Chiqui74

The short answer is no. If a history PhD was applying for a political science job, maybe, but not for history jobs. The historical profession, like political science, I imagine, has its own set of skills that are pretty standard across institutions. They are core competencies of the work we do, and data analysis is not one of them. To be sure, the rise of digital humanities is making data and stats more a part of certain types of historical research, but it's absolutely not an expectation for non-digital history jobs.

Before you try to go the PhD route, ask yourself what it is you want out the PhD. The academic job market has been abysmal for years and currently non existent. The state of academia and higher ed is a complete disaster and chances are almost zero anything will change in the next few years. It's almost certain that you will not get a tenure track job, so if that is your goal, I urge you to reconsider and NOT do a PhD. If that is NOT your goal, then why do a PhD? If you just want to learn things, you can do that without going through the arduous and often demoralizing process of getting a PhD only to end up less qualified for non-academic jobs than you were before going in. If you are independently wealthy and just want to do a PhD for fun, I question your definition of fun, but go right ahead. Museum curators have their own career path and a PhD in History is NOT the best way to go about it. Plus, they have their own job market issues. If you want to be a curator, look into Public History programs with a museum specialization, or into a Museum Studies program. Also, absolutely do not attend a PhD program that does not cover your tuition AND gives you a stipend.

Yes, private, and even public, archives and libraries often require credentials for research. It's not gatekeeping, it's making sure that the documents live to tell the tale. Even when doing PhD dissertation research, some institutions require an interview with archivists and other sorts of applications. Others still don't allow access to anyone bar a handful of people.

"Because I hate myself." That usually shuts people up

Application deadlines have little bearing on when you'll hear about decisions.

I'm a second year, and during the first three semesters I read three books and several articles a week. I also read over the summer. I am now preparing for comps, which I will take at the end of the Spring semester, so I am reading closer to 1.5 books a day, 5 days a week. It's intense!

My professors have worked around this issue by specifying WORD limit rather than page limit. Since everything is turned in electronically, they know how many words you wrote. Keeping written work within the stipulated length is an exercise that will serve well later on when you have to submit articles, book reviews, etc for publication when length requirements are strictly enforced. Rather than fudge the margins, give your work a thorough look and see where you can be more concise. Just a thought. I used to joke than in college I'd make the margins bigger so it looked like I wrote more, and in grad school I had to make them smaller so I could cram everything in the maximum number of pages allowed. I never actually did that, but it was the sentiment that counted

If you feel like you can't add more than what's already been said about the book you've read, maybe try to make an effort to be the first to speak? In most of my seminars breaking the ice is slow and sometimes there is an awkward pause between the professor opening the floor, as it were, and someone talking. Try to jump in there and say something, then at least you've engaged a bit. Also, speaking during seminar does get easier! In my first semester I was in a class where I felt the others knew so much more about the whole topic that I'd just sound stupid if I opened my mouth. It was unfair for me to think that though, they were not first year students. It gets easier!

I started using Mendeley last year and so far it's been fine. I hadn't used a citation management software before.

I use Word. My undergrad institution allowed every student to download one free copy for PS and one for Mac of the MS Suite as well as subsequent updates. So both my computers have Word, but when I upgrade my computers, I will likely lose the software since I have no idea where the installer is. My grad institution, for being as rich as they are, does not offer free MS Suite to students and I certainly can't afford to buy it for myself. I don't know what I'll do then.

In my school, if you transfer that many credits your funding gets cut by one year. Do you feel you are at the point where you are prepared to sit comps AND start your own research? If no, then take more classes.

He/she has to be trolling us. There's just no other explanation.

I had never heard of this but I have reservations. Also, most PhD programs only allow you transfer a certain number of credits so it's not like you could leave one program after 5 years and pick right where you left off somewhere else; you'd have to pretty much start from scratch. That just doesn't make sense.

