Open Fellowships in March?

[Empress_Sun]

Hey guys and gals,

I've recently been accepted for a Masters in Columbia University, but due to personal issues I wasn't able to find the additional time to apply to their internal fellowships and funding. Now that everything is right again in life and I have some time to take a breather, I realize it's already past most fellowship deadlines. Under the eventuality that nothing is available at all, I'd be able to pool basically every cent of my savings and make it work with student loans, but I'd rather not have that much debt if I can help it.

Wondering if any of you know of any that are still open to this date? If not, could anyone suggest a good place to start searching myself? So far, I've looked into public databases but the process of looking at each individual grant and seeing if it fits my particular situation is rather time-consuming. Is there no better and more efficient way to do this?

 

Also, is it common for graduate students to complete their studies without any internal or external grants in the U.S.? (My undergraduate tuition was less than 2000CAD for a semester so I could easily afford everything with a part-time job.)

 

Here's a few circumstance-specific details:
I am Canadian
I identify as a woman
I will be studying International history, specifically US-China-Japan relations

Edited March 2, 2018 by Empress_Sun
Typo

[TMP]

If these fellowships are organized by Columbia, could you explain your personal situation and see what they have to say about funding?  Could you defer your entry and apply for those fellowships next year?

[astroid88]

On 3/1/2018 at 11:43 PM, Empress_Sun said:

Also, is it common for graduate students to complete their studies without any internal or external grants in the U.S.? (My undergraduate tuition was less than 2000CAD for a semester so I could easily afford everything with a part-time job.)

It's widespread but definitely not encouraged. I would definitely look for more funding opportunities within the school. I'm not sure the route you want to go, but an MA in History will not bring much financial return. One other option is to reapply next year to schools that do offer more funding. 

Edited March 18, 2018 by astroid88

[psstein]

DO NOT assume a large debt for a history MA.

[Empress_Sun]

On 2018/3/2 at 8:05 PM, TMP said:

If these fellowships are organized by Columbia, could you explain your personal situation and see what they have to say about funding?  Could you defer your entry and apply for those fellowships next year?

I have messaged them, but unfortunately they have answered in the negative. Oh well, time to go in debt...

[Empress_Sun]

On 2018/3/18 at 2:42 PM, astroid88 said:

It's widespread but definitely not encouraged. I would definitely look for more funding opportunities within the school. I'm not sure the route you want to go, but an MA in History will not bring much financial return. One other option is to reapply next year to schools that do offer more funding. 

I am one of those people whose undergraduate scores were not quite enough to land me directly into a PhD program in history in top schools. I thus decided that my best option would be to do a Masters first, then possibly get a fully funded PhD degree at an Ivy. I am fortunate to have enough personal savings to fund one year of study, but that means I will need to find external funding for my second year, as well as get significant amounts of student loan (thus going into debt). Willing to take the risk, though, because history is the only way to go for me! Cannot imagine working in any other field.

[Empress_Sun]

15 hours ago, psstein said:

DO NOT assume a large debt for a history MA.

Not even for Columbia? Could you please elaborate your reasoning? I still have time before I must decide on a path to take, and I would greatly appreciate any type of insight I can get.

[TMP]

Can you just decline the offer and then reapply next year?  Better to get a job earn a salary (that is probably going to be almost equivalent of how much you'd go into debt for Columbia) and try again with the internal fellowships.

[astroid88]

7 hours ago, Empress_Sun said:

I am one of those people whose undergraduate scores were not quite enough to land me directly into a PhD program in history in top schools. I thus decided that my best option would be to do a Masters first, then possibly get a fully funded PhD degree at an Ivy. I am fortunate to have enough personal savings to fund one year of study, but that means I will need to find external funding for my second year, as well as get significant amounts of student loan (thus going into debt). Willing to take the risk, though, because history is the only way to go for me! Cannot imagine working in any other field.

There are schools that offer terminal MAs for a much cheaper tuition, give more aid, and can get you to where you are trying to go. I've just finished hearing back from all my master's applications, and two master's programs have offered to pay for the first year. I would have to reapply for the funding the second year, but even if I don't get any funding, my bill will be no more than $20,000. These are at Austin and Michigan. I'm sure you can find similar. People pay for the MA at Columbia for the name, but, in my opinion, there are better routes. 

Edited March 19, 2018 by astroid88

[astroid88]

7 hours ago, Empress_Sun said:

Not even for Columbia? Could you please elaborate your reasoning? I still have time before I must decide on a path to take, and I would greatly appreciate any type of insight I can get.

Sorry to intrude, but yes, not even for Columbia. See my above post. The only way Columbia makes sense is if it is significantly funded. You realize you are gambling a lot on the idea that you will get the grades, recs, test scores, etc., needed to get into an ivy before you've even started your master's. 

Edited March 19, 2018 by astroid88

[PaulaHsiuling]

Also, your MA will have much more value for your Ph.D. applications if you can demonstrate that whichever institution you attended believed in your potential as a scholar enough to invest in you, rather than just take your money and give you a seat in the classroom.

[psstein]

13 hours ago, Empress_Sun said:

Not even for Columbia? Could you please elaborate your reasoning? I still have time before I must decide on a path to take, and I would greatly appreciate any type of insight I can get.

Not even for Columbia. Most unfunded or partly funded MAs (Columbia, Yale, NYU, Chicago, etc.) are well known as departmental cash cows. Yes, you'll have a MA from Columbia, but that doesn't mean you're going to get any attention or support from faculty. To be totally honest, nobody gives a damn where you get your MA. The PhD institution is what matters. Just to take my program as a microcosm, I know people with MAs from Florida State, Central European University, Indiana, and quite a few others.

The MA is supposed to develop you as a scholar, which Columbia's MA probably won't.