Communication/Mass Comm/Journalism

[Ville]

I have seen a few people getting accepted into Georgetown's CCT program on the search results page. Has anyone on this board made a decision to go there? I'm sure most of us are also waiting for the merit-based scholarships results. And my decision to go there will heavily depend on this funding as well.

I haven't seen anyone in this forum talking extensively about the quality of CCT's program, its faculty members & course offerings. Are there any CCT students or alums here who can give us more insights?

I've personally made up my mind to accept the Penn State's offer last week. However, I'm wavering on my decision now as I've been told more and more by my friends that to seriously consider going for Georgetown, a school with a better international reputation instead. This is especially true if I intend to come back to find an employment in Bangkok. Employers here will go for candidates who graduate from a better known school. It shouldn't be this way, but it's the reality. It pains me to hear people keep generalizing that "... State University" is considered second tier to "University of...." and all the Ivy League schools.

While I believe Penn State will provide me with more focus and better education towards the PhD track, I can also see that CCT has more interesting course offerings, many of which are relevant to my interests. What are your thoughts?

[PRguy101]

While I believe Penn State will provide me with more focus and better education towards the PhD track, I can also see that CCT has more interesting course offerings, many of which are relevant to my interests. What are your thoughts?

Hey vit1825

A few questions may help others respond to your post with more insight:

Are you definitely looking to stay in the U.S. and apply for a PHD program after your master's degree studies? Or are you looking to go back to Thailand?

Do you want to experience a bigger U.S. city or a smaller college town?

What do you wish to gain from your masters study? Research? Professional skills? Contacts in the industry?

On a more personal note, I am going through the whole "university of..." and "[insert state] State University" too and I have heard the same arguments. I am not sure how much I will put into that, but I am finding choosing between these two schools to be difficult. Of course in my case the "university of" is considered to have a stronger reputation, but it doesn't fit my research interests as much as "state University" does....in YOUR case, you can't really go wrong with Penn State, it is a top public school (but then again so is Purdue and yet you didn't choose that over Penn State.) It depends on what you are looking for out of a master's degree program. Georgetown's program is pretty cutting edge. One of my professors got his master's degree from there, but his PHD is from U of Minn. We never hear about his master's degree, just his PHD. So go figure. Good luck! I hope others on this board can help you.

Edited March 8, 2010 by PRguy101

[jonjalin]

I actually had to CALL them to find out if I was in or not...because online it said app pending.....so I think their comp system is down/messed up. I found out i was in when i called....I suggest you do the same.

Skiergirl, I was wondering if Rutgers gave you official notice of your acceptance yet? I see that someone posted an acceptance for Rutgers Communication PhD on March 7 (their acceptance was via website). My website application status still says "No Decision". When I called last week, they said there had been no decision made on my file. Also, Rutgers SCI hosted a PhD recruitment event this past week with 20 recruits they say had been admitted but on the department website it was admitted that Rutgers would not be able to fund all of these recruits. I wonder how Rutgers thinks they are going to get those admits and other ones to enroll without providing funding?

[swan1186]

Allisont, I don't think you need to prepare for interview. Questions are always the same, starting with "Why us?" ending with "Do you have any question?"

They contacted me on April, 1st and we scheduled the interview for April 10th. But it may vary depending on the department. I applied for SPR program. One more note: I think I was one of the latest interviewees, because of the additional documents they demanded, since I was a non-US applicant, so they may contact you earlier.

I have heard that USC is very bureaucratic university when it comes to application process, but it is a great university (at least the grad students I had contacted told me so ).

A tip that may be of use: show your knowledge on the university, e.g. the centers of the university, its philosophy, etc. It really helps if they see that you really want to be there.

Wish you luck!

was the interview for the SPR program for a scholarship or just to get accepted?

[Ville]

Are you definitely looking to stay in the U.S. and apply for a PHD program after your master's degree studies? Or are you looking to go back to Thailand?

Do you want to experience a bigger U.S. city or a smaller college town?

What do you wish to gain from your masters study? Research? Professional skills? Contacts in the industry?

