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fortsibut
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Posts posted by fortsibut
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I am a member; I joined my senior year of undergrad and presented at a PAT conference during my MA studies. I can't say that it has done much for me career-wise outside of opening up that one conference presentation opportunity, but then again I really have no idea how professors view membership in societies like this when they evaluate applications. My sense is that a membership in PAT is a weak soft at best in terms of resume-building.
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21 hours ago, Ternwild said:
100% this. Submitting applications earlier when the application season opens, I have found, is a key way to have the graduate committee give your application a much closer look.
Not sure that I agree with this, unless we're talking about program with rolling acceptances and limited spots. My impression was that (at least in the history programs to which I applied, so this may be program or discipline-specific) adcoms sat down at one time and went over all applications at that point. I'm not even sure committee members have access to (or interest in/time to go through) applications before that point. The point you and the poster above you made about not procrastinating and waiting until the last minute and polishing your application materials as much as possible is well-taken, though.
In terms of my contribution to this thread, I'm not sure what all I could've done differently. I do know that I should've reached out to POIs; might've mentioned this in a different thread a week or two back, but I found out after rejections rolled out that my POI at my top school was retiring. Why didn't I email her this year so that I would have known that and picked a different POI at that school and thus had a better shot at acceptance? I didn't know which advice to listen to since I've heard "make sure you contact POIs before applying and introduce yourself/see if they're taking students" and "for the love of God don't bother them and risk alienating them." Well lesson learned, and next year I'm reaching out to absolutely everyone; if they're annoyed by a polite introductory email then they'd be a shitty person to work with anyway.
I very much agree with @GradAppl5's point about not applying to schools you'd have trouble making yourself attend were you accepted. I had one school that I didn't apply to this year (for a variety of reasons), and one of the primary reasons for my hesitance was that even though there were some good POI matches there I couldn't get excited about the school or location. Maybe that's kind of a dumb reason to pass on applying (and to be fair, I've never been to the city where the school is located), but I feel like if you're going to spend 5+ years at a location for a PhD the location is kind of important.
There were a couple of applications that I kind of half-assed, which is particularly stupid since they could have been good fits and I certainly didn't get application fee waivers for them. The early-mid December deadlines were tough for me because it was a hectic time (as opposed to Jan 1st/15th which was much calmer), but I should've had all my ducks in a row at that point by working during the summer/fall to polish everything. Application season comes but once a year and there's no excuse for my lack of preparedness. I won't make that mistake again. Several people in the history forum also pointed out that I probably didn't cast my net widely enough this past year and looked for too perfect a fit, and that's a really good point. I still don't feel like I 100% grasp what makes a "good enough" fit with a POI in history I guess.
I'm not sure what to do about the GRE. I killed it on verbal (167) but didn't do well on quant (150) or aw (4.5). I put literally zero prep time into aw (the first time I had seen the format at all was when I took the test) and that was dumb. Some people say GRE scores don't matter in the humanities (particularly quant), but that's something I'm really starting to question. I don't think I'll take it again since I'm going to study for and take the LSAT this summer and I have a lot of editing work to do on my writing sample since I'm trying to get it published, but it's been on my mind.
I don't know what else to do to strengthen the written elements of my application for next year, honestly. Publication is a long shot and I don't really have anything lined up to show programs that I'm more awesome this year than last, other than possibly adjuncting a course in the fall which most top-tier schools aren't going to care about. I really have no idea what to do to stand out more this time around.
tl:dr: this coming year I'll prepare early, pick my target schools more carefully, and reach out to POIs.
EDIT: Gratz on the acceptance, @Ternwild! Hadn't been on the site for a few days (week?) so I just noticed.
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Got into Syracuse's museum studies MA with 30% funding but without a GA'ship I can't justify attending. If I'm gonna sink $30k into a second MA it's gonna be HiLi, which I'm still waiting to hear from.
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Excitement: My backup plans include two MA programs, one cool and one way cooler.
Worries: I won't receive enough funding to justify attending.
