2019 Applications Thread

[coffeeaddict2230]

On 1/29/2019 at 1:05 AM, Psyhopeful said:

If anyone is wondering about the University of Michigan, they do not interview before making their decisions.

thanks! waiting for michigan here

[Mirotu]

10 hours ago, IBrakeForVanJohnson said:

That was me! Was told that they're doing some interviews with a few people, and expect to make decisions by mid-Feb.

Congrats!  Did it seem like they were interviewing finalists? I know each program is different in how they use interviews, places like Wisconsin seem to interview all their finalists to give a program pitch before results come out.  I haven't heard much about UT Austin interviews though

[jmc117]

17 hours ago, transrelativity said:

I'm so happy to meet more trans academics! Really glad we connected here!

I was honestly expecting decisions to come much later, like in February or March. I definitely was not expecting to hear anything in January. Is it common for comm programs to decide this early? I assumed it would take longer to read all of our personal statements and writing samples and such.

I have never met another one (that I know of) so well met! I hope that I meet many more in the future, especially with my area of research interest.

Me too regarding decisions coming sooner but I was Hoping we would hear soon lol. I am hoping I get my answer from Temple and U Mich soon. My American schools will be the harder choices (if I get in) as I'd be going out of country so I'd like lots of time to see my options and decide. 

Are you local to Temple?

[chavezye]

On 1/23/2019 at 11:51 AM, coffeeaddict2230 said:

Does anyone know that is it true that Cornell will interview every short-listed candidate before sending them offers? Still no interview invitation...

Hey y'all, sorry to join so late. I interviewed with Cornell a week ago and just got an email yesterday saying I'm on the waitlist for now. They said they had to be more conservative this year on offers due to limited resources in the department. So fingers crossed, that would be a really great opportunity. 

I'm kinda an odd one out just FYI, I have a Master in Public Health but looking to cross over into Comm, specifically Health Comm, so it could have helped me or hurt my chances.  I also applied to Public Health PhDs too, so I could be anywhere next year.

On 1/27/2019 at 1:49 PM, am707 said:

Anyone apply for the PhD programs at the University of Utah, the University of New Mexico, or the University of South Florida? It looks like none of them notify until February, according to the postings from last year. Also, I've heard of some ~drama~ at UNM that is impacting their PhD students, so I'm curious what anyone else has heard. UNM has a weird program, to say the least, but it intrigues me assuming it's functional. 

Seems like this forum is pretty focused on the big name comm schools on the east coast and midwest, so curious to hear from people who didn't apply to those!

I also applied to Utah as my partner is out there finishing her PhD in Political Science, it looks like next week we should hear back from them.

19 Fall Communication/Public Health PhD application

Applied: Utah (Comm) / Cornell (Comm) / Maryland (Comm) / Michigan State (Comm) / Johns Hopkins (PH) / South Carolina (PH) / North Carolina (PH) / Harvard (PH) / Vanderbilt (Other)

Interviewed: Maryland / Cornell

 Waitlist: Cornell

Accepted: South Carolina

Rejected: Johns Hopkins (Presumed, friend applied to same program and got an interview invitation)

Edited January 30, 2019 by chavezye

[Nope!]

1 hour ago, Mirotu said:

Congrats!  Did it seem like they were interviewing finalists? I know each program is different in how they use interviews, places like Wisconsin seem to interview all their finalists to give a program pitch before results come out.  I haven't heard much about UT Austin interviews though

Thanks! Yes, I was told that there was a "long short list," and the "interview" seemed more like an opportunity for me to ask questions about the program. The person I talked to also talked to me a bit more about the specifics of my application. 

[coffeeaddict2230]

39 minutes ago, chavezye said:

Hey y'all, sorry to join so late. I interviewed with Cornell a week ago and just got an email yesterday saying I'm on the waitlist for now. They said they had to be more conservative this year on offers due to limited resources in the department. So fingers crossed, that would be a really great opportunity. 

I'm kinda an odd one out just FYI, I have a Master in Public Health but looking to cross over into Comm, specifically Health Comm, so it could have helped me or hurt my chances.  I also applied to Public Health PhDs too, so I could be anywhere next year.

