sierra918

I know this thread is just about dead but I wanted to give a final update on my experience with applying to graduate school. I applied to six departments in Classics and Anthropology. I applied to FSU's masters in Classical Archaeology and their masters in Anthropology, to UWF's masters in Underwater Archaeology, ECU's masters in Maritime Studies, UCLA's Cotsen Institutes interdisciplinary PhD, and UConn's PhD in Anthropology. I was accepted to both of FSU's programs, ECU, and UConn. All of these programs offered me funding. It's worth noting that ECU's funding offer was exceptionally poor however. I received an official rejection from UCLA and never heard anything from UWF officially but when I reached out to my POI I was told that they had filled all of their positions for the Fall. I have accepted the position at UConn and am very excited to start in the Fall. 

If anyone is still waiting on Vanderbilt, they have already made offers and invited people for interviews. Best of luck to everyone!!!

Hi! I got an interview invite for Stanford PhD anthro (archaeology) on 29th Jan. Interview slated for 6th Feb via Skype (I'm an international applicant from India). Any pointers for prep would be greatly appreciated! Thanks and good luck with your interviews!

I would guess they will send them out late February or early March. Based on past years, I would assume if you don't get an invite, you will not be accepted. Best of luck!

@perpetualalligator I'm at Vandy now and apparently the committee has just barely started into the admission process. I've asked around about the interviews/visits, but haven't heard much back. 

Hey pyramidstuds, I have a MA from a North American school, but in a different discipline. From my experience, and my cohort, MA's do help as they provide further credence of your capability to conduct independent research, which helps an admissions committee assess your fit in their department. Now, having said that, I am in my second cycle having received an MA when I first applied. MA's may provide you with a more rounded application, but that doesn't mean there aren't other indicators they measure when they're making a decision to admit.
I do not think having an MS degree should worry you, as I do not think an MS degree is weaker against an MA. I think here, it's likely more MA graduates are applying for anthropology programs rather than MS graduates not being favoured amongst an admissions committee. You know what is best for your research, and that should be displayed in your SOP (why you and your future work fits with their department). 
Also, don't be embarrassed by rejection. It's going to happen a lot as you move forward, it should be the least of your worries. Being rejected doesn't make you a less than capable candidate, as these cycles can sometimes be luck of the draw. In my own cohort, it strikes me as fascinating that weaker colleagues can find themselves in top programs while you wait for your straw to be drawn. Sometimes a research topic someone chooses really connects with a potential advisor and an admissions committee. Don't beat yourself up about it, but do be cordial and diligent with yourself (no need to reveal who you are).

Hi! The Ohio State acceptance was me!!! I totally didn't expect to hear anything back this early but my POI emailed me this afternoon. As you said it is an incredible relief to have such a great option already, I hope everyone hears back from their schools soon!

I'm in a similar boat, now waiting on app news for Fall 2019. I'm also 30 (married no kids), working at an international development/research organization in a city I like, but started feeling the itch to pursue PhD level research after my experiences in the field managing/implementing development programs. If I get into a program I'll be 31, but my gut tells me my experiences in the field and conducting ethnographic research will put me at an advantage to younger, less experienced students, as will my professional contacts. I do not hope to be a professor, so these contacts are important for employment later on.
I also worked in CRM before getting my masters in the U.S. southwest region (based in CA). I was an archaeologist (mostly survey/monitoring work and report writing) and found it to be highly enjoyable but knew that it wasn't enough for me as a career. I also wasn't trained in archaeology beyond a two month field school I attended one summer.
It seems to me that most young PhD students I know have a skewed view of the world because of a lack of experience. (Also entirely possible that I have a skewed view of PhD students...).
In any case, I think age may work to your advantage (I hope mine as well!).
 
Cheers.

Hi folks!
I thought it wouldn't be a bad a idea to start one of these threads for Anthropology. So, if there's anyone out there who is applying this year, I thought it would be nice to have a space to talk about applications (at least those that have a January deadline), iterviews, results...all that nerve-racking stuff ?‍♀️ 
I guess I'll start: I'm applying to PhD programs at CU Boulder, CUNY, UIUC, NYU, Harvard, UF, UCSD, Vanderbilt, and American University. I am interested in social/cultural anthropology.
I'm mostly done with my apps, just waiting for my professors to submit their LORs, which has been kind of stressful.  So yeah, let's talk!

I am older than you and I am finishing my bachelors degrees, I’m getting two, after a long time away from school working in film. I have a 3 year old and am a single mom by choice and I’m applying to PhD programs. I don’t think you’re ever too old, but especially not at 31. I have friends who have gotten married and had kids while in doctorate programs. I think you’ll be fine if it’s what you want. 

