smallaxe
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Posts posted by smallaxe
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I'm not sure that you will find any programs that are listed as such; the closest you might come are applied anthropology programs. I think there are a few threads here that list those programs. What I would suggest is looking into the departments where scholars whose work you admire are located. Consider the kind of work they do in the department overall, as well as how welcoming they will be towards your research interests and person. You want to be in a place that will take your research interests seriously and where you can dig deeper into those concepts, so look into programs that have Black scholars in the department, as well as a strong Black/African Diaspora studies department.
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On 7/3/2020 at 10:34 AM, lolplsfundme said:
Do any successful applicants feel comfortable sharing tips for proposal writing? I put my absolute ALL into my proposal last year and was rejected with a score of 11.5. I'm feeling pretty discouraged, especially given that I now only have one more chance for the CGS-D (entering PhD 1 in the fall).
At the time of application last year I had zero publications, so I thought that may have played a large role, however I'll be entering this round with two/potentially three.Please feel free to reply to this message or DM me -- thanks in advance!
I used this proposal as a guide: https://www.bethtimmers.com/blog/2019/2/26/getting-canadian-federal-funding-for-your-phd-an-example-of-sshrc-program-of-study
I found the structure helpful as it showed how to address all of the parts SSHRC suggests. The longest section of my proposal was the Contribution to Knowledge and I made sure to explain how it aligned with one of SSHRC's Future Challenge Areas. I also used the Applicant's Statement section to talk about my relevant research experience and academic activities. I was also lucky enough to have my proposal workshopped with a group of peers, professors, and post-docs.
It's important to say that a lot of it is just luck of the draw. Sometimes you get a reader who thinks your research is fascinating and gives you a high score regardless and other times you don't, so you really have to take care to articulate clearly how you meet all of the selection criteria.
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9 hours ago, AK47 said:
Lol sorry if this got asked before, but does anyone know how we are supposed to accept this award? Which email do we send to and what are we exactly supposed to say in the email lol?
In the Award Holder's Guide, we are to email the program contact saying we accept the award and confirming the start date. If you're at an international institution, you also send a copy of your passport. https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/Students-Etudiants/Guides-Guides/TriRTA-TriBFR_eng.asp#acceptance
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I received my results on Thursday - SSHRC Doctoral! I'm a direct applicant, committee 3 with a score of 16.9. This was my third time applying - I applied before the PhD (didn't make it past the first round) and in my first year (waitlisted). No new publications or conferences. Mostly just tightened up my proposal with a lot of feedback, focusing particularly on the 'Contributions to knowledge'. I also think that the new format where you could talk about relevant training and experience was helpful.
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10 hours ago, magicsana said:
Saw this on FB. Does this mean the results are out since it says 2019-2020?
2019-20 is last year's competition. It probably means she was on the waitlist and was bumped up to an award. It can take that long - I know someone who was bumped up from SSHRC to CGS after almost a year. ??♀️
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17 hours ago, lambda-abstraction said:
Thanks for emailing them! I'm a direct applicant and I've been wondering if I'm going to hear anything. Did they tell you where the information is on their website about changing the process?
No, they didn't.
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I emailed SSHRC about not having received word about whether my application had been forwarded to the national competition. I was informed that they changed the process and direct applicants don't go through that first round of reviews anymore. I suppose we can infer that all direct applications have been forwarded and we will hear in April!
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Agreed with above - the emphasis is on the personal statement. GRE scores are more of the graduate school's requirement, and even then for a good candidate - especially one from a disadvantaged background - they can argue the case. My quant score was lower than yours and didn't meet the minimum for one of the programs I applied to, and I still got in. Focus on making your statement clear, compelling, and emphasizing fit within the department.
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The SSHRC application is all online now?! This is incredible.
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Got my letter in NYC today. Waitlisted with a score of 10.7 from committee 3.
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Direct applicant as well, got my letter in NYC today. Forwarded to the national competition!
It says a maximum of 236 applications our 521 could be forwarded.
