rmcclymo

Need a laugh anyone... So, this morning, I had a friend who was freaking out because they couldn't get a hold of me. They started to think the worst (as this anxious wreck typically does) and wondered if I had heard some negative news regarding an application. Since they had heard me talk of this forum and its merits (and dis-merits), they immediately signed up just to see if they could find out anything that may have upset me and set me into a tail spin Fortunately they heard from me shortly after this cyber search for my well-being. It is nice to be loved by someone who would go to such lengths Maybe they will read this post and know how much I appreciate them...

Katie1421, thanks for the insight, encouragement, and advice mjbart, if you go to the section named downloaded forms, then click on application status form, this will give you your most up to date application status. as I said, it is so so convoluted

Hey folks, I just checked the "application status form" of my Columbia application (such a convoluted process), and was dismayed to see both the "status" section of the form and the "at department" portion still blank. Am I alone in this position? Does anyone's status say that their application is actually at the department? Hope that everyone is managing the ups and downs of this anxiety ridden process. If so, tips on how to succeed would be much appreciated :-) Cheers, R

Wow, that is awful :-( I would have been tempted to reply that my undergrad institution was not as sub-par as his place of work :-) Don't be dismayed by these peeps who have zero social skills, and keep your chin up (this goes to all!!!)

I am getting so desperate - started reading my horoscope for a peek into my future!!! Apparently I was to receive "big news" concerning my career around the 2nd - where the heck is this news??? I have such a love hate relationship with this website :-()

Ugh, funding for European history (I hope that this assumption is wrong!) Not that I am against European historians and/or the study of European history, but apparently Yale were engaged in the process of expanding the fields of World History and African History (and other non-European) - so much for that!!! On a side note, noticed my first grey hair today - wonder why?

Ugh, I finally figured out where everyone was getting their information from (the results page) - now I am going to be checking this section obsessively (ignorance was bliss :-) Is anyone else going through a roller-coaster of emotions? i.e. one minute I feel confident and I think that any moment I am going to get an acceptance letter with a billion dollars of funding, then a minute later I feel like I should have applied to clown school in Russia because I am a joke!!!

At the last two universities I have attended, almost every new hire has been from an ivy - thus, it seems if you want a job in academia after your phd, your chances are greatly increased if you went to an ivy. Don't get me wrong, I think this is messed up, but alas it is the reality (at least as I have experienced).

How did Chicago deliver this decision - email, phone or snail mail?

I am glad that you can see the funny side of this :-) Best of luck with the rest of your applications.

Increasingly moody - definitely :-( Interaction with other humans pisses me off quite often regardless of my context, but the past week or so I have been increasingly short circuiting - I want to go to the moon :-) Usually playing soccer is a good relief for me, but I was horrible at a game last weekend - like a monster. Best of luck to everyone who is in the same boat as me. For those of you who are handling this process with grace, I am truly jealous and would love to know your secret.

For those of you who spend hours looking for something to watch instantly on Netflix, and are in need of a laugh, check out a British comedy show called "The I.T. Crowd" I rarely watch anything other than foreign language films, but I am so happy I found this little gem. Since finishing my last application at the end of last week, I have watched all 3 seasons available instantly on Netflix. Yes, sounds rather obsessive, but I needed not to think for a few days. As for movies, check out the following: The White Ribbon (German/Austrian) Cache (French) Gomorrah (Italian)

If I get in to a program starting in the fall of 2011, I will be 33 years young. Started my current academic track (History) at age 27, earned a BA at age 30, and should have my MA by 32 :-) In a previous life, I received my BSc in Marine Engineering and worked on ships for several years.

The first couple of paragraphs of my statement of purpose show my specialization and research interests :-) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On May 25, 1963, the Heads of African States andGovernments that had assembled in the city of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia presentedthe Charter of the Organization of African Unity (OAU). According to the preamble of theCharter, achieving meaningful autonomy from colonialism and neo-colonialismpivoted fundamentally on devising strategies to “harness the natural and humanresources of our continent for the total advancement of our peoples in allspheres of human endeavor.” Both the story of the OAU and thebroader continental goals of resource management and development have fallenunder the genre of historical tragedy. Hopes that burned bright in the moments after independence dimmed withpolitical corruption and instability, the stranglehold of western capitalist firmsand institutions, and environmental degradation. However, drawing too strong a contrast between initialexpectations and apparent shortcomings risks ascribing linear inevitability toa series of processes, contexts and choices that merit research and analysisbeyond the diagnosis of failure. It is my goal to revisit the history of the transnational strugglessurrounding the parallel projects of politico-economic independence, and environmentaland resource management in post-colonial Africa. The Master’s thesis I am currently writing explores theevolution of the Organization of African Unity’s policies on the use anddevelopment of natural resources in comparison to the environmental developmentand protection prescriptions emerging from the U.N Environment Program (UNEP). Whatever failures the OAU may have had either in securing theindigenous control and development of resources, or in fostering a genuineenvironmentalism, I argue the organization’s records reveal overlooked andunder analyzed insights into African initiatives for both local and globalenvironmental/natural resource policy. In the course of my dissertation I hope to build upon this research,mining the archives of the OAU, the U.N, the World Bank and key nationalAfrican governments where available. I want to tell a truly global account, placing Africa at the center of ahistorical narrative linking international organizations, global environmentalpolicy and economic development.

Arghhhh, my GRE scores are going to be the death of me :-( I had never taken a standardized test in my life (cause I am Scottish and we don't bother with such things), and the lady at the testing centre obviously couldn't understand my accent and claimed I called her "man" and not "mam"!!! I was so flustered by this interaction as she led me into the room, it took me quite a while to calm down. Anyway, here is where I am applying (PhD) and my stats etc: Boston College, Chicago, Columbia, Emory, Georgetown, Northeaster, NYU, Pitt, Princeton and Yale Undergraduate GPA: 3.92 Major GPA (History): 4.00 Graduate GPA: 4.00 Major GPA (History): 4.00 GRE: 640v, 680q, 4.5w I am applying to programs in World/International/Global History, focusing on environmental policy in Africa in a global context. My BA is in World History, as will my MA (fingers crossed) and I also have a BSc in Marine Engineering from a previous life :-) I think that my statement of purpose is strong; at the very least it is quite specific of the direction I want to go in with each particular scholar. My LoRs should be good as all wrote me wonderful letters for a part-time position teaching at another University. Hopefully my writing sample will provide an insight into interdisc methodologies I use??? Who know! Now the waiting begins - blargh!!!