fortiesgirl

How are they supposed to train a doctoral student to teach then? That is part of the training process, no? I'm probably stating the obvious, but you should inquire about how they intend to offer you teaching experience (if that's what you intend to do after you earn your degree). Edit: Quite honestly, I am not too familiar with your field. I just remember my grad professor saying something like his TA (who was ABD the time) was going to teach his first or second lecture after having shadowed him for a period of time. He was observed and evaluated, like any other professional would be in that position.

Here are some I found on the AHA (American Historical Association) website: Is there any formal process for representing grad student concerns to the department

I do agree with you and I understand your point of view. To put it bluntly, it is lying, and I think they should be upfront and state what they plan to do. I actually earned my M.A. at one of those institutions that claims it only sends notifications via snail mail, and let me tell you, they called me personally to notify me of my acceptance at the time. I think depts do this for several reasons, and while on the surface it is indeed a lie, I think I can clarify their reasoning behind it. First, they want the person to attend, and they therefore want to personally notify the individual. It's just a nice gesture. Second, there's the possibility that the acceptance letter could get lost in the mail. That letter obviously contains valuable information, and neither the candidate nor the university would want that to happen. A simple phone call or email could alleviate this. Finally, sometimes decisions regarding financial aid (fellowships, TA, RA, etc) are not made at the point of admission because they need to be approved by the Dean, another academic committee, etc. It really depends on the school and/or department. I happen to be in this situation at the present moment. So a chair or an advisor may contact you so you know you've been accepted and they may sort of let you know that you're "being considered" for money. I think they might do this so you keep their program in mind and don't settle on another program that may have offered a huge chunk of money along with an offer of admission. I guess I was sort of hoping to put your mind at ease. Now for my gripe...The one thing that really bugs me is that I paid upwards of $100 (or more) for each application and so far my rejections have been sent via email. I mean, a letter on watermarked stationary would have been nice.

I posted a response on your other post but perhaps you didn't see it. I'm unclear as to which program you want to apply--English or Near Eastern Languages. In any case, you should check out gradschools.com. I think you may have to check out the individual departments themselves if no one on here has applied to that specific department and can advise you. I would venture to say that only M.A. programs would have later deadlines, but I could be mistaken. Keep in mind that if the schools have rolling admissions past Jan 15, that likely means no funding. good luck!

My page was updated from the start, but my applyyourself page hasn't been updated. Nothing has changed on the portal since the time I made application though. It indicates that I applied in Jan, when in fact I applied in Oct.

NYU uses TAs, we had them in a few depts where I took classes. I know they have them because it is offered as part of the financial aid package for many of their grad department. I didn't go there for undergrad though, so maybe that explains the discrepancy. The TA only taught one or two lectures in a seminar I took (lecture attendance was optional for grad students).

That's because I applied before they set up the new system. They gave me an old system password. I also have a new system account. I've been checking both, to no avail

Haven't heard anything from Temple. Last time I got my acceptance on the TUPortal.

1. I will go to the best program as long as they give me a certain minimum 2. Money will be a factor, but will be weighed against program reputation, etc. The program I want to go to most offers full tuition and stipend to all accepted candidates, so that won't be a problem. It's my top choice and if I get in, it won't be a tough decision to make. If I don't get in, then I will be stuck having to choose between money and rep. I will most likely go with rep and then money, as long as I get a certain minimum.

With everyone posting about their acceptances, I feel like I'm the only one who hasn't heard anything! It's good to know I'm not alone. I guess I'll just have to hold out.

Some programs simply ask for a sample of your best writing and don't specify in what field the sample is based, though they usually want to see how you form coherent arguments within your field. But if they didn't specify the parameters of the sample, well then, you're probably fine. If the dept requests a sample that demonstrates your ability to say, write a research in a particular capacity, then that is what they wanted and if you didn't submit what they wanted you may run into a problem. I say might because your other qualifications in your dossier might counterbalance the sample and they'll end up giving you the benefit of the doubt. I would go back and check what the guidelines were to put your mind at ease. You aren't the only one who's freaking out at this point in the game.

Just adding my name to the official waiting thread. Not worried if I don't get in...

