smallaxe

Yes, why wouldn't I be? I think that SSHRC definitely looks for some relevancy to Canada in proposals, and it does get harder once you're actually attending a US school, but the funding is for Canadians and the award is tenable at any accredited university, including international ones. You can't use the CGS (35k) abroad but you just downgrade and take the Doctoral award. @ttwi It was dated Feb 15 and I got the letter on Tuesday north of Toronto. The preselection committee received 538 applications and put forward 246.

I'm a direct applicant - received a letter informing me that my application won't be sent to the national competition Not ideal, but I was accepted into all the US programs I applied to with full funding. SSHRC would have just been icing on the cake! I'm also relieved that I won't be stressing about results for the next two months. Until next year, folks!

I think it depends on the university where you are getting the taught master's. If it is a recognized name or strong in your field, I do not think it will put you at a disadvantage. But take that with a grain of salt as I only have a master's degree. However, I know individuals who earned master's degrees in Hungary, South Africa, Germany, and The Netherlands who were admitted to PhD programs in the US and Canada. Of course, that is anecdotal. I would recommend looking at the CVs of graduate fellows at universities at which you would want to pursue your doctoral work and see where they did their master's. You could also email the graduate program director and just ask - that is what I did for a program whose GRE minimum I did not meet but was a great fit. The director told me they make exceptions. I was admitted to the PhD with full funding and a recruitment scholarship. As I am learning, it comes down to what you did in your studies, the fit between your research and the program's strengths, and how you communicate it when applying to your PhD.

What is your budget? I can honestly say I don't know anyone who rents a studio/one-bedroom apartment for less than £1100 - at least not one with acceptable living conditions. If you plan to live without flatmates, your best bet is to look in areas in Zone 3 and beyond, with a 10+ minute walk or bus ride to a Tube station. I would recommend Poplar, Bow (east); Camberwell, Balham (south); Wembley, Wood Green, North Finchley (north); Fulham, Ealing (west). Take a look at Zoopla and Right Move to get an idea of prices for (usually unfurnished) studios and one-bedrooms in London. I hope that helps. I lived in the city for a couple years, let me know if you have any other questions.

Emily - For your questions (i) and (iii), it's in your interest to contact the graduate program director (I believe they are called graduate tutors in the UK) and ask them. They'll be best informed about how they support students and the availability of internships. As far as university life, you can email current students to ask. As bioarch mentioned above, the cost of living is high but it's an incredible city with a lot of opportunity. LSE and UCL are both highly ranked universities in the world and in the UK. As far as future study, are you doing an MA or an MPhil? In either case, you'll have the option to continue in the UK, though most PhD programs expect an MPhil. With that said, getting funding for a PhD in the UK is difficult - studentships are an option, as are scholarships, but they are highly competitive. Many international students are self-funded. The degree will also be recognized in the US, though many programs that require a Master's for admission prefer that you have done independent research (an MPhil).

I think those are automatically generated. I've been receiving recruitment emails from one place (e.g. 'Our campus has great research facilities - here's a list...'), a student number and supplementary forms from two others. I sent my GRE scores to Chicago after the exam and they sent 'Looking forward to your application' and 'Why you should come here' emails. I did not end up applying but I did like the approach.

This!

Thanks @phyanth and @Archaeodan! Rutgers, Vanderbilt, the New School, and Dalhousie in Canada also have January deadlines, in case anyone else is feeling the anxiety!

@phyanth - True! I just wanted to give myself the best possible chance with my limited selection. I think I would feel more comfortable with even one more, especially if it was in a city. Do you know any (sociocultural/applied) programs with January 1st deadlines?

Usually, the main goal of a thesis is to contribute to the discipline for which it is written - in your case, sociology. A thesis is also a long piece where you can draw out connections and explain nuances specific to your research and analysis (e.g. regional specificities, historical context, theoretical framework, etc.). The editor is reminding you that the journal is interdisciplinary, so the main goal of an article published in the journal should be to point to its contribution to Pacific Studies overall, irrespective of discipline. The questions you want to keep in mind while rewriting is What should my readers know about X in Guam and why is that important to people interested in the area of Pacific Studies?, where x = nationality, race, education, gender, or whatever your paper's topic is. TL;DR: He/She was saying, "While you should not generalize, your paper should speak to the implications of your research on our understanding of X in Pacific Studies, not a highly specific paper that explains how sociology informs the way you analyzed X in Guam."

