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Thank you, this makes me feel a bit better! I'm aiming for the 60-70th percentile, as even though it's too low for my top choice, it's probably the best I can hope for and still be a bit of an improvement from my first diagnostic test. I've been letting my anxiety get the better of me with regards to how a lower math score means failure etc, but rationally (and from your experience), that's simply not true. Thank you again for your help!

Yes, it definitely can be a huge mistake, but I also think higher education should be considered as just part of an applicant's overall skills. Hiring for any job is difficult, and finding the right fit isn't easy, which IMO is just another reason that having a graduate degree shouldn't mean an immediate no from employers, which I think it often does. I remember hearing a story about a guy who removed his Master's from his resume after months of job searching, and got hired that same week. To me, that's a little silly.

If teaching K-12 is your fallback plan then, I would start doing a lot of research about your job prospects in that market. I've heard that having a PhD can make it more difficult to get a public school job, even with a teaching certificate. I think a lot of districts are afraid you wouldn't be satisfied with the salary they could pay (though this is silly, just like it was silly that I was told at 23 with an MA that I was overqualified for entry level jobs). This doesn't mean it's impossible though! But I think it does mean that researching the chances of employment in a district with a PhD should be part of your overall PhD decision/research. ETA: I don't want to sound like a debbie downer in these posts, and hope I don't come across that way! It's been a long road for me to decide a PhD was the right choice, and I just want to encourage others to go in with their eyes wide open.

I've seen and heard so many variations of that reddit thread that it's almost comedic at this point. In all honesty, I can't answer your question for you, because it's something that I only came to an answer on after several years out of academia soul-searching for the right path. But I will share some of my experience with you, and maybe it will help? My first boss out of college had a recent PhD from Harvard in American Studies. She worked in the same field I did right out of my MA, but she told me she felt lucky to have a job because many in her cohort were not so lucky. Academic experience =/= corporate experience (from my job hunt after my MA, that's 100% true). Her story scared me so much, as I was 23 and academia was all I'd ever known, and I still had the idea of a PhD in my head. As a result, and also because of financial reasons, I waited and worked my way up the ladder for a few more years, explored my field (and made some money), and realized that I would always regret it if I didn't at least get my PhD and try for an academic job- key word being try. The nice thing is that I will have 5+ years of corporate experience on my resume to fall back on- if I can't get a teaching job, I will be able to get a job in my current corporate field. That really helped me decide that a PhD is the right choice for me. The reality is, and I haven't seen much of this on this forum, though maybe I've just remained willfully ignorant of it, very few of the people who get PhDs will get to stay in academia, especially the humanities. I think knowing and accepting that is necessary before deciding to pursue a PhD or not. Is it the one thing you really truly have always wanted to do, because you have a passion for research, writing, and teaching? Or is it because you have an image in your head of what life as a professor will be, and it fits with your image of your future? Neither is more valid than the other, but the former will probably lead to more success. The latter is probably a sign you should explore your other options- some that may be possible with a PhD, and some that maybe don't require one. For what it's worth, I will miss the financial freedom and ability to end my day at 5pm that comes with a boring 9-5. It's unfulfilling on every level, but there are pluses. If you want to seek fulfillment outside the office (with kids, etc), it might be a great fit. I prefer fulfillment from my work, and I simply reached the conclusion I can't get that where I am. It's definitely a very personal decision.

Hi everyone, I've been studying for the GRE for about 3 months now, and just got a tutor to supplement my book and online resource quant studying, which didn't seem to be cutting it. I'm still getting the majority of quant questions wrong, and haven't seen much improvement. I'm kind of giving up at this point- taking the test in about 4 weeks and there's no way I'll miraculously improve by then. I'm mostly just posting this for moral support and do see if anyone else is in the same boat as me. Anyone else been hitting the books hard and just not seeing any marked improvement?

One of the programs I'm applying to also suggests the subject test but I'm not taking it. For only one school, I don't think it's worth the time and money. Just my two cents, but it probably wouldn't be the make or break.

@historygeek I would reach out to the grad program at the school with the 10 page limit and see if they would accept a one page synopsis of the rest of the chapter. A lot of programs encourage that if you really want to submit a sample that's long- it allows you to complete your arguments without taking up their time too much.

I'm not sure exactly, but applications for the department I'm applying to don't open until October, so my guess would be sometime this fall? Apparently it varies based on specialty. U of T has a whole spreadsheet from last year showing the OGS app deadlines per department, so it might be dependent on your school/department.

Thanks for the advice!!

I will be, though I haven't even started the process yet. Is it necessary to do it prior to acceptance? ETA: I'm an American applying and that's the only one available to international students.

