historygeek
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Posts posted by historygeek
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Hi hello! I’m a history and Italian double major at Saint Louis University.
My interests are also in immigration; I’m mostly interested in a transnational comparison between female agency of Italian women in the US and Italy, but I’m also interested in female agency in Italian- and Greek-American communities.
My top is Columbia, but I’m also applying to Harvard, NYU, UCLA and Michigan in my top 5. I’m applying to BC, Georgetown, and George Washington too
I’ve started (a little) on my SOPs, but I’m also trying to gather sources and things for my writing sample. I’m also PROCRASTINATING studying for the GRE.
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I'm gathering sources to write a bit of my thesis for my writing sample. For the background information portion, I want to paint a picture of life in post-Risorgimento Italy as well as get some information on how the Italian government reacted to immigration to the United States. I'm also interested in general immigration/conscription records.
Google searches have been pretty fruitless thus far, so I'm hoping that someone will know of some primary sources online in Italian!TIA. -
I'm kind of in the same boat. I'm a rising senior, applying to graduate programs in the fall. I have a 3.45 overall, a 3.85 in history and a 3.68 in Italian (my secondary major). From what people on this forum and my faculty mentor (a Michigan grad) have told me, your GPA doesn't matter too much as long as you're above the 3.0 requirement. Find faculty members at universities you want to apply to and go from there. I've tried to find multiple faculty members at the schools I'm applying to!
You seem to have a lot of different interests, which are all pretty broad and have a lot of existing scholarship already. What kinds of things are you interested within those broad topics? This was one of the things that I really struggled with, and it took me until recently to discern what I'm really interested in. I had interest in early modern Italy, the Balkans, medieval Russia, and modern Italian history before realizing I'm interested in modern American immigration history and a transnational comparison. Like @rising_star pointed out, language experience is helpful. Since my main focus has been Italy and Italian-Americans, I've been able to use the Italian that I started taking as a freshman, but since I'm considering expanding to Mediterranean immigrants, I've started to try to get experience in Greek.
By the way, if you're interested in public history, Loyola Chicago has a funded MA in Public History. It's not a top 10 program, but the funded MA could help you discern what you want to do (of course, there are other funded programs in history. Fordham University in the Bronx, for example). Good luck, and if you want to chat/vent to someone in the same boat, feel free to message me!
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Does anyone have any tips on how to structure a statement of purpose, specifically for a PhD program?
Background (if it matters/helps): I’m going to apply mostly to history PhD programs. My interests are the intersection of gender and ethnicity in the early twentieth century, with a focus on sexuality/beauty/fashion/material consumption/food desire and/or political involvement. I’m interested mainly in Italian women in the US and Italy (though I’m also interested in just the US, and in expanding this to include other Mediterranean populations). I’m writing a thesis about how Italian immigrants in St. Louis maintained a cohesive ethnic identity. I studied abroad in Rome last year. I’m a double major in Italian and History and had an internship last semester helping in a museum that centered on Italian-American history.
Any help would be so appreciated!
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Maybe try asking here?
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On 4/3/2018 at 2:50 PM, kitcassidance said:
Hi! Have done a decent amount of research already, but it's hard to get a feel for places from google alone. Anyone have suggestiosn for neighborhoods with apartments that are (rank order priorities):
1) dog-friendly
2) affordable (ideally under $1000 for a 2bd)
3) reasonably safe
4) have in unit w/d
5) exposed brick if we're picking and choosing
6) garage accessAnyone have suggestions? Or neighborhoods I should definitely steer clear of?
Try the Standard in Midtown maybe? My friend lives there and her rent is out $931 for a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom. She has a cat, but they're dog friendly. It's a nice area (I live there).
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I'm an undergraduate at Saint Louis University and have absolutely fallen in love with the city! It reminds me a lot of home (I'm from another mid-size river city, Cincinnati), but is in and of itself unique.
The cost of living in Saint Louis is relatively low and very doable. Apartments near where I live in midtown are ~$1000 a month for a two bedroom with two bathrooms, furniture, and electric/wifi/water/etc. Groceries are also pretty inexpensive depending on where you go; my boyfriend and I go to Schnuck's, which is pretty comparable to Kroger prices back home. It helps that a lot of the activities in Saint Louis (the history museum, art museum, zoo, etc.) are all free. You can do quite a bit in Saint Louis for very little money.