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3 hours ago, elx said:
I’m applying for year-long programmes and and never even thought of that issue!
What would everyone recommend doing in the year between the MA and (hopefully) PhD then? Would it be a disadvantage to work somewhere that’s unrelated to history?
Since I already have a MA in history with good recs from that school (HiLi is an interdisciplinary MA so I think that'll really add another dimension to my skill set and applications) I'm going to apply to a few schools this fall regardless of whether or not I attend HiLi and use my old recommenders rather than ask someone I've only know for a month or so (which would be a bad idea, as @telkanuru pointed out). I know that my fall transcript would be done in time to include with the applications so that along with me including the program in my SoP and my goals for doing so will be a solid addition to my applications. Worst case, I don't get in, waste a few hundred bucks on app fees, and reapply with a much stronger app the next time around. It doesn't make sense for me to sit out a cycle entirely just because I haven't finished the program yet (especially since it appears that I didn't miss by much at Cornell) but that's probably situation dependent.
If you have a few target schools and a solid application already, I'd think it'd be worth a shot with your fall grades from the program you attend and your past info, but that's really up to you! I just hate to waste a year if I don't have to, personally.
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20 minutes ago, historygeek said:
I also just realized that doing a one year Masters would pretty much be throwing me back into the PhD application cycle right away
It's funny, that's one of the appealing things about the program for me! ?
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1 hour ago, historygeek said:
Thankfully, I'm already fluent in Italian, so I'm not too worried about the program not having Italian language. The main thing I want to do at an MA program is learn other languages (French and Latin, most likely German). The main thing I like about this program is that it has great access to archives, and has special training for interpreting these sources. It's also in reach of other countries and their archives, which I could get a stipend to go explore.
The main thing I'm worried about is the price, though.
That's my concern too; 20% is nice and all, but damn. If they make me a decent offer though, I'm definitely going. It fits in perfectly with my research interests and I need to improve my French anyway. I can pass for French when I speak but my written grammar is atrocious! ?
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1 hour ago, historygeek said:
If anyone is waiting to hear from Columbia about HiLi, I just got my acceptance letter with a 20% off fellowship!
I'm submitting my application this weekend! You're going to 'Nova though, right? How long ago did you submit your application to HiLi?
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39 minutes ago, Balleu said:
Just emailed my LOR writers about my rejections. That might have been the most dispiriting moment of this process for me. I know they don't think of it as wasted time/effort/support, but it sure feels that way on my end. ?
I'm sorry. =( You're not out of it yet; there's always Northwestern! I know the feeling, though. It's pretty brutal reporting back that you struck out for the cycle, especially if you have LoR writers who you knew put a lot of time and effort into the recommendations.
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11 minutes ago, elx said:
I'm already dreading asking for references again. For those of you who have applied several times, is it as awkward as I'm imagining?
I've only been through two cycles, but after the first I sent a polite "thank you" email to my profs, let them know that I hadn't gotten in but was planning to try again the next year, mentioned what I was doing to strengthen my future applications, and said that I'd welcome any feedback/suggestions that they had and hoped they'd be willing to serve as references during the next cycle. All three were wonderful about it, although YMMV since two are professors I had for undergrad and grad courses who were also my MA thesis advisers and one is someone with whom I consulted extensively during my MA thesis who subsequently hired me to teach a course in his department we have pretty close professional relationships so it wasn't awkward for me.
The only time I felt weird reaching out was when I added a program at the last minute (a few weeks' notice, but in academia that's quick!) and had to ask them for references pretty quickly. They were all cool about it but it's definitely something I'll avoid doing again since I know they have a lot going on and I really hate inconveniencing people who are nice enough to do me favors.
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3 hours ago, elx said:
I'm going to try for American History in Oxbridge, and Leeds for Race & Resistance, which is interdisciplinary and really pretty exciting! If I don't get in anywhere, my BA institution will likely have me, but that'd be a 12 month programme starting in late September, and I have a suspicion that my advisor's going on research leave next year. Lots of time to think though, one of the places I looked at has their deadline 25 days before the course is meant to start ?
