2019 Education Applications

[Infinite glitter]

Hi Everyone,

Yes, it's only September, but who's getting ready for 2019 applications? What are you working on?

 

I just submitted my application for a PhD in Education:STEM. I'm anxiously waiting to hear from something. It doesn't help that there seems to be no history of anyone from that program who has posted here.

 

[2019edhopeful]

I'm getting ready! Have corresponded with faculty at all the schools I'm applying to and written my SOPs. I can't apply until recommendations come through, and I doubt they'll be done before November at the earliest. There doesn't seem to be any benefit to applying before the deadline, because none of the schools I'm applying to have rolling deadlines. I wish they did, I'm already tired of being in limbo and it's literally another half year of this!

 

[t_ruth]

On 9/26/2018 at 2:11 PM, 2019edhopeful said:

I'm getting ready! Have corresponded with faculty at all the schools I'm applying to and written my SOPs. I can't apply until recommendations come through, and I doubt they'll be done before November at the earliest. There doesn't seem to be any benefit to applying before the deadline, because none of the schools I'm applying to have rolling deadlines. I wish they did, I'm already tired of being in limbo and it's literally another half year of this!

 

The only benefit to applying before the deadline is that excited jr. faculty may view your application early and get excited/attached

[SNH]

Hello Everyone,

I'm also preparing my application for a couple of education programs. I am applying to PhD to two Canadian Universities: OISE and McGill. I had a question, so if the admission website doesn't make "connecting with a professor and confirming their availability for supervision" a requirement, should I apply without contacting any of the faculty? Or if I contact them and they don't reply to my email, should I mention their name in my application?

Thanks!

[Infinite glitter]

22 hours ago, SNH said:

Hello Everyone,

I'm also preparing my application for a couple of education programs. I am applying to PhD to two Canadian Universities: OISE and McGill. I had a question, so if the admission website doesn't make "connecting with a professor and confirming their availability for supervision" a requirement, should I apply without contacting any of the faculty? Or if I contact them and they don't reply to my email, should I mention their name in my application?

Thanks!

I would at least look at the faculty and see if there is anyone you would like to work with.  If there is anyone, then you should contact them and mention them in your application whether they respond to you or not. I think sincerity is key- not contacting them just to establish contact.

Good luck!

 

[SNH]

Thank you for your reply. I contacted a couple of professor and none of them replied. Maybe I will mention their name anyway and see how it goes.

Good Luck to you too

[OsakaBen]

Working on my applications now. I'm a classroom (K-8) teacher and working part time with a favorite prof as a research assistant. Cramming for GRE and teaching has kept me super busy, and I should be working on my SOP rather than wasting time worrying about my quant score. I'm taking the GRE at the last second before sending my application in (end of Nov.). Ugh.

I have been in contact with one prof I was hoping to work with (her experience lines up SO well with my interest/experience), but she informed me she is retiring to emeritus and will NOT be taking new grad students next year. Very friendly and chatty in emails and even offered to attend the PhD information night at her school to chat with me in person. 

[civitas]

Hi everyone,

I'm also working on my applications for these days. I haven't taken a GRE examination, so the only chance for me is the late November one, which seems to be risky anyway. As my relative advantage lies in working experience (a founder of a startup, one EdTech app with 300,000+ users), I think the most essential thing for me is to prepare a better SoP. LoR is a bit awkward for me since I don't have a supervisor after college and my undergraduate major is neither related to education nor to technology. Do I still need to send recommendations from my undergraduate institution? 

[FutureEdPHD]

Working on my applications now and just took the GRE. Somehow I didn't think it would be so hard to go through this process while still teaching full time, but it's been a real struggle. Letters of rec are already in at the 6 schools I'm applying to and my personal statements are done for the most part. Just making the final touches and then I'll hit submit. *crosses fingers*

[OsakaBen]

On 10/29/2018 at 11:17 AM, civitas said:

Hi everyone,

I'm also working on my applications for these days. I haven't taken a GRE examination, so the only chance for me is the late November one, which seems to be risky anyway. As my relative advantage lies in working experience (a founder of a startup, one EdTech app with 300,000+ users), I think the most essential thing for me is to prepare a better SoP. LoR is a bit awkward for me since I don't have a supervisor after college and my undergraduate major is neither related to education nor to technology. Do I still need to send recommendations from my undergraduate institution? 

I'm taking late November GRE as well. Fingers crossed!

[civitas]

3 hours ago, OsakaBen said:

I'm taking late November GRE as well. Fingers crossed!

Good luck to you! What program are you applying for?