So. I feel that trying to reach a goal requires wearing blinders - you're just going for your target and there is an inherent assumption that you will reach it. Now that my applications are in, the blinders are off and it's just hit me - I might not be accepted anywhere I only applied to four programs - all excellent fits with several POIs - but one is a top 10, two are in small towns... Now that all the deadlines have passed, I'm regretting not casting my net a bit wider and applying to at least one more in a city... just to (hopefully) have some options. I don't know. Anyone else?

Nope, sorry @phyanth !

@phyanth Yes, Canadian schools offer funding for PhD and MA students. Spots for international students are limited though. Generally they'll offer a tuition waiver and a slightly lower stipend, or just a stipend that will cover living expenses and tuition (which are far lower than US schools). Funding is for 3-5 years, depending on the school. TAships are often available after that time and at many schools the TAs are unionized, so you receive benefits and such.

GSU has rolling admissions with a November 1st deadline for the Spring term and April 1st, 2018 for the Fall term. The person could be a current student which would expedite things as well.

What an incredibly positive way to think about it! LOL go for it. If earthquakes are a regular thing they'll at least be prepared for it... As far as the last part of your comment, it depends on what you wrote. Sometimes I will send emails and wonder why I haven't received a response and later realize that there was nothing that really needed one. If there were some questions, it's probably just busy-ness/lack of urgency.

Way to go @EvelynD! Too bad about the job, fingers crossed it works out for you. I would like to make another application or two but can't bring myself to do it. I need to focus on other things - I'm self-employed and just lost a contract (client is also 'restructuring' in a sense), so I'm happy to have applications off my mind!

For sure - good luck @Archaeodan! Final letter writer just submitted - all applications are complete! Now the real worry begins....

Oh no, that's annoying. I applied to a uni that doesn't have anyone who works in my region, but the POI I was chatting to said there are people in other departments who do and that there's time to make connections with them. He also mentioned the possibility of a committee member outside the university. If you fit with him or other profs in the department, your app isn't necessarily a write-off!

What happened @Archaeodan?

Yes! Both my December 1st apps are in. I've got two more mid-month - just waiting for one last rec letter to submit. Between the GRE, transcripts, and application fees ($110 USD for one?!?!) these applications are quite the financial bullet.

I did read about that that problem, definitely something to be wary of. An interesting 'hack' though one of the draws is of course using less paper (this is coming from someone who printed 80+ page manuscripts a dozen times ). Thanks!

I'm somewhat old school and prefer having physical books and notes but I'm starting to catch up with the times. Does anyone have experience with smart notebooks? I'm came across the Everlast Rocketbooks and they seem like a happy medium between pen/paper and digital files. My only concern is that the technology is still developing and I wonder whether they're as good as they advertise - especially for a grad student. I'd love someone else's take!

Hey @djp2 - I just got an email from SSHRC acknowledging my application and providing an application number about 20 minutes ago. Should be coming your way if it hasn't already!

To my knowledge, all graduate research degrees at York are fully funded. The final amount is dependent on your competitiveness relative to those admitted, but everyone receives enough to cover tuition and a modest living stipend. The programs I'm aware of receive this funding for 5 years.

Thanks @EvelynD! The relevance to anthropology isn't so much about what you think about the subject, but rather where it fits in with anthropological literature. In my statement, I wrote things like this project builds on the anthropological tradition of analyzing X to understand Y (e.g. Famous Scholar A, Famous Scholar B, Famous Scholar C, My POI). I should add that I only included citations in one SOP since most say they should be implicit. Also, another way to rethink the question is 'What makes my research anthropology?' Usually it has more to do with the methodology or the way you've framed your question, but it's an admittedly hard question! If you can answer that you have a framework for an excellent response to the question. I hope that helps!