charis

I'm having hard time deciding which program to attend next fall and I would like your honest opinions. The options that I'm considering are: Bryn Mawr College, PhD - full tuition with fellowship stipend Tufts, Terminal MA - 3/4 tuition What do you think are pros/cons of going into PhD without MA degree? I am already in love with Bryn Mawr but the range of courses offered seems rather limited. I can't quite cross off Tufts from the list because the professor in my field is a perfect match in terms of our research interests. She's been very persistent in her attempt to recruit me over the last few weeks and it's really hard to say no. Do you think it's worth to decline an offer from BMC and go to Tufts just for a professor? I think overall program quality and facilities at BMC are better.

lxs, congratulations on acceptance at CUNY! you really deserve it! i'm so jealous that you get to stay in NYC at least for the next 4-5 years! the17thscream, i'm visiting BMC campus next wednesday. i'm planning to visit one of the seminars there as well. i'm super excited about visiting. people i've been emailing with seem very approachable. my chance of ending up going to BMC is almost 97%...a daughter of my undergraduate professor who wrote me a recommendation letter is doing her PhD in classical archaeology at BMC. hearing from him, she's exceedingly happy not only with the academic rigor of the program but also with the personal attention she receives from staff, quite different atmosphere from large research universities. it'd be great if we could meet/ talk, indeed!

I'm not sure. Academically Umich is a better fit, but my heart is already set to BMC. Logistically, it would be much easier for me to move to Philly from NYC. You should still contact the dept. director or whomever contacted you in the first place and tell them you're still waiting to hear from other schools but still interested. Otherwise, they'd assume you're going elsewhere.

lxs, Umich professor just sent me another email that she'd like to talk with me on the phone. have you heard anything yet? you should contact them and tell you're still interested and you'd definitely attend if accepted. good luck!

This is very similar to one of my research papers I worked on my senior year. I did my paper on stylistic changes in Renaissance female portraiture. My thesis was on Sofonisba Anguissola's self portraits and I tried to explain how her experience as a woman artist shaped her way of self-represenatation. I am very much interested in women's studies in the Renaissance period, art theories of the period and the historiography of women's art. Where did you apply and where do you intend to go?

hey lxs, thanks! i haven't done anything regarding my being waitlisted at umich since Prof. Holmes emailed me in early March. i know i'm a good fit for the school especially given my strong interests in both renaissance art and women's studies/feminism (they offer a really attractive certificate program in women's studies). but i'm a little intimidated by its enormous size and midwest stereotype (i went to a small LAC in the east coast and have lived in both coasts) to pursue it further. have you talked to anyone at department about the process? i'm sure there will be some openings for sure, assuming that all the ivy acceptees applied there as a fall-back... best of luck!!!

hi 17thscream, i can tell you that i'm pretty much in the same boat as you. i also applied to U Chicago PhD and they accepted me in their MAPH and I also got acceptance letter from Bryn Mawr in February with fellowship offer. i got into all my safety schools with less funding and am waitlisted at U Mich. looks like BMC PhD program is well regarded in the field (i'm into Italian Renaissance) and has good resources/facilities. i also like its intimate environment and location near metropolitan area. my only regret is that i don't want to reject the offer from tufts, since they have a professor whose research interests match mine perfectly. they also offered me 3/4 tuition remission but the living expenses are too steep and it's terminal MA program. anyway, maybe i'll see you at BMC next fall. i might visit campus this weekend.