Here's to another two months of waiting! ?
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On 8/17/2018 at 9:09 PM, Adelaide9216 said:
Yeah, I get contradictory answers from McGill, SSHRC and UOttawa. Not fun.
I asked a friend who won CGS Doctoral last year - he applied directly to SSHRC during the second year of his MA.
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@Adelaide9216 Until you're enrolled in your PhD program, you submit your application directly to SSHRC.
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But whyyyyyy
- Adelaide9216 and NotForsaken
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Congrats on completing your first year! I did a preliminary trip during my master's and it strongly shaped my fieldwork plans (I also had no background in anthropology!). I spoke with a local I knew from years earlier who was connected to my topic. He directed me to the best field site and said he knew some people I could talk to and interview. I lived next door to him during my fieldwork and he introduced me to the person I worked with throughout. I also visited the local archives while I was there and did some informal interviews at similar sites. It was in having those informal chats that I realized that my topic elicited tension and skepticism from interlocutors, so I was able to prepare for that.
If I were in your shoes, my first priority would be to learn the language. Enroll in a language course or look for a tutor who can help you learn the language that will allow you to communicate with people. That will also help you meet people. Since you already have friends, you're ahead of most people! Ask them about who might be the best people to talk to about your research. Then go talk to those people about how you can get involved, ask if they'll introduce you to others, and so on. Do some interviews, network, make connections, let people get to know you so that the next time you visit you're a familiar face.
Pilot projects are about finding out whether your research is feasible, which assumptions you've made work and which don't, and getting a preliminary idea of people's thoughts and experiences related to your project. You may discover that what you expected was all wrong. You may change your field site altogether. You may find that people have no interest in talking about what you want to talk about. It will help you make adjustments to your research proposal and defend what you've put in it.
I also read Being Ethnographic by Raymond Madden before I did my fieldwork. That was helpful!
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I think you'll see in most of the 'Am I competitive?' threads that the best anyone can do is a guess. My (very discipline-specific) experience is that once you meet the requirements for grades and test scores, the deciding factor is your statement of purpose and interview. What's important is how well your research interests align with the department and university, as well as having something that sets you apart from everyone else. I've had give-or-take five gap years (some spent travelling Morocco, actually!) - mostly irrelevant to my intended subject of study - and passable GRE scores. The time "off", I believe, worked to my advantage because some programs in my discipline prefer applicants who have "real-world" experience or something to fall back on career-wise. Generally, people who have been working or doing something other than studying have a strong sense of purpose when they apply to a PhD. They don't just apply out of inertia.
In the end, your time spent learning German doesn't need to be discussed in your application if it isn't relevant to your proposed research. I didn't mention my time off in my SOP and it was only noticeable on my CV. Use the space of your SOP to talk about your research, how it fits with the strengths of the department, and why you want to study that topic at that university. That's what makes your application competitive in the social sciences: being able to demonstrate original thought, creativity, curiosity, and a commitment to understanding particular issues over the long-term or towards a certain end-goal.
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7 hours ago, Adelaide9216 said:
Has anyone else experienced what's being described in this article?
A few weeks ago, I got asked by another woman of color sitting on my graduate committe at university "Why aren't you doing research on black women since you're a black woman yourself?" And after thinking about it, it bothered me because I have other research interests than studying my own community and my own experiences.
I'm curious what your response was... It's one thing to ask why you're studying a particular topic, but to ask it that way seems pretty reductionist. Although there is some truth to the idea that people's research interests are about them (ha!), it doesn't have to be connected to a person's racial identity.
As for the article, I can't say I've felt any pressure to do that. I didn't fill out the diversity statements for any of my applications and talked about my intellectual interest in the subject in my SOP. Also, not being American and living abroad for several years means I haven't felt a heavy weight of racial tension and marginalization that was palpable in my campus visits. I think that will be a big adjustment moving forward.
