historygeek

I take the GRE tomorrow! I'm crazy excited to be done with this thing. Anyone have any last-minute tips? I plan to relax for most of the day today, and then review a bit (probably do the practice sections in the Manhattan 5-lb book). I'm most worried about the verbal because of my major/intended program.

I'm taking the GRE on Saturday. My PowerPrep scores have been fairly high: 170V, 155Q (Test 1) and 168V, 154Q (test 2). I just took the Kaplan test and got dramatically different scores: 160V, 138Q! ? Is the Kaplan test accurate? I'm now terrified.

IIRC, there's someone on this forum attending Freie and Humboldt. @Tigla

Happy summer halfway point everyone! I'm gearing up to take the GRE on Saturday-- my scores on practice tests have been stagnant 166-170V, 154-156Q, and 5-5.5AW. I've also gotten drafts of all of my SOPs done-- I still have to write my personal statements for UC Davis and Michigan. I'm going back to start my senior year one month from tomorrow. I hope everyone else's summers are similarly productive!

Would it be appropriate to submit a prospectus for my writing sample to UCLA? I don’t have any suitable papers that would match the length requirements.

Oh no! That’s what I was afraid of. Guess I’ll just have to write a condensed version and a non-condensed one.

Hi everyone. I'm writing a chapter of my thesis to use as a writing sample for my grad school applications. Most of the schools I'm applying to have a maximum of 20 pages, with the exception of UCLA, which has a maximum of 10 pages. Would submitting a 10-page writing sample to the rest of the schools I'm applying to reflect poorly on me as an applicant?

Just wanted to give an update on what I ended up doing: In 1914, the society section of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote that “Regardless of nationality, the young girl rushes along the crest of the wave, absorbing American life, not only through her mind, but through the very pores in her skin.” In my doctoral work, I want to characterize and explain how Italian-, Greek-, and Russian Jewish-American women “absorbed American life” while tethered to ethnicity, both in their own self-understanding and white Protestant perception. While most scholarship focuses on immigrant women’s place in the culture of capitalism or the domestic sphere, I want to focus on young women’s presence in public space, opening up a broader question: how did old-world obligation and new American life affect female choice?

I have the Manhattan 5lb book and it's a godsend.

I'm taking the GRE later this month (the 28th, eek!) and the quant has been KILLING ME! Amazon has some great math study books!

Yes, this is a good point. I’ll keep this more in mind as I go.

I've taken a couple of hours to try to come up with something more interesting, but I'm honestly not sure that they're effective or well-written. Obviously, I don't want to get my applications tossed, but I don't want to sound contrived or like I'm applying to an undergrad institution. 1) Once proverbially confined to tenement buildings and shirtwaist factories, second-generation immigrant women yearned for increased independence as the twentieth century progressed. The desire for autonomy conflicted with tradition and obligation, as dictated by American culture and ethnic constraints. In brief, my research interests concern the daily lives of Italian-, Greek-, and Jewish-American women and the expression of immigrant identity, explored vis-a-vis sexuality, fashion, beauty, food desire, and involvement in social movements. 2) “Because of these traditions, everyone knows who he is and what God expects him to do,” posits the protagonist of Stein’s Fiddler on the Roof. The musical’s themes of maintaining tradition and cultural obligations in a time of restless change, shown through a focus on young women seeking independence, were written as a way to exhibit life in an imperial Russian shtetl, but found themselves in urban America during the twentieth century. Second-generation immigrant women yearning for independence found themselves in a conundrum, lusting for autonomy while feeling tethered to tradition and obligation. As a doctoral student, I want to explore the daily lives of Italian-, Greek-, and Jewish-American women, exploring the expression of their identities vis-a-vis sexuality, fashion, beauty, food desire, and involvement of social movements. (This is more of a risky one that I probably won't go with, but was a different approach that I experimented with. If I were to go with this style, it would be a primary source quote.) 3) To what extent did acculturation and ethnic obligation play a role in the daily lives of second-generation immigrant women in urban America? How did the broader American society and culture react to female presence in public space? At the doctoral level, I want to explore these questions with Italian-, Greek-, and Jewish-American women as a focal point.

I've been getting feedback for my SOPs and it's left me a bit frustrated. From the advice I've seen, it's better to make it a solely research document... but I also just got feedback that I was essentially boring adcomms out of their skulls. How do I hook my readers without being gimmicky?

I've seen from multiple sources that there shouldn't be a "hook," but that it should be research-oriented. I've also had someone tell me that my SOPs are "too personal." Do you have any recommendations for striking a balance?

We have a history forum for this!

Hey, everyone. I know we had talked about swapping SOPs, so I thought I'd throw mine into the ring. Links to mine are all here , and I'll update the post as I get mine done!

To add to the POI discussion, I'm only applying to places where I've gotten a positive response from one or two POIs. I figured that that would be the best way to go about it. Even if it doesn't automatically mean I'm getting accepted (which I know it doesn't), it was still nice to use the responses to get an idea of where I should apply.

Heart react for support/solidarity.

When should I request that my transcripts be sent to the schools I'm applying to? I'm hoping to get everything in by Thanksgiving if possible. I know it's a bit early, but my school's registrar office is notoriously slow.

A swap on July 15th would be great! That's the ratio that I've been doing. I start with my research interests, then background, then answering any school-specific questions and talking about fit.

I'm writing all of mine right now (I have drafts of 2 of my PhD statements done). The first round of applications is due December 1, but I would love to get everything in before Thanksgiving if I can.

Would anyone be interested in doing a SOP swap or something? I'm having trouble finding people to look over my SOPs!

Hi everyone! I wrote my SOP for Harvard today. It’s super rough, so I would love it if you ripped it to shreds. It’s here. TIA!!

I’ve gotten great feedback here and on reddit!

Reposting w/o identifying information. Would anyone mind reviewing my SOP for Rutgers' history PhD program? It's a bit longer than the 500 word limit, so any ideas on how to cut down words is much appreciated. Just a warning: it's a bit rough! You can find it here. TIA! Edit: I am now under the 500 word limit (491 words, woo hoo!).