American in Beijing

My instinct would be to try to not get two professors who worked on the same project together, unless you feel that Professor 3's recommendation will be VASTLY superior to Professors 4 and 5. How is your relationship with Professor 5? Does he know a lot about you and your academic interests? It might be beneficial to have a perspective from a professor who has had you as a TA, seeing as that will most likely also be part of your duties as a grad student. Also, it will attest to your potential as a teacher, which is also important. Then again, ,if you feel that any of the other professors' recommendations will be a lot better, pick them. You know your relationships with these people better than I ever could.

I'm assuming you're talking about Chinese history. What period have you been doing research in? What's your background in Classical Chinese? I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but a strong grasp of even the elementary Classical Chinese structures can really help your ability to read Modern Chinese. I had a similarly frustrating experience in my last year of undergrad, when I decided to do a research project that heavily relied on Chinese language primary texts. I wasn't really prepared linguistically for the challenge, and had to look up almost every word. Fortunately one of my professors convinced me to go do an advanced language program in China, where we studied a lot of the basic constructions you can find in texts from different periods and different disciplines. I read those same texts at the end of the program, and I could easily go through them without a dictionary. So basically, I would recommend you attend an advanced language program in China or Taiwan. However, if that's not an option for you, then I would try to use your language tutor to your best advantage. Looking up and memorizing EVERY word or construction is not going to help you. Some of those words that you spent hours memorizing won't ever show up again, or at least not for a long time. I would have your language tutor read ahead in your materials and pick out the important and frequently used constructions. Before you read the text, study these constructions. Then, when you go to read the text, skim it first without a dictionary and see how much you can understand. Then read it once through again without a dictionary, underlining the words you don't understand. However, try to underline only the words that you can't guess the meaning. Then, use the dictionary to look up the underlined words (an electronic dictionary will save you a lot of time in this part). Read it through again. By this point, you should be able to understand what the text is saying, even if you still don't fully understand every word of every sentence. After that, I would have your language tutor look through your underlined words and pick out some of the very important ones for you to memorize. This kind of a method should help a bit. But learning to read a language is the same as most other skills in life: you get better with practice. The more you read, the faster you'll be able to read. That's why Chinese history professors don't need to hire translators to do their research; they've just read these kinds of documents so often that they can just do it by themselves relatively easily. I know it's hard, but 加油! You can do it! Just keep working at it. Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions or need more advice.

Very true. Then again, we academics (hehe, I'm a grad student now! I get to say "we academics"!) are not exactly known for our succinctness. I have yet to hear a professor ask a question in an academic setting that was not preceded by a 5-minute ode to something that is only mildly related to the topic at hand. Perhaps by defying logic and expounding at length his love for the topic he's managing to prove that he belongs in an academic setting. I do think you're right though. I think a letter should be succinct (especially if you, like most of us, are not as amazing as the guy above). At the same time, however, I would be wary of either being too concise (the professor may forget to respond to something that is not remotely memorable) or of turning the e-mail into a panegyric to the professor (you may sound like a suck-up).

Still, I feel that most professors are very busy. Why would they remember to reply to someone who is not impressive-sounding? I feel like you have to toot your own horn a bit in order to get the response that you need. I sent a similar (albeit slightly less impressive, ) letter as the one written above to all of my PAs, and I managed to open a successful line of communication with 3/4 of them. I even got an interview with one because of it. Obviously this letter isn't the whole of your application, nor does a positive response in any way guarantee you admission. However, it helped a lot for me.

