anthrogeek1941

I'm assuming you're asking me. GRE is funny, it COMPLETELY depends on who you ask. I want to say that it's more important for international applicants than it is for others, but I'm not sure about that. All I know is, my advisor and one other professor at columbia told me that the gre was very important. My advisor told me to worry about the verbal and writing sections, that math didn't really matter. The other professor said that math mattered because if you have a good math score it could indicate that you're naturally intelligent (he actually said that, a little absurd if you ask me). Both professors said it also depends on the school, some care about GRE more than others (they mentioned harvard and u mich specifically but i don't know if there's any truth to that) In terms of columbia specifically, the department chair told me that as long as i get above a 200 i shouldn't worry about it. He said that the GRE doesn't matter at all (but obviously others disagree). He was on leave this year for whatever that's worth... I did pretty badly on the GRE but got a 6 on writing...who knows!

I too was accepted to mapss with 2/3 funding. I DID email them to try and get the other 1/3 and failed, haha. It was worth trying, right? I'm currently living in India so I can't go to campus days!! I'm confused about what I should do. I've spoken to my undergraduate advisors as well as my potential advisor at U of C. The U of C prof was totally honest with me and admitted that mapss is a cash cow. He said that the students accepted have varying degrees of experience and talent, and that most people who do the program simply didn't have enough experience in anthropology. However, he also said that 1 or 2 students a year get into the phd program from mapss. The problem is, assuming the economy doesn't radically improve in the next 6 months, I don't think the applicant pool next year will change drastically. What I mean to say is getting an m.a. may not be a bad idea. However, is it really worth risking about $30,000 in loans (remaining tuition and living expenses) to see if i can get in to the phd program after? Like I said, I can't come back to the states for campus days, so I have to decide from India. I feel like if I just stay in India for another year or two my application would be stronger, even without an m.a. Alternatively I could do an m.a. IN India for about $2,000 instead of $30,000, and then my Hindi would be perfect... Basically, I'm confused. I'm leaning towards staying in India...

i know, it's depressing, I was rejected from all 9 phd programs (got into maps with 2/3 funding) I just want to clarify my statement about columbia's stance on students with ma's. This is definitely the way the department USED to be, but things may be changing. All I can say is that my advisor specifically told me NOT to get an m.a. in anthropology. That being said, they only accepted one student for south asia into the phd program this year and she had an m.a. So take what I say with a grain of salt :wink: I love Columbia anthro, they're wonderful, really and truly, but they do have an annoying tendency to be unclear about things like this...

I got my b.a. in anthro from columbia and know a lot of students and professors in the department (I also applied to the phd program this year). I talked to my advisor in the department last week and he said that all of the accepted phd students have already been notified. The only reason why the rest of us haven't heard anything is because columbia gsas is super slow at processing information. If you haven't already received a call or an email from columbia then you weren't admitted to the phd program. Some of us may be offered masters degrees but, unlike mapps, columbia doesn't give any funding or tuition waiver to m.a. students. those who have the option of doing an ma in anthro elsewhere should definitely go elsewhere! the columbia anthro masters program is TERRIBLE. I know a lot of people who completed the program and none of them have anything good to say about it. The m.a. program simply earns money for the department. There aren't enough course offerings for masters students, it's hard to get into classes, get attention from professors, etc. If you're offered an m.a. i would HIGHLY recommend either doing an m.a. elsewhere or simply taking a year off and reapplying to the phd program. For those set on getting into columbia anthro for a phd: for some reason columbia prefers students who do NOT already have a masters degree in anthropology. This is what my advisor as well as the dept head told me (don't ask me why, that's just how they are). This year was an exception. However, if you really want to get into Columbia anthro you should take a year and reapply directly to the phd program rather than do an m.a.