Well stated. You are not alone. And as for soul-searching, well, that cannot be stated enough. Welcome to grad school!

The program is listed--NELC is Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations. I am pretty sure UPenn offers Spring admission for its MA program. Otherwise, I would suggest you check out gradschools.com and enter in your program info. I find that to be the most efficient way to search for programs.

Congratulations on gaining admissions to two schools and having the funding to boot! I would say that you are in a great situation, better than the one I am presently in I might add (because I'm still waiting to hear on funding and from 7 schools). Let me start off by saying that you should in no way feel that you have not accomplished something because you haven't gained admission to a top tiered school. While that may have been your goal at first, if you really assess the situation, you are sitting on TWO offers from two schools that match your interests. Not many people can say that in this admissions process, given the current economic situation. Many of us are currently aching over the fact that we haven't been admitted anywhere and wondering if we will be and whether or not we'll get the funding to go. I just wanted to reassure you of that fact that you should be proud of what you have acheived thus far. (Sorry, I am an educator--enough of the pat on the back) I would not base my decision or how I feel about my program on those rankings alone. You can't go by that alone because it only presents PART of a very complicated puzzle. I think many people would agree with what I'm saying. I would actually recommend that you read how they rank the programs and it will really enlighten you and make you feel better. Are there excellent institutions with superb faculty at the top of those ranks? Most definately and no one is going to dispute that. But that certainly doesn't mean that you can't find excellent programs at the lower tier or even not ranked at all, in fact, I know you can. I researched this on my own. I, too, have been accepted to a lower tier school. The faculty at this particular program have their degrees from the highest ranked institutions in my field--History (Yale, Harvard, Princeton, NYU, etc). I began to wonder why this program had the ranking it did so I began to compare this program to other programs that were lower tier or not ranked in the system. Do you want to know what I found? I found faculty with similiar outstanding training from "top" schools, numerous publications, identical program requirements for the PhD, archives, etc. If you have found a program (or in your fortunate case, two) that hosts decent faculty that match your interests, you will most likely receive excellent training from that program. Like you, I can't wait to return to school to begin my doctoral work. For one, I'm not getting any younger, and second, well, I just can't wait. For the past two years, I have been teaching adjunct at a small, private liberal arts college. (I taught secondary ed for four years before that.) Some semesters I even teach full-time. I find that my teaching career is very rewarding. I don't teach at a big name school, but I am very happy with what I do from day to day. I have fulfillment in going to work two days a week(!) and prepping for my courses the other days. Just keep those things in mind. Here's how I would base my decision (I only applied to programs in my geographical area because I am fortunate enough to have a steady part-time teaching job, a husband who supports me, and a home that I don't plan to sell--very "un-academic" I know, but whatever ): -FUNDING (how far will your money go given the area in which you are going to live) -PROGRAM FIT (definataly talk to grad students--see how miserable vs. happy they are--if you can go out for a drink or four ) -FACULTY (equal with program fit because you need to like these people and work with them) -LOCATION (You can always move after you complete your coursework and then fly in for comps, thesis work, etc., if you hate the location) Best of luck and success to you! Let us know what you end up deciding.

Nicely put. I mentioned this to someone else on a different post, but the rankings on US News are actually two-fold in the way in which programs are assessed. There's an article published by USNews itself explaining the entire process if you want to read it. They hire one third party survey company, and the other scores are calculated by peer reviews. So, while there are undoubtedly excellent programs at the "top" of that scale because they have excellent faculty and resources, this doesn't mean other "lower tier" or non-ranked programs aren't excellent and won't offer you superb training if they fit the bill in terms of your needs. You might want to check this out for argument's sake, but some of the non-ranked or lower ranked program actually have faculty who earned their degrees at the same institutions who teach at the top tiered schools.

You should check out the reading lists on Rutgers University's history page. The lists are very comprehensive.

