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Although I do not take medications for anxiety or depression, I do take thyroid medication. If I am not well regulated on my medication, I will also suffer depression and anxiety, as well as many physical side effects. Frankly, the thought of going to Russia for a year of research is quite terrifying when considering their comparatively rudimentary health care system. I also have my levels tested at least twice a year, as they tend to vary with diet and weight, and I just don't know how that will work when I do my research. On top of that, I am a member of the LGBT community and I am very nervous about "going back into the closet," so to speak, and about hiding the true nature of my research to most everyone I meet. In other words, sorry to make this reply about myself, but I am just saying that I can relate to some of your concerns...

Got rejected from UNC Chapel Hill yesterday via portal In other news, my POI at Illinois told me that since their class was overly large last year, they only sent 6 acceptances this year. I am on a wait list there with little hope, I suspect. However, I am trying not to be upset about it. Although UNC Chapel Hill and Illinois rank higher than Ohio State, I think my POI at Ohio State will be the best fit for me, and I have nothing but good interactions with them from the beginning. The only thing I'm concerned about are job prospects, but I suppose I'd better not count my chickens before they hatch.

Are you sure it does not include health insurance? I take medication daily and that is a huge consideration for me. Their 2011-12 GTA insurance brochure, the most recent I could find, states that they give an 85% subsidy.

I am planning on e-mailing m POI at Illinois on Monday to inquire about where I stand. He gave me really positive feedback, calling my application file "great" in mid January. I also think Illinois would be a great fit for me, probably more so than UNC Chapel Hill. I will let you all know if and what my POI says!

If anyone has funding info about Ohio State and Carnegie Mellon, please do tell!

I know that Ohio State has a history of placing their graduates. The same information is not available, at least from my search, about Carnegie Mellon. However, the size of the programs is very large. Ohio State has about 200 graduate students while Carnegie Mellon has around 30. I am planning to visit Ohio State at the end of the month for their visitation day. However, I do not think Carnegie Mellon has such a day, once again because of the size of their program. I have e-mailed the DGS about the possibility of visiting, but it would be an expensive trip for me if it is not compensated. :/

Hi there. After being set to accept my offer from Ohio State for Russian history, I was informed that I have been accepted to Carnegie Mellon. While Carnegie Mellon offers quite a bit more funding, including no teaching for the first year, and a full year of paid research, I am leaning towards to Ohio State because I think the advisor fit is better, there are more Russian history resources, and I believe the history program's ranking is higher. However, my major concern is securing job placement after I finish my program. I am worried that I will not be able to secure placement coming out of Carnegie Mellon because they are not even in the top 25-30 in terms of history program rankings. I guess I am asking, does anyone have anything to say about either Ohio State or Carnegie Mellon's history programs? Thanks!

Just got accepted at Carnegie Mellon off the wait list! Holy cow, I wasn't expecting that.

Just got waitlisted at Carnegie Mellon. I was expecting an unequivocal no! That'll be the ego booster for the day.

I saw that a couple of people have been rejected from UNC Chapel Hill via the website. I went on to check my status and it had not been updated. That confirms what I have been told unofficially, that I am on a "short" wait list. Jeez it would be phenomenal for my career to get there. Clutch.

I totally agree with that! However, it is important that you go into the application process with a fair idea of what you want to research for the next few years, because a program will be much more likely to admit a candidate if they are well matched with an advisor. The best way to show that you are well matched is to show an extensive interest in one particular historical question, while connecting it to the larger geographical-thematic picture. My MA thesis relied on discourse from only 5 years in Soviet history...I will likely expand the scope of my research, either chronologically or transnationally, for my dissertation. Of course, I hope to research other themes in Soviet history as well over the course of my career. However, I think it's important to show that you have a starting point, direction, and can think like a scholar (typically one project at a time).

Hi all. I was accepted into the history PhD program at Ohio State, and it is the first choice among the schools I have been admitted to thus far. However, I was not selected to receive a fellowship for which I was nominated, but was still guaranteed 4 years of funding from the history department in the form of a Teaching Associateship. I am waiting to hear what the official offer will be but it is taking quite a long time. One of my other offers has already stated the terms of funding, and their deadline to admit is in mid March (odd, I know). Thus, I am wondering if I can get a feel for Ohio State's funding at a departmental level, especially in the history department. Does anyone know what Ohio State's typical funding package is for their incoming PhD students? Thanks all

You sound like you're on your way. I think that many undergraduates who apply and are accepted into PhD programs have completed long (25+) papers on an area in which they hope to specialize. Such a paper should be used as your writing sample, and should definitely be based on your primary source research. Archival research is a big plus, but schools typically understand that most people do not have access to such resources at the undergraduate level. Your language skills are also HUGE for going into ancient Greco-Roman history. I have heard that it is the top consideration for this field, as it is quite impossible to do research without those skills. I think it's important that you explore your options as an undergrad. However, you should demonstrate a prolonged interest in one particular area, and one historical "question" in your application. You should structure your personal statement around that question, as well as how you became interested in it, and what preliminary steps you have taken to begin answering it. Your writing sample, of course, should be your first attempt at addressing said question. Grad schools want to see that one area can keep your attention for YEARS, because that will be vital for dissertation research and writing. Good luck!