[t_ruth]

On 10/29/2018 at 2:17 PM, civitas said:

Hi everyone,

I'm also working on my applications for these days. I haven't taken a GRE examination, so the only chance for me is the late November one, which seems to be risky anyway. As my relative advantage lies in working experience (a founder of a startup, one EdTech app with 300,000+ users), I think the most essential thing for me is to prepare a better SoP. LoR is a bit awkward for me since I don't have a supervisor after college and my undergraduate major is neither related to education nor to technology. Do I still need to send recommendations from my undergraduate institution? 

You'll want letters that can speak to your aptitude for work as an academic. I would suggest at least one comes from someone with a PhD. What kinds of programs are you looking at?

[civitas]

1 minute ago, t_ruth said:

You'll want letters that can speak to your aptitude for work as an academic. I would suggest at least one comes from someone with a PhD. What kinds of programs are you looking at?

Thanks! Educational Technology MA. Not prepared for PhD programs yet. 

[t_ruth]

Just now, civitas said:

Thanks! Educational Technology MA. Not prepared for PhD programs yet. 

I would suggest an MS instead of an MA if you do want to go to PhD programs. That way, you can start research right away and be more competitive for PhDs and for fellowships. I would also suggest looking beyond ed tech programs to things like ed psych and learning sciences.

[civitas]

4 hours ago, t_ruth said:

I would suggest an MS instead of an MA if you do want to go to PhD programs. That way, you can start research right away and be more competitive for PhDs and for fellowships. I would also suggest looking beyond ed tech programs to things like ed psych and learning sciences.

Since I have plenty of professional experiences, I think by applying for a professional program I may have a better chance to be admitted. Besides, I am applying for Media Lab since I'm a coder for more than 10 years. And I have got my TOEFL score (as an international applicant..) today: R30/L29/S23/W28, hopefully enough for most programs. I don't have more chances to take another TOEFL before deadlines, so it seems sometimes I need to argue somehow.

Another consideration for me is financial. MS seems to be overly expensive especially in some regions of U.S. And I simply didn't gain enough money from my own business, mainly due to the maintenance of a de facto non-profit EdTech product. 

Oh, by the way. My GPA in the undergraduate institution isn't well enough (some 3.0+) but my major is totally irrelevant to Education nor Technology (Chinese Language and Literature). I studied programming myself many years before college, so I didn't think it necessary to choose a major in CS or Math. I am worried about how to solve this in SoP since the GPA is mainly caused by my business (overworked..).

Edited November 1, 2018 by civitas

[t_ruth]

9 hours ago, civitas said:

Since I have plenty of professional experiences, I think by applying for a professional program I may have a better chance to be admitted. Besides, I am applying for Media Lab since I'm a coder for more than 10 years. And I have got my TOEFL score (as an international applicant..) today: R30/L29/S23/W28, hopefully enough for most programs. I don't have more chances to take another TOEFL before deadlines, so it seems sometimes I need to argue somehow.

Another consideration for me is financial. MS seems to be overly expensive especially in some regions of U.S. And I simply didn't gain enough money from my own business, mainly due to the maintenance of a de facto non-profit EdTech product. 

Oh, by the way. My GPA in the undergraduate institution isn't well enough (some 3.0+) but my major is totally irrelevant to Education nor Technology (Chinese Language and Literature). I studied programming myself many years before college, so I didn't think it necessary to choose a major in CS or Math. I am worried about how to solve this in SoP since the GPA is mainly caused by my business (overworked..).

You can take or leave my advice. I'm in a very related field. If you eventually want a PhD an MS is going to serve you better and your industry experience will make you more competitive for an MS. There is no cost difference between an MS and MA most places.

[civitas]

12 hours ago, t_ruth said:

You can take or leave my advice. I'm in a very related field. If you eventually want a PhD an MS is going to serve you better and your industry experience will make you more competitive for an MS. There is no cost difference between an MS and MA most places.

Are there any 1-year MS program? Or will MS programs provide some financial support? I always thought those master programs require me to pay for everything, so it really matters if a program is 1-year or 2-year long. I don't have enough information, and thanks in advance!

[civitas]

On 11/1/2018 at 8:53 AM, t_ruth said:

I would suggest an MS instead of an MA if you do want to go to PhD programs. That way, you can start research right away and be more competitive for PhDs and for fellowships. I would also suggest looking beyond ed tech programs to things like ed psych and learning sciences.

2

PS I haven't seen many EdTech MS programs. Northwestern has a Learning Science program but that's an MA. Media Lab is the only MS program I am applying for now since it is fully funded, but I don't have much confidence in myself because it's over-crowded. I don't know anything academic about Ed Psych... Is that still a good idea to apply? 

