dizzid

Since clarification is needed: I responded to the tone and content of Epic's post. As far as fast food jobs or administrative positions go, both can be done with a small amount of intellect and a large amount of labor or vice versa. Epicure made the statement that by not getting into a Top 10 school with funding, you should not bother to complete a PhD program. My counter was to inquire about which jobs one who doesn't get into a Top 10 program should apply for. I chose the stereotypical fast food worker but I guess I could have gone with migrant worker, social worker or firefighter. After all those are also professions which don't require a Top 10 degree.... Loven hit it on the head, I was content being a receptionist (in DC where it's easy to make $50k a year as an admin) until I took a Sociology course. Going from receptionist to being accepted into PhD programs in four years is something I'm extremely proud of and can speak on personally. My former coworkers and bosses are exceedingly proud of me for settin goals and being intellectually CAPABLE of completing them. My very first post on this board was to point out that a great many of you have the perfect trajectory into prestiguous programs and I do not. I have no desire to go to a Top 10 school, I guarantee I would burn the place down moments before being asked to leave.This does not mean that I don't want the most of my education, it means a Top 10 isn't a good fit for me. From the tones of this board, I can also guarantee that many of you will not find that comment amusing. To bring this thread back to topic, before I was accepted into a program, my Plan B was to go into a terminal Master's program. If you have the passion and drive and will to succeed, apply to a lesser known school.

The_epicure, for those of us who don't get into Top 10 programs with funding, do you suggest we work at McDonald's? Also, for those undergraduates who don't go to Top 10 schools where would you suggest they be introduced to good Sociology? I'm not a math whiz so maybe I'm not calculating correctly but it seems to me that if the world has to rely on ten programs for producing quality sociologists we're going to be quite short in the very near future... Furthermore, it has been argued quite sucessfully that education systems perpetuate class stratification. Perhaps in this case, those of you who go to Top 10 programs will remain secluded in the world of "Top 10-ers" and the rest of us who go to State schools will interact with society on a more fundamental level. I personally cannot wait to start doing research and delving into a discipline that gave me a reason to aspire to more than being a receptionist. Maybe focusing on those who are in similarily disadvantaged positions is elementary but it's also what makes sense to me... By the way, would your reccommenders recommend that I tell my reccommenders that I will not be accepting my fully funded offer because it wasn't to a Top 10?

FSU

I found out on a layover to Las Vegas for a friend of a friend of a friend's birthday. So I had 72 hours in Vegas to blow off some steam. Seriously, the poor guy sitting next to me had to pat my hand the entire flight as I wept quite a bit... A friend working on his PhD gave me a book titled "How to Get a PhD" as a gift. I read the first half of the first chapter and pretty much had a panic attack. When I asked why in the world he would give that to me, he said someone gave it to him but he wasn't able to read it because it caused too much anxiety and he thought perhaps I would do better.... I've also set up lunch dates with a couple of people who are working through their PhDs and one professor from the University of Richmond who happens to be in my demographic (black female) to talk it all out. MAINLY, I keep having varying daydreams. Sometimes I'm on Oprah's couch discussing my latest book, other times I'm with Patricia Hill Collins getting manicures and sometimes I'm planting trees with orphans in Africa. I really wish I were joking but I'm not.

Does anyone want to discuss their feelings with me? I say this only slightly facetiously.... I will start. Overwhelmed can quantify each emotion: I am overwhelmingly excited, proud, nervous, anticipatory etc. I did a lot of crying when i first found out because I felt like it was the culmination of so much hard work. I was such a horrible student from 8th grade through community college. Getting to this point has taken sheer determination and sacrifice. I am excited at the prospect of moving to FLORIDA. WHO moves to Florida?!?! I am scared, what if they confused my file and they don't ACTUALLY want me? I am anxious to start working through the program. I am so proud, my head can't be held any higher and all I can think is "don't be a hubristic witch", you STILL have Spanish 102 to complete. I am determined, I've been given the chance to make a difference and now I will. Hysterical in that I am prone to little bursts of laughter when I think of how I feel. This can go on forever. Anyone else?

