MastigosAtLarge

I had a 2.91 overall from undergrad, and got into the Boston College and UMD--College Park history MAs. My GREs were 161 Verbal (88%), 153 Math (51%), and 5.5 Writing (98%). Now, I'm going to UC Irvine for Ph.D. on full funding (to be fair, my MA GPA is a 3.85 or something).

The person who visited my advisor was in for Ph.D.

Boston College does not offer tuition remission for MAs anymore, nor health insurance, and my TA stipend was ~$23,000 for MA. But not everyone's given a TA-ship.

I'm not much help, I'm sorry, but could you call or email the department?

The reading strategy I use--taught to be my both my undergrad advisor and my current Masters advisor--is to read the intro, the conclusion, and then the intro and conclusion for each chapter. If you'd like, you can add reading one chapter in full to this list, so that you have more details re: one specific section of the text that you're particularly interested in. At Boston College, I have one book per week per course, and I usually have to submit a book review for each as well. This is the best method I've found. I'm so glad I was taught it as early as undergrad, it let me refine my application.

Re: the earlier discussion about grading, I think it's important to remember that they've earned their grades. Don't go on a power trip, and if you've legitimately not taught them something well enough (more than half of the class doesn't get it) then you need to address that. But if it's on them, do what you can to help them improve moving forward. I also think it's reasonable to evaluate each learner's progress against themselves for future assessments, not against each other. Which is to say I might hold a learner to a higher standard if they earned an A+ on the first exam than another learner who earned a B- on the first exam but has really been putting in work to improve since then. Another micro-tip I have is to grade on a 50 point scale, not a 100 point scale. Which is to say, Fs go in as 50s, not as 0s. Learners can recover from 50s, they can't recover from 0s. You can also make assessments formative for learners who score below a certain threshold, but then be prepared to explain yourself to the B+ leaners re: why they don't have a chance to redo the thing. I definitely wouldn't recommend this for classes larger than like 36. Personally, I'm a fan of keeping all assessments formative, because it allows the learners to focus on the material instead of on their grades.

Some people have egos, and we have no way of knowing how these specific people will react. But presumably, part of the reason you want to work with each of these people is that they're nice to you. If you think they're nice people, we can only assume that if you explain that you regret they won't be your advisor but that you still really want to work with them in the future, that they will be receptive. That's no guarantee, but if you find out that they have bad blood upon hearing the decline, then something would have happened eventually to make them angry.

Crossposting this. I've TA'd five courses, and I've been hired by my department to look into how our professors and TAs respond to learners in distress, and to recommend department-wide change moving forward. My biggest tip is to remember that you are not a psychologist. If you notice any sign that one of your learners is in distress (whether they make a disclosure of sexual violence, suicidal ideation, a suicide plan, disordered eating, etc, OR whether they cry in office hours or send you an anxious email) tell the professor or the department head. Do not tell the learner that it's normal. Do not assume they're just trying to get a higher grade out of you. You're right, OP, that learners are more anxious than ever. The numbers I'm familiar with are that over 8% of undergrads seriously consider suicide and over 51% experience what they call "overwhelming anxiety". Do not take the chance that you, as not the expert, incorrectly evaluate what is going on. You are part of educating the whole learner, and that includes responding to their emotional development, not only their academic needs. And remember, a learner's mental state contributes to their academic performance. But this all also means that it's important to remember that you are not a psychologist. You don't have the resources to pinpoint what's going on, nor provide a learner who really is in crisis with what they need. So inform the people who can help the learner obtain those things, do not assume it's nothing.

Again, tips from having TAd five courses--learners (like everyone else) do not like silence. If you ask a question and everyone's staying quiet, don't cave and answer it yourself. If you stand still long enough (which is to say, 30 seconds to one minute, I'll bet you), someone will speak. This even works when you tell them you're doing it. "I'm going to stand here quietly for one minute, and I bet one of you will say something because the silence will feel awkward". I've done it just that way in class before, and someone always speaks up. Be confident in your own pedagogical abilities and trust your techniques.

I've TA'd five courses, and I've been hired by my department to look into how our professors and TAs respond to learners in distress, and to recommend department-wide change moving forward. My biggest tip is to remember that you are not a psychologist. If you notice any sign that one of your learners is in distress (whether they make a disclosure of sexual violence, suicidal ideation, a suicide plan, disordered eating, etc, OR whether they cry in office hours or send you an anxious email) tell the professor or the department head. Do not tell them that it's normal. Do not assume they're just trying to get a higher grade out of you. Now, when over 8% of undergrads seriously consider suicide and over 51% experience what they call "overwhelming anxiety", do not take the chance that you, as not the expert, incorrectly evaluate what is going on. You are part of educating the whole learner, and that includes responding to their emotional development. But that also means that it's important that you are not a psychologist. You don't have the resources to pinpoint what's going on, nor provide a learner who really is in crisis with what they need. So inform the people who can help the learner obtain those things, do not assume it's nothing.

My advisor had an admitted incoming Ph.D. student visit a few weeks ago, Boston College has released at least some acceptances.

Thanks! Updated with my UC Irvine offer.

I can't access the spreadsheet for some reason? EDIT: I see that you posted updated links, but they seem to have mostly old information. Is that right?

Can now confirm that I'm in at UC Irvine to work with Sharon Block!

Email from Penn that my admissions decision is available, but it's not showing up on my end of the application account... EDIT: Just updated after a few refreshes