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Thank you for your response, Timetobegin. It really helps (and is also relieving!)! Also, at this point (having a few days left till the deadlines), I can't do anything about it. I guess I will just submit whatever I have done so far, be liberated and not worry about anything until I hear back from the schools. haha.. Thanks so muchagain!

Hi guys, I am applying for Ph.D. programs in Anthropology (Columbia, Brown, Upenn, Yale, etc) this year and have a question about publications. I have an MA. I do not have articles published in peer-reviewed journals. Instead, I have a couple of technical reports submitted to a federal agency and a book review for a peer-reviewed journal. I have five other publications that are on the way, not yet published (a combination of book reviews and technical reports). My questions are; 1) How normal is it for anthropology applicants (with MA) to have original research article publications at the time of applying? 2) How competitive do you think my current publication status is? I am putting all the five publications that are not published yet in the CV, and will indicate them as either forthcoming or in progress. Thank you in advance!

Hey guys, I have two questions regarding GRE. I have two sets of scores. June 2017: v. 156 q. 153 a. 5 Nov 2017: v. 157 q. 159 a. 4.5 It sucks that the verbal score went up by only one point and the AW score (which I had no doubt would be the same as before if not increased) dropped! I am aiming for schools ranked in Top20. I don't have a great undergrad GPA (3.32) although I had managed to increase it by 0.6 from my first semester GPA. I have a strong Master's GPA (4.0). I have 2.5 years of professional research experiences within the field of my interest. But no original publications other than book reviews and technical reports. My questions are : 1) SHOULD I RETAKE THE GRE? 2) SHOULD I SEND BOTH SCORES TO SCHOOLS? I am worried that they will see the small, one-point increase in my verbal after 6 months of (presumed) studying, and that they will not positively think that my AW score dropped by 0.5 eventually. OR, WHICH SCORE SHOULD I SEND TO SCHOOLS?

Thank you smg! I will probably not take it again.

Hello all, So.. Native American Studies(MA) at Montana State University is not requiring but recommending* the applicants to submit their GRE scores IF they feel the scores would strengthen their application. Mine is V. 159(81%) Q.160(78%) AW. 4.5(83%). It is low on Verbal so I feel I may need to take it once again. but... I want to hear your opinions beforehand. Some say it should be enough when others say i need to take it again. Do you think it is a score good enough to submit to MSU? Thanks all!

Do you contact the professors of interest before submitting applications? I know that for engineering PhDs it's kind of a custom to contact them because they need to inquire about funding opportunities or ask if the lab has spaces to be filled in, etc. But in my case, I'm applying for American Indian Studies/Anthropology/Folklore MA programs which don't really run the same way as the engineering programs do. It seems people have varying opinions regarding it. Some say "it will annoy the professors, it won't significantly increase your chances of admissions anyway if it didn't bother." But others say "it's worth giving it a try, actually many professors welcome proactive students." What do you think? Should I contact professors? I'm so lost!

Hey guys, Undergraduate - private in Top 15 GPA - 3.3 No research experiences 3.5 years of professional experiences both directly and indirectly related Mediocre-good Letter of Recommendations GRE - 157/160/4.0 Writing Sample & SOP - trying my best I'm applying for Master's in American Indian Studies. Schools - Montana State U U of Idaho - Interdisciplinary studies (focus on American Indian studies) U of Arizona UC Davis UC LA U of Kansas U of Oklahoma What do you think of my status.... Im so worried. Do you think I have chances for any one of those schools? Should I apply more schools and possibly get rid of hard ones like UC schools and U of Arizona? Please help! Thanks!!

yes I do check the spam folder for the reason you just explained. but no emails from the dept.... *sigh Thank you anyways!! Best of luck to you too!!!

so I called the department to find out whether or not they have released the result yet and heard that they sent out mails of decisions yesterday and cant tell me the result via email. I havent heard anything from them via email.. does it mean that I am out this year? or in?? I searched to see how applicants to the same program as mine from previous years had been notified. One of them got rejection via email and the other got a phone call from a professor who said that he/she is very welcome to the program.. but no mention that the latter had heard the result via email. Getting very nervous... im gonna get ther result in any minute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! but what do you think????? is this -- having heard nothing via email yet and getting the result in mail soon -- a bad omen usually? or a positive sign???? FYI; I applied to master's program in Africana studies at Cornell. anyone knows about this dept's trend? any info and thoughts are welcome! Also, good luck to you guys who are still in the middle of haziness and nervousness...

Working for an international organization! ..... very ideal...far from being realistic considering my current, low intellectual capacity and other necessary skills...

ahhhh your replies really relieved me a bit(especially the remarks on the publication issue). thanks you two!:] But I think I am still in a less competitive position for I dont really have much experiences in the relevant field; I have multiple experiences in not-related fields but have only one in the field. *sigh we will see....