It doesn't necessarily have to be short. Sometimes long e-mails can be impressive, especially if you write them in an authoritative manner. During my application process, a grad student friend of mine was kind enough to show my an impressive introduction letter to a professor at her university inquiring about whether there was a space available. The professor to whom it is addressed was unfortunately going on sabbatical the following semester. However, he was so impressed by this e-mail that he forwarded it to everyone else in the department asking if there was someone available to take on this prospective student in his absence. Dear Professor XXXXX I completed my BSc form [Fancy School] and my MPhil in Environment, Society and Development from [Fancy School 2] under [professor] in [fairly recent year]. My dissertation there assessed the impact of eco-development on [Place]. It was very well received in [Fancy School 2] with a mark of 80 and I also published the article in [Fancy Journal]. I am writing to you to apply for a PhD under your supervision beginning from next year. I have a very diverse experience working with community forestly, conservation, urban poverty and environmental economics in [two countries]. Presently, as a consultant at [Famous] study, I have had an opportunity to really work in depth on internalizing biodiversity and ecosystem values into international policies. While working here, I have specialised in carbon and forestry in particular and written a proposal, jointly with our Study Leader, on REDD-Plus. The guiding principles and framework of the proposal (attached) outline the structure of REDD-Plus post-Copenhagen and have been accepted very well by [Government Organization] and have also found commonalities with the Norwegian proposal on REDD-Plus. Key aspects of the proposal such as a Premium Market that would run adjunct to the compliance market and recognize and reward beyond carbon projects are being brought into the negotiation process and could potentially find a real momentum and be applied into the legal architecture of REDD-Plus. We also recently engaged with [scholar] on this issue and I am in the midst of moving this further on a more [country]-specific REDD-Plus concept. Based on this significant amount of experience on REDD, I am very interested in concentrating on how entreprenuers and the private sector (water harvesting projects, organic farmers, etc) could be brought into REDD-Plus in addition to the NGO and government-led projects that are more conventional and common REDD projects that are emerging. This would require considering the REDD-Plus policy and legal context that needs to be in place in India for instance. I have already worked on this broadly in the proposal document through devising a set of eligibility criteria that countries must have nationally before they can start generating carbon credits. It would be a matter of laying out the financial revenue stream, insitutions needed, how communities would receive payments and so on in the thesis. Indonesia to some degree is more advanced on REDD and it can be used to collect the data that can then be analysed and interpreted for a best practice type of country-level methodology on REDD-Plus. I am very eager to begin the PhD early next year and would like to apply for funding opportunities as well as submitting my PhD proposal. Your supervision and advice would bring a lot of value to my thesis. Please let me know what the best way to move forward on this would be and your input would be really appreciated. I look forward to hearing from you. Sincerely and with regards, [Most Amazing Grad Student Ever] Obviously most of us are not as amazing as this guy is. But the thing to learn from it is the way he approaches the letter. He doesn't just say he's knowledgeable about the subject, he proves it. He fills the letter with as many impressive details as he can, and refrains from sucking up. He just looks professional, and I think that's what grad schools like to see. Hopefully this helps!

Interesting that they would require Latin. In my mind, Italian would be more useful for your specialty, because you could access a broader range of secondary literature, or perhaps even do some primary work in comparative analysis. Maybe they think that if you learn Latin, all the other European languages will be a breeze, lol. It's definitely not a stupid question. Language requirements are very important, and the more informed you are, the better you can prepare. I was struggling with language issues myself during the application process (which languages to do, what order to do them in, etc.). In the end, I'm going into my History PhD with 3 of 4 language requirements met. However, I did have to do extra language work after undergrad in order to accomplish this. I highly doubt I could have seriously finished all three in 4 years, even if I had known from day one that I wanted to do a PhD in History. But I know from this experience that studying two languages at the same time can be very confusing and in the end might not be as beneficial as you'd like. You might have to drop one of the languages next semester if it doesn't fit your schedule, and in the course of 4 months - 1 year, you could easily forget all you ever learned and have to just retake it all over again (happened to me). My (albeit uninformed) advice would be that If a lot of French Studies programs that you're looking into require both Latin and another European language, pick whichever one you feel is harder to do first. In grad school you might not have as much time as you'd like to focus on an external language. Good luck! It's great to see that you're getting such an early start!

I'm not a French major, but we do have our fair share of language requirements in History (in my field I have 4). Normally the whole point of having the extra language requirement is so that scholars will be able to read either secondary or primary literature in another language. In other words, it's supposed to help you do your research. So if you're really into Medieval stuff, then Latin would probably be the best way to go. Otherwise, I would stick to Italian.

Like many of you, the boredom of waiting for grad school to start is killing me. So I figured I might as well start a discussion with other bored and impatient people, ! When deciding on which grad school to attend, I had to make a choice between two good programs that I liked and would fit well in. For me what the choice came down to was whether I would like to be the kind of historian who has a vast amount of specialized knowledge about her own field and never strays from her specialization, or would I like to be the kind of historian who has a broad knowledge base that covers several fields, but has slightly less specialized knowledge in her primary field of interest. In other words, which is better: the modern-day professional or a Renaissance man? Specialization or the broad application of historical knowledge? I personally chose the program that offered greater opportunities to expand my knowledge of other subfields outside my own. I do not regret my decision at all, but I'm curious what the other historians on this forum think. Which do you think is more important? Which program would you choose?