HiLi is the Columbia one, right? That sounds really really good!!
Sounds like you have some good options! From your sig it looks like you’ve already applied to Oxford; do you have an app to Cambridge in progress?
HiLi is Columbia, yes! It looks like an awesome interdisciplinary program and I love Paris so a year studying there would be a dream, but it all comes down to finances. I know the conventional wisdom of “never pay for a graduate degree,” but I’m willing to take on some debt for a great fit that would position me well for next application cycle. We’ll see how it pans out!
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8 hours ago, OHSP said:
btw did you consider applying to NYU, as an Africanist? There's Julie Livingston, Michael Gomez, Robyn D'Avignon, amongst others--all big names with good records of placing students.
I definitely screwed up this cycle by focusing too specifically on finding programs with "perfect" (or near-perfect) fit geographically, topically, and period-wise and probably dismissed a number of programs out of hand that could have been a really good match for my research interests. I really appreciate your (and @AfricanusCrowther)'s suggestions for the next cycle. I think I doubted my ability to pitch myself in a way that showed enough flexibility to schools where the fit wasn't completely ideal. I feel much better about that prospect for the next go round.
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3 hours ago, elx said:
I got this one too @fortsibut (the same as @HRL)! Looks like you missed out narrowly then -- are you thinking of reapplying?
For sure! I was planning to reapply one final time anyway, but knowing that I was pretty close just makes me that much more determined. I'm applying to two one-year MA programs right now that would provide me with some more breadth (particularly HiLi, although I'd really have to get a pretty sizeable tuition break there to make it affordable) and I'll work on getting part of my MA thesis published in the meantime.
What MA programs are you looking at for this coming year?
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7 hours ago, elx said:
I'm sending you so much love! I've had 4 generic rejections and surely another one coming for the last PhD programme I applied for; I've got a lot to improve on, but it'd still have been SO helpful to get any kind of actual feedback. I hope knowing that programmes have to pick between equally very well qualified candidates gives you some comfort. ❤️
Thanks so much! I'm sorry that you've had the same bad luck this application cycle that I have so far, but I hope you get into a great MA program this year and I'll look forward to having a familiar...avatar? to commiserate with next cycle. ?
@Ternwild: things might be a little bit different in STEM than it is in the humanities, I feel like (and could be wrong) that you have more non-academic options with a STEM PhD than you would in history. I'm also a little wary of going to a program that would grant me a degree but not have the prestige to get me a job. I looked at Howard University, for example, which at one point I considered to be a pretty good fit but I wasn't sure what doors would be open to me ~six years down the road when I finished. It's definitely something for me to think about over the course of the next year, though, and I appreciate your suggestion.
- elx and e_randolph
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3 minutes ago, HRL said:
Yeah, happy to confirm for you! I got my Cornell rejection email today and it said: "Your application for admission to the Graduate Program in History for Fall 2019 has been given careful consideration by the faculty in the field. We regret that your application has not been approved for admission. The number of students who we can accept is limited and, as the overall quality of applicants is very high, it is not possible to offer admission to the many excellent students who would like to study with us. We appreciate your interest in History at Cornell and wish you success in continuing your studies at another university."
Thank you! Yep, that looks like the same one I got last year for sure. What's your field of study, out of curiosity?
EDIT: just saw that you posted it earlier, oops! Gratz on the UGA acceptance! ?
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7 hours ago, Balleu said:
I just got my rejection from Cornell. It's a disappointment for sure, but I'm glad to have received decisions from all of my schools at this point. Time to start courting Northwestern to see if my wait list spot can turn into an offer.
Really sorry to hear that. =( I was actually telling some friends this weekend that there was a cool Africanist on this site and that I hoped you got in if I didn't. Hoping things work out for you at Northwestern!!