There are really great, cool neighborhoods to check out in STL as well. I just did an internship in the Italian neighborhood, called the Hill, which is pretty well-known for its restaurants and the fact that it's where Yogi Berra was born. There are also some great bakeries and stores there as well; I particularly like Herbaria, which is a store that sells homemade vegan soap. A lot of people, I think, just write the neighborhood off as a quaint place where the restaurants are, but it's definitely worth exploring. The Loop, near WashU, is a cool, trendy area with a lot of cool shops; Central West End is also pretty cool and trendy, if you're into that. There's also a Bosnian neighborhood (Bevo Mill), since St. Louis has the largest Bosnian population outside of Sarajevo. Of course, downtown is great, and there are places in the neighboring county which are worth a day trip. I'm particularly fond of Saint Charles; my boyfriend is from there, and we spent a day exploring their downtown and the Lewis and Clark museum. It was quaint and really enjoyable.
Saint Louis has some great food options as well. My personal favorites are Amighetti's (sandwich place), Marconi Bakery (they're a small pizza shop with great cannoli), Pickleman's (soups/salads/sandwiches/pizza), the Fountain on Locust (they have a really nice atmosphere), Peacock Diner (just a fun little diner in the Loop), Yiro Gyro, and Mission Taco. There are also some good dessert kinds of places: Clementine's (small creamery with non-traditional flavors, including boozy ones), Missouri Bakery (good little bakery), etc.
As for public transport, it's pretty reliable and I've never had trouble with the bus or the train. I rode the bus alone every week (sometimes twice a week) and never had an issue. I also rode the train alone at night downtown and didn't feel unsafe. Having a car wouldn't be the worst thing; it's easier to get around via car than it is via train, and having a car gives you more access to things in St. Louis County or across the river in Illinois.
Safety-wise, I've never really felt unsafe in the city. I think that the bad neighborhoods (especially East St. Louis) get combined with St. Louis crime statistics and give the city a bad rep. It's not a bad place at all, and has a lot of great history that people don't really ever think about.
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I’m getting ready to apply to grad school and I’m trying to decide who to ask for recommendations. I definitely want to ask my two thesis advisors; one is my faculty mentor, and one is a professor that I’ve had a good relationship with since freshman year. I’m not sure who else to ask, but I feel like I have three options:
•Option A: a professor that I had for a class while I was abroad;
•Option B: my internship advisor; she knows me and my work well, but she doesn’t have her PhD;
•Option ? the internship coordinator in the history department of my school who oversaw my internship last semester; she saw all of the work I did for my internship and has seen me give a presentation but we’ve only known each other for a short time.
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Hey everyone! I just wrote an updated SOP for Columbia University's history PhD program and was wondering if anyone would be willing to review it?
It's located here.
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Does anyone have any templates for a good spreadsheet to keep track of what application materials are needed/which are completed?
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19 hours ago, psstein said:
I'm told the writing sample can compensate for the AW section. According to some department websites (e.g. Chicago's), a low AW score can be "cause for concern."
The GRE is probably the least important element of any application. So long as you score in the 90th percentile on verbal, it's a "set it and forget it" kind of exam.
Yeah, I told my parents that if I get a 163+ on the verbal, I don't think that there's any use in retaking the GRE.
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5 hours ago, TMP said:
Remember, admissions for the PhD is entirely a different beast than undergraduate. Discard all the things you have learned from applying to undergraduate and start afresh with all the advice you're getting now.
The thing is, I’ve gotten conflicting information on the GRE in regards to the GPA. I realize that the written portions of the application are the most important.
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4 hours ago, telkanuru said:
GRE scores don't make you competitive for history programs. Just a bar to hop over.
I know it won't make me competitive for history programs! My GPA is not great (3.45) so a high verbal GRE score could easily make me into a more competitive candidate by making up for my GPA.
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I'm p much going in blind to grad school apps and I'm 99.9% sure I probably won't get into any schools ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I really screwed myself over freshman year so now my cumulative GPA is only a 3.45. And of goddamn course I want to be an academic so I'm gonna be struggling to get into these really good schools, I think my interests are dumb/impractical in the long run, and I genuinely have no idea what I'm doing lmao
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Thanks for the responses everyone! I’m definitely applying to Columbia, Harvard, NYU, UCLA, and Michigan— hopefully my application will be strong enough. I’m a pretty strong writer if I do say so myself, but I still plan on starting a writing sample and my SOPs soon.
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10 hours ago, OHSP said:
That's good but it's also worth taking seriously the advice of people already at the specific school in your field, especially if you're specifically seeking it out on boards like these. Definitely feel free to get in touch and I can share my experience of being a grad student at NYU in fields somewhat similar to yours.
I certainly didn’t mean to come off as dismissive of your feedback— I really appreciate it. I was just trying to share the information that I had received.
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On 5/17/2018 at 8:03 AM, Tigla said:
@historygeek, I suggest finding some mid-level universities. You are focusing on most of the top universities that are going to receive hundreds of applications. I would start looking at the PhD programs your potential advisers attended. Also, start branching out from Italian history and focus on your secondary interests. These universities may not be ideal, but engaging with historians who are broadly interested in your area can stimulate your work and ideas. You may also change your entire research project. In short, spread the word and engage with a broader field.