Thanks PRguy101 for your advice! I guess we all need to look at our priorities and goals and make the hard decision. At this point, I'm 90% sure that I'm going to continue with the PhD program in the US after my MA. I'm leaving 10% just in case I find out later that it's not the right path for me. But after spending more than 5 years in the communication and non-profit industry and now feeling kinda stuck somewhere in mid-level position without gaining more specialized skill, I think the timing is right for me to move onto the doctoral studies. So, research is more important for my masters study.

My issue right now is why should I get too caught up in this perceived 'international reputation'? Perhaps it's peer pressure for a silly thing called social recognition. Most of my fellow Fulbright grantees, albeit in different fields, are going to schools like Harvard, Yale, Columbia and UC Berkley. I can say some made the decision to attend the highest ranked school instead of the highest ranked program solely because of the social recognition and networking opportunities factors. It's getting tiring for me to have to explain to others that Penn State is a top-tier research school, esp. for my areas of focus.

As a Fulbright grantee, I'm not allowed to seek employment & apply for work permit in the US for 2 years after I've completed my MA or PhD studies. This means I have to return to Thailand or relocate anywhere internationally for 2 years before I can come back to the US. While it's a wishful thinking if I can do MA at Georgetown and then PhD at Penn State, funding is an issue. Even if I get merit-based scholarships at Georgetown, I have to stress over maintaining 3.80 GPA to renew it. Living expenses in DC would also be significantly higher. If I accept Penn State's offer, funding is a non-issue as long as I can make normal progress towards my degree.

Having lived in big tropical cities (Bangkok and Singapore) my whole life, the idea of moving to a small college town with freezing cold weather sounds challenging. It definitely doesn't help to read some disturbing posts about Penn State such as the one below from this very forum! But I have also talked to some students in Penn State, and they have many nice things to say about the school.

In fact, it makes more and more sense for me to just go for Penn State after typing this post!

Hey all,

I am a Phd student in Comparative Lit. at Penn State and I can only tell you that half of my incoming class is dropping out, and so am I. I have heard good things about science programs here but my ex , a PhD student at Computer Sciences also dropped out last year because they were so unfriendly, hostile and plain anti-social in his department. My gay friends do endure the horror of being bashed and are afraid to walk at night by themselves amongst the loud drunk jocks. It's heavily important to be into frats, partying and football here - academics come next. Everybody seems to be married and have a morgage. No racial/gender/cultural diversity. It's very rural and you are in the middle of nowhere. No real transportation to major cities, only an overpriced bus called Chinatown bus - imagine the conditions of that. Don't get fooled with the idea you can go to NYC all the time - only if you have a car and 8 hours to spend in a roundtrip. If you want diversity and cultural stimuli, do NOT come here, you'll not find it. Undergrds seem to love it but for grads it's a sad, isolated life with bad cold weather for 6 out of 9 school months.

hope it helped!

I guess I'm in the natural freak out phase during the end game of deciding which school to go to. It's important to realize that I am already fortunate to have this opportunity to pursue advanced degrees in the US. It does sound trivial to be worried over this stuff when there are bigger problems out there in the world. But it's still fun to keep talking on and on about schools, programs and how we are making decisions. That's what this forum is for. :-)

[thearchiver]

was the interview for the SPR program for a scholarship or just to get accepted?

@swan1186

the latter. I wasn't able to attend since I couldn't get any financial support. It is really tough to get it. Last year 50 applicants got accepted from about 250 applicants. And only few ones got scholarships. To have an idea about your chance, you can check their website. They provide the statistics of admitted students, so that you can figure out where you stand among the last year's lucky ones. I chatted with one of the grad students and she definitely recommended to attend although you cannot get scholarship. There are very helpful people in grad school, try to contact them.

Good luck!

[allisont]

I just heard back from the USC spr program yesterday. I got in without an interview, so maybe they only require them for international students.

[mei]

I just heard back from the USC spr program yesterday. I got in without an interview, so maybe they only require them for international students.

Hi Allisont-

I'm still waiting to hear back from USC Annenberg's MA in Public Diplomacy program - do you happen to know anyone who heard from them yet? I know that they are still accepting late applications, and I am soo anxious to hear from back! Congratulations on your acceptance, though! Must feel great.

