novacancy

First result--an acceptance--posted for UCLA/Cotsen archaeology. Gulp.

Keep playing! It's such a beautiful and engaging game. I've logged 250+ hours, no jokes. x.x

Question for you all: I was just informed that I've been approved to present a poster at an upcoming conference in March. Is this worth updating the CVs on file with my schools? I wouldn't bother, especially since I won't actually be participating until March, but this is (sadly) my first professional conference experience. How important is experience like this for anthropology/archaeology admissions? Thanks!

Congrats to the UIC admit! If that person is interested in any information about the school or anthropology department, shoot me a PM!

Hey guys, I hope to do a little more posting now that results are starting to pour in... Some points of interest on my end: - My Stanford application still reads that I haven't submitted official transcripts, despite a few e-mails (that went unanswered). My status reads "marked complete for reviewing purposes," so I suppose that's okay. Based on previous GradCafe threads, this seems to be a trend. Anyone else in this boat? - My UCLA (Cotsen Institute) decision page has... changed. I'm no longer able to click on my application for details. Maybe I'm reading into it too much, but this could mean the reviewing process has started? That's it for now, I think. Happy thoughts, everyone! Quick side note: Forsaken in LA, we both have John Goodman as avatars. That is neat.

I've actually had good luck at thrift stores!

Just wanted to say congrats, eriatarka! Go celebrate!!

archeostudent, I'm going to PM you!

Hi archeostudent! We're applying to a couple of the same schools! My POI at Northwestern says interview offers will be extended and held in January sometime.

Application fees: $755 GRE Registration: $185 GRE Scores: $150 (GRE study materials): $150 Transcript fees (4 undergrad institutions......): $310 TOTAL: $1550 And I'm probably overlooking other expenses... So much groan.

My application also says incomplete. I called the anthropology department last Friday, and the person I spoke with said they would be notifying people if their applications are actually incomplete. Essentially, if you've sent everything in and paid the application fee, assume they have it. They'll let you know if they don't. Again, this was the anthropology department... it may be different for people applying to other departments.

I was JUST talking about this with my husband and his family, all but one of whom are just high school graduates with steady careers. My father-in-law eventually got a bachelor's degree in his late 20s/early 30s after his employer offered to pay for all four years of full-time coursework. By today's standards, that's mind-blowing.

I'll start! 1) I'm the first in my family to obtain a college degree and to seek graduate-level education. 2) My (single) mother attended only a semester of college in her home country and was generally unable to provide me with any guidance while I was applying to college in high school. Don't get me wrong--she was very supportive, but I honestly had no idea what I was doing. I only applied to one school, and I got in, so I went there. BIG MISTAKE. It was a terrible experience. I ended up spending the first three years of my undergraduate studies trying to figure out what I wanted to do. Luckily, I "found myself" in year three, and transferred to a new school for year four. I worked hard to become a competitive PhD applicant--something I decided I wanted to pursue during my fourth and fifth years of school--but I am still very doubtful of myself. Again, I feel somewhat lost during the graduate application process, and this time I have no parental support; my mother has NO IDEA what graduate studies are or what anthropology/archaeology is or why I'm applying to schools all over the country or how big of a deal this is. 3) I felt that I pulled together some semblance of an aspiring academic during the last two years of my undergraduate studies. Research, fieldwork, volunteer work, non-profit job, pulled up my GPA, etc. I hope it's enough! 4) A. My husband has been so supportive of me! He is just now seeking a bachelor's degree (late 20s) but has been an excellent dude, all around. B. My previous professors. Though I graduated last year, I've stayed in contact with a few, and they've been incredibly helpful with my applications. C. Finally finding something I'm passionate about.

Hi everyone! Somewhere on this forum, I found an excellent thread for first-generation applicants to speak of their struggles and accomplishments during and after the graduate school application process. I thought it was an excellent thread, but the last post was from 2009, so I thought I'd recreate one! I think this could serve as a great support system for us, though I'm certainly not opposed to non-first-generation applicants joining in on discussion! I've found that I often feel alone in my pursuit of higher (and higher!) education since most of my friends in high school and in college were not the first in their families to attend. Some questions to get discussion going: 1) Are you the first in your family to pursue graduate education? Are you the first to pursue higher education in general? 2) What struggles have you faced as a first-generation applicant? 3) What have you accomplished as a first-generation applicant? 4) What has helped you reach your educational goals? (Feel free to add more!)

Another thought: honestly, should I just start fresh for the MA SOPs? *there is no crying "smiley"*

Hey all, I have, thankfully, completed all of my PhD statements, and I've turned to working on those for my MA programs. However, I've run into a few problems: 1) The MA SOP prompts are asking, more or less, the same questions as the PhDs' but have MUCH shorter content limits. Like, 500 words max. vs 1200-1300 words max. Has anyone else had to deal with this? If so, what did you eliminate? I've spent hours and hours on my SOPs, and it pains me to have to get rid of so much content... but I know it must be done. 2) I have a pretty good idea of what I'd like to research as a graduate student; I've even had to discuss potential dissertation topics in a few of my PhD SOPs (which is both insane and exciting). The problem is my proposed research is definitely doctoral-length research--not research that be completed during a two-year MA program consisting primarily of coursework. Should I still discuss this potential long-term research in my MA SOPs as my intended overall graduate research? Any other suggestions? Thanks in advanced!

Thanks, Canis! I will definitely let you know if I come up with any questions! I submitted my CUNY application about three weeks ago... now for the waiting.

To those still finishing up applications: WE'RE SO CLOSE, GUYS. WE CAN DO IT! Today is a positive, optimistic, going-to-get-in-somewhere xstopfloating day. No word on how I'll feel tomorrow.

ME TOO! And thank goodness for that! Did you (or anyone else out there) use citations for your research proposal? I had three, and they took up so much dang space that I left those single-spaced... I spent hours just trying to cut down my material, but each remaining sentence became more and more crucial to the point I was trying to make. Ugh. Has me stressed. I've been reading in the past Ford Fellowship threads how strict they are with though formatting guidelines. Hopefully they're at least a little lenient for citations... : (

ARGH, just finished my application materials... will be getting up early to review and submit. How much did you guys hate the two-page limits?!

Very neat! Hopefully you'll get the chance to check out the city too! : )

Thank you for your responses! anthropologygeek, I'm not concern about fluffing up my CV; I've already had 7 separate lab and field experiences that warrant individual mention. However, I've not had the opportunity to present at a conference, and seeing as I'll have contributed a very important component (I'll leave it at that) of this presentation, I thought I would ask if it'd be helpful for me to include it in my CV. Also, I'm not claiming rights, only recognition for the countless unpaid hours I've contributed to this project.

I'll be there! I'll be volunteering at the job placement center on Thursday--it gives me free entry for the rest of the weekend! I'm very excited to meet a few of my POIs and to see their presentations. However, there is so very little archaeology at the AAAs. I'm sure it'll still be a treat!

Hi everyone, I'm currently working as an unpaid research assistant for a PhD candidate. I've recently learned that this person will be presenting the work I've conducted as a part of her presentation at a highly respected national conference. I am not listed as a co-presenter nor have I been invited to attend. I was wondering if it would be out of line to list, if not in my SOP, in my CV, that I have contributed to a presentation at this national conference. Thoughts?