I am applying for a Master's Degree program and currently have only a bachelor's degree(of course). I don't have any publication e.g., thesis or college newspaper articles. I was wondering if they(the ad comm, obviously) expect MA applicants(mere bachelor's degree holders) to have those publications? I know it's a definite plus to have them on your resume... but... is having published anything on their own during undergraduate years normal? I am so worried lacking those extra materials will put me in a tougher position. Also, which factor plays the most important role in the admission process? I think GPA and SOP matter the most..? Ahhh waiting is hard!

I was wondering about the same thing too! Although my area(african studies) is a lil different from Afam studies, alot of schools do include african studies in its african american studies program or africana studies which is a more general term that encompasses both studies. I know AfAm studies is pretty competitve everywhere. I just hope African studies is not as competitive as afam studies is, thus putting myself in a better/easier(?) position.. it's not that I chose African studies over Afam studies only because I thought African studies is easier to get in, though. ah best of luck on both of us!!

my deadline has passed a week ago and contacted the director of graduate studies yesterday to find out the approximate notification date... reading your posting, I kinda regret it; I shouldve been more patient.. ahhhhh he didnt reply me yet but.. I'm feeling worse now

thank you for sharing, Victorianna! seems like few are applying to Africana Studies for this term( at leat here on thegradcafe.com). I dont know if it's a good thing or a bad thing though. If there aren't many people applying to the same program as I do, it's definitely a good thing for me cuz it means it's not going to be horribly competitive. BUt at the same time, I would like to make friends studying the same discipline and share info and tips altogether! haha. so what in african studies are you interested in? my interest area is African art(Fashion) and under/misrepresentation issues of Africa in the non-AFrican world. Best of luck with your applications!!!

I posted a smiliar topic a few days ago... but non responded! I saw last year's posting (african american studies 2009) and there were a number of people. I know there must be alot more people applying to graduate schools for fall 2010 out there. People on this cafe shouldn't be all the applicants this year. But.. at least on this website, seriously, theres no one applying to African studies or african american studies this year? or people havent just seen my posting yet? I will start my own first then! I am applying to Africana Studies at Cornell(MA).... applied to only one program; I know I am crazy........................................ haha Dont be shy and please drop a line here plz if you are the one this posting is looking for Lets get together, share info and help out each other!

ahh thanks to all for your positive threads. I have been so much worried about my low gre and gpa.... cuz on this website, alot of people have quite strong specs, making me even more pessimistic on my own. I am much relieved now.. haha... good luck to everyone!

yea I chose African studies between african sudies and african american studies only because I am very much interested in the field and extremely passionate about it. So I dont blame myself for that. But, now that the deadline has passed and the notification date can be literally any day since the deadline date, I am kinda being pessimistic on my admission thus trying to hear some "comforting" stories.... haha.... cuz I personally have seen alot of friends & people going into african american studies but few going into african studies. just wanted to hear other people's opinion. ah im being so weak now. so worried.. nervous thanks for your advice anyways!

do you think/ do you by any chance know if one's racial identity matters in the admission process? We are living in the US where people expect/hope/or at least feel obliged to keep any sort of diversity in many occasions. and I heard/thought that the same thing would work in the admission process for graduate programs. Like, the department of which racial majority is asians would probably want to have more people from different cultural/racial background just to promote racial/cultural diversity of the department. Similarly, the department mostly having african americans would be interested in recruiting non-afro americans... ? this is my thought... what do you think? or have you heard of anything thats related to this issue??? anyways, good luck with everyone whos still waiting for happy results!(including moi...)

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!!!!

which one do you think more popular among students? African studies that deals with the african continent and diaspora vs. Afr American studies that deals with african americans in the states and in diaspora. Africana studies program at Cornell asks you what you want to specialize in between the two. Would my choice matter alot?? Would they put the proportion of he number of students of each area into their consideration?

Is there anyone who has applied to master's degree or phd in Africana Studies this year? any program in any university! I have applied to the Cornell one. Anyone who is looking at the same university? Ah so nervous! good luck to everyone!!!!!

Is it true that grad schools usually don't prefer students who have received undergrad degrees from the same university?

I am applying to Cornell(Master's program in Africana Studies) and I got Q: 760(85%) V: 600(86%) AW: 4.5(63%).... The program doesnt require GRE scores but it does recommend the applicants to take it.... is the score bad/good for the program? I think the verbal(AW too...) is pretty low esp. when compared to native speakers who are going into social sciences or humanities field.(I am an international student though..)