Applications 2019

[Karou]

Hey all,

Sorry for the double post, but I was wondering whether anyone who applied to Johns Hopkins still has their official GRE scores listed as "Awaiting" on their application checklist? I know they sent out an email saying the issue was likely on their side shortly after applications were due, but it has been over a month now, so I'm wondering whether I should contact them to check in? I'm not particularly worried but it does seem a little strange. Perhaps they will start matching official scores with applications once they start the review process in earnest.

[e_randolph]

@Karou I’d say don’t worry about the GRE scores. I shot them an email about it way back and I got a response from the admin there.  She basically said not to stress and that the committee will consider your self-reported scores if they’ve still failed to match the scores when they review the applications.

[Karou]

1 minute ago, e_randolph said:

@Karou I’d say don’t worry about the GRE scores. I shot them an email about it way back and I got a response from the admin there.  She basically said not to stress and that the committee will consider your self-reported scores if they’ve still failed to match the scores when they review the applications.

Great, thank you! That's what I figured, but it's nice to have confirmation.

[MARTINt]

5 minutes ago, e_randolph said:

@Karou I’d say don’t worry about the GRE scores. I shot them an email about it way back and I got a response from the admin there.  She basically said not to stress and that the committee will consider your self-reported scores if they’ve still failed to match the scores when they review the applications.

@KarouI had the same experience with UVA. My official TOEFL scores were sent to the wrong place, yet the AdCom reviewed my application with the self-reported ones.

Edited January 26, 2019 by MARTINt

[Guest]

3 hours ago, Karou said:

Hey all,

Sorry for the double post, but I was wondering whether anyone who applied to Johns Hopkins still has their official GRE scores listed as "Awaiting" on their application checklist? I know they sent out an email saying the issue was likely on their side shortly after applications were due, but it has been over a month now, so I'm wondering whether I should contact them to check in? I'm not particularly worried but it does seem a little strange. Perhaps they will start matching official scores with applications once they start the review process in earnest.

Hi @Karou, here's a second opinion to ease your mind. Same as, @e_randolph, I was concerned and decided to email the Program Coordinator about it. She told me that this is a University-wide issue, but also assured me the committee would evaluate the applicants' profile based on the self-reported scores. 

[Karou]

Thank you both! It's nice to know that universities seem to be understanding about things that are out of our control.

To be honest, I'm 95% sure that I will be rejected from Johns Hopkins. It was a good fit to begin with, but some relatively last minute adjustments to my project have transformed it into a rather poor fit. I still applied because I had already sent in my test scores, and thought I may as well. Not a particularly sound financial decision on my part, but there you go!

Edited January 26, 2019 by Karou

[Jericho]

4 hours ago, sseire said:

Hi @Karou, here's a second opinion to ease your mind. Same as, @e_randolph, I was concerned and decided to email the Program Coordinator about it. She told me that this is a University-wide issue, but also assured me the committee would evaluate the applicants' profile based on the self-reported scores. 

The two places that hadn't marked my scores as "received" yet, I called and made sure they were somewhere in the system but just not matched up yet. That was the case for both of them. I only had one weird thing where my undergrad transcript was sent to the Newark campus even though I applied to Rutgers NB. That got worked out though too. I wouldn't worry about it, especially if they have your self-reported scores to go off of. 

[Karou]

13 hours ago, Jericho said:

The two places that hadn't marked my scores as "received" yet, I called and made sure they were somewhere in the system but just not matched up yet. That was the case for both of them. I only had one weird thing where my undergrad transcript was sent to the Newark campus even though I applied to Rutgers NB. That got worked out though too. I wouldn't worry about it, especially if they have your self-reported scores to go off of. 

Aah that sounds stressful, I'm glad it all worked out in the end! The paperwork/official records end of things is always my least favorite part of any such process. I'm not looking forward to having to deal with my visa application (but hey, it's a good problem to have, so I'm not complaining!).

[fosgfp]

On 1/25/2019 at 8:01 PM, urbanhistorynerd said:

Same boat here - I probably won't hear back until the first or second week of Feb. It is nerve wracking.

But, I did get some uplifting news...I received a really out of the blue encouraging email from a POI I actually never contacted. It was pretty long, basically saying how they were very impressed by my application and are very "enthusiastic" about it, some really nice things about my potential to be a historian, and finally that I should consider the school very seriously. I also received two similar but shorter emails from two other schools. Good news, I hope?

which schools, if you don't mind me asking?

[Gotya64]

Has anyone ever received a campus visit offer (fully reimbursed, already interviewed) without formal acceptance? 

[DanaJ]

This is going to sound like a ridiculous question, but I have been creeping on this thread for about a week and am curious. Did everyone applying to graduate programs attend top tier universities? Personally I attend a smaller regional school, but graduated summa cum laude in undergrad and am on track to for the same with my MA. I have also worked as a graduate assistant for my entire MA career. I applied to a range of doctoral programs, from top tier programs all the way to regional universities like the one I currently attend. I am really just asking to know if my anxiety in this waiting period before admissions decisions are released is justified, I know we are all feeling it!

[TMP]

50 minutes ago, Gotya64 said:

Has anyone ever received a campus visit offer (fully reimbursed, already interviewed) without formal acceptance? 

If you mean for "interview" weekend like at NYU, absolutely it happens all the time.  Just read the letter carefully, it'll tell you if it's just a "campus visit" weekend and decisions will be made afterward.

[TMP]

1 minute ago, DanaJ said:

This is going to sound like a ridiculous question, but I have been creeping on this thread for about a week and am curious. Did everyone applying to graduate programs attend top tier universities? Personally I attend a smaller regional school, but graduated summa cum laude in undergrad and am on track to for the same with my MA. I have also worked as a graduate assistant for my entire MA career. I applied to a range of doctoral programs, from top tier programs all the way to regional universities like the one I currently attend. I am really just asking to know if my anxiety in this waiting period before admissions decisions are released is justified, I know we are all feeling it!

