PrimeMumble

I got 4.0 in analytical writing.
I was accepted by Stanford.
End of story.
 
Work on your philosophy, not on these silly numbers. An excellent writing sample can get you anywhere.

Thanks for your kind words.
I'm not wedded to the implicature that salient people believe one can't get into top programs from an undergraduate institution that isn't PGR-ranked. Nor would I claim that my background lacks prestige: my undergraduate institution is ranked around the 50 range in the US News rankings, my recommenders are fairly well-connected, and I have - not to boast - a record that includes multiple awards, TAships and fellowships as an undergraduate. However, my intention in writing my post was not to offer my own case as evidence to disconfirm the claim that nobody can get into a top PGR program from a PGR-unranked undergraduate program. My intentions are not epistemic. Rather, my intention was to give hope to and soothe the anxieties of other applicants who lack confidence just in virtue of knowing that they're coming from an unranked undergraduate program. In order to achieve that, there's no need to cite rigorous large-n studies and develop methods for ranking the relative prestige of schools relevant to PhD applications in philosophy.
I should note, however, that my understanding is that the prestige of one's undergraduate institution is relevant only inasmuch as having gone to a presitigious, PGR-ranked department gives one the opportunity to take graduate-level courses with well-known professors in well-known programs. Swarthmore, e.g., for all its prestige, does not afford anyone that opportunity, so I'd suspect that its prestige is not highly relevant to PhD applications. On the other hand, an undergraduate who went to NYU, e.g., but did not take any graduate-level courses, would probably not fare much better than any applicant from Swarthmore.

Short, professional, and to the point. No need to tell a long sob story of being torn between great choices. Thank them for their time and support, express a desire to stay in touch and meet again. There is also no reason why meeting at conferences should be awkward, unless you make it so. This is just a part of the process; everyone expects that some admitted students will have multiple offers and will turn some down. And yes, there is no reason why one of these people can't end up on your committee a few years from now, or you might spend a semester as a visiting student at one of these schools. 

Hey @terraaurea - as someone who was in a v similar situation (no money, parents in huge debt, recently lost our home, etc) I agree - go where the money is, go where there is funding. You won't regret that in the slightest. It will allow you to concentrate on your work much better as well. There might be people out there who tell you that education is priceless and, sure, I guess so in some ways, but people who make this claim usually don't know what it's like to be poor/ in debt/ have terrible credit. Do what you can to keep yourself in the best position. Plus, FSU is a fantastic program! This sounds like a great option

I got 4.0 in analytical writing.
I was accepted by Stanford.
End of story.
 
Work on your philosophy, not on these silly numbers. An excellent writing sample can get you anywhere.

Hey!
In my SoP I stated very clearly that I wanted to work on how one topic is analyzed by one author, and everything went out pretty well. However, I am an international student, so maybe this does not apply to Americans: while I chose my area of interest after a five-year degree in Philosophy and an undergrad thesis of 150 pages, some students from the US leave college with just 5 or 6 philosophy seminars! Maybe writing a little bit about the courses that helped you define your area if interest can help.

I got into Pitt and Yale with a 3.65. Don't worry, and just focus on your writing sample. I'm inclined to say that 70% of your chances depend on your sample, 25% on your statement of purpose and letters of rec, then the final 5% spread out between GPA, GRE scores, and pure fucking luck.

Is everyone all settled? What did you ultimately decide? Where are you going? Have you decided to wait until the next cycle?
I am going to the University of Kentucky for something a little different than the standard Classics PhD.

How does it differ from the standard Classics PhD?
I am going to UT Austin and am looking forward to the move south in the fall. The class list looks spectacular (The Senate and the Emperor? Roman Religion? Epigraphy and the Economy of the Greek City? yes to all of the above, please), and I have just made plans to room with some of my cohort-mates. 

Likewise, you should check out Columbia Classical Studies or Art History & Archaeology: Francesco de Angelis and Ioannis Mylonopoulos now both have their own excavations in Italy and Greece.

BTW Gazda is nearly retired, and Kleiner is getting there too-- always be mindful of where Professors are at in terms of their career and the next 5-7 years (when you will be there under their supervision).
 
As for the "jack of all trades, master of none" risk: yes, there is the risk, but only if you make poor coursework choices and don't have a clear group of people you want to work with. If you have an idea of the area or topic you'd like to explore in the early years of the program, then you'll be less likely to go dipping your toes into too many proverbial ponds.
 
As for becoming a curator: Art History programs would actually be better suited to this than Classical Archaeology programs--here the IFA, IPCAA, or Columbia Art History & Archaeology (AHAR) would be right up your alley (look at their recent placements too!)

Well, that's horrific...
From his bio:
He has published on Sappho, Sulpicia, sexuality, slavery, sadism, and spectacles. 
I'm sure the other inmates will appreciate his alliteration skills. 

