barricades

Just said no to USC, in case anyone is waiting on them.

So. What do you all think about the housing accommodations? I'm not thrilled about living in a dorm (I never have), but graduate social life does seem to center on the Graduate College. So I might consider it. Any thoughts?

I don't know if professors care or not. But I sure do. Seriously people, lay off the sweatpants and jeggings and whatever else there is that's preventing you from getting dressed. Pants and jeans aren't that hard. Neither are nice shorts and skirts.

And Cornell letter of rejection was probably the most considerate one I've ever received. Even the signature was real!

It has ended. Almost. All schools have gotten back to me. I have decided to wait until April 1st, and if none of the waitlists reply then I'm making my decision!

I agree wholeheartedly with herodotus. This is a HUGE decision. A lot of us don't have much experience with the intricacies of the academic world. Also, while we have access to graduate students and professor of the programs we have been accepted to, we do have the right, and probably the obligation, to be skeptical of what they say (and what they don't say). They are, after all, trying to sell themselves now. Of course, you have your advisors to talk to, but sometimes that isn't enough. It's nice to get the perspective from people who are on the same boat as you. And if professors can't handle discussions on their teaching/advising practices, or the strength of their placement records/departments, then that's their problem. I do not find it unprofessional at all. This is a public forum, but it is, after all, a profession where one of the main goals is to serve the public good.

While this may sometimes be the case, I definitely don't think it's the rule. From visiting schools, talking to other admits, , to my advisers, and even my own experience, while having your letter writer know someone in the faculty might help a little, it is definitely, definitely not a requirement. That's not to say it's democratic. There is a lot of internal politics. But the nepotism doesn't seem to run deep in graduate admissions.

I lived in Lawrence for five years and can say it's probably the best college town in the country. Beats Chapel Hill for sure, and Athens. I am visiting Princeton right now and am freaking out, since there doesn't seem like there's much to do Here! I'll write a more detailed message soon, but feel free to pm if you have specific questions!

Jayhawks all the way. I could see K-State getting pretty far into the tournament too.

Oh, all advice is welcomed! I definitely feel the pressure from my parents, who can't grasp why I would even second doubt Princeton. But then again, they think I'm freaking crazy for leaving a place where the economy is booming to go live as a poor graduate student in a "downfalling empire."

I have no doubts about that. It seems big enough to the point that it can sustain a diversity of populations and entertainment. Haha. It's just the car culture that turns me off, and how spread out the whole thing is. I'm an urban density kind of guy.

Jeppe, What did you think about the departmental atmosphere? Did students seem happy? I haven't heard great things about grad students quality of life at NYU, and since I didn't attend the weekend was wondering what you thought about it.

I am still waiting to hear from a couple of schools and wait lists, but I doubt the situation will change. I'm basically deciding between two programs: USC and Princeton. At USC I'd get the chance to work with an awesome adviser, whose work I am very much interested in and who is definitely a force in the field. I was there for prospective student weekend and the atmosphere was great. Very friendly department, and it seems very up and coming. Aggressive in recruting the best students and hiring the top people in the field. While LA has the Getty, the department does seem to lack a little on resources, especially concerning my field. But I guess that's what ILLs are for? I felt that they offer methodologically what I am looking for. Innovative approaches to history, very strong cultural history current. I definitely wasn't a big fan of LA, which could be a problem (but not the deciding factor). Princeton works different. From what I understand, you are not assigned an adviser until after your exams. But, if my interests stay the same, it doesn't seem that the adviser I would have has the same compatibility as the one at USC. But the department does have a greater depth of faculty. But I'm still trying to figure out what that means, for while they have produced a stellar crop of early modern europeanists, I haven't heard much about their modern europeanists. I haven't been to the prospective student visit yet, so can't tell about the atmosphere. I hear Firestone Library is amazing, and being on the East Coast makes a lot of things easily accessible (including family). Princeton, however, seems to have a much more "traditional" approach to history, with a strong emphasis on political and social history. But, at the end of the day, I guess I'm the one who writes my dissertation. Placement seems to be amazing, but like I've said, that seems to be mostly regarding early modern europeanists. Both are offering similar financial packages. USC's is between 10-15% higher than Princeton's. But at Princeton there is no requirement to teach, and if you do the stipend does increase, at least that's what they told me (USC requires 3 years). Cost of living is also similar, but the two settings couldn't be more different. I'm concened with quality of life, for one. Will I be happy where I live? Will I be happy during the first two years with the seminars offered? Will I be happy with my cohort and professors? But I'm also concerned with placement in the future. The whole adviser vs. institutional prestige issue. It's something I'm really considering, since if I do decide to teach back at home (South America) one name would stand out much more than the other. NYU is trailing behind these two, since I found out about it recently and haven't had much contact with the faculty. We'll see how it goes as I get to know everyone better.

