Konnichiwa2015

ZeChocMoose, thank you for your advice and perspective! I'm on my second year teaching English, and I plan to continue another 2 or 3 years. Then, I would attempt to apply to some PhD programs. If it helps, for experience, I spent a year working at an after school program during college, and spent my summers working with Upward Bound to teach math classes for students from low income families. I was also a resident assistant, which had some educational elements to it, although it's a harder sell than the other jobs. I also volunteered a bit while I was studying abroad. I realize you must get this question all the time on these boards, so my apologies, but do you know of any well-funded Masters programs? My undergraduate had a reasonable amount of debt, and I'm able to pay it off, but I feel very strongly about never taking out student loans again. Right now, I am contemplating applying for a MEXT scholarship to get my education Masters in Japan, and there are a few cool international scholarships that I would apply to (understanding the chances are miniscule). If I can't get into a PhD or a funded Masters, I suppose I'll keep gathering work experience, and try to find some research projects, until I'm competitive. Anyway, thank you so much for your advice, and time. I really appreciate it. I hope your research goes well!

Thank you everyone! These answers have been very helpful.

Hello! Sorry, I know there was a post like this before, but it seems like there was an error with it. My apologies. I graduated in 2015, with bachelors degrees in linguistics and Japanese. Ever since then I have been teaching English in Japan with the JET program. I'm planning to be here a few more years. Also, I'm hoping to have a first authored publication in an applied linguistics journal soon. When I was an undergraduate, I always assumed I would get my PhD in linguistics. However, being a teacher has shifted a lot of the questions I'm interested in towards subjects that are typically discussed in education departments. Specifically, I'm interested in international education programs, like the ones at Stanford and NYU. When I do go to graduate school, I would prefer to go straight into a PhD for financial, time, and career reasons. Some programs, like Stanford, explicitly say that you do not need a Masters degree to apply. Others have different policies. I am told that different fields have different expectations when it comes to getting your Masters before your PhD. I was wondering what the culture is like when it comes to Education.I've heard that a masters is virtually required for PhDs in higher education, but what about international education? Even for programs like Stanford, which do not require a Masters, is it rare for someone to get in without one? Also, since I didn't study education as an undergraduate, would that hurt my chances? Thank you for your time!