Bactrian

So that's a tough one. Even though it's discouraged by the program I know a few people who got a new letter or two and applied the year they were in MAPSS. I don't have a good sense of how they did during that application cycle because I think the only ones who said anything about doing it were the ones who got good offers. FWIW though, those who did get offers seem to have been those people that were truly just unlucky the previous year and didn't need to narrow their focus and come up with a good proposed dissertation (like I did). Most people apply the year after they do MAPSS. That way you have new letters from Chicago faculty as well as a completed MA thesis you can turn into a writing sample. Of course that means having a "gap" year. I used the time to work on my languages. Other people got jobs in their general field. Whether this is a major downside to the program is really up to you.

Sorry it took me a few days to respond, I've been very busy. The size of MAPSS cohorts is very large but that does not necessarily have much influence on whether you can get individualized attention. You're assigned a mentor by the program but that person is NOT faculty at the university (he or she is either a postdoc or an advanced doctoral student) and is really there to help you make the most out of your time at the university, though they are a second reader on your thesis. You're required to choose a primary thesis adviser from among the university's regular faculty (per their consent of course). Consequently how much attention you get from that person depends on the faculty member and your relationship with them. I know some people who became very close to their advisers and got a lot of attention, others struggled with and had trouble finding an adviser. My suggestion is to look through the regular faculty and see who you might want to be your thesis adviser and then set up a meeting with him or her (or them, if you're not sure who would best fit the bill) for the MAPSS visiting days. That is what I did and it's the reason I ended up doing the program instead of some of the others I was considering; I got along well with the faculty member I met with and he promised he would advise me and help me as much as he could (something he followed through on). As far as applications the program does indeed give you help. In fact, that's one of the things they emphasize and why they have such a good placement rate. What field are you in? The experiences of the various fields is slightly different but what I said above generally applies to all of them.

I was just rejected from this program. But there actually was an admit at the beginning of February on the forums (posted in the Anthropology section) so I was expecting it. Edit: I just checked and it is posted in the results database. I'm not sure what you're searching with but I've noticed gradcafe is odd about how it searches. For example, Anthropology and History returns different results from Anthro and History. I would expect the first to be a subset of the second since "Anthropology" is a more strict search query than "Anthro"

I attended Chicago MAPSS last year and I would be happy to answer any questions people have (within reason). Unfortunately, I'm leaving tomorrow to interview at a school and I won't be back until Sunday. If people leave questions I'll answer them upon my return. Just off the top though, I'd say my MAPSS year was very rewarding and has allowed me to reach my goals. I currently have a generous offer from a top-10 program in my field (an Ivy), an offer from a good state school, and I'm interviewing at another Ivy (I did not reapply to Chicago because my interests changed). Some of my friends have done even better, some not as well. The thing to know about MAPSS is that while it positions you to be able to do these things it does not guarantee them. To stand out at Chicago you have to work very hard, you have to be creative, you have to be smart, and you have to really want it. For the record I was in history. Different fields have somewhat different experiences because aside from a single required course you take classes with the regular faculty and graduate students.

Thanks everyone! The email has my name but otherwise seems to be pretty general. Yes, I was interviewed.

I was accepted by Penn today. I got an email from the grad director with information about funding that also said a formal offer would come in a few weeks.

I was called today to set up the interview. I was surprised to receive it since I figured they were done with all that. A few pages back someone (NewEnglandNat maybe?) said they did multiple rounds and I guess that's true.

FWIW mine still says "Submitted." I know political science and sociology decisions have gone out at UChicago. Word may come sooner than the first week of March.

Oh, well, at least I know where I stand then. Thanks.

Great, thank you very much!

Does anyone know anything about the joint Anthropology and History program at Michigan? I see a single acceptance on the board and I'm wondering if they have all gone out (there's not a lot of past data to work from). I was kinda assuming I had been rejected but I see that for Michigan Anthropology at least acceptance and rejections have gone out at the same time. And congratulations for everyone who has been accepted!

