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Care to share any insight you may have gathered on their process? Is their cycle essentially over? I'm not too anxious anymore, as I've received an admission at a program that is a better fit for my interests, but I am curious.

Admitted to Iowa!

Anybody apply to and hear back from Iowa? Or know anything about where they are at? They have a late application deadline (Jan 15.) and they tend to have a later time frame, but IDK what is normal for them.

Rejected from Northwestern at 11:00am today.

I also applied to UCSB! I haven’t heard anything. However, by looking st results from previous years, it seems as if they don’t send out decision until March. Have you heard anything?

Same boat. You're not alone. I received one rejection that was expected, but total silence from the others. I really do wish programs would inform those they reject as soon as they are passed over and put to the side.

I applied to 6 programs... 4 religious studies programs and 2 ethnic studies programs... I've heard back from one (rejection) and total silence from the others...the silence is getting unnerving.

This is not a super annoying question. I think we all share similar anxieties about being good enough for admissions to graduate programs. I can speak from my experience someone who was admitted to HDS, but ultimately decided not to attend and instead pursued an M.A./PhD program. I don't know what happens behind close doors during admissions committee meetings. My response is based on my own application experience and on conversations with admissions and students. You are right that applicants to HDS are already a self-selecting group. I don't think you need to worry about taking courses at a community college or local university unless your grades in humanities classes were particularly weak. Your GPA is adequate for HDS but not stellar (I say this with all due respect, speaking from the imagined perspective of someone in admissions). Therefore, I think shooting to have a verbal score on the GRE of 160+ will boost your chances. I truly do think HDS takes a holistic approach to the admissions process, so if you can demonstrate that you have a compelling reason or pursuing an MTS and an interest in religious studies, that will count for a lot. Make sure that it is well-written. I am assuming that the "unrelated" field you majored in was a non-humanities field. Consequently, they will want to see that you can write well. It seems that you have a sincere desire to go into religious studies. Highlight that and explain why! Best of luck! I want to be clear that this is just one person's perspective based on going through the application process at HDS and being admitted. But then again, much of what we do on this forum is purely speculation.

Disclosure: I am at SLU right now, although in a different department. You are right. From what I know, all of their PhD graduates from last Spring have landed jobs. I don't know if these were all TT jobs, or even attractive jobs, but hey, that tells you something. This isn't a scientific answer, but my interpretation on the matter. I think SLU, like the city of St. Louis, is often overlooked. It's a good school, but lives in the shadow of WashU at the local level and Notre Dame and Boston College in the Catholic context.

Conservative. Not very diverse. Recently went through some internal turmoil. They have an interim chair this semester, as the previous one stepped down mid last semester. I kid you not, the interim chair before this interim chair was someone with a biology background.....yes, biology. To be fair, the scholars that they do have are solid. You will get a good, conservative, theological education. Not amazing, but solid and not looked down upon by anyone.

I don't know that it is necessarily frowned upon, as I assume that professors know that people have different timelines to accept jobs, other PhD offers, etc., and people want to know where the process is at. This is my second PhD application cycle, and I only e-mailed one professor during the last cycle. What I will say from that experience is that I don't think reaching out will really give you a any clearer sense of where the process is at. I e-mailed the professor I wanted to work with in late February and they e-mailed back saying they were still deliberating. Of course, this wasn't technically a lie, although it is now clear I had not made the cut. I think they are still "deliberating" until they have filled their incoming cohort.

Good info. So, if I am reading your post correctly, if you have not received an invitation for a skype interview from Northwestern at this point, you can assume you did not make the cut?

Mmmmhhhh. This would seem to be another bit of evidence suggesting that there were/are fewer applicants to religious studies/theology programs this year.

I applying for American Religion I applied to Religious Studies programs at UC Santa Barbara, Northwestern, and Iowa. I also applied to Mexican American Studies at UT Austin and Ethnic Studies at UC Berkeley. My research topic of interest remains the same, just different avenues to get at it.

Man. I'm looking through the 2018 PhD admissions cycle thread for religion and it seems like at this time this year there was a lot more activity both in terms of posting and interviews. Maybe that is a sign that it was a down year for applications? Pure speculation.

Any movement for anybody yet? Interview requests? Anything? I am currently in a PhD program in a humanities discipline and I am reapplying this cycle to religious studies, so I am unfamiliar with the timeline for the field's application cycle. I applied to UC Santa Barbara, Northwestern, UT Austin, and Iowa.