I also struck out at Cornell, but the interesting thing was that I got a very different email this year than I did last year. Last year's email (or as I referred to it to some friends, the "Bye, Felicia" email) was short, terse, and ended with "We appreciate your interest in History at Cornell and wish you success in continuing your studies at another university." This year's email (which seemed to mirror one that was sent out to select students last year based on a comment on the results page) told me that my application was "among the best that (they) received" and that "it remained in consideration up through the final stage of the review process." Anyone else rejected by Cornell able to confirm that there were multiple letters? (It's also possible that we all made it to the final cut but no further.) It'd be a real encouragement to me in the year ahead to know that I was at least making real progress and that this wasn't just a new letter they sent to everyone.
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I'll be reapplying next year but it'll probably be my last cycle either way it goes; I'm in my late 30s and I can't sit around forever waiting for academia to work out. My applications were much more competitive than last year (much better writing sample, better SoP, better LoRs due to finishing my thesis, designing and teaching an upper-division college course, and another conference presentation) but it didn't seem to make much of a difference compared to last year. (That's my outsider's perspective, though, who even knows what happened in the committee room? My application could have been considered 'til the last minute or laughed out of the room.) I killed it on the verbal part of the GRE and did fairly well on the analytical writing, so there's not much room for improvement there. I'm honestly not really sure what I can do to make myself a standout candidate for next year.
I'm honestly pretty depressed right now. This is going to be a long year, and not one with any guarantee of a light at the end of the tunnel. I guess I don't know what to tell you since I'm up in the air about everything myself! Application season is fucking awful.
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Not sure if @psstein frequents this forum but they may have run into this situation and could comment on it (or it may be department-specific).
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(continued from @rohan5141's post)
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Carry on.
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5 hours ago, elx said:
That's awesome @Nicator!
Fingers crossed for you, @fortsibut ❤️
Got mine crossed for you too! ?
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3 minutes ago, Nicator said:
I was away without access to a computer last week so couldn't post the news when I got it, but thrilled to say that I was accepted into Cornell! The PhD in History (Ancient History) result is mine. Still in shock, I never expected to get in!
I'm so happy for you!! Congrats! ? Hopefully I'll join you there next year!
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Worry: my last PhD program (Cornell) started sending out acceptances on the 20th and strangely-given how totally awesome I am-I haven't gotten one yet! Also strange, only 2 acceptances posted so far and neither has been claimed by anyone in the history forum. Hopefully the POIs will get more out this weekend and some of us will get some good news. ?
Excitement: I have 2 backup plans in place now for the next year and both could be really good experiences, even if they're not a PhD program.
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Nobody here gonna claim those two Cornell acceptances? ?
Also @historygeek big gratz on funding, that's awesome!
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7 hours ago, Manuscriptess said:
A lot can be said for the collegiality of the dept. Last year, I was choosing between two top 10 programs, but one was slightly higher ranked. On the visit day for the better program, I saw that students hated each other, the professors, and the administration. 3 students said that they were transferring out to other programs because of the lack of support from their advisors. That was a HUGE red flag to me. 6th and 7th year funding also seemed to be incredibly contentious and competitive. I couldn't see myself being happy there for next 5-8 years.
When I visited the program that I am now attending (the slightly lower ranked one) the students and faculty both stressed how much collegiality there was in the department. Now that I'm here, I can absolutely attest to that. Obviously, more went into my decision than just whether people were happy, but at the end of the day, with all other things being relatively equal, it's ok to choose the place where you'd be happy and where others seem happy.
There is something to be said about choosing a program where you would be happy, especially because this is a process which will consume your life for the next 5-8+ years. The job market is terrible for all of us, so in some instances, choose the place where you would be the happiest and most supported because that is the place where you are going to get the best work done. If you're going to be miserable at X school, you'll be more likely to drop out and your work will likely suffer.
Hey, glad to see you posting again and so happy that things are going so well for you in your program! ? Thanks for checking back in and updating/giving us some good advice.
2021 Application Thread
in History
Posted
So 3 of the 4 programs that were the best fits for me aren't accepting students this fall. That's fantastic. =(