[allisont]

Mei - unfortunately I don't. I do know that their spring break is next week though, so maybe you'll hear something this week! Thanks, it does feel great! It was a long shot for me, so I'm really excited!

[swan1186]

@swan1186

the latter. I wasn't able to attend since I couldn't get any financial support. It is really tough to get it. Last year 50 applicants got accepted from about 250 applicants. And only few ones got scholarships. To have an idea about your chance, you can check their website. They provide the statistics of admitted students, so that you can figure out where you stand among the last year's lucky ones. I chatted with one of the grad students and she definitely recommended to attend although you cannot get scholarship. There are very helpful people in grad school, try to contact them.

Good luck!

thanks thearchiver. i was asking cuz i got accepted and had a scholarship interview this week and wanted to get an idea. contgrats to allisont..i'll see you there!

[sykora25]

Thank you...Hope you hear more good news as well, sykora25. I don't know when they will send out the rejections. Last time I checked, they said they'd let us know by March 15, but it seems things have sped up a bit since then.

Hey mobicat,

I was actually waitlisted for the Ph.D. program! I already have full funding for another school and was planning on going there...very confused now.

[thearchiver]

thanks thearchiver. i was asking cuz i got accepted and had a scholarship interview this week and wanted to get an idea. contgrats to allisont..i'll see you there!

not at all, swan1186. maybe they have different procedures for native & foreign students. anyway. congratulations to you and allisont. enjoy your school!

[skiergirl24]

EGADS I am so irritated. I still have not heard from Ohio and Syracuse. I thought I stood a good chance of getting in at OU but Syracuse I know is a huge reach. I got two rejections right away (from UMASS and UNC) so if Syracuse and OU were rejecting me then why haven't they just sent me a rejection letter? Does this mean I am likely 'waitlisted'? I've called both schools and they are still 'making decisions' (though I called them in late Feb). Should I call again?

[Jae B.]

EGADS I am so irritated. I still have not heard from Ohio and Syracuse. I thought I stood a good chance of getting in at OU but Syracuse I know is a huge reach. I got two rejections right away (from UMASS and UNC) so if Syracuse and OU were rejecting me then why haven't they just sent me a rejection letter? Does this mean I am likely 'waitlisted'? I've called both schools and they are still 'making decisions' (though I called them in late Feb). Should I call again?

It could likely mean you are waitlisted. One of my schools asked for my decision A.S.A.P. because other students are waiting to hear if they have a spot. Way to make someone feel lousy!

If financial aid notifications haven't gone out yet, that can seriously slow things down for you. Who wants to decide before they know what their financial aid is?

I'm not sure if there's anything you can do, but I guess I'd brainstorm ways to potentially move to the top of the waitlist. I'd call again.

Good luck!

[naptown]

Congrats to everyone with acceptances, and my thoughts are with you if you're still waiting.

I decided to choose Ohio State. Had a great visit two weeks ago, and was very confident about the program, faculty, and locale.

[Mrs. Eye]

Hello all,

I only applied SUNY-Buffalo since my husband got a job in Buffalo. I was wondering if anyone heard anything from their PhD program. I've already email them couple times(since their graduate secretary doesn't pick up ANY phone call...) and got back nothing. I'm also wondering if I should email them again(my last email was on March 2nd.)

[PRguy101]

Congrats to everyone with acceptances, and my thoughts are with you if you're still waiting.

I decided to choose Ohio State. Had a great visit two weeks ago, and was very confident about the program, faculty, and locale.

Congrats Naptown on all of your acceptances. You surely had your pick of the best schools in our field. Good Choice with Ohio State! I hope to see you out and about at conferences etc. I am still deciding between two schools, but I will most likely go with my first choice (I am going back to visit this week, just for peace of mind).

@Skiergirl, chin up my friend. Did you get anything saying your file was complete? If not, I'd use that as a pretense to call. If so, heck, I'd still call OU.

[Dith Vader]

For the record, I applied to five schools: Carnegie Mellon, NYU, CUNY, Columbia, and Medill.

Got into Carnegie Mellon, CUNY, and Medill. Rejected from Columbia, and still waiting from NYU.

