic questions about my family (what do your parents do? where did you grow up? are you going home for the summer/holiday/etc?), and I can't answer because I don't really know them, when i did live with my mother we moved constantly, and the home I have built for myself here is my year round home. At first I as intimidated by all things academia, being in rooms with people that had tutors, went to Ivy league undergrad (I'm in an ivy league phd but went community college to no-name state school for the BA), but that mostly faded. The only real, persistent difference I notice between my peers who come from middle/upper (and sometimes working) class backgrounds and I is the ease with which they express themselves and how quickly they can articulate their opinions. Believing that you have something worth saying and knowing how to say it are skills that I know I lack, and I am sure many other first generation students do as well.

I am a first generation student. Neither of my parents went to college. I grew up well below the poverty line in a single-parent household and was completely supporting myself by 17. Academia has been a huge adjustment. I know some working-class students, but I did not grow up in the working-class. I do not have supportive but clueless parents. It makes for awkward conversations when faculty ask very basic questions about my family (what do your parents do? where did you grow up? are you going home for the summer/holiday/etc?), and I can't answer because I don't really know them, when i did live with my mother we moved constantly, and the home I have built for myself here is my year round home. At first I as intimidated by all things academia, being in rooms with people that had tutors, went to Ivy league undergrad (I'm in an ivy league phd but went community college to no-name state school for the BA), but that mostly faded. The only real, persistent difference I notice between my peers who come from middle/upper (and sometimes working) class backgrounds and I is the ease with which they express themselves and how quickly they can articulate their opinions. Believing that you have something worth saying and knowing how to say it are skills that I know I lack, and I am sure many other first generation students do as well.

I am a first generation student. Neither of my parents went to college. I grew up well below the poverty line in a single-parent household and was completely supporting myself by 17. Academia has been a huge adjustment. I know some working-class students, but I did not grow up in the working-class. I do not have supportive but clueless parents. It makes for awkward conversations when faculty ask very basic questions about my family (what do your parents do? where did you grow up? are you going home for the summer/holiday/etc?), and I can't answer because I don't really know them, when i did live with my mother we moved constantly, and the home I have built for myself here is my year round home. At first I as intimidated by all things academia, being in rooms with people that had tutors, went to Ivy league undergrad (I'm in an ivy league phd but went community college to no-name state school for the BA), but that mostly faded. The only real, persistent difference I notice between my peers who come from middle/upper (and sometimes working) class backgrounds and I is the ease with which they express themselves and how quickly they can articulate their opinions. Believing that you have something worth saying and knowing how to say it are skills that I know I lack, and I am sure many other first generation students do as well.

I am a first generation student. Neither of my parents went to college. I grew up well below the poverty line in a single-parent household and was completely supporting myself by 17. Academia has been a huge adjustment. I know some working-class students, but I did not grow up in the working-class. I do not have supportive but clueless parents. It makes for awkward conversations when faculty ask very basic questions about my family (what do your parents do? where did you grow up? are you going home for the summer/holiday/etc?), and I can't answer because I don't really know them, when i did live with my mother we moved constantly, and the home I have built for myself here is my year round home. At first I as intimidated by all things academia, being in rooms with people that had tutors, went to Ivy league undergrad (I'm in an ivy league phd but went community college to no-name state school for the BA), but that mostly faded. The only real, persistent difference I notice between my peers who come from middle/upper (and sometimes working) class backgrounds and I is the ease with which they express themselves and how quickly they can articulate their opinions. Believing that you have something worth saying and knowing how to say it are skills that I know I lack, and I am sure many other first generation students do as well.

I am a first generation student. Neither of my parents went to college. I grew up well below the poverty line in a single-parent household and was completely supporting myself by 17. Academia has been a huge adjustment. I know some working-class students, but I did not grow up in the working-class. I do not have supportive but clueless parents. It makes for awkward conversations when faculty ask very basic questions about my family (what do your parents do? where did you grow up? are you going home for the summer/holiday/etc?), and I can't answer because I don't really know them, when i did live with my mother we moved constantly, and the home I have built for myself here is my year round home. At first I as intimidated by all things academia, being in rooms with people that had tutors, went to Ivy league undergrad (I'm in an ivy league phd but went community college to no-name state school for the BA), but that mostly faded. The only real, persistent difference I notice between my peers who come from middle/upper (and sometimes working) class backgrounds and I is the ease with which they express themselves and how quickly they can articulate their opinions. Believing that you have something worth saying and knowing how to say it are skills that I know I lack, and I am sure many other first generation students do as well.

Although my situation was different in the particulars, I was in a similar position on the GPA front when I entered my junior year of college.  I graduated with a 3.2-ish overall GPA and a 3.89 in major. The overall GPA won't kill you, at least it didn't kill me. To improve your application, I would suggest two things. First, that you start thinking about writing a senior thesis. So you're interested in African history...but what time period? what theme/methodology are you interested in? Have you started looking for primary sources? Once you have some concrete ideas about what you're more specifically interested in I would approach a professor in your program. They can likely help you talk through and develop your interests. In my case,  I wrote an honors thesis based on translated primary sources and it ended up being my writing sample for the applications I completed during my senior year. Second, I would suggest that you set your sights on funded MA programs. That's what I did after I finished up my BA. I have spent the last two years in a fully funded MA at a well-regarded state school. I'll be starting my PhD at a top 15 school in the fall. 

much talk at the OAH this year about how for the first year, there was a big drop in the quality of graduate applications. Specifically said by Daniel Richter at Penn and agreed upon by others. I wonder why this is....just something I felt was worth sharing. Been a long time lurker.

I got an e-mail (addressed Dear Applicant) about applying to a dual MA with the London School of Economics, which will be a hard pass given that I already have an MA....

Yes, they picked a terrible subject line. On the first read I missed the plural on "decisions" and got excited....
 
 
 
This combined with Maryland's e-mail...killing me. These are my top two choices.

Yes, they picked a terrible subject line. On the first read I missed the plural on "decisions" and got excited....
 
 
 
This combined with Maryland's e-mail...killing me. These are my top two choices.

I wish Cornell would hurry up and post their decisions alreasy

Given the cost of living in Cali, that's patently absurd.

Yea, it definitely could be worse. It took me 8yrs to finish my BA and let's just say that everything before my MA and last two years of undergrad are a hot, hot mess. I too had other life circumstances going on and only briefly mentioned any of it in my SOPs. I figure it's not a linear path for everyone, and the difference in perspective granted by more circuitous life paths might, for some schools, outweigh the blemishes.

I get migraines w/aura too, and they can be debilitating. Any sense of what (if any) your triggers are? My biggest is sunight, particularly glare from the sun (think sunlight on snow or on wet pavement...the glare you see on fenders when driving), followed by excessive eyestrain. To a lesser extent dehydration triggers them for me. I invested in some heavy duty polarized sunglasses and it cut down the number of incidents I had by at least 65%.

I get migraines w/aura too, and they can be debilitating. Any sense of what (if any) your triggers are? My biggest is sunight, particularly glare from the sun (think sunlight on snow or on wet pavement...the glare you see on fenders when driving), followed by excessive eyestrain. To a lesser extent dehydration triggers them for me. I invested in some heavy duty polarized sunglasses and it cut down the number of incidents I had by at least 65%.