I also applied to Utah as my partner is out there finishing her PhD in Political Science, it looks like next week we should hear back from them.

19 Fall Communication/Public Health PhD application

Applied: Utah (Comm) / Cornell (Comm) / Maryland (Comm) / Michigan State (Comm) / Johns Hopkins (PH) / South Carolina (PH) / North Carolina (PH) / Harvard (PH) / Vanderbilt (Other)

Interviewed: Maryland / Cornell

 Waitlist: Cornell

Accepted: South Carolina

Rejected: Johns Hopkins (Presumed, friend applied to same program and got an interview invitation)

thanks for your update! though i think it was a mistake to apply cornell, really not that match... hope you finally get in! they are pretty strong in health comm

[uless]

1 hour ago, chavezye said:

Hey y'all, sorry to join so late. I interviewed with Cornell a week ago and just got an email yesterday saying I'm on the waitlist for now. They said they had to be more conservative this year on offers due to limited resources in the department. So fingers crossed, that would be a really great opportunity. 

I'm kinda an odd one out just FYI, I have a Master in Public Health but looking to cross over into Comm, specifically Health Comm, so it could have helped me or hurt my chances.  I also applied to Public Health PhDs too, so I could be anywhere next year.

I also applied to Utah as my partner is out there finishing her PhD in Political Science, it looks like next week we should hear back from them.

19 Fall Communication/Public Health PhD application

Applied: Utah (Comm) / Cornell (Comm) / Maryland (Comm) / Michigan State (Comm) / Johns Hopkins (PH) / South Carolina (PH) / North Carolina (PH) / Harvard (PH) / Vanderbilt (Other)

Interviewed: Maryland / Cornell

 Waitlist: Cornell

Accepted: South Carolina

Rejected: Johns Hopkins (Presumed, friend applied to same program and got an interview invitation)

Congratulations on your admission letter and I'm in the same situation as you (but still waiting for results..) I studied Biology in Bachelors and Health Communication in Masters (both outside the US though), and this year I also applied for PH & Comm programs.

I was wondering if I could send a love letter to some of the schools since I didn't receive anything yet. In the C.V. I mentioned a conference paper under review by ICA 2019 committee, and now its accepted. Shall I inform them of this?

[chavezye]

1 hour ago, uless said:

Congratulations on your admission letter and I'm in the same situation as you (but still waiting for results..) I studied Biology in Bachelors and Health Communication in Masters (both outside the US though), and this year I also applied for PH & Comm programs.

I was wondering if I could send a love letter to some of the schools since I didn't receive anything yet. In the C.V. I mentioned a conference paper under review by ICA 2019 committee, and now its accepted. Shall I inform them of this?

I would wait until you interview to let them know your ICA paper was accepted. Unfortunately, thats the only time you can really sell anything you did between application deadlines and getting offers/rejections. 

[transrelativity]

4 hours ago, jmc117 said:

I have never met another one (that I know of) so well met! I hope that I meet many more in the future, especially with my area of research interest.

Me too regarding decisions coming sooner but I was Hoping we would hear soon lol. I am hoping I get my answer from Temple and U Mich soon. My American schools will be the harder choices (if I get in) as I'd be going out of country so I'd like lots of time to see my options and decide. 

Are you local to Temple?

There are other trans folks teaching in my department both at my current job and at my last position. I choose to believe that there are a lot more of us out there, and that over time we will become ever more visible.

Yes, I'm local to Temple. I live one 20-min bus ride away from the Annenberg building. I feel really lucky that there's such a high concentration of universities in the Philadelphia area, because I don't think I could commit to Ph.D. study otherwise. I'm not willing to give up tenure, and I need to stay local if I want to keep my job. I'm still mulling over whether I'll take a leave of absence or try to go on teaching half-time while I do my coursework.

[transrelativity]

Congrats on your admission, @chavezye, and best of luck with Cornell!

[jmc117]

11 minutes ago, transrelativity said:

There are other trans folks teaching in my department both at my current job and at my last position. I choose to believe that there are a lot more of us out there, and that over time we will become ever more visible.