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17 hours ago, phyanth said:
So, I just sent off rejection e-mails this morning. It was honestly one of the hardest things I have had to do in a LONG time. I loved this school, but practically speaking, the other school had more to offer. It's just that the POI I had been in touch with was so kind and excited for me to possibly attend. I told them that I wanted to collaborate with them in the future as we have extremely similar research foci, but who knows if they would actually want to do that.
Bleh. Anyone else feel the same way?
Yes! I sent off a couple last week and just thanked the faculty I had met and spoken to in separate emails. All were such great fits for my research and professional interests that it was a difficult decision. I think they know -- and probably remember their own experiences! -- and understand our positions. Phew!
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I was in the exact same situation. I don't have much to add to @timetobegin 's comment - all of it factored into my decision making. It was an appealing prospect to be a supervisor's first PhD student for all of the reasons timetobegin mentioned and I happened to get along well with that POI. However, the reason I chose the other program was because of the faculty as a whole. Professors - new and established - can leave at any time. They can fall ill, shift priorities, take extended leave, and so on. At one of schools I visited, a couple students chose the program for one particularly well-known professor they chose as their supervisor. They liked the supervisor but their experience in the department wasn't as positive; that professor is now mostly retired and they still have a couple years left. The advice I was given in several instances was not to commit to a program on the basis of one person's work. At the school I chose, I could see myself forming two or three different committees and being supervised by three different professors, depending on how my research interests developed. Despite having an extremely positive feeling about the department with the young POI, I knew that I would have been limited when it came to forming a committee.
I asked both professors about their mentorship style, mutual expectations, and future plans. I told the new professor that I was concerned about being their first student and asked about the challenges they foresaw. I asked the established professor about the kind of student who excels under their supervision and had the opportunity to speak to their current students, who had nothing but good things to say. Keep in mind that university departments are invested in portraying a certain image to recruit PhD students -- just ask the tough questions and listen to the answers.
- posi+ivity and hats
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27 minutes ago, AFRH said:
Question, you can apply to this thing throughout your PhD? or is there a specific moment that you are no longer eligible to get the SSHRC?
If you look under this heading, you will see at which points you become ineligible for SSHRC Doctoral and CGS.
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5 hours ago, Mitchell1 said:
When you go on a campus visit, what are the most important questions to ask so you get the full picture? What do you ask graduate students vs. professors? One of the schools I applied to wants to fly me out, but I don’t want to seem like an idiot when I go, and I want to make sure I fully understand what being a grad student there will be like
This is probably the most comprehensive list of questions that you can use and build on!
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5 hours ago, MJF said:3 hours ago, MJF said:
they were in our shoes at one point!
Except worse: they had to wait for snail mail!
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2 hours ago, scarseed said:
Does anyone know how many sociocultural folks were accepted at Columbia? I've seen a few results posted here but wonder if someone caught word of an actual number from the dept.
I'm aware of two, but generally they accept 8 total, usually 1-2 in arch.
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4 hours ago, Comparativist said:
always thought that if you were in a combined MA/PhD program, you had to wait until you were actually in the program (i.e. Fall of first year) to apply.
All of that says that you can apply to CGS Masters if you're heading towards a MA/PhD program (e.g. just finished undergrad) or are in your first few months. If you've already been enrolled for a year, you must apply to SSHRC doctoral... I already have an MA so wouldn't be eligible for CGS-M.
4 hours ago, PsychBoy said:isn't it only for direct applicants?
Yes. SSHRC applications are divided into an A list and a B list - As are forwarded, Bs are not. For enrolled students, this is done at the university level. For direct applicants it's done by a pre selection committee. If your university told you you've been forwarded to the national competition then your app will be adjudicated to receive SSHRC. If you don't hear anything from SSHRC as a direct applicant, you'll also be adjudicated.
Trudeau 2021
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I submitted yesterday! The questions gave me pageant vibes, but it was an interesting experience making explicit certain things that are habitual. I figured I would just be myself and hope for the best! I'm in my third year so this is the first and last time I'll apply, but I think it's always worth shooting your shot!