Edited November 2, 2018 by civitas

[t_ruth]

Depending on the kinds of questions you want to ask, Ed Psych or digital learning Masters programs might be good matches. Most will be two years. Some offer funding (or might for a second year if you are a good student/researcher). I also know people accepted into Ed PhD programs without Masters degrees or Education undergrad if they have a good background for research. MA is certainly the easiest route, but may not be the best for your goals. Do you have a mentor in academia near you? This can be very helpful.

[civitas]

18 hours ago, t_ruth said:

Depending on the kinds of questions you want to ask, Ed Psych or digital learning Masters programs might be good matches. Most will be two years. Some offer funding (or might for a second year if you are a good student/researcher). I also know people accepted into Ed PhD programs without Masters degrees or Education undergrad if they have a good background for research. MA is certainly the easiest route, but may not be the best for your goals. Do you have a mentor in academia near you? This can be very helpful.

2

Unluckily, no. I'm an international student and despite the fact that my business has plenty of cooperation with local universities, it's obvious that there is no motivation for me to join in their programs. The best EdTech program in my country is located in my undergrad institution, which also lists me into one of their projects (...) as a remarkable EdTech product. Yet, I don't have any research experience (I've been developing EdTech things for courses, not for labs), just as what you said. So I will have a look at digital learning programs. So far, I have examined: Learning and Technology; Learning Science; Educational Technology.  

Thanks for your advice again

[t_ruth]

3 hours ago, civitas said:

Unluckily, no. I'm an international student and despite the fact that my business has plenty of cooperation with local universities, it's obvious that there is no motivation for me to join in their programs. The best EdTech program in my country is located in my undergrad institution, which also lists me into one of their projects (...) as a remarkable EdTech product. Yet, I don't have any research experience (I've been developing EdTech things for courses, not for labs), just as what you said. So I will have a look at digital learning programs. So far, I have examined: Learning and Technology; Learning Science; Educational Technology.  

Thanks for your advice again

Many Ed Psych programs are similar to Learning Sciences programs. There are also Ed Psych and Ed Tech combined programs, like at Michigan State. Start reading research that interests you and see where those authors are (what type of program).

[Sandmaster]

Hi all, good luck to the applicants in 2019! I just went through the application cycle (2018) and got admitted to a variety of programs. Feel free to reach out if you have questions about the process. Also, if interested in educational technology/learning sciences, let me know also. :) Best of luck!

[civitas]

On 11/6/2018 at 3:56 AM, Sandmaster said:

Hi all, good luck to the applicants in 2019! I just went through the application cycle (2018) and got admitted to a variety of programs. Feel free to reach out if you have questions about the process. Also, if interested in educational technology/learning sciences, let me know also. Best of luck!

Glad to meet you! My problem is a most common one: is my profile strong enough? Lots of industry experience, my own EdTech app with 300,000 users, while an irrelevant  major, mediocre GPA and strange LoR. Besides, I'm an international applicant. 

 

 

[civitas]

11 hours ago, civitas said:

Glad to meet you! My problem is a most common one: is my profile strong enough? Lots of industry experience, my own EdTech app with 300,000 users, while an irrelevant  major, mediocre GPA and strange LoR. Besides, I'm an international applicant. 

 

 

Some basic info:

GPA: 81.35 (out of 100; no official 4.0 scale)

Undergraduate Institution: Beijing Normal University (China)

Undergraduate Major: Chinese Language and Literature

GRE: Not taken yet

TOEFL: 110 out of 120

Working Experience: Startup Founder for 4 years (since my sophomore year); one national project of China MoE; one EdTech app with 300,000 users around the world (some 30-40% outside China, mostly India, US, and European countries) 

Skills: Proficient in computer programming (started in age 10)

Awards: Quite a lot from Chinese gov

LoR: Something hard; I can find some professors in local universities since they are my cooperation partners for years; no working letter since I'm the boss..

 

[CaliEdSchoolNerd]

I am currently applying to programs in urban education. I feel like I'm a little late to the party, since working two jobs and dealing with various life issues has delayed some of my progress on applications, but now I feel like I'm back on track with just a couple weeks to go before due dates. I have one quick question: do admissions committees expect that all LoR come from PhD's? One of my recommenders is from my last teaching position, and does not have a terminal degree. I asked him to focus his letter on my research and development of a new curriculum sequence for our school, so it should still have a research focus. Some schools indicated that a professional reference was preferred over just academic ones, while one of my schools seems to require that recommenders have doctorates. Should I reach out to a backup recommender with a PhD just in case? Thanks, and good luck everyone!