ameshu205

All MA students earn tuition remissions. From what I understand, I think that the department tries its hardest to provide all MA students with a stipend each year (between $16-21K, depending on a few variables), but they may not be able to guarantee that part of the funding more than one semester in advance. More clarifications or questions about UD? Feel free to ask or PM!

Poliscar: No confusion in your initial post -- my fault entirely (too early and too little coffee when I made my first update). Thanks for the clarification, and for catching my mistake! I've corrected it now. anonymousbequest: I agree with your points entirely, and really had hoped that these lists would demonstrate the range of possibilities that you describe. That they don't is more indicative of the methods used to collect them, I think. For an explanation of that methodology, see above/below. And in terms of the limited number of schools included (and the many I know I've missed) -- well, time plays a factor there. If people would like to continue adding to these lists, I'd be happy to make the spreadsheets editable to all. As I had also noted that the fellowship list is skewed towards my own subfield (despite my best attempts otherwise), I'd love to hear about those I missed!

Poliscar -- my apologies for overlooking Canadian schools! Certainly no offense was intended towards our fabulous northern neighbors, but just lack of thoughtfulness. I've added your list to the spreadsheet. Can you think of anything else it's missing? I also removed SCAD from the listings (while I'm hoping this list includes more than just the "top" jobs, I do certainly realize that it has its issues). I also agree that the NYU number seemed high, so I went back to the ProQuest/UMI dissertation database (the source of these numbers) to double-check. And yes, according to this source, they indeed did issue a total of 174 doctorates from 2006-2013, or an average of 22 per year. A few specific examples: in 2013, they issued 20; in 2012, they issued 26. And I agree that if the numbers of curatorial jobs were included, this figure would look very different. But so would most other ratios on this list. I wonder what the most efficient way to gather info on assistant curators would be. Anyone have an active AAMC membership and the time/interest?

Because I’m forever curious about how our field works – and because I’m avoiding a bit of real work – I pulled together a few lists of programs’ placement rates for: Pre-Doc Fellowships, 2010-2014: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AlLRiFPXoh9HdF9LUEs3QlFUOVVzclFKNUxxWmhuSXc&usp=sharing Assistant Professor jobs, 2006-2013 (very narrowly defined; see below): https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AlLRiFPXoh9HdDRtWkdRbmVPY0tWY0NtbkJfZFJhYXc&usp=sharing Take-away point (TL;DR): These lists should NOT to be taken as the last or definitive word on anything, but rather, as springboards for further additions, reflections, and conversation. If anything, I hope they reinforce the points made by many others (above and in other threads) of the impossibility of ranking programs objectively, at least based on the metrics set out here. Thoughts on methodologies of gathering info: Pre-Doc fellowships: This list seemed fairly straightforward, although it certainly reflects the areas I know best. I tried to include fellowships with multiple recipients per year (the Frick doesn’t fit into this category, but it was mentioned in a list in another thread); and so much the better if they cut across multiple sub-fields (CASVA, the Met, etc.). What fellowships have I overlooked? Assistant Prof. jobs: This list seems much more problematic to me, although it certainly does show interesting trends. I tried to follow the methodology laid out by the Art History Newsletter (AHN; http://arthistorynewsletter.com/blog/?p=476 and http://arthistorynewsletter.com/blog/?p=483) – surveying the top 25 schools from the US News and World Report lists for both national research universities and small liberal arts colleges. The job market being what it is right now, I expanded their categories slightly to include not just the top rankings in each category, but also schools with particularly strong art history departments or university museums. I surveyed about 75 schools in all, but obviously, this is the biggest issue with this (quite incomplete) survey – without looking at a far bigger sample size, I don’t think it’s truly possible to draw any definitive conclusions about placement rates. Another problem with this list is the types of jobs it includes. Following the structure of the AHN survey, I looked at only tenure-track assistant professors at each school. While this makes comparisons between the two surveys possible, I don’t think it reflects the realities of today’s job market (vs. the job market in 2007, when the AHN list was compiled). The limitation to just TT assistant profs means that, even though it’s become standard practice to spend a few years as a visiting assistant professor (non-TT) or on a post-doc fellowship, these positions aren’t included on the list. Further caveats: I’m absolutely certain that art historians who have earned their PhDs from Indiana, Maryland, OSU, Penn State, WashU, and Case Western since 2006 are out there doing fantastic work, despite what this list says. They just happen not to be working at the places I researched. These job numbers represent only a fraction of all possible jobs that are held by PhD graduates. Among those are many curators, many professors who earned tenure more quickly, and many scholars who teach at places not surveyed. (If the data for recent curatorial hires were easily available, I certainly would have included that info too!) I’m refraining from putting forth conclusions from this data, given its significant limitations (although I’ve realized, in doing this, how very many issues I have with the methodology set up by the AHN list…). But even taking these issues into account, I hope that the lists might generate some productive and interesting discussion. Thoughts? Reactions? Comments? And apologies, of course, for enabling anyone’s procrastination!