No.  Take a look at the graduate students' profiles and you'll see a range of undergraduate institutions!

[DanaJ]

3 minutes ago, TMP said:

No.  Take a look at the graduate students' profiles and you'll see a range of undergraduate institutions!

Thank you! That makes me feel better. I got my first rejection on Friday and am trying to figure out what went wrong. My department assures me it is more about having someone who is excited about my content and not to be discouraged by one rejection, but once it's in your head it's hard to shake!

Maybe domestic politics during the early Cold War just isn't something a lot of schools want to touch. Hopefully someone things that examining how the Civil Rights movement, Korea, and issues like McCarthyism all impacted U.S. elections is as interesting as I do, that's half the battle!

Edited January 28, 2019 by DanaJ

[I_Am_In_Paine]

14 minutes ago, DanaJ said:

Thank you! That makes me feel better. I got my first rejection on Friday and am trying to figure out what went wrong. My department assures me it is more about having someone who is excited about my content and not to be discouraged by one rejection, but once it's in your head it's hard to shake!

Maybe domestic politics during the early Cold War just isn't something a lot of schools want to touch. Hopefully someone things that examining how the Civil Rights movement, Korea, and issues like McCarthyism all impacted U.S. elections is as interesting as I do, that's half the battle!

Did you apply to GW? They have National Security Archives there and IIRC faculty that do significant research on your topic.

[DanaJ]

10 minutes ago, villageelliot said:

Did you apply to GW? They have National Security Archives there and IIRC faculty that do significant research on your topic.

I did not. I knew about the National Security Archives, not the IIRC! Some schools worried me with funding, and the number of applications I sent out was fairly limited due to the cost of applying. That's another concern, I worry that I didn't apply to ENOUGH schools.  Dr. Tracy Campbell at the University of Kentucky is who I would most like to work with, he has looked at midterm elections in the 1940s. I went up there and met with him and the DGS the week before the application deadline so hopefully I made a good impression.

[Sigaba]

23 minutes ago, DanaJ said:

Maybe domestic politics during the early Cold War just isn't something a lot of schools want to touch. Hopefully someone things that examining how the Civil Rights movement, Korea, and issues like McCarthyism all impacted U.S. elections is as interesting as I do, that's half the battle!

2

It may depend upon how one defines "domestic politics" if not also the "early Cold War."

[fordlandia]

I was just invited for a campus visit, fully-paid, "to explain the program and make sure that it is a good fit for you." There is no mention of an interview so I am a bit confused, should I prepare for a formal interview? Are there important questions I should remember to ask the faculty during my visit?

[DanaJ]

9 minutes ago, Sigaba said:

It may depend upon how one defines "domestic politics" if not also the "early Cold War."

VERY TRUE! Domestic national politics but the early Cold War could be argued as far back as the Manhattan Project, while my MA thesis is focused on the 1950s.

[DanaJ]

7 minutes ago, ipavineri said:

I was just invited for a campus visit, fully-paid, "to explain the program and make sure that it is a good fit for you." There is no mention of an interview so I am a bit confused, should I prepare for a formal interview? Are there important questions I should remember to ask the faculty during my visit?

I asked schools if I could come visit (with the exception of one that was less than an hour away, they invited me), so fully-paid campus visit sounds like a good indication that they are interested in you, even without a formal interview. I would prepare some basic questions about the program and have a small research pitch. My department chair advised me to have both an "elevator pitch" and a longer, 2-3 minute statement prepared so that I could respond in whichever manner seemed appropriate in a meeting. I have met with a couple POI and DGS individuals and everyone seemed to have different questions. I think they best responses to questions I've asked have been those regarding job placement of previous students and timelines within the program. Websites are often vague but faculty can give you more specifics on what they are looking for. Just my personal thoughts, I obviously am awaiting admissions decisions as well!

[historygeek]

I just saw that Loyola admitted someone to the MA program. Do MA decisions go out first, usually?

[psstein]

43 minutes ago, ipavineri said:

I was just invited for a campus visit, fully-paid, "to explain the program and make sure that it is a good fit for you." There is no mention of an interview so I am a bit confused, should I prepare for a formal interview? Are there important questions I should remember to ask the faculty during my visit?

I would interpret this as an interview. "Making sure it's a good fit" is often a coded way of explaining it. 

Knowing about interdepartmental relationships is very important. If you're interested in working between anthropology and history, you should ask whether it's possible. 

[fordlandia]

44 minutes ago, psstein said:

I would interpret this as an interview. "Making sure it's a good fit" is often a coded way of explaining it. 

Knowing about interdepartmental relationships is very important. If you're interested in working between anthropology and history, you should ask whether it's possible. 

Thank you for your input! Since I'm interested in oral histories I will definitely remember to ask that. How does one go about researching interdepartmental relationships? Should I reach out to current Graduate students to ask them about the department or is that a bit premature?

[TexasTiger]

If you don't get asked for an interview, should you assume that you are out of the running?

[I_Am_In_Paine]

On 1/26/2019 at 10:50 AM, sseire said:

Hi @Karou, here's a second opinion to ease your mind. Same as, @e_randolph, I was concerned and decided to email the Program Coordinator about it. She told me that this is a University-wide issue, but also assured me the committee would evaluate the applicants' profile based on the self-reported scores. 

Do we think this might slow down their process? I've seen in previous years they release acceptances the first week of February. I imagine this trouble could push that back a week or more. Anyone agree?