alleykat

Hey Cici, I am now living in Binghamton. I went to the University twice already to finish some paper work and to meet up with my supervisor. Everybody there was really nice. I am pretty sure that I made the right choice. Hope you have a smooth moving in at your new place. And don't forget the drink!

double standard

Hello, It is difficult to tell you exactly what is in the packet because it may be different from one school to another. However, I think it is most likely that you will receive the I-20 and some documents detailing your school's instructions for newly admitted students, for example the next steps you need to do to apply for a Visa, your arrival at the university, health insurance, etc. So with that packet in hands, you will know the next things you need to do, among which the most crucial one is to secure a Visa. And yes, you may want to start getting your passport, transcripts, and financial proof ready for your Visa application. Everything related to this process you can easily find on the UK-based US embassy's website. Good luck! alleykat

As far as I know, how long a person on Tier-4 Student Visa can stay in the UK depends on the "course end date" indicated on their CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies) statement. And normally, UK Border Agency will issue that person a Visa which expires about 4 months after that date. If your friend's course is 9 month long then he should be granted a 13 month Visa.

Hello eac09g, I applied for PhD programs in East Asian History (EAH) a few months ago and I am going to attend one of them this coming Fall. Your professor is right about the smaller pool of applicants trying to get into EAH programs. However, those interested in EAH like us do not have as many choices as those in other fields. You can clearly see that US history and European History are still dominant fieds. Universities that offer graduate degrees in EAH, which often happen to be highly selective ones, accept a very small cohort of new student each year in comparison with ones of other fiends. So the competition is, in fact, extremely stiff. And our chances for getting funding are significantly more limited as well. My program, for example, offers funding for only one PhD student in EAH. Most, if not all, universities give funding priority to coming students of other fields rather than EAH. I think you should definitely go ahead and apply to some top programs if your writing sample, SOP, LOR, and research experience are really strong. And do not foget to apply to some lower-ranked programs. If not, an MA is not a bad idea given how it would make you become a much more prepared and competitive applicant. Some universities require that all applicants must complete an MA before applying for their PhD programs.

hot spot

Hi everyone, I am gonna shake the rust off this thread with a question which may sound familiar to many of you here. I studied in the UK where it was the norm for students to address their professors as either "Professor X" or "Dr. X". I would only call my professors by their first name once they explicitly told me to do so. I wonder how this works in the US. My supervisor has recently kept signing his email with his first name. Does that mean he wants me to call him by his first name? Any suggestions? Thanks a lot.

Hello kitt kat, IMHO, MA perfomance does matter in PhD application progress, especially in humanities and social sciences. This is particularly true for someone who has done a thesis-track MA program because they could prove their research ability through their thesis as a major reseach work. In my case, my MA thesis played the most critical role in my admissions to PhD programs.

I agree that it would be the best to have recommendations from experts in your prospective field of study who can give insightful comments on your work. It is, however, not absolutely required, at least from my own experience. All of my recommendations came from professors who specialize in politics and international relations (mostly among Western nations) rather than East Asian history. And yes, like New England Nat mentioned, another crucial thing is that those writing your recommendation need to know you and your work well.

Hey Cici, it's good to hear that you have found a place to live. In which area is your house located if you do not mind me asking? During your search, any particular areas that you visited had nice apartments for rent ? I am not from the USA so I have little idea about Binghamton and I will not arrive until the first week of August. Thanks a lot.

Hi Setiadi, Normally, a letter like this needs to be submitted by international students when they apply for admission. In your case, however, it seems like you are required to submit it after having been granted admission and funding. In my experience, you just need to show the ISSO that your scholarship is enough to cover the tuition, fees and living expenses for the first year of your studies and that it is renewable depending on satisfactory progress toward your degree. If your scholarship does not cover everything, then you must have bank statements which prove that you are able to pay for the rest. You may want to send them a copy of your scholarship award. For me, my Department send mine directly to the ISSO.

Hi KendraSevilla, I switched from International Relations to History and applied for the Fall 2012 season. To be honest, I was really nervous throughout the whole process, thinking that without a solid background in History, it'd be extremely difficult for me to get in a program with funding. But luckily I did. I do not know exactly how a lack of history major could actually hurt your chance because it may vary from one program to another. All I can say is that if you truly want to do this, just show the admission committees the best of you as an applicant who loves history and has the ability to study the past. In order to do so, you may want to work hard on your writing sample and personal statement.

American History R_Escobar (20th century, American Indian), crazedandinfused (antebellum, intellectual), hopin'-n-prayin' (southern, religious), stevemcn (transnational), Simple Twist of Fate (early American), zb642 (20th century, labor/working-class culture), BCEmory08 (19th-20th century Catholicism, labor), irvinchiva10 (20th century, immigration/immigration reform) natsteel (early American political culture and intellectual history) unforth (19th century US political and military history, US Civil War) hbeels (colonial, early national, 19th century, transappalachain west, historical memory of these eras/areas) European HistoryKelkel (Modern Germany, political), goldielocks (Britain), SapperDaddy (Eastern and Central Europe), kotov (Modern Romania, Holocaust, labor), RevolutionBlues (Modern Western Europe/France labor and leftist politics), theregalrenegade (18th/19th cent British Empire/environment), jrah822 (19th century Britain; emphasis on colonial relationship to India), grlu0701 (Intellectual & cultural history,fin de siecle Germany and Italy), naturalog (modern European [mostly German] intellectual and cultural/sexuality and gender/political radicalism), runaway (Eastern/Central, memorialization & visual culture), Sequi001 (Modern France, gender and sexuality, colonialism/imperialism) Abetheh (19th/early 20th century Germany and France, religious politics vs secularization) African HistoryOseirus (precolonial/early colonial West Africa), Singwaya18 (20th century East Africa), Safferz (20th century Horn/Northeast Africa), The People's Scholar (Spanish colonialim in Africa- i.e. middle/West Africa) Jogatoronto (Psychiatry in early colonial West Africa) Latin American HistoryCageFree (20th century, Southern Cone), BH-history, The People's Scholar (18th-19th century Colombia) StrangeLight (20th century Central America) East Asian Historyalleykat (Modern China) kyjin (Pre-Modern Japan) Near/Middle Eastern Historyuhohlemonster, (modern Israel, Iran, Palestine) oswic (modern Egypt, gender) Atlantic Worldsandyvanb crazedandinfused Global/World History [*]cooperstreet (Cold War) Jewish History [*]uhohlemonster, (modern Israel) [*]hopin'-n-'prayin, [*]kotov (Holocaust), [*]naturalog (sometimes modern European/Holocaust), [*]runaway (memorialization & visual culture), [*]ticklemepink (20th c. Germany/U.S) Science/Technology/Environment [*]shaxmaty1848 (Cold War) [*]StrangeLight (environmental history, ecological distribution conflicts) Social [*]annieca (Cold War and Post-Cold War East and Central Europe) Classical and Medieval [*]Hogs of War (Monastic Studies and Conflicts in Authority) Cultural [*]StrangeLight (gender, race, ethnicity, and religion) [*]hbeels (race/ethnicity, religious, masculinity/feminimity, print/literature) [*]crazedandinfused (race, nationalism, performance, rhetoric) [*]alleykat (religion, race/ethnicity, cultural relativism)

vanilla essence

drum kit