While I certainly wouldn’t want to discourage you from being ambitious, it sounds like you have a really clear idea of what you're looking for in a program. So, with that in mind, I just wanted to offer another set of thoughts: As a current student at a non-“brand-name” school, I’ve been aware that I need to more actively and creatively search out opportunities to share my work, engage with my field, and find funding (often out of necessity, given the shorter periods of guaranteed funding at non-Ivies). If you go in knowing that it may help to have a slightly bulkier CV to “make up” for coming from a program that’s perceived as being less prestigious, the “extra” activities have only helped to strengthen my work – and actually have sped my time along in my program. I’ve learned enough about myself during a few applications seasons to realize that I work best if I’m able to be a slightly bigger fish in a slightly smaller pond, which is exactly the environment that I ended up finding in my PhD program. While it’s a well-respected department with super faculty members, it’s certainly not included in Condivi’s list above. And that’s perfectly fine by me, since it offers just exactly the atmosphere that allows me to do my best work. This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t perhaps add a few more applications to your list. But a bit of encouragement I wish I had received not once, but twice (!): if a certain program just intuitively feels like not a good fit, for whatever reason, it’s fine not to apply and to devote more time to applications you’re passionate about. [NB: Important disclaimer – None of the above is meant to imply that those students at Top 10 programs aren’t also working extremely hard at the very same things! But, again just in my experience, these activities seem less critical to their future success, perhaps.]

As a current grad student at Delaware, I'll take a shot at adding a bit more info to this thread. Much of what has been posted before still seems accurate to me. I've lived in Newark for three years and enjoyed my time here; while it is indeed a relatively small college town, I've found it to be a perfectly pleasant and easy place to live (especially if you have access to a car) and close to many other more exciting locations. A significant portion of UDel grad students live in the apartments complexes near campus. Most are nothing special, architecturally, but most offer well-maintained, fairly large spaces with some utilities included (and those that aren’t included are honestly nothing to worry about). If you’re not able to visit Newark before beginning a program here, you wouldn’t go wrong by signing a lease at one of the following places: The Apartments at Pine Brook (http://www.apartmentsatpinebrook.com/): A large complex, about a 20-minute walk to campus; spacious 1.5 bedroom apartments that allow pets of all types for $750-$950/month; run by a very attentive management company; beautiful landscaping with a stream running through the complex and lots of pine trees; near the reservoir with walking trails. Colonial Gardens (http://www.liveatcolonialgarden.com/): Located on Main Street, about a 15-minute walk campus; 1-bedroom apartments from $700-$900 College Town Apartments (http://udstudentrentals.com/CollegeTownApartments.html): Located west of campus on Elkton Road, about a 15-minute walk; 1-bedroom apartments from $700-$900; maintained by UD housing and offers flexible short-term rents and roommate-matching services. Thoughts on other apartment complexes (NB: far from a comprehensive list): Varsity Townhomes (http://www.varsityud.com/varsity-living/): I have no idea of the rent prices, but this appears to be a nice complex, in a good location, about 10-minutes north of campus. Studio Green apartments (http://www.studiogreende.com/rooms-and-rates.html): Seconding what many have said earlier in the thread, Studio Green seems like a mixed bag. On the plus side, the apartments are plentiful, inexpensive, and on a shuttle line that runs to the center of campus. On the other hand, they are quite “cinderblock-y” with so-so maintenance, and very much of a college-dorm-like feel. Conover Apartments (http://www.udel.edu/has/grad/locations.html#conover): There have been good descriptions of this complex by its residents earlier on this thread. Personally, I find them to be slightly overpriced ($970-980 for 1 bedroom), but their location can’t be beat (5-minute walk to campus). There are also many complexes south of Newark that offer similar living experiences for a slightly better value. Generally speaking, it’s helpful to have a car to make the 10-15-minute drive to campus if one lives at one of these. Autumn Park Apartments (http://www.mmgapts.com/autumn-park-delaware.htm) is a good place to start, although there are many others. Just FYI: as nice as the Apple Chase Apartments (http://www.capanoresidential.com/apartments/9-applechase/overview.php) appear (for a very good value), they require a minimum monthly income that exceeds what most UDel grad students earn. Ivy Hall Apartments (http://www.ivyhallapartments.com/): I’m happy to be corrected on this point by those who have had different experiences, but I personally would place them fairly far down a list of desirable places to live in Newark. They are close to the train station, which is both good and bad, I suppose, with a pretty distinct dorm-like atmosphere. If one didn’t want to live in an apartment complex, there are a variety of other options around town. Craigslist is pretty quiet now and doesn’t really begin to get more active until the summer. Spaces in most privately owned properties tend to get snapped up quickly; while one can definitely find some gems this way, it seems necessary to be able to travel to Delaware to search them out. Finding a roommate through Craigslist is a different story; I’ve had many classmates who have found great roommate situations from a distance over the summer. Last, but not least, many people live in Wilmington and make the 25-30-minute commute each day, or live in Philadelphia and commute in by train or car (about 60 minutes). As others have mentioned, the SEPTA service connecting Newark to Wilmington and Philadelphia runs at only limited times throughout the day (a few trains in the morning and a few in the late afternoon/evening). While it makes for a slightly less convenient commute by public transportation, many students and faculty do it regularly. Good luck to all on the housing search!

