mrs12

I figure that this is probably a great place to ask about people's experiences with the Boren! I'm contemplating applying for it this year, but it seems a bit complicated if you're graduating undergrad and applying to grad school. I'm not sure if it's something that most grad schools would let you defer for a year to do, or what. How many of you have received and/or applied for the Boren before? What were your experiences? Where did you go and for how long? How did your school work with it?

@ZebraFinch, @kbui That sounds fantastic! I'm so glad you two are still here, even if you're busy. This whole thing would be impossible without the both of you! If you'd ever have any time to talk about the essay part of the Rangel, I'd be forever in your debt. (Also, ZebraFinch, I've started narrowing down my grad school choices and your current program is my #1 choice right now. I'm starting to look almost exclusively at Russian/Eurasian programs now.) I think I just took the totally wrong tack with my essay last time, not that it wasn't genuine or I didn't work on it, but I didn't know what the committee was looking for and so it wasn't targeted correctly. I'm pretty nervous this time around, because of the short amount of time I have to do everything now. Edit: Also it's so hard to English right now because I'm doing an intensive Turkish program where we literally aren't even allowed to read in English or hear English for two months so I apologize for my wonky wording.

@kbui @ZebraFinch Are you two still around these days? :333

@Damis, Thank you so much for the heads up! I would have totally missed this deadline otherwise! I'll be applying to the Rangel for the first time this year! It'll be tricky because I'm in an intensive language program right up until close to the deadline, but I'll try my best. I'd really appreciate it if any of you previous applicants/finalists could give me some advice once again! I know that last time with the Pickering I wasn't selected as a finalist, and I think it was probably because of the tone/focus of my essay, so I'd really love to get some advice from all of you on that subject. :3

I'm so frustrated right now... Ahh, but it's really sort of my fault, I think. So there's been trouble with the CLS Turkey program this year. Because of security threats they kept moving the site location, and giving us warnings, and finally, they offered us all a chance to back out because of the security threat being upped by the state department. My study abroad office strongly urged me to back out of the CLS, since there was no penalty, and they didn't want me going to Turkey this summer due to the situation there. So after asking the program about their chances of running versus not running, etc, they told me they couldn't say for sure and I ended up rescinding my offer. And now it turns out they moved the program to Azerbaijan. Which my school would have had no problem with me going to or getting summer credit from... I just wish I had known that they would consider moving to Azerbaijan. I wish there'd been a lot more transparency with this whole thing. So now I'm really regretting pulling out. But I'm so happy to hear of all the alternates being picked! I hope someone gets my spot and really enjoys their summer! <3

Yay guys! I'm just going to spend the next few days imagining your amazing exploits at the interviews!

Really? Could I pm you to talk about your experience with CERES and Geography? :3

So... I don't actually know! Which is kind of a problem. I'm torn. I would love to continue my area studies, and do something like Middle Eastern Studies. Particularly the Harvard or Columbia programs which are interdisciplinary and have good language tie-ins, or Georgetown's CERES. (I like Harvard's program best because I could still do stats courses as my electives.) Or at a lower level, Indiana University-Bloomington and Washington University do pretty good Turkish Studies programs mixed into other departments. I also am considering Geography Masters, if I don't end up getting into any fellowships. And I've looked a lot at SIPA and SAIS, and I like them a lot. Mainly the thing is... I don't know what degree would best help me in the future if I'm not able to win a fellowship connected to the FS. If given my druthers I'd do area studies and be happy about it, it's my passion, but it's not a good plan for employment if there's nothing following that. Geography is a good middle ground, and it would capitalize on my stats/programming background and I'd learn a lot of other useful skills. SIPA and SAIS are great, but probably only if I got into one of the fellowships, because of the costs. So really I don't know what to do. I'm trying to make lists of schools, but the bigger issue is deciding what degrees help me achieve my goals after school. The question of what precisely I want to do when I am done with school is unclear. I did an internship with the FS, so I know I would enjoy that and really get something out of it. I don't have experience with much else, but I dream of research and things like thinktanks, possibly. I want to keep learning no matter where I am or what I'm doing. There's the possibility of working in the field of geography in a technical position, especially if I got more experience with remote sensing and archeology background (paired with my Turkish it might be marketable). There's the incredibly slim possibility of making a living teaching Turkish, and thus excusing a Masters in area studies. I just don't know, I haven't had the chance to experience these sorts of jobs. I'm contemplating taking a year off after graduation to do research or more internships, especially if next year I'm not selected as a Pickering finalist. Wow, sorry this turned into a really long post! What are your ideas/feelings on the topic of grad schools?

@pdh12, that sounds like fluency to me. Haha! Seriously, I don't know the word peacock in Turkish. :3 I haven't even heard back as to when my test will be. I'm afraid something went wrong because I emailed and filled out that form that went to the testing organization but never heard from them about a date.