I definitely agree with this. I believe my writing sample and letters were the strongest parts of my application.
I had pretty poor GRE scores and I was still able to get into an MA program that I'm very enthusiastic about with funding + teaching assistantship. I think applicants worry about the GRE way too much, but good scores can't hurt.

I got 4.0 in analytical writing.
I was accepted by Stanford.
End of story.
 
Work on your philosophy, not on these silly numbers. An excellent writing sample can get you anywhere.

.olsz

Why would anyone in their right mind want to troll a classics forum?

You are skeptical because you don't have kids or a wife to support with your stipend, I guess. Money really matters when you need to take care of someone more than yourself.
And extra information is never harmful. We should know this as philosophers.

At least you got pizza, though. 

I am formally declining my rejections from: Emory, MSU, Oregon, U New Mexico, and Villanova. 
 
Hope this helps someone out! 

I urge those of you who were given offers of admission to input the stipend information, if any, at http://www.phdstipends.com/ .  Knowledge is power, and congrats to those who were accepted.

THANK YOU @Nat_Foot
MIT PLS
I WOULD MAKE SO MANY COOKIES
who am i kidding I would symmetrically make cookies in grief

I often feel this way when writing term papers.

If love to meet the man who thinks he deserves the spots I get more than I do. That'd be funny. 
 
I mean, I get it. For the first time in their lives, being a man is a gender, and being white is a race, rather than being the center from which all things deviate. It must be scary. But I would expect more from future philosophers than bad arguments about reverse sexism or reverse racism. You all are fundamentally misunderstanding precisely why and how diversity is good for the academy. 
 
At any rate, I've often been the only woman in philosophy classes or in philosophy groups. I don't really mind it because I learned to be assertive and steadfast, but it was difficult to learn and painful when everything you're taught your whole life about what kind of person you should be runs counter to it. That's probably a big reason why so few women end up trying to pursue philosophy to begin with. In a way, just that weeds out a huge amount of people who feel they're incapable. And, generally, men are a lot more confident in their abilities, so I'd assume more would apply simply by virtue of believing in themselves more. 
 
And for @philosophe getting blamed for there not being enough women in philosophy. Lol. It takes a lot of confidence to throw out such a bullshit argument in a public philosophy forum... 

Ohmygosh. What happened here? Eep. I took a law and philosophy course last semester that talked about race discrimination in academia, and had to deal with a lot of people throwing around these types of arguments. If anecdotal evidence is fair game, as it appears that that is the trend, here's mine: 
I'm half mexican, and my dad is an immigrant. I grew up unable to communicate with about half of my family, and I lived in a trailer park for the first eight years of my life before moving to a small apartment in a town where I was the only Mexicanish Latinaish person--in sixth grade people asked if I brushed my hair because I was the only one who had curly hair. At fourteen I decided to get a job, and I coded websites for ten dollars an hour while eating only ramen so that I could attend private school. I financed this entirely myself. Parental supervision wasn't super big because my mom is a cosmetologist who owns a small business, so she wasn't really home when I was growing up. Then, in college, I have worked three jobs for the past several years while living in an apartment made for one person with my dad and uncle. Sophomore year the university screwed up my financial aid and froze my account, so I couldn't register for classes and I stopped eating in order to make payments. I dropped to 104 lbs (for reference, this was a decrease of about twenty pounds), and pulled several all nighters. Because I'm a first generation college student (my mom didn't complete high school) I dealt with all of this while hearing things from my mom like "If it *really* mattered to you, you would just have a 4.0." and "Please help your sister with scheduling, but make sure she takes useful classes, not the crap you're taking." (I'm paying for college, I take the classes I want.) Now, senior year, I'm probably going to be shut out of graduate school, I'm going to find a job and reapply. And I know that if I had the amount of time to focus on my studies that many of my peers get (and they seem to have a lot of time to go out and drink and party), I could actually have a 4.0 and a stellar writing sample and a perfect GRE score. (I actually did get a 4.0 last semester.) Instead, I balance three jobs, leadership positions in Women in Math, I volunteer with a group that helps get more students interested in mathematics, and I'm taking six classes. (So basically, I pull a couple all nighters per week and drink coffee two to four times a day.) 
And if I don't get into graduate school, my response isn't going to be to complain that the system seems to hate me. Instead, I'm going to work harder to be an applicant they want to accept.  

Calling full-grown women "girls" is a reduction in status, and therefore perpetuates the notion that they are some how less worthy of authority, etc. It is relevant to the conversation. 

But knowing what we know about implicit bias, it is more than likely that you are underestimating the abilities your female peers, while overestimating the abilities of your male peers.
 
Also, philosophy ladies and minorities: you are badass, and you deserve every spot you're offered. Don't listen to any sore jerk who says otherwise!