I'm still waiting on rejects (or unlikely admits) from Illinois, Chicago, UNC Chapel Hill, Carnegie Mellon, and Pittsburgh. I remember thinking, that if I don't hear anything in February, I might as well give up hope. I am so thankful to be admitted to two programs at this point, I can only imagine how I would feel otherwise.

Thank goodness I have my thesis and my comps to distract me from obsessing more than I already am.

You're not helping, hahaha

Just got my rejection from Indiana. It's probably for the best though. It wasn't the best fit anyway. Congrats to those admitted.

Still holding out for Indiana. I see a few people have posted their rejections. I haven't received an e-mail yet. I feel like I'm being wait listed everywhere...

I study modern Russian history with an emphasis on gender and sexuality. This one is not hard to puzzle out, actually. I'm a Russian Lesbian hahahaha

Well, I misspelled my POI's name no less than 4 times at Ohio State and they eagerly admitted me, so here's to hoping they find small mistakes endearing!

Has anyone heard anything from Indiana? I'm not holding my breath because my POI didn't reply for weeks after I sent her an inquiry back in October. Also, I totally called it "University of Indiana" in my SOP - Doh! This is the third mistake to the third school I've found. Danggg

I see someone posted that they got into University of Illinois Urbana today as well. I'm not sure what to think about it since last year there were bout 7-8 people who posted in the first wave of admits. I'm keeping hope alive because I think it would be an excellent fit for me. However, I dunno how I would deal with an $8,000 stipend...

I have been admitted to Ohio State and University of Kentucky. I am still waiting on Illinois. I was told by my POI that I had an "excellent file," so I am keeping hope alive. I was also unofficially informed by my POI at UNC Chapel Hill a couple of weeks ago that was "at the top of a short wait list," mostly because my POI is looking to retire in the next few years. I also applied to Chicago and Indiana, but I have had virtual radio silence from POIs there, so I have a bad feeling about those. Good luck all!

Thanks for your replies! It is one of those things where I have good days and bad days. I think part of it is personality as well (unfortunately, it is a trait I have). Most days I am excited and ready to meet the challenges ahead of me, and am so happy to be afforded the opportunity to pursue this path. Sometimes, however, those negative thoughts can really hard to overcome. Thanks again!

Hello all. I have been a lurker on GradCafe for some months now, and I decided to join so I can take a more active role in some discourse. I wanted to post this topic in the History Forum because I suppose I would like to hear from my colleagues in the history field, although all graduate students' replies are welcome. I will be graduating with an MA this semester and have recently been admitted to a pretty decent (top 15) Russian history program, and am waiting on replies from 6 other schools of arguably higher rankings. I know I should be celebrating as I am close to the end of my thesis writing and I finally know that I will have a chance to go for the PhD. However, I am filled with a huge amount of stress. I completed my BA and MA at a state school not known for its history department. There were only a handful of us in my cohort, and most people study online for their MA in my program. However, I worked hard on my application (personal statement and writing sample) all through last semester, and I am so pleased to be admitted to this program (and possibly others). However, I am burdened by strong feelings of inadequacy. This is most prevalent in the research and writing department. I do not think my research has been bad, but the area I struggle in is finesse. What I mean to say is, when I read published scholarly articles, I feel like my own prose is clunky and even childish by comparison. I work hard to incorporate words and phrases like "vis-a-vis," "ipso facto," and "transnational" when I can, but I often find myself feeling foolish for trying to turn a phrase. I also know that I have misused words and phrases on occasion, only to have it pointed out by my advisor. The truth is, I have been very lucky to have an MA adivsor who worked very closely beside me, and made sure my application materials were up to snuff. We went through 5 or 6 drafts of my personal statement and writing sample before I submitted. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing I'd rather be doing and this really is the path that I want to pursue. However, I often feel that I am leagues away from being published. There are times when I want to phrase something in a sophisticated manner, but am stuck with the feeling one often gets when a word is on the tip of one's tongue and you can't quite recall it. I do not doubt my work ethic or my desire to pursue a PhD in Russian history. Sometimes I simply worry that I am not intelligent enough. I look at it this way - someone can want to be a world-class swimmer with all their heart, but if they do not have the genetic propensity to become a world-class swimmer, they never quite will. I realize this is a rather Darwinist way of looking at things, but I can't help feeling that there is an element of natural talent one cannot really control. I have written more this year than I ever have in my life, and I certainly can say that my analysis and prose has greatly in improved. However, I worry that I just don't have the natural talent that it takes to be successful at the PhD level. Does anyone/has anyone ever felt this way? If so, what steps did you take to overcome these feelings? Any advice is much welcomed and appreciated!