AfricanusCrowther

I'm applying this season so my advice might be useless, but I adapted my emails from another, highly successful applicant's. The format generally followed ashiepoo72's. I personalized my emails, altering my academic interests depending on the particular focus of the POI. You might want to retype every email if you're paranoid about making a mistake, like I was. I also had different constructions prepared depending on the occasion (if I was being referred to someone else by the first person I emailed, for example). General email advice holds, I think: keep it brief, be polite, etc.

Have you looked at Duke? They have a large (cultural and social history of the) military group. EDIT: UNC also has a few. They have a collaborative program with Duke.

How long before the deadlines are you guys hoping to submit your apps? I want to get some of them over with but I just can't let go of my SoP. And then there are the schools that require both a SoP and a personal statement, which is a disaster AFAIC. Edit: also, how far in advance should I send the LOR links to my letter writers? They've all been warned about my deadlines.

Thanks for the replies. I'm honestly surprised and relieved that my GPA isn't too low. I feel like I read about more qualified candidates who get rejected from every school they apply to.

Hi guys. I'm planning on applying to programs this fall. I have a relatively low GPA (3.6-3.7 range, curse you core curriculum), but a good major GPA (3.9-4.0 range) and a number of academic accomplishments, including my (top ranking) department's prize for best thesis as well as a number of other thesis awards and competition prizes. Do these academic awards and my major GPA help mitigate or cancel out my low GPA? If this were law admissions, the answer would be a clear and obvious "no," but surely PhD applications are less number driven.