That's awesome!! Congrats! Do you have any prep tips on how you did so well? I'm struggling with prepping for those because I'm so bad at coming up with things off the top of my head!

Hi everyone, I'm submitting a couple papers I've been working on to a journal and conference, including the paper I plan to use as a writing sample for my PhD apps. If, by some miracle, it does get published, can I still use it as my writing sample? I'm the sole author, so there's no issues there, just not sure if there's an unwritten rule about that somewhere.

I'm interested in submitting a paper to a seminar at a conference, but there are no guidelines given, just relevant topic ideas and saying that they are interested in "papers." Does that mean I submit a full paper or just an abstract (which in my experience is the norm for conferences)? Is it appropriate to email the coordinators to ask or will that make me look silly? Thank you!

Yikes, now I'm terrified. I'd been told I'd be fine after having been out of school for 4 years, but after seeing this, guess I'm not fine at all! ?

My advice is actually to look into American Studies programs. When I was an undergrad I wrote my honors thesis on graphic novels, and had a hard time finding any scholars in the English department who were knowledgeable- I was referred to a scholar in AmSt instead, which seems to be more open to interdisciplinary work than a lot of English programs. I would look up some prominent scholars in the field and reach out to them to see if they feel you would be a good fit for the program.

Oh wow! That's awesome, I guess it really is subjective! Makes sense. Thank you!!

Hi everyone, I'm applying to PhD programs after taking a few years off after my MA. My question is whether programs will weigh my undergrad or MA GPA more when looking at my application, or if they will be equal. Anyone have any insight? Thank you!

I've read that exact page and clearly misunderstood it multiple times. I'm so unprepared for navigating all of this. Guess Davis won't be my top choice anymore. Thanks for the help!

Wait, this is the first I've heard of Davis not offering funding. Do you have any links or anything to back that up?

Most of my advice is covered by @a_sort_of_fractious_angel above, as I could not get a teaching job at all with my MA, even though I had teaching experience. For financial purposes, I fully suggest a non-ac job in between- you will stress way less about money if you have a solid base under you. I also just want to offer a bit of advice as someone who is attempting to go back for my PhD after several years in a non-ac job after my MA- the job experience that you will get if you get a non-ac job is truly invaluable. It really put things into perspective for me, and made me realize that I absolutely do thrive in and want to return to academia. But I'm incredibly grateful for the experience to see how the corporate world functions, and it allowed me to decide what my right path is. The whole "9-5," leaving work at the office thing is something I will certainly miss. It might be worth experiencing at least once before starting a PhD. And just another side note, I don't think I even need to mention the poor state of the academic market. Chances are, you (and me!) might not get a tenure track role, and might not want to live on an adjunct salary for the rest of our lives (I thought I did- let me tell you now, I absolutely do not). Having a bit of "real job" experience on your resume when applying to jobs after grad school is going to make you FAR more marketable than someone who only had academic jobs. Most companies don't care about your teaching experience, your GPA, your fellowships, etc. They care about whether you've done similar work before and where. Having a non-ac job on your resume will make you way more competitive and give you a leg up on some of your colleagues who went straight through academia. Just my two cents!

In my opinion, yes, absolutely. Finding an advisor or a team of faculty to work with is hard- finding someone who you get along with, work well with, AND they have the exact same interests as you? Nearly impossible! Find a program that supports your broader research interests, has faculty that challenge and excite you, and has an advisor who is interested enough in your topic/a topic similar that they will be supportive during the process. I think your situation of having 2-3 faculty who share broader interests plus one specific faculty member with similar interests is great.

Thanks so much for your insight! I have noticed that people who are accepted at some schools seem to be all over the map when it comes to GRE scores. I guess I'll just do the best I can and hope the other parts of my application are strong enough. I've tried to identify and apply only to schools that really support my specific research interest, which will hopefully make me a more marketable candidate at those programs. Thank you again for your insight!!

Hi everyone, I'm applying for 2019 also! I'm definitely very behind everyone here- I've been out of school for about 4 years, took a break to get a corporate job and make some money after my MA before my PhD. I'm struggling to study for the GRE and haven't started my SOP or my writing sample. I thought I had a shot until I found this site- now I think I'll be lucky to be accepted anywhere!

Hi everyone, I posted this on the admissions forum but someone suggested I ask over here, since there will be more specialized advice. I scored a 143 on my GRE diagnostic test, and despite 3 months of studying from Khan Academy and the ETS site, I don't think my score would be much improved. My verbal score was 161, and I've studied vocab since, so I feel okay about that. Is my terrible quant score too low for more competitive programs? I know some people claim it doesn't matter for English, but other people have told me it does... Thank you!

Will do, thank you so much for your help!