Does anyone know if the two Harvard interviews on the board are meaningful in that if we didn't receive such a request we shouldn't be hopeful for admission? They strike me as pretty informal but it may be the norm in the department for professors to informally interview students they hope to admit. I haven't seen much discussion of it but the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign admit was me. I received an actual offer with funding details yesterday but I think my admission may have been pushed out early because I'm being nominated for a fellowship that has a paperwork deadline of today. There may be more admissions coming for anyone that is curious.

I heard from Princeton yesterday but I don't know if they've sent out all the notifications.

I believe that they do but it's considered to be "to your advantage" to attend the interview days. Does anyone know anything about those interviews, specifically language testing that is done as part of it? I was invited to interview and I'd like to prepare but I'm not sure of what they're looking for. I'm guessing they'll hand you a passage and ask for a translation but is it with or without a dictionary? Or am I totally off base here?

I spoke on the phone today (Dec. 5) with a POI at one of my top choices, a school ranked in the top 5 of my field. In the conversation he asked if it would be possible for me to submit a fourth letter of recommendation. I indicated that I would try my hardest to get one but the late date (application is due Dec. 15) may present difficulties. Is this something I should seriously try to make happen? I'm afraid that between the late date and the fact that I'd be going to someone who I initially decided not to ask for a letter (different field, not 100% sure what she thinks of me though we had good interactions and I did well in her seminar) I'm worried I'll get a mediocre letter that will do more harm than good. I've spoken to a mentor (a senior tenured faculty member) who advised me to say polite things and then disregard the request. His argument was that I'll get an offer off of three letters or not at all, a fourth wouldn't magically make me more desirable. Does anyone have any thoughts? In case it matters I'm in history and I just finished up an MA.

A friend in the program told me today that he's been shown a final list of prospective students and that I wasn't on it, sad but not surprising. If you haven't heard then it's likely you've been rejected though he DID say that this "final" list doesn't include alternates. If it's consolation to anyone he said they accepted only a single person for the study of Asia (all regions) and no one for the Middle East (all regions). Seems like it was a tough year.

How do people feel about the fit vs. prestige when it comes to MA programs (my situation)? I'm leaning toward prestige since the MA years are more about classes than lots of research and the name-brand will likely help when I apply for PhD programs in a few years. Thoughts?

I'm assuming rejection at this point though there may be a few wait-listers tossed in.

Yeah, I can make it to the visiting days and I'll probably go. I'm just curious about less concrete things like reputation; it's Chicago but it is still a freestanding MA program and they seem to be pushing the sales pitch pretty hard. Many people here seem to have a decent read on what's good and what's not so I figured I'd see what people have heard.

Does anyone actually know anything about the MAPSS program? Since it looks like I'm going to be weighing various MA offers this year I might as well weigh this one too. The website is nice and FAQ is useful but I don't want to rely on just their word. Searching around gradcafe seems to yield conflicting opinions (some think it's great, some think it's not).

I got that email too, I don't think it indicates anything about acceptance (though I really want to believe that it does). I was named as an alternate for FLAS at the University of Washington but was denied admission there.

Thank you for the advice everyone, it is all very helpful.

I have been leaning towards Georgetown as well, mostly for the reason you give, but since I don't know anything about how Arizona is perceived (in near eastern studies) then I don't really know that having 'Georgetown' on my CV is actually better. So I find myself here, trying to find out what people know.

Do you have personal experience with the program?

So I've been accepted to a MA program in Global/International history (Georgetown) and an MA program for Near Eastern Studies (University of Arizona). If my goal is to go on to a PhD program with a focus on Middle Eastern history which program do people recommend I attend? If you don't have a recommendation I'd love to hear what you know or have heard about the two programs/schools. If it matters to your opinion I wish to focus on the modern history of Iran though my interests (colonial/imperial pressures, social adaptation/resistance and revolutionary movements) fit nicely into a global and comparative framework. I haven't been able to find a whole lot by Googling and my bachelor degrees are not in history (or near eastern studies) so I'm kinda flying by the seat of my pants here, any and all advice is welcome. Thanks!