Analytical Writing.

Instead of using electronic flashcards or a word list, write your vocabulary words out on paper flashcards. It's not exactly environmentally friendly or good for your hand, but the process of physically writing out 3,000 words onto flashcards helped me better remember what each word means. Make sure you constantly review the words you have already learned as well! You'd be amazed at how quickly you can forget a word you spent hours memorizing. Analogies were the death of me. Ever since the SAT analogies and I have shared a feeling of mutual animosity. The book that I used to study (Barron's) suggested that you try to fit the relationship into a sentence. For example, if you're given the analogy "dog: puppy", you can say in your mind "A puppy is a small dog." Then you replace the words "puppy" and "dog" with the words from the answer key. If none of them work, then maybe you just need to think of a new sentence. But this trick worked well for me and I did much better on the analogies part of the GRE than I did on the SAT.

Berkeley's Diversity Outreach Office has some great tips on their websites for writing SOPs and other parts of grad school applications. It's a really great resource for anyone who's applying to grad school, especially for those in the social sciences and humanities. If you plan on applying for the 2010-2011 season, check it out! http://ls.berkeley.e...tatement-1.html

I'm currently trying out Mendeley and I like it a lot, though I feel that its resources for the sciences are unfortunately a lot greater than those for the humanities, . I've never used Endnote, so I can't really compare.

I would choose neither, if I were in your position. If your ultimate goal is to get a PhD, I would wait another year to work on my application and reapply to M.A/PhD programs. $40,000 is a lot of money for a humanities MA, and the job market is not exactly the best. There's no guarantee you'll end up making enough money to pay that (and I'm also assuming your undergrad loans) back. Also, from what you mentioned, Wake Forest doesn't seem to offer a program that will make you a competitive candidate for a top-notch PhD program. Given this economy, you might want to ask yourself if a humanities' degree from a school that doesn't have a good reputation in your field is worth it. You might end up working as an adjunct on a salary that is far lower than any job you could have gotten with just your BA. Admissions results change rapidly from year-to-year, so who knows? Maybe you'll get a fully funded offer from UChicago next year!

Too bad I've already killed myself taking the GRE. The new test looks a lot easier! No more analogies, no more antonyms! And you get a calculator on the math section too! Also, you can skip back and forth between questions and actually utilize your time efficiently. This is crazy! I'm wondering how the GRE is going to be hard anymore . . . then again, I haven't seen any of the new questions. Maybe the GRE test-makers have something horribly difficult and painful up their sleeves. The planning is still in the early phases, so it's hard to say. However, the new test isn't coming out until August/September 2011. If you're willing to wait that long to apply for grad school, then it might be better to wait and see if the new test is easier. If not . . . then get out those vocab flashcards and study, study, study!

I'm assuming that since you're applying for an engineering degree that your math is pretty good, so maybe you might need some help in the verbal/writing area. I agree with the poster above that Kaplan is a good resource. Its suggestions really helped me a lot in the writing section. However, I think Barron is far superior in the verbal section. http://books.google.com.hk/books?id=VQ0JzAouVCIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=barron's+gre&source=bl&ots=Qq5eQaOSWr&sig=UvQk7PTpMtF0dfDK4u2hjNgypU8&hl=zh-CN&ei=hTAaTMeQNs-ecdXKzJ4K&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CEAQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q&f=false This book brought me up from a 470 verbal score to a 720. It has a 3,000 word vocabulary list of commonly used GRE phrases and, as evident from my dramatic score increase, studying this list seriously works. On the actual GRE, I only encountered 1 word that was not on this list, so those dreaded analogies (which I used to swear were written by the Devil himself) were a lot easier. Also, it comes with a lot of paper and computer-based practice tests inside, so you can practice like crazy! Honestly, if it's only verbal you're worried about and you don't have a lot of money to blow on GRE classes, buy a copy of Barron's. If you need to, go to Border's or Barnes and Noble and take notes on the AW section using Kaplan (Barron's AW tips aren't that great). That's what I did, and the end result was I didn't spend a lot of money and I ended up with scores I was happy with.