Wee, good luck all of you as you prepare for those interviews! I am sending all of you as many positive thoughts and reinforcement as I can spare~

Thanks, you two! @emb, I think I might be in a similar situation to what you were in with Turkish. I tried to learn through immersion my first two years studying it, so I just went to Turkey and did stuff there. But without the classroom experience, I ended up knowing no grammar and just being able to talk without knowing why any of it worked. I can understand things at a pretty high level, but I speak like a little child because I don't use grammar when I talk. It's a really weird mix. I've learned a lot of grammar the past summer and this year, though, so I feel like I might be able to test into advanced, but you're right that a lower level for a language like Turkish is helpful no matter where you're at. I'll put aside my perfectionist hopes and just be glad to get into any sort of class.

@emb I have a question about the whole level thing. I have an ambitious goal for where I need to be post-program, but I'm worried because of my speaking level I'll be put in a lower level class. (Which I know would be good for me if that's what I test at, but it's still a worry.) Did student's skills range a lot in each level? And do you think there would be a chance to go beyond the course material if, say, I did get put at a level where I already know all the grammar?

@yayj, I know that CLS states that it's not possible, but I imagine that someone must have tried in the past. What sort of course is it? Some online courses are easier than others or less time consuming. @emb So I'm not certain, but I THINK you can apply for extra pages for a passport that hasn't expired yet. And I think anyone is eligible to do so, versus applying for a second passport which has more restrictions.

I don't think so. I ended up getting accepted into CLS this summer for Turkish. But it was kind of a big surprise.

I wonder if the other Turkish sites will go... It seems like a big trek, but it would be so awesome... :3

Did anyone hear back from the FLAS from Wisconsin-Madison? I just heard from them for their summer program.

@emb Were you in Ankara when you were invited to the Fourth of July party?

I'm doing Turkish in Izmir, Turkey. How about you?

Yes! It was a miracle. I submitted at 4:58 PM!

I'm so frustrated and worried. Today everything is due but I'm still waiting to get my medical form from my doctor. They mailed it so it should be here today but the tension is mounting... T.T

Hi, As an area studies major with a bit of geography background I am considering doing a Geography program for grad school. I'm having a lot of trouble finding the right program, though. I was wondering if I'm planning on a Masters and not a Phd if you should look more at general program fit/course focuses or should you still decide based on professor's research being similar or connected to your own research interest(s)? I'm not interested in completing a Phd, or going on to one after a Masters, but outside of the field I can't tell how important it is to fall in line with professor's research at this level of schooling.

@ZebraFinch I certainly will reapply! I think you might be right. In that there were around the same amount of applicants for the undergrad and grad levels of the Pickering, but only around 20 undergraduates were invited to interview because only ten will be selected in the end. I honestly thought I would be more devastated by this result, but it helped a lot talking to you all for the past few months. I've realized that my denial doesn't reflect on me as a candidate necessarily. It's made me even more dedicated, and excited for the future too. I really want this, and so it's not the end of the world being denied once. Your story in particular, and those of people who applied several times inspire me to keep trying. Plus this means I won't have to worry about any CLS overlap with the Pickering orientation this summer. Haha. I'm super excited for the CLS program because it looks like I will be placed into Advanced Turkish now, the level I really really wanted to get to! (It's hard to study at that level in the US. Very few schools offer anything even close to fourth-year Turkish.)

@chethedoctor We'll both be applying next year then, right? We can brainstorm!

I'm not surprised I didn't make it. But I am disappointed. It's okay! This is just a chance to hone my focus and work on improving myself for another year. Also, it means that I will have the chance to apply to things like the Fulbright next year, as well as the Rangel and the Pickering. It's not precisely a bad thing for me to have to have to wait another year because it gives me time to breathe and think about my future more broadly. I know I want to apply again, but in the meantime, I'll see what academia holds for me in my last year of undergrad. @kbui , thank you soooo much for everything! Seriously, you've helped me so much on this journey. I am really happy you were chosen for the Payne and I think you will be an amazing USAID officer. All of your grad school options sound great, and beyond just being smart you're so kind and thoughtful, I'm certain you'll do really well at school. From my brief time with my internship with the state department I was really struck by how important it is for officers to be good people -- It's one thing to be skilled at what you do, but it's another to make an office environment better by your presence. I think you'll do both, which is really exceptional! @ZebraFinch Thank you too for all of your advice and help and encouragement! I'm really excited for your journey and you certainly deserve it! <3 And thanks to everyone else for making this thread so wonderful and supportive. I'll continue lurking on this thread because I want to give people like @AAAAAAAA my congratulations and encouragement! (Good job! And good luck!)

Hey everyone, I was not selected this time around. I'm sad, but I won't give up. Thank you all for all the help and advice and story-sharing during this journey! I'll be sure to apply again next year and I hope that we can stay in touch so I can hear all about your wonderful experiences!