nel09

And Tulane!

Yes, it's acceptable and quite common to have more than one adviser. You should always aim to enter a program with more than one person you could see yourself working with. Your research questions and approaches should and will evolve. Beyond topical interests and overlap with potential advisers, an equally important consideration is their respective methodologies. You may find this at both a departmental and individual/adviser level within a program. Your research doesn't need to align exactly with theirs. In fact, it probably shouldn't, in my opinion. You're likely to benefit more from an adviser and program that offer you holistic support with regard to your topic, ie different time periods, mediums etc. As I mentioned above, your line of research will naturally evolve during your time in graduate school and by working with advisers whose work isn't exactly aligned with your own, you're exposing yourself to relevant information and exploring new topics you may be interested in. Definitely mention more than one POI in your SOP. If a POI were to leave, have a very distant sabbatical, or your area of research changes slightly, it's important to indicate synergy with other faculty. Have a look at Princeton too; Irene Small is doing interesting work in Contemporary Latin Am. and there are several other faculty within the program who could you could (potentially) work with.

You should plan to apply to a mixed ecology of programs depending on your experiences and interests. Some suggestions besides the ones you've listed above: Tufts, The Courtauld, Williams, Oxford, Cambridge, Bard (Curatorial Studies), UT Austin. You could also explore programs like Goldsmiths, particularly if you're interested in a critical theory approach. Beyond the obvious geographical differences, these programs each have different strengths and weaknesses, so it's worth exploring the faculty and course pages at each university/department. I won't comment on the "cash cow" reputation of the other programs as I didn't attend one of these. For what it's worth- I know two people who have attended MODA at Columbia- one was quite happy with the program and the other was not at all.

Thank you. In terms of my (somewhat limited) options it appears that it is the best fit overall. It's difficult being unable to have an on-campus visit, but I think it is my first choice. Definitely in terms of faculty compatibility, and the students and profs seem to be the warmest and most welcoming. The new hires seem to make the program even more aligned with my interests as well. Some of the other ivies (besides Brown) appear to be a little more conventional compared to Penn as well.

How is everyone planning on making decisions with campus visit days cancelled and many universities moving courses online for the rest of the term? This definitely complicates the decision making process.

I can't say for sure about those waitlisted, but admits have all definitely been notified. Open house for admitted students will be in a few weeks.

Thanks for your response. Penn is definitely one of my top choices at this point, so I appreciate this valuable information. I will attend the open day to try to gain a bit more perspective. I'm very interested in working with this POI; in terms of fit, our interests are nicely aligned. One thing that does make me a bit hesitant is that the department seems to be planning for quite a few new hires, including some starting next year. Hopefully that will all be for the better. It does make me feel better to know the program is perceived so highly.

Hi all, long time lurker. I'm lucky enough to have been accepted at Penn for my Phd. I was curious about current perceptions of the program and if anyone had an assessment on its ranking/placements at present. How does it stand next to HYP or is it generally thought of as a lower tier? What are some comparable programs to Penn at the moment? I realize this is not what it's all about, and there are several advisers at Penn I'd be delighted to work with. But, I understand the competitiveness of this world as well and want to make an intelligent decision that could ultimately put me in an upper tier of scholarship. Thank you.