Hello! I'm a rising senior applying for entry to history graduate programs beginning in fall 2012. Since there are many veterans here who have survived the process I thought I might as well ask for some advice.
I'm a student at a mid-sized university ranked in the low 30s. My overall undergraduate GPA is 3.69 and my major GPA is 3.85 – and my fall term grades should push my overall GPA into the 3.7s.
I have not yet taken the GREs (and am more than a little nervous about the new format): if performance on previous standardized tests is any indication, I should do pretty well on the verbal and writing sections and only so-so on the quantitative. I plan to spend a couple of months going over a test prep book, but it's unclear which ones are the best for the new GRE (any recommendations would be very welcome!).
Otherwise, I can count in my favor an independent research project in my sub-field for which I received a generous grant. I hope to publish the resulting article in one of my university's student-run journals this fall. For what it's worth, I gave a presentation on the results of my research at my university's undergraduate research symposium.
I'm also currently working on my honors thesis and will be doing some archival research later this summer. My plan is to use a chapter of my as-yet-unwritten thesis as my writing sample for applications.
In language preparation I may be a bit weak. My field is British history so languages aren’t a dire concern. However I do understand that French and German are required for modern European history: I have no experience with French and only one year of German (though I will be taking German throughout my senior year).
That's about it! My adviser has been encouraging but I'm very nervous about the upcoming year. I'm still trying to figure out what mix of PhD and MA programs I should apply to. I hope to get into a terminal MA program at the least but I don't really know if I can count on that at all: like everyone I would of course prefer a fully funded PhD program . However, I would be willing to take on the debt necessary for a master’s degree as long as there’s a reasonable expectation of getting into a PhD program afterwards.
I’d very much appreciate any advice. I’ve gathered from lurking that many here at the grad café have taken terminal MAs. I’d love to know what qualifications are necessary to get into an MA program (though of course it must vary widely between universities and fields of study). I’d also love to hear any thoughts on my prospects for a PhD, if indeed I have any prospects at all .