Yes, I've been thinking about mid-level programs I could apply to. Does anyone have any suggestions?
I was thinking Boston College, George Washington... I have no idea.
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12 hours ago, OHSP said:
I’m at NYU and happy to talk—I chose to go there over supposedly better schools and it was the right decision for me. Re women’s/gender history though you’re slightly off re faculty. Nolan and Gordon are both retiring (Nolan this semester and Gordon very soon), and Diner is really not quite working in the areas you’re describing. Perhaps beyond region and topic etc think about the kind of work you want to produce, whether you’re a traditional historian or not etc etc. I’m very much not and that’s why it was a better school for me—
I actually emailed Diner; she responded very positively that my interests fit with hers.
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20 minutes ago, TMP said:
Great suggestions above. I'd branch out to "Mediterranean" from just "italy". Italy shares more with its neighbors to either side of it, not quite with the German-speaking world just above it.
As for schools, just my feedback:
- NYU (working with Diner/Ben-Ghiat/Gordon/Nolan) I'd strike this out if Diner is your intended person of contact-- she does have a zillion of students.
- Michigan (working with Chin/Gaggio/Simmons) Doesn't Chin tend to focus mostly on mid-20th century German history? I'd consider swapping her for Pamela Ballinger who is more Italian/Mediterranean oriented when it comes to human mobility.
I generally agree with @AP's advice on number of schools but I'd roughly suggest no more than 8. The process itself is really exhausting. I would start filling out the online applications ASAP so they are pretty much done by the time you're ready to upload the perfectly tailored SOP and general writing sample.
These are great suggestions; I'll keep them in mind. Yes, I'm planning on writing the SOP soon!
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7 hours ago, Sigaba said:
Is the report by William B. Herlands a primary source? Or do you have already relevant materials from the ILA as well as RG 38.4 and RG 181.2.2?
Yes, the Herlands Report is a primary source that I used!
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14 minutes ago, psstein said:
I don't want to discourage you, but I'd strongly recommend looking at each of these program's placement statistics and making your choices accordingly. Some of these programs I'd wholeheartedly endorse (Columbia, Harvard, UCLA, Michigan). Others I would only do so with significant reservation (Indiana, UCL). Still others I would not recommend at all (Loyola). Unless you already have a very clear idea of what you want to do, UK PhDs are not a great bet. The funding tends to be spotty for foreigners and they don't offer much (if any) experience outside of strict research. When American universities hire, they like their candidates to have some teaching experience.
Keep in mind, also, that your interests will likely change a bit in grad school. I came in as an early modernist and now I'm doing 19th/20th century American medicine.
You're going about this the right way in thinking ahead to assembling a committee, something I, and I'd wage most grad students, didn't do.
Yeah, Loyola is at the bottom of my list and will more than likely be cut (unless I apply to their MA program, which is unlikely). I think I’ll also probably pass on the schools in the UK as well; everything else aside, it’d be a logistical nightmare.
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Hi everyone! I'm starting to narrow down my grad school choices. I had initially thought of applying to 10-12, but many people have said that that's probably a bit too many schools. My interests are the history of Italian women in Italy and the US during the twentieth century (I'm also interested in just Italian-American history and the UK). Any help (or program suggestions) would be great!
I was thinking of applying to the programs at:
- Columbia (my top choice, working with De Grazia/Hallett/Chauncey/Kobrin/Ngai)
- NYU (working with Diner/Ben-Ghiat/Gordon/Nolan)
- Harvard (working with Cohen/Clutario/Cott/McGirr)
- UCLA (working with Reiff/Higbie)
- UC Davis (working with Dickinson/Materson/Tsu/Oropeza)
- Indiana (working with Ipsen/Roos/Pergher/Gamber/Johnson)
- Michigan (working with Chin/Gaggio/Simmons)
- University College London (working with Körner/Sutcliffe-Braithwaite/Jennings)
- Loyola Chicago (working with Cardoza/Gorn/Frateriggo)
- WashU STL (working with Garb/Flowe)
- Edinburgh (working with Ugolini/Jackson)
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Hi everyone! I'm starting to think about how many grad programs that I should apply to. I was planning on applying to 10-12: mostly PhD programs, as well as a couple of masters programs. However, I've heard that this is probably way too many! I think that my biggest worry is that I just won't get in, which is why I was planning on applying to so many. Help?
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IIRC, Northwestern has plenty of African Diaspora historians. You might be interested in working with Sherwin Bryant, David Schoenbrun, maybe Helen Tilley?