Posting, more for a bump than having a strong testimonial. I stayed pretty engaged consistently, having gotten a BA in 2011, an MA in 2014, and then into another program in 2015 with another MA coming in 2016, then started PhD that fall. However, I know there are multiple folks in my program that were out for several years, one or two without having ever gotten an MA but still got into the program in their early 30s. So it seems very possible, and perhaps might even really benefit you when you apply. Programs want to know you really want to be there, you have the maturity/drive to finish, and have the ability to identify and pursue and interesting project. It sounds to me like all those things will apply to you, and when you contact faculty at the programs you're interested in, you should ask them if they can get you in touch with older students in their program to talk about their experience. As a side note, tt's often a good sign faculty are interested in your if they're game to send you along to chat with their students.

Thank you for your reply and sharing your experience. I definitely realize that a ton of desk work comes with academia and it’s not deskwork that I hate. I just like that academic research allows for travel to actually conduct the research itself, whereas the most travel I get to do for CRM in writing reports is going a few counties over to do site visits or record searches. I also saw myself one day teaching or at the very least attempting to go that route, and it seems that’s kind of hard to do with only an MA these days. 

I started my PhD program at 30 with 2 kids under 5. Two years later, I now have 3 kids, ages 6, 4, and 2. You're not too old, and wanting kids shouldn't prevent it either. That being said, after working for many years as a PM in CRM, I can tell you that a CRM job is far less a desk job than academia. So, if what you do not want is a desk job, CRM may be the better option. 

I started my PhD program at 30 with 2 kids under 5. Two years later, I now have 3 kids, ages 6, 4, and 2. You're not too old, and wanting kids shouldn't prevent it either. That being said, after working for many years as a PM in CRM, I can tell you that a CRM job is far less a desk job than academia. So, if what you do not want is a desk job, CRM may be the better option. 

I am doing a three-article dissertation at Boston University, and have colleagues doing the same at Texas A&M University. This is a newer trend and will not always be on the websites. You can e-mail the DGS (Director of Graduate Studies) at various departments of interest - their job is to answer questions like this. Also, it is something you can potentially negotiate with your committee when it comes to defending your PhD Proposal.
 
 

I started my PhD program at 30 with 2 kids under 5. Two years later, I now have 3 kids, ages 6, 4, and 2. You're not too old, and wanting kids shouldn't prevent it either. That being said, after working for many years as a PM in CRM, I can tell you that a CRM job is far less a desk job than academia. So, if what you do not want is a desk job, CRM may be the better option. 

Just got a budget request with the magic words "No need to reapply for the Nov 1. deadline". I am over the moon. 

I know someone who is doing this at Indiana, and I've heard of a few other programs, also.

Hey Everyone, 
There was a great article on application advice for those getting ready for this application season. I would highly recommend following some/all to help get you prepared and ready so you’re not scrambling before the deadline. Also check out some of the other fora that more senior PhD students have done too. 
 
https://anthrodendum.org/2018/07/31/the-hiddencurriculum-of-applying-to-graduate-school-for-anthropology/

Yeah, it's pretty common.  I just spent the last 6 weeks taking courses in an indigenous language while doing preliminary fieldwork.  In fact, my department encourages PhD students to use the summer in between 1st and 2nd year to learn a new language that will help with fieldwork.

@PMJ I think it’s pretty normal for doctoral students to learn a new language while in the program. For me, I’m learning Quechua and Aymara since I work in Peru and not many High Schools and Uni’s offer those courses haha. So for the most part, I’ve done some stuff in country and also have found workbooks that I go through to help keep it up. Sure, it’s not going from Spanish to Japanese, but I think even if you could audit the first few class sections to get down the characters, sounds, and pronounciations - then it will be much more easy than attempting this on your own. 
My MA advisor starting taking spanish courses in her second year of PhD. Sure, her accent isn’t the best buuuuut she’s fluent and actively conducts research in Peru. I would even suggest trying to get the critical language scholarship and study abroad in Japan - that way you’ll be forced to speak it. Also Duo Lingo in pretty good! I actually just started with the Japanese course and it’s really simple and enjoyable. 

The NSF graduate research fellowship supports people in research-based Master’s programs.

Thank you! I chose the Cultural Anthro program at Washington State University. I ended up having one other acceptance and one position on a waitlist. 

Congrats, @Bschaefer!!!!!

Thanks! I’m going with University of Illinois at Chicago/The Field Museum of Natural History joint PhD program!