Msafri, I had similar thing occur a few days ago. My "mentor" teaches at a few universities around the DC area and she told me over dinner that she mentioned to the admissions coordinator at another school that I'd been offered a full ride elsewhere and now THAT prof was in a tizzy.... Okay....?

Undmich I'm taking a SERIOUS break. I worked full time through community college and into undergraduate. I just recently began working part-time (exactly one year ago) for the first time since high school. My most recent gig is for Catholic Charities with homeless people.... I plan to get the hell out of RVA and back to DC no later than 14 days after graduation with a side trip to Las Vegas. I plan to spend May 26-July 8 in DC working as a temporary receptionist (about $14/hr) and hanging out with my childhood friends. I also plan to read as much as humanly possibly! If anyone wants to go to Vegas in celebration let me know, a few of my friends and I are going May 17-20 in celebration of getting into PhD progams!

I applied, I've heard NOTHING.

My department chair at VCU got her PhD from UVA in Sociology. She's pretty badass....her interest is Pornography right now and she's pretty much changed the face of our entire department with her focus on Gender Studies. from wikipedia: Jennifer Johnson's (Professor of Sociology) work at the Department of Defense in the area of Social Network Analysis won her the 2006 Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joint Distinguished Civilian Service Award, which is the highest-ranking civilian service award given by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Dr. Johnson was also awarded the 2004 Analyst of the Quarter by the Joint Warfare Analysis Center for her work on the Social Network Analysis Methodology Team.

I heard back from my first school last Thursday (around 7:30pm) via email that I needed to check my application status. This email came while sitting on the tarmac waiting for my flight to Vegas to take off... Florida State has accepted me into their Ph.D. program with full funding. That includes a 20k/year stipend, TA/GA position, office space, etc. The only thing lacking is health insurance which I think I (or my parents) can cough up for $1200. I have a 3.8, GRE: 163 verbal, 142 quant, 5 writing. I also had excellent LORs and a fabulous statement explaining how I went from a "professional" receptionist to applying for PhD programs Along with that, I sent in a VERY ugly community college transcript that showed 4 years of failure before "the comback". So they definitely saw my 1.5 jump to a 3.5 in community college.... This is the first school I've heard from and honestly if it's the only one, I'm super psyched and can't wait.

Hey Joe, I just finished a "perfect" semester and the amount of sheer joy that my friends and family are expressing is both amazing and humbling. I agree 100 percent about keeping our heads up and being proud of what we've done so far. Additionally, I think it's important to recognize that there is NOTHING we could have done differently given the circumstances that come with "life". I'm really glad you responded to this post, I refuse to believe that we are the only two who are in this boat and/or feel this way As far as GRE prep goes, you forgot to mention the TIME factor that goes into taking those classes! I don't know about you but between 17 credits and working part-time for a nonprofit I literally didn't have the extra hours in my day to take them! Good luck with ALL of your future endeavors. -DD

I'm applying for PhD programs and this board is scaring the crap out of me. I'm a non-traditional student, barely finished high school, career community college student and very recently adjusted to the road of...academic excellence. Basically I took my first SOCY class and became an overnight success story. My GRE scores will, as one can imagine, be questionable... So I'm riding my GPA (3.8) and recommendations hopefully to the finish line. I'm not applying to Harvard because the idea of going there sounds stifling, I'm also not applying to Brown, Wisconsin or Chapel Hill for the same reasons. Oh and because I probably wouldn't get in with my tarnished history (this is said with mocking facetiousness). What I have going for me? Other than the sobby story of the black female who came from a broken home is my ability to succeed despite the odds. Although, while writing that line, it has occurred to me that perhaps those qualities are one in the same. Regardless, to all of you with the perfect academic careers, perfect GREs, perfect everything else, good luck continuing in your perfect perfectness. To the rest of you, the comeback kids in a boat similar to mine: let's kick ass wherever we end up! Let's continue to be good enough despite the odds and most of all, be the change we want to see. That said, I'm applying to: Maryland Rutgers Temple George Mason V-Tech Pittsburgh