I agree with everyone who has said not to pay for grad school, especially since your stats are not exactly abysmal. As for your alma mater, I am not surprised they rejected you. Some programs will not, as a rule, accept their own undergraduates. It's not recommended that you do your PhD at the same place where you did your undergraduate degree and, from what I have heard, it's frowned upon when it comes to the job market. So, this was a blessing in disguise. If you don't get any funded offers this year, try again next year. You do not need an MA to get into a PhD program. I, for example, did not have an MA and my stats were worse than yours. It's about fit and luck, I think. Good luck!

Of course you are not on the same level, but family/personal life is not THE only life. I am a parent too so I get it, but when I'm socializing with my peers, my family life is not present. Perhaps it is different for those who (like me) are full time graduate students with no other jobs. I don't see this any differently than if I was in a traditional office job with younger co-workers. I don't know. I just think that people sometimes let their differences rule their interactions with others instead of trying to find common ground and then see themselves as not fitting in.

I'm an a very expensive school, and while I haven't experience this first hand, some of my colleagues have commented on the financial situation of the undergrads (rich, mostly) and their sense of entitlement. Most of the grad students I know definitely don't fit that demographic.

I don't resent undergraduates, their tution money pays for my tuition and stipend, I just don't have any interaction with them. I am not in a field where we work in labs and have undergrads working, for example. There are no cross-listed classes (grad and undergrad together with different requirements for each), etc. Most of the graduate classes (seminars) are taught in the department, not in regular classrooms. That will change when it comes time to teach, and that interaction will, obviously, be different than if we were just hanging out. We essentially inhabit different worlds so yes, there is a divide. But there should be, IMO. Graduate students and undergraduate students are in different phases of their lives and their careers, graduate school is nothing like college and there experience is completely different, etc. Plus, there is always the chance that a graduate student will become a TA or instructor to undergraduates so there's that need for separation too to avoid problems down the line.

I had an undergraduate major I loved but could not practice professionally because a BA wasn't enough. I had a decent job in administration but did not love it. I really wanted to be a historian and couldn't settle. I haven't regretted even for a second. Now that I'm in the program, I'm open-minded about career choices upon completion (considering the state of the academic job market).

I'm in my mid 30s and haven't found my age to be an impediment at all for studying or socializing. Things and circumstances are what you make of them. If you have the mindset that you won't fit in because you are older then you are already setting yourself up for failure. Regardless of what your personal life is like, you have quite a bit in common with your peers, even the 22 year old ones. Don't try to be their parent, don't try to be their mentor; just try to be a friend or a peer, if that is what you want. Of course, you are not required to interact with your peers in any way outside scholarly requirements, but what a waste of a few years of your life that would be! Misery loves company, after all!

I'm just going to bump this since it isn't a sticky.

That is pretty incredible funding. Even my excellent funding and extra fellowships in NYC does not get to 37k a year, and I imagine LA is not quite as expensive to live in. You'd be crazy to turn down this UCLA offer for an unfunded MA even at Harvard if your ultimate goal is a PhD. Even with an MA, you still have to go through the PhD much in the same way as someone straight from undergrad; you maybe able to transfer a few credits but not two complete years, which means you'll still be in the same position two years from now as you are in right now, possibly worse if you don't get another offer like this one.

I always insert notes as I go. I'd hate to have to go back and do it and/or make mistakes.

I recently came across this Facebook group that so far seems like a good supportive environment. https://www.facebook.com/groups/776957585681408/

I disagree with this statement. I doubt that people are bragging about acceptances. Rather, they are genuinely excited and want to share. The bragging is more in the perception than in the intent. I am a firm believer in that people should not have to walk on eggshells for someone else's sake. I'm not saying that people have the right to be a-holes or purposefully do hurtful things, but they are allowed to rejoice in their accomplishments without being chastised for it. There are always people who have it better and people who have it worse, in all ranks of life and all situations. If only misery, as it were, was the accepted shareable feeling, it would be a grim world indeed.

Yup, they are. Prospective Student Weekend is next week. I suppose any admissions from here on will be off the waitlist. Word on the grapevine is that some of the joint programs have not finalized their decisions though.