nyfilmfest
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Everything posted by nyfilmfest
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Great news Swagato... really hope that works out. Location aside, Iowa's got a lot going for it. I've officially decided on USC for the Fall. For the sake of posterity, if anyone has questions about that program, or the Columbia program (where I did my MA), feel free to shoot me a message.
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To answer your original question, there is certainly less pressure to have a demonstrable research interest when applying to a terminal MA program. I know that I didn't express focused research intentions (though I did my best to figure things out by the time I began classes, so my course work could be more focused and build toward something), and I still got into both of the programs that I applied to, despite a Business background. Regarding your general anxiety, it's understandable, but I didn't hear from my programs until late March / early April... MA programs generally are much slower to notify. You're correct that at a PhD level, you are absolutely expected to have targeted research interests. At your level, not so much.
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Congrats, Vanilatea! I'm one of the waitlisted students there, which isn't surprising, as I don't feel like I have a wonderful fit between my research interests and the program's strengths. I'd be happy to give you my scattered thoughts on the program. PM me if you want to chat or correspond.
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Duke - I'd echo the conventional wisdom here, which is that there's no such thing as a safety school in our field. My strong impression is that your SoP is the most important part of your application, by far, because it conveys the passion for your project that will get a Professor excited enough about your application to make a case for it. That being said, I also agree that it would be pretty inappropriate to revise it at this point, if the programs who have not yet notified would even let you. You still have to hear back from a few schools, so don't give up all hope yet. I'd also add UT Austin & Florida to the above list of schools that seemingly haven't notified anyone yet.
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Concordia met and notified for the Ph.D yesterday. After a LoR mishap, I found out the good news and posted a positive result. I also know of a friend who was admitted and notified yesterday. I don't know what the cohort size is, nor do I have a timetable for possible future notifications.
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I'm on what I assume is the de facto funding waitlist at UCSB as well. The main point of attraction there for me (beyond my POIs, who are Penley and Branigan) is that they have a shortened Ph.D-only program. I have a Film Studies MA already so potentially taking a year off of the Ph.D process would be nice. As for the program itself, in a more general sense, it has good faculty diversity, to be sure, and it has a good reputation, from what I gather. If you're in, it's definitely an option to consider seriously, competitive with the other programs on your list. The biggest downside about the program would be the same funding issues that afflict any of the UofC schools, I'd say, but if you have that locked up already, that is a non-issue.
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Good to see we're starting to hear some results around here... Congrats to everyone who's in thus far, and good luck to those still waiting. My current standings are: Admitted - Indiana, USC, Wayne State Interview - Northwestern No word - Berkeley, Chicago, Concordia, Iowa, Michigan, NYU, Pittsburgh, Texas - Austin, UCSB, University of Florida, Wisconsin-Madison
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No problem... I remember going through this process myself a few years back. I only applied to two MA programs, but I got news from NYU the 2nd week of March and from Columbia on April 1. Check the results search on this site to get a sense of your other programs' notification patterns.
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Duke, It's obviously impossible for any of us to give a firm sense of your chances, as this is such a subjective process... That being said, your stats seem fine, and I don't think they will present any issue. I think your background, which is unusual for a Film Studies applicant, is probably likely make your application stand out (I say this as someone with an undergrad Management degree). The most important things are probably going to be the way that you've positioned your research interests in your statement of purpose and the quality of your writing sample. We can't judge that, really, but those are probably the most important parts of any application. For what it's worth, MA programs often take a little longer to notify, which is excruciating, I am sure, but it's best to have that expectation.
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responses for film studies phd applications
nyfilmfest replied to KTan's topic in Interdisciplinary Studies
I posted about the Northwestern interview. I don't have more details, really, and haven't had any faculty contact yet. -
responses for film studies phd applications
nyfilmfest replied to KTan's topic in Interdisciplinary Studies
Congrats to both of you... If either of you have any questions, feel free to send me a private message on here. I'd be interested in knowing research interests, POIs, rationale behind picking USC, other schools you've applied at, where you're coming from, and so on... -
responses for film studies phd applications
nyfilmfest replied to KTan's topic in Interdisciplinary Studies
Just to clarify, I had not initiated contact with any Professor at USC before being admitted either. I simply received a request to do a phone interview last week from one of the Professors of Interest noted in my statement of purpose. Contacting Professors in advance is by no means required (or even encouraged!) in our field. The appropriate time to do this, if you intended to, would be before applications were due (so you could check if they planned to take on additional students the following year, make sure that you'd be a good fit with the program, etc.). Once your application is in, I imagine that you'd probably just be seen as a nuisance. Of course everyone takes a different approach to these things, so how you conduct yourself is up to you, but they already have all the information that they need to make a decision. If they need to know more, they will let you know. -
responses for film studies phd applications
nyfilmfest replied to KTan's topic in Interdisciplinary Studies
I posted positive USC news this morning. The Critical Studies adcom met yesterday to determine PhD offers. I had previous contact with a POI, so he e-mailed me directly with news on my acceptance. I'm not sure how they're letting the rest of the applicants know their fates nor what the waitlist details might be, but I know that they were aiming for 6-8 admits. Good luck! -
The deadline for FASFA comes earlier than the April 15 deadline for Grad School acceptances, so schools will send out notes of this sort, even before an admissions decision is made. I received this same note (despite not getting an interview request from Wisconsin, as others on this forum have) and I received a similar one from USC back in December. I wouldn't read very much into it at all, although I would take it at face value, as a reminder to complete Financial Aid paperwork.