Yes, I'm local to Temple. I live one 20-min bus ride away from the Annenberg building. I feel really lucky that there's such a high concentration of universities in the Philadelphia area, because I don't think I could commit to Ph.D. study otherwise. I'm not willing to give up tenure, and I need to stay local if I want to keep my job. I'm still mulling over whether I'll take a leave of absence or try to go on teaching half-time while I do my coursework.

Oh wow so you are already teaching? That is awesome. My end goal is to teach as well. I like that idea-projecting that out to the Universe so it becomes a reality! Lol.

Temple is a little more of a 9 hour car ride for me so while it is one of my top schools, going to be a real big decision as to whether I can afford to go. But I would love the opportunity!

 

[transrelativity]

Just now, jmc117 said:

Oh wow so you are already teaching? That is awesome. My end goal is to teach as well. I like that idea-projecting that out to the Universe so it becomes a reality! Lol.

Temple is a little more of a 9 hour car ride for me so while it is one of my top schools, going to be a real big decision as to whether I can afford to go. But I would love the opportunity!

 

Yeah, I've been in my current position for four years, but I've been teaching at community colleges for seven years, and I taught ESL abroad before that. I think I'm a bit older than most of the folks in this thread.

I love teaching and I intend to continue doing it, but I've started to realize how much I love research and how much it enhances my work in the classroom. Community college teaching is very classroom-focused; my institution has some support for research and conference participation, but not as  much as I'd like. Eventually, I hope to go on to a four-year school where I can teach upper-division courses and get more research support.

[jmc117]

49 minutes ago, transrelativity said:

Yeah, I've been in my current position for four years, but I've been teaching at community colleges for seven years, and I taught ESL abroad before that. I think I'm a bit older than most of the folks in this thread.

I love teaching and I intend to continue doing it, but I've started to realize how much I love research and how much it enhances my work in the classroom. Community college teaching is very classroom-focused; my institution has some support for research and conference participation, but not as  much as I'd like. Eventually, I hope to go on to a four-year school where I can teach upper-division courses and get more research support.

Well perhaps we shall see each other in the Fall! If not, would love to chat re: research

[transrelativity]

2 hours ago, jmc117 said:

Well perhaps we shall see each other in the Fall! If not, would love to chat re: research

Definitely! I'd also love to know about any upcoming conferences that you might be thinking of attending. I'm still new to the communications discipline and I'm looking for venues that would welcome work on gender and culture.

[karenz]

Hi all! I've been lurking for a while, and wanted to share my status a bit with you all.

I got a Skype interview with UC Davis this week, and saw three other people also received the same request. Seems like they are all international students but with their highest degree in the U.S. (so am I). I think the interview went well, but I'm really not sure if I'll be able to make the cut at this point. Also just got rejected by UCSB today... so this really made me jittery about my UCD result. 

Also I wonder anyone has insights about the Emerging Media Studies program at Boston U? I wasn't able to find much info about the program here. Saw one got interviewed early Feb last year, and one got accepted last year around mid Feb. Does anyone know if interview is part of the app process of this program? I heard it's a highly selective one... they only admitted 2-3 students each year. 

Hope we all receive desired offers this year!

[Please100]

44 minutes ago, karenz said:

Hi all! I've been lurking for a while, and wanted to share my status a bit with you all.

I got a Skype interview with UC Davis this week, and saw three other people also received the same request. Seems like they are all international students but with their highest degree in the U.S. (so am I). I think the interview went well, but I'm really not sure if I'll be able to make the cut at this point. Also just got rejected by UCSB today... so this really made me jittery about my UCD result. 

Also I wonder anyone has insights about the Emerging Media Studies program at Boston U? I wasn't able to find much info about the program here. Saw one got interviewed early Feb last year, and one got accepted last year around mid Feb. Does anyone know if interview is part of the app process of this program? I heard it's a highly selective one... they only admitted 2-3 students each year. 

Hope we all receive desired offers this year!

Hi, do you know if UCD interviews international students outside the US? 