UNC, Cornell and Columbia. Sheesh, what's taking them so long!

Rejected at Michigan and, apparently, at Columbia. That means it's just about decision time! Ugh/yay

After spending 5 years in Lawrence I can guarantee that there are few things as fun, exciting and, in a way, beautiful as tornado weather.

I say there's always hope. It seems like some schools inform Americanists, Europeanists, etc, at different times. Also, some professors may get in touch with admitted students before the official letters go out. If you're really anxious I'd recommend just getting in touch with the department.

Harvard rejection finally made its way to the Southern Hemisphere!

I'm not exactly sure how NYU operates its waitlist, but from what I've talked about with other schools (Yale and Chicago), it seems like they avoid having a list with people ranked. Instead, if an Europeanist drops out, they'll extend the offer to another Europeanist, same with Africanists. This way they can maintain a balance in the cohort.

Absolutely visiting the schools that I'm interested in. At least the ones that are paying for my travel. I'm counting on these visits to really help with the decision. And money is definitely something to consider. My two top choices have similar financial packages (one offers a little more than $3,000 than the other, and dental, but the other would probably level off if I TAd). My close third offers less, but they wrote that it would also significantly increase with any TA work I decided to do. I'm working on a pros and cons list, and also a list of questions to consider, and will probably post both on here. Paura, I'm in a similar dilemma. One of the schools has a top-notch adviser I would love to work with, and they even have a second historian in the region and time period I'm interested in. But the other school seems to have greater depth in terms of faculty, and the department seems stronger in general. Plus, they have a ridiculous placement record (then again, so does the adviser at the other school). So I get the feeling that atmosphere will end up playing a significant role. And I've also had similar musings about how potential advisers have contacted me. I do get the feeling that some of the more prestigious schools don't have to sell their fish as hard though, which is why they are probably not as assertive and outgoing.

Getting an invite is most likely a positive sign, but there are some schools where it doesn't really mean much. I've heard stories of NYU sending out invites and then rejecting people and, on the other hand, I didn't get an invite at all and was accepted. So who knows?

So, it seems that many of us have heard from some of the schools we've applied to. While I know that plenty of departments have yet to send out their offers, I don't think it's to early for us to start considering the ones we've received. I think this would be a nice place for those of us lucky enough to have received more than one offer to discuss our options. Honestly, while applying, waiting, and all that can be miserable, making a decision certainly isn't easy (at least for me!). I know there is a specific forum for this, but I do think the things we should take into consideration when making our choices are much different than what an engineering student (or even an English student) is worried about. So let's help one another out! I'm currently working on analyzing my proposals, so I'll post something up as soon as I have something more concrete. Best!

Same here. Which makes it the first one I will officially have to say no to... Too bad, there were a couple of professors that would've been great to work with.

Nope, MATILDA: http://www.gend.ceu.hu/matilda.php

Is Matilda the women's studies masters program in Europe??? I applied to that last year, through CEU, and it took quite a while for them to get back to me, first for an interview and then for a final answer. I was pretty pumped about it, but ended up having to back out because of personal problems. It seems like a wonderful initiative, and CEU seemed like a great place to study.