2020 application thread

[FruitLover]

7 hours ago, psstein said:

It varies by university, and it's also incredibly political. Dr. Schneider on the admission committee might say that Dr. Henry Jones, Jr. has taken a graduate student each of the last 5 years and it's not fair to the other faculty members. Therefore, Dr. Jones won't have any graduate students for the next 2 years. (Yes, I watched Indiana Jones recently)

At some (predominantly state) universities, admissions can also take current and future TA needs into account. My program accepted several students in one subfield after having a significant problem filling TA slots in that subfield earlier that semester.

I understand that there are things like that which may have nothing to do with our qualifications. Never heard about TA needs being one of the possible considerations, so that’s interesting. I am mainly just curious about how many people get nominated by faculty vs how many actually get admitted.

[histori041512]

Wanted to share that I heard from a European history professor at UMichigan today that their committee met and did final reviews of applications yesterday and they have sent them on to the graduate committee for final decision-making there.

He did mention that they had only about 15 spots for the entire department for this application cycle and 5-6 open for European applicants. Some people might be getting decision letters earlier than the posted date on the Rackham website. 

Wishing everyone luck!

[snackademic]

Every day the radio silence gets more nerve wracking... Anyone have some good self-care tips in this stressful time? Presumably not obsessively checking email and Grad Cafe would be a good start.

Already struck out 7r my first round and not sure if I can handle a second defeat like that. Especially not when I took out a lot of debt to get an MA at a fancy school to make sure this wouldn't happen again.

Also does anyone have any insight into the admin process at Chicago or Harvard?

Edited January 22, 2020 by snackademic

[dr. t]

16 minutes ago, snackademic said:

Also does anyone have any insight into the admin process at Chicago or Harvard?

Same as everywhere else. Professors review the applications that pertain to them, send 0-3 promising apps to a dedicated committee, that committee whittles the pool down to what they want to take that year and sends the list off to the grad school for approval. The grad school sends out the admissions letters. Some professors like to reach out when they know a candidate has been sent to the grad school for final approval; others wait until the official announcement goes out. The rough dates when the official announcements go out have been very consistent from year to year, and can be found simply with a search of the results forums.

[HardyBoy]

Just popping in to wish everyone good luck as they wait! I was in your shoes last year and know how miserable that wait can be, so my thoughts are with you. I second the advice here to do something healthy, go for a walk, hang out with friends -- all the sorts of things you'll need to do to take care of yourself in grad school, too.

[Carrots112]

42 minutes ago, snackademic said:

Every day the radio silence gets more nerve wracking... Anyone have some good self-care tips in this stressful time? Presumably not obsessively checking email and Grad Cafe would be a good start.

Focus on other things you enjoy. Spend time with friends, talk about things that aren’t academia, read a book, Netflix, etc. 

We have no control over the result now so What we can do now is just take a deep breath and wait for the emails to trickle in over the coming weeks. 
 

Best of luck ? we’re all in this together 

[Pikepride2000]

For people wondering about self-care ideas, I have found yoga to be incredibly relaxing at a medium-intensity level. Higher intensity yoga is more of a faster paced workout that is enjoyable as well. Take a sixty minute class and just leave it on the mat.

Edited January 22, 2020 by Pikepride2000

[norellehannah]

Also re: self-care, I personally have found a great deal of comfort in/highly recommend hobbies & crafts. Currently trying to learn to hand-embroider!   I really enjoy watching Netflix, etc. and embroidering - as someone who sometimes can't sit still long enough to watch a TV show when I'm too riled up and anxious, I find that keeping my hands busy helps a ton. Plus there's the added bonus of creating wearable and/or display-able symbols of conquering stress!

[snackademic]

Thank you so much all! I really appreciate your feedback and support during this stressful time. ?

[time_consume_me]

Congrats to those who got UPenn interviews! 

[Titus Flavius]

If I don't get in, I plan to start an apple farm. The world always needs apples.

[TMP]

2 hours ago, Titus Flavius said:

If I don't get in, I plan to start an apple farm. The world always needs apples.

You can make plenty of hard cider while you're at it!  

[Titus Flavius]

15 minutes ago, TMP said:

You can make plenty of hard cider while you're at it!  

That's actually the plan. And pear cider, because I like pears.

[Manana]

12 hours ago, norellehannah said:

Also re: self-care, I personally have found a great deal of comfort in/highly recommend hobbies & crafts. Currently trying to learn to hand-embroider!   I really enjoy watching Netflix, etc. and embroidering - as someone who sometimes can't sit still long enough to watch a TV show when I'm too riled up and anxious, I find that keeping my hands busy helps a ton. Plus there's the added bonus of creating wearable and/or display-able symbols of conquering stress!

Yes! I'm the same way, when I'm really anxious it helps to do something with my hands while watching tv or listening to music. I like coloring books- you don't need a lot of brain space or talent to do that and I find it very relaxing.

[psstein]

On 1/22/2020 at 2:11 PM, snackademic said:

Anyone have some good self-care tips in this stressful time?

If you drink scotch, I recommend an appropriate dose of any of the following:

1) Laphroaig 10 

2) Glenfiddich

3) Glenlivet 12

4) Johnnie Walker Double Black (the black is decent, but for the $5.00 difference, this is markedly better)

5) Teacher's Highland Cream (for the bargain minded!)

I'm also happy to recommend bourbons.

[Titus Flavius]

14 minutes ago, psstein said:

If you drink scotch, I recommend an appropriate dose of any of the following:

1) Laphroaig 10 

2) Glenfiddich

3) Glenlivet 12

4) Johnnie Walker Double Black (the black is decent, but for the $5.00 difference, this is markedly better)

5) Teacher's Highland Cream (for the bargain minded!)

I'm also happy to recommend bourbons.

Top Ten Bourbons:

10. Philip