[karenz]

43 minutes ago, Please100 said:

Hi, do you know if UCD interviews international students outside the US? 

Hi, I do not know unfortunately, but I saw some of their current students earn their previous degree outside the US. 

[halcyonday]

First post--guess this says something about nerves. I had an interview with UW-Madison in Comm/Rhetoric in the middle of the month that I thought went well. The faculty I interviewed with said decisions would be made "in a few days," but I haven't heard anything since and it's been almost two weeks. Anyone else heard anything here? It sounds like different tracks there make decisions essentially independently. 

I'm nervous about transitioning, as I'm wrapping up an MA in culture studies and I worry about the appearance of discipline-hopping--UW was clear that they don't consider it a "closely related discipline," but I was invited to Northwestern's interview weekend and they seem to think it is.

[Psyhopeful]

1 hour ago, halcyonday said:

First post--guess this says something about nerves. I had an interview with UW-Madison in Comm/Rhetoric in the middle of the month that I thought went well. The faculty I interviewed with said decisions would be made "in a few days," but I haven't heard anything since and it's been almost two weeks. Anyone else heard anything here? It sounds like different tracks there make decisions essentially independently. 

I'm nervous about transitioning, as I'm wrapping up an MA in culture studies and I worry about the appearance of discipline-hopping--UW was clear that they don't consider it a "closely related discipline," but I was invited to Northwestern's interview weekend and they seem to think it is.

Interesting. I had never heard of discipline hopping. I have degrees in psychology and anthropology and my interest is in media psychology. So far I’ve been invited to UCSB’s open house and encouraged to apply to another comm program after consulting a professor in it. I would think a master’s in another area would be a benefit if it ties into your research topic. 

[halcyonday]

@Psyhopeful It seems beneficial to me too, which is why I was so surprised UW was clear about me entering as an MA student. I study popular science communication--I applied to programs in Comm, American Studies, and History/Philosophy of Science all with the same project pitch (well, couched in different disciplinary language, but the same at its core). I'd understand having to take some extra coursework since I don't have a hard rhet background, but still... culture studies has the unfortunate reputation of being "everything and nothing," and I definitely wonder how it's perceived by admissions committees.  

[p287]

I've had similar concerns about "discipline hopping". My undergrad was related to cultural studies with a minor in global media. My MA is in media/comm. I've applied to some PhD programs in media/comm, some in global studies, and some that are more interdisciplinary, as my research interests sort of tie all of my previous work together.

[Psyhopeful]

I’m interested in media effects on children, media literacy, and media use so I applied to developmental psychology and communication PhD programs and the Childhood Studies PhD at Rutgers which is interdisciplinary. I applied to all with the same research focus and tried to highlight my background as an asset. I also have a background in film which I hoped would help. It’s so interesting how every school has a different take on things.

 

[transrelativity]

I think I had a similar experience to what @p287, @halcyonday, and @Psyhopeful describe. My BA and MA are both in English literature, but throughout my MA coursework I started focusing on gender, and my thesis was a combination of lit crit, film studies, and gender studies. I then developed a strong interest in global and East Asian studies through professional development seminars and grant projects over a period of about seven years. Those projects made me realize how much I love interdisciplinary work.

Last year I applied to a gender studies Ph.D. program, which didn't admit me; they said they were looking for applicants whose work could only be done in their program, and that made me realize that the work I want to do (studying gender codes transmitted across national and cultural boundaries through TV, video games, and material culture) could take place in a LOT of different disciplines. I considered East Asian studies, cultural studies, and American studies, but eventually decided on communication and media; ultimately, I think it was the best focus for me. I was a bit nervous about coming in with a literature degree, since most of the faculty I see in communication programs have social science backgrounds, but I wrote in my statement about how I thought lit crit would serve me well in communication research. Hopefully the admissions committees agree.

Edited February 1, 2019 by transrelativity

[halcyonday]

@IBrakeForVanJohnson did you say you'd interviewed with UW? Have you heard back/did they give you a time frame to expect to hear back?

Edited February 1, 2019 by halcyonday

[Nope!]

@halcyonday nope - UT!