Hey! I live in Skinker Debaliviere. I have also visited friends in U city north of Delmar by WashU. I think both areas are similar in terms of crime (this is my very unscientific perception/experience). You wont be exposed to violent crimes in these areas. However, due to the high residential density and the fact that they are adjacent to "tougher" areas, both neighborhoods are targets for crimes such as car break-ins (very common in Skinker Debaliviere) and the occasional robbery. I have not had any issues myself, but I do hear about these crimes often. You are right about north of Delmar having a bad reputation. It is, in fact, a low-income area with a high-crime rate. However, I don't think the "Delmar Divide" applies north of Delmar near WashU/The Loop because there are so many students, businesses, and families in the area. Here's what I will say about Skinker Debalieviere: I like living here because its nice and close to the park. There are two cafes in the area, but they are only open in the morning and they are nothing to rave about. Although the neighborhood is close to CWE, its not necessarily walking distance. We don't have a good restaurant or bar to walk to, which is a bummer. Now, that being said, you have Forest Park that you can walk to, and there are always people walking their dogs in the neighborhood (if you area dog owner). If you are looking for a neighborhood that has bars/restaurants you can walk to, the i would say U City is a better bet. If you want a quieter, perhaps more walkable neighborhood, Skinker Debaliviere is your bet.

Hey All. So I am on a fellowship through my university. The fellowship carries a pretty standard for a PhD stipend, perhaps a bit more generous when one considers the cost of living where I am located, but still small potatoes for the university. Anyway, I am on an 11 month contract that renews up to 4 years. I was supposed to not be paid in either June or July (I wasn't sure which month). Today is payday for the university and they paid me the equivalent of my monthly stipend. It seems like they skipped the gap in my contract and continued to pay me. I am obviously very happy. Would you guys say anything to HR? I want to be honest, but not stupid! Also, I don't want them to come back in a few months and ask for the money back! Any thoughts/advice?

Any body have PhD thoughts on St. Louis University? What schools would you compare it to for theology?

Yep, you're fine. If you're academically qualified, there is no reason for this to hurt you. The SoP is a tool to help you communicate why you want to go to div school (including life and academic experiences), and why that div school is a particularly good fit. If you've tied that narrative together well, even if you touched upon depression, I see no reason why it will harm you.

I don't know factual percentages. I've read approximately 70% admissions rate for Harvard Divinity and around 51% for Chicago Divinity (I realize that it's not on your list, but its the only other percentage that I've seen). I would anticipate that all of the other schools are between the 50-70% admissions rate. These high admissions rate might be surprising especially when we consider that these are elite universities and seminaries. You also have to consider the following factors: -Programs are selecting from an already highly self-selective pool of applicants. If you are paying the application fee for Harvard and taking the time to complete the application process chances are that you were a strong undergrad student and know that you have at least a chance. While undergrad admissions are much more competitive at a place like Harvard, think of how many high school students send in applications to Harvard just because its Harvard but they actually have no chance. -People are not flooding into religious vocations -The threshold for admissions for masters program are different than they are for elite undergrad programs or med school, law school, or PhD programs at any institution. The threshold isn't 'who are the absolute' best students', but rather it is 'can this person do the work'.

No and Yes (kinda. External funding won’t improve your individual application. Assuming you and another candidate are equally qualified, your external funding won’t put you over the edge. However there is another, more positive way to look at this. Admission is a game for many schools. For example, they will offer three (assuming they have 3 GAships or fellowships to give) people admission hoping that they will all accept. If the 3rd person goes elsewhere and tells them with plenty of time, they can move on and offer admission to a 4th candidate. By that pint , the 4th person will have already decided to go elsewhere or forego graduate school altogether. Or perhaps all three people initially adjusted accepted and the 4th person was rejected altogether. The 4th person who received admission (whether he accepted or not) was qualified enough to receive admission to the program, but when making funding decision, the other theee were a bit more qualified. The fact that you have external funding might make the department say “oh, we can admit all 4 at the same, since we will only be giving away the three GAships we have”. In that sense it improves you probability of getting in, but does not make you a more competitive applicant per se.

I don't think the M.A credential necessarily improves your chances on its own. But I think going through an M.A will help you grow as a scholar and applicant. I felt pretty good about my applications, and got into my preferred program. I'm in my 1st semester, and already I have learned so much and improved as a reader, writer, thinker, etc., and think about how much better my applications could have been if I was applying at this point. So, if you don't get into your preferred PhD program and end up going M.A dont' go into it thinking that the M.A credential will be the difference maker on its own. Go into it with the mindset that the process of getting that M.A will make you a better applicant holistically. Your writing will improve. Perhaps you can retake the GRE with so much more practice reading. You will have an even clearer vision of what you want to study. You will have a new pool of recommenders that taught you at a higher level.

Good to hear it is at least possible. I worked full time as an undergrad while balancing a full time course load. It was difficult demanding but possible. My fear is that the possible would erode with the academic demands of graduate work.

I know that most divinity schools provide generous tuition packages. I also know that stipends for MTS programs are rare, and even when offered, they are not enough to live on (the largest I've heard off is a 10,000 dollar stipend at HDS). If I went to divinity school, I would not be taking out loans and would be working essentially full time to live and pay my bill (assuming I get full tuition somewhere). Is this feasible? Obviously it would be more difficult to work many hours than not, but it is even realistic? Has anyone done it, or know someone that has done it? Can it be done successfully?