I wanted to start off by stating that I am in the same boat as all of you. I keep wondering to myself what sets certain candidates apart from others. I am still waiting to hear from several of the schools to which I applied. I did receive two rejections from two Ivy Leagues and those were pretty much expected. I did, however, want to address one aspect that was mentioned in two posts. I contacted and met with numerous faculty at the institutions where I submitted applications. And I don't view this at all as "sucking up." I see it as quite the contrary. I've already been to grad school and earned a Master's. I know what a good fit feels like and when something doesn't feel right. Let me tell you--you don't want a bad fit for the next seven to ten years of your life in a doctoral program. Believe me when I say that grad school is hard enough. It is in your best interest to speak with, and if you're lucky, meet with, as many professors in your field as you can during the admissions process as you can because, why waste your time and money submitting an application to a school when you know offhand that the fit isn't right for you? That's the way I see it. I met with three faculty members at one school in particular. I did not get in, but at least I know (or hope) that they carefully weighed that decision. It also happens to be one of the most competitive programs in my field, so I wasn't too broken up about it. I am still waiting to hear from another school where I met with four professors. I know that school is a perfect fit for me. I paid that $75 fee with confidence knowing that it wasn't a waste, at least from my end. I can't even count how many professors I contacted and became acquainted with during the admissions process. You see, the profiles on the websites only tell you a part of the story and research history of these people. In my field, it might say "historian of Modern France," but to me that means a wide array of different things. In my view, it is in my best interest to contact that individual personally and find out their specific interests so that I can write an intelligent personal statement and find the perfect fit for me. It's not really about "sounding good" so that you can get in--committees can see right through that. You want to find a good fit. When it's there, it's there. It may turn out that we may or may not have the same interests in common, at which point (s)he may direct me to someone else. It's really not about "sucking up." It's really about finding people in your field and being genuinely interested in working with them and demonstrating that interest. Most of them are very friendly and will return your message. Some of them won't--and you probably want to steer clear of them anyway.

I applied there as well and am anxiously waiting to hear from them. I was told mid-March to hear from the department. Applicants on this site posted mid-March acceptances last year.

I haven't heard from several of the schools to which I applied. With the exception of Hopkins, no one on the boards has posted any correspondance with any of the programs. I assume I've already been rejected, but it will take them awhile to notify me. I'm aware that a few of the programs will most likely not notify candidates until mid-March or so, but as for the others, should I contact them? Most of the application deadlines of the schools in question were Jan. 15, so I'm assuming that they run on a later calendar than the schools I've already heard from. thoughts?

Congrats on your acceptance to CMU. My husband went there for undergrad and loved it. My husband always jokes about how one can experience all four seasons in a single day without warning, though I'm sure this is due to his sensitivity to change in temperature. Then again, if you're from Canada you probably won't mind the cold. He can't stand the cold. We visited CMU for one of his alumni reunions and I really liked the town and school. And the stipend is awesome for living in Pittsburgh.

frankdux, I get what you're saying and the answer is yes, they do see all the scores. I lucked out on a few schools because for my final and best score, ets (for odd some reason) did not combine the accounts at first so for a few programs to which I applied they will only see the best scores. Not sure why or how this happened but it only worked in my favor. The other schools will see all three, the two dismal ones included. My score improved overall by over three hundred points, and my verbal went up by almost two hundred. If a committee is not going to take certain factors into consideration given the rest of my record, then there's really nothing else I can do at this point but hope for the best.

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I had one program director tell me that they would take the better of my scores, but I wasn't sure if this was typical.

I should preface this by stating that I have NEVER done well in standardized tests. I took the GRE in 2005 and earned pretty pitiful scores--both verbal and math were in the 500s and aw was a 5. I retook the GRE again after having taken two rounds of Kaplan and did even worse-verbal was in the 500s and math sunk to the 400s. You'd think that someone who can work in multiple languages would be able to score well on the verbal section, well, not in my case. I believe I tend to just "over-think" the questions. I had to retake it to redeem myself if I had any hope of getting into a doctoral program--I got v:670 q: 620 aw 5. Okay, here's my question...I have excellent grades, a Master's in a relevant discipline, language fluency, research experience, and relevant work experience (teaching college level). Is my history of poor GRE scores going to screw my chances of admission, or will my final GRE score redeem me? I know it's not the greatest, but I'm not shooting for the Ivies. The two programs in which I am most interested require scores in the ballpark of 1150-1250. Do most schools take the best score, or do they take the average of the scores when evaluating a candidate?