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Yeah... It looked dreadful for me too, but I am sure they all look dreadful. At least their application fee is $31.50 or something. I am willing to put up with things like that, given that comparatively reasonable fee. Regarding the LoR question, none of my recommenders ran into a problem, but e-mail requests aren't generated until the application is submitted, so maybe there's an issue there?
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responses for film studies phd applications
nyfilmfest replied to KTan's topic in Interdisciplinary Studies
NYU tends to send out decisions late in the process. It's what I experienced when I applied for the MA program, and what people in the PhD program had happen. Expect to hear from them in March. USC will probably be announcing a first wave sometime in February, judging strictly based upon past performance, as documented on this site's results section. Good luck! -
Most admits have MAs, to be sure, but I know that people do get admitted directly out of undergrad as well, even into top PhD programs. My hunch is that admissions decision is based more on your project and perceived enthusiasm than any other factor. That being said, there's no doubt that having done your MA has made you a stronger candidate.
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I applied broadly. I can't imagine there are many folks in the field who I don't have some overlap with! Let's see... undergrad business degree, just finished my MA in Film Studies this Fall. Have a good GPA, GRE, strong LORs, etc... Have one publication, and a few conference presentations. I would think stats-wise, I'm solid, but I imagine most are. It's really going to come down to demonstrating fit for any of us, I imagine. My focus is on exploitation film. I did an unscientific search through the Results Database on this site, and it looks like realistically we won't be hearing any decision until about Feb. 1, with some coming as late as the end of March.
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I've applied to the following PhD programs: Berkeley Chicago Concordia Indiana Iowa Michigan Northwestern NYU Pittsburgh Texas - Austin UCSB University of Florida USC Wayne State Wisconsin-Madison Haven't heard a peep yet, but it is early judging by last year's results.
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I'm starting my MA in the Fall @ Columbia (as I have an undergrad degree in an unrelated field) , so I am hardly a pro in these matters at this point, but I have a day job in academia that makes me relatively aware of the admissions process. It's tough to give concrete advice on something so subjective, but here we go anyway. First and foremost, I would definitely work on getting an article or two published or presented at conferences in the next year, especially if you don't have any noteworthy publications or presentations. Obviously a peer-reviewed journal publication would be ideal, but there are scads of outlets for film writing, both online and off, so you really should be able to place something somewhere to bolster your CV and further demonstrate your ability to develop your stated research interests (personally I just had some amateur/freelance film reviews, and an essay published in a DVD insert to speak of, but I can't help but think that helped a lot). Worst case scenario, the time spent preparing your writing will give you another writing sample to choose from... As far as conferences go, I know there are frequent Call for Paper postings on the SCMS web site, though you might need to be a member to view them: http://www.cmstudies.org There are other sites that seem to list conferences around the web as well, (e.g. http://www.conferencealerts.com/film.htm ), of course. There may be better resources out there that I am unaware of. peffy: I don't think your stats (especially your old GRE scores) are an issue at all. They are pretty excellent, in fact. Mine were in the same ballpark, for what it's worth. I'd recommend focusing more on your SoP and publications. As far as next year's apps go, reapply to the schools that are are good fit. Try to stress to them why you feel they are a good fit. Also, apply more widely, especially with PhD programs, as the limited number of acceptances at any given school makes any application, no matter how strong, a total crapshoot. meg: Personally, I would not stress too greatly about trying to tailor my research goals to the institutions I was applying to. The whole idea of this process, especially at the PhD level is to find a place that's a good fit for you... not so much vice versa. I can't imagine devoting literally years of effort to a subfield, just because it's "hot". There's a need to get your foot in the door, of course, but you have to think about what will be waiting inside... Anyone else who could help to answer this question would also be helping me, because I anticipate applying for PhD programs in a few years!
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Stanford or Columbia? (I'll pray for u, if u post ur ideas)
nyfilmfest replied to GreAgain's topic in Waiting it Out
Actually, NYC statistically has less violent crime than SF: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Sta ... crime_rate But coming from someone familiar with both campuses, neither are "dangerous". Columbia's well-policed and Stanford's out in Palo Alto. The earthquake fear seems silly too. Certainly nothing to base a decision on. I vote that you pick Stanford to help BayAreaStat86. :mrgreen: Seriously, though, aren't these two completely different fields? Doesn't what you'd actually be studying play a role in the decision? -
Congrats! If you mean the MA program, from what I understand their process favors incoming MA candidates. You need to reapply for the second year, and there's no guarantee that your funding received in year 1 will carry over to year two. If you didn't get funding offered to you as an incoming student, it's theoretically possible you could get it later in your degree there, but realistically you need to not count on them giving you someone else's funds. Tuition's the same for everyone, about $20k / semester + about $1000 a year in registration fees (+ housing + living expenses, of course).
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Such uncertainty. Grad Cafe now my best friend, I sink in my seat.
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True! There's no way of being certain, but I don't think there's any reason to be pessimistic at that response, at least.
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I'd either read that as "You're in, but I can't officially say that you're in" or "We're strongly considering you, but we want you to demonstrate your strong interest by visiting / reaching out to professors". In either case, I'd not sit idly by. I'd follow up, and show them you're seriously considering attending (if you are, at least).