As so many people on this forum have pointed out, the grad school application process depends on so many different factors that you have no control over (funding, your PA's sabbatical timetable, his/her current students, his/her status within the department, popularity of your proposed topic that year, etc.). Given your overall positive responses from these schools, you could easily be accepted by both schools next year with full funding. Or you could be rejected across the board again due to funding issues. There are unfortunately no guarantees, no reach, fit, and safety schools in the grad school application process, I feel. It's 1/3 skill, 2/3 luck. Still, if it's something you really want, I would take the time to apply again. From your response it sounds like you were almost in both schools. To me, that gives you good odds that at least one of these programs will take you next year. But again, there are no guarantees. Is the stress of the application worth it to you? If it is, then I say go for it!

I definitely second the idea of making a spreadsheet. About three weeks before I had to hand in my application I realized that I needed to do an extra essay for one school. Also, I needed to create multiple writing samples of varying lengths to meet the different application requirements. Fortunately I managed to get it all done on time (even though it meant skipping some classes and spending my free time in the fetal position), but I would not wish that kind of craziness on anyone. Granted, I only decided to apply for this application season two months before the applications were due (I was originally planning on applying this fall . . . until I realized I'm not meant to have an office job). Still, I could have gotten everything settled when I first decided. Instead, I procrastinated and it hurt me in the end. In short, be organized! Get your shit together! It would have saved me a lot of stress if I had. Also another thing I would have done is try my hardest to get a face-to-face meeting with my prospective advisors. I applied to three top-notch programs, and I don't think it's an accident that the only one I got into was the one where I met my PA for coffee. Make yourself available. Fly out to your top choices, if you have to! It will show the professor you're dedicated and potentially have a lot to offer to the program. Last warning: never apply from abroad, if you can help it. Good luck to those who are applying this year! Just remember to organize, plan, and breathe, and you'll be fine, !

I'm in the same situation where I'm considering joining a club or two (and maybe magically relive several episodes of Friends in the process, !). I was wondering if this kind of on-campus involvement would look good enough on a resume to make the sacrifice of time worth it. Do the grad students who are in on-campus orgs mostly do it just for fun or because it looks good?

Hi everyone! I'm starting Berkeley in the fall as well (Go Bears!) and I'm really grateful for all the websites and other information everyone has posted on finding housing. I never got the chance to visit Berkeley, so any new information is incredibly helpful. I was wondering how long it usually takes to find housing in Berkeley. A lot of people say "not long," but I'm not so sure what that means. I'm heading over at the end of July. Will that will be enough time to get everything settled before the semester starts?

Lol, no no no. I didn't mean it like that! It's just that my field is rather small, so I'll probably be seeing these people at conferences and whatever. I didn't want to magically end up on some wait list of some sort and then have to tell them "oh, I accepted this other offer long ago . . . sorry about that . . . " Although I also don't want to look like I'm saying "Well! I'm too good for you! I'm going to withdraw my application before you reject me!" either.

I've recently been informally notified of a rejection from Columbia. However, I have yet to be officially notified. In the meantime, I've decided to attend another school and I've been told that normally in such situations you should withdraw your other applications. Since I haven't been officially notified yet, should I still withdraw my application?

That really sucks. Maybe if you get into another funded program and you inform Harvard about it they might give you an offer. Harvard judges the worth of its programs based on how many accepted applicants are actually admitted. If you say: "Hey, I'm probably going to turn you down for a place that gives me money!" they might pull out the extra cash. So I wouldn't reject them just yet. You never know!!

I'm curious to know if it's a Tang painting as well, mostly because I'm guessing it's an imitation. The girl looks too slender to be an actual Tang painting, I feel. But then again, I'm definitely in no way, shape, or form an art historian and barely know a painting from a sculpture. Tomi, are you going to Berkeley or Stanford? Or are you just living there? I would be interested in meeting you too. One of my favorite professors in undergrad specialized in Chinese labor (although he was in Politics, not Sociology).

I haven't told my employer yet either and I feel like scum. I literally just got hired at my new job and they have made major assumptions based on the idea that I will be around for at least a year. The other day, my boss told me to start hiring new teachers (I'm a preschool teacher at a brand new school) so that we can start really expanding. You know what he said? "Make sure they're going to be around for at least a year like you. Parents send their children to our school because they like the teachers. Teacher stability is of utmost importance." . . . I almost told him right then and there out of guilt. However, I really really need the money until I get my first stipend check in August. I can't afford for him to decide to just replace me with a new teacher while "expanding."