Perhaps you've already tried this, but did you look under the "History of Art" (technically the name of the department)? If so, and it's still not there, I would just contact their graduate admissions coordinator: http://www.sas.upenn.edu/arthistory/content/contact. Good luck!

If you haven't considered them already, may I suggest adding Margaret Werth and Nina Kallmyer (University of Delaware) to your list? Best of luck to all!

I'd second greenpen's earlier suggestion of Nina Kallmyer at Delaware, given your interest in academic art. Her own research interests stretch from Gericault to Cezanne, but she's advised a number of eighteenth-century dissertations. Ikem Okoye, Delaware's Africanist, could also be a terrific resource. As a current Delawarean, I'd be happy to try to chat more about the program, if you end up considering it. Good luck with your search!

I too have been enjoying following this debate. Just wanted to clarify one point that I don't think has been addressed previously. In the original post, artwhat? wrote, "it looks like they don't really have big name scholars and offer very few courses because it's so small." While it is true that the permanent faculty associated with the MA program is not large by any means, thanks to the research and academic programs office at the Clark, all sorts of big-name art historians come to Williamstown for symposia or as recipients of six-month fellowships at the Clark (for a recent list, see http://www.clarkart.edu/research/fellows-past.cfm). While this fact in itself is not so unusual, this is one case where William's location is extremely beneficial. Because everyone is equally isolated in the hills of western Mass., these very big-deal scholars are typically totally happy to socialize with the grad students with much greater regularity than would occur in a larger city; in the recent past, many have served as readers on students' master's thesis committees. As a relatively recent graduate of the program, one of the things that I valued most about my experience was the introduction that it provided to all aspects of the academic field of art history, particularly the importance of those that take place outside the classroom. Of course, just as with any program, the success of a program boils down to finding just the right individual fit, both academically and personally.

Hello! As someone who went through this scary, scary process last year (for the second time), I wanted to share the most useful piece of advice that I received when I was starting to write statements of purpose, in case it could be of any help. The advice was to, above all else, focus the statement with great specificity on each individual program. This recommendation came from a professor who had sat on many admissions committees; he said that the professors who are reading applications already know a) how great their program is and what it has to offer its students; b ) the content and importance (real or imagined) of their own work; and c) the rough biographies of the types of students who apply to work with them. As he explained, what they don't know -- and are very interested in discovering -- is how the applicant demonstrates their "fit" with the program. I began to try to achieve this totally elusive goal by reading everything that my various potential advisors had published and thinking hard about how their methodologies and larger theoretical or cultural interests resonated with what I wanted to study. From there, I read as much as I could by other professors in each program to try to get a sense of if there was a "house style" (or even somewhat shared interests) and to try to imagine how the methodologies of professors outside my direct field of study might contribute to my intellectual development. On a more practical note, I took this advice to mean the difference between writing "Some of the faculty, such as XXXX and XXXX, have interests similar to mine, and I would feel privileged to work with their advice and direction" versus something like, "I am especially interested in Professor XXXX's combination of close visual analysis and rigorous historical specificity with interdisciplinary theoretical frameworks to explore the mechanics of looking and the logic of representational systems. Professor XXXX's investigations into portraiture and its political implications resonate strongly with my interests in..." (edit at will!) In other words, after defining an element of why I was a good fit for the program (or vice versa), it felt a bit less stilted to back up that assertion with examples from my past work and experiences. This approach, of course, means essentially writing a new statement for each program one applies to (not just a new "fit" paragraph), but once I actually made myself start reading, I felt like I gained a lot from the work. What I discovered was that some statements were not that difficult to write, while in others, I had to really struggle to demonstrate how my work could be of interest to anyone in the department (guess which programs I got in to). One last thought: I realize that KP-WI mentioned M.A. applications, rather than ones for Ph.D. programs. I feel that everything above still stands, but you certainly have more flexibility in terms of defining your research interests and approaches (as you undoubtedly realize). While allowing yourself to embrace that flexibility, the more specific you can be in explaining why you and the program would mutually benefit one another, the better. If I may ask, where are you thinking of applying? I hope these thoughts aren't too vague or contradictory. Best of luck to all with this tough, but rewarding, work!