I applied to NYU's CRC journalism program (regrettably, because I love all the other programs too but I just had to choose the most selective one :/), and that's my FIRST FIRST FIRST choice because it's very unique. Anyone heard anything from them? And, people who got in last year, what were your stats? Just so I can compare it to mine and stop sweating over it if it's impossible anyway D:

[skiergirl24]

Okay guys so I need some opinions.

I did not get into my top choices of schools.

I got into UCONN and Rutgers. Still waiting on Syracuse but highly doubt I will get in there.

However, the chair of my dept offered me a full time teaching position for a year. I'd be teaching the same classes I am teaching now only 4 sections instead of two. The pay is good and full benefits. I would also be able to save some $$$, pay down my student loans, retake the GREs and really focus on my statements of purpose...visit some schools etc. I'd reapply this coming fall - to my top choices and I'd really investigate schools that would be the 'best fit' for me.

Then again, UCONN is close to home and I really miss my friends. But...I've heard there are a lot of departmental problems.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh decisions decisions!

[PRguy101]

Okay guys so I need some opinions.

I did not get into my top choices of schools.

I got into UCONN and Rutgers. Still waiting on Syracuse but highly doubt I will get in there.

However, the chair of my dept offered me a full time teaching position for a year. I'd be teaching the same classes I am teaching now only 4 sections instead of two. The pay is good and full benefits. I would also be able to save some $$$, pay down my student loans, retake the GREs and really focus on my statements of purpose...visit some schools etc. I'd reapply this coming fall - to my top choices and I'd really investigate schools that would be the 'best fit' for me.

Then again, UCONN is close to home and I really miss my friends. But...I've heard there are a lot of departmental problems.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh decisions decisions!

You don't seem too happy about going to UCONN. Are they offering full funding? Regardless, I guess the real question is do you see yourself being there for 4-5 years? Will the department offer you what you need in terms of a positive/productive work environment, research opportunities, more advanced teaching opps (u already have pretty solid teaching experience), and good placement? Go with your heart, but don't settle for significantly less. Especially, when the alternative plan can do nothing but boost your chances of future success. It isn't like you will be working at the GAP! Good luck with your decision.

Edited March 24, 2010 by PRguy101

[Jae B.]

You don't seem too happy about going to UCONN. Are they offering full funding? Regardless, I guess the real question is do you see yourself being there for 4-5 years? Will the department offer you what you need in terms of a positive/productive work environment, research opportunities, more advanced teaching opps (u already have pretty solid teaching experience), and good placement? Go with your heart, but don't settle for significantly less. Especially, when the alternative plan can do nothing but boost your chances of future success. It isn't like you will be working at the GAP! Good luck with your decision.

^… This!

Do you really think your friends can tide you over for 4 - 5 years in a problemed department?

Definitely consider how much debt you would go into for UCONN vs. your opportunities after lessening your debt teaching for a year.

Is there a way you can get a year's deferment for UCONN, to test your prospects a year from now and see if their department shores up?

I guess another consideration is, if you choose to teach, what happens if you get offered another teaching position (or related job) a year from now? Would you still reach for your PhD goal? Timing is important.

[jonjalin]

What they said. It is pretty solid advice.

[seachange]

Hi!

A friend of mine wanted to know about USC.

Anyone knows any results for the

communication management Masters at USC??

Thanks!

[Jae B.]

Hi!

A friend of mine wanted to know about USC.

Anyone knows any results for the

communication management Masters at USC??

Thanks!

Hmm...I definitely don't see anything about it on the results page for this year. Only communication PhD programs.

But tell your friend not to fret: looking back to results last year, there was one Communication Management Masters acceptance in early May. May 7, to be specific. So it may still be some time before they hear.

Good luck to your friend!

Edited March 27, 2010 by Jae B.

[skiergirl24]

Congrats to eveyone on their acceptances.

I called OU, Syracuse and GSU. Left messages with OU and GSU. Syracuse told me that they have not made all of their decisions yet. I guess I am waitlisted. Who knows.

UCONN told me it would be a 'couple of weeks' before they decide on funding. 2 weeks from now will be the week of the 15th. How am I supposed to inform them of my decision whether or not to attend if I don't have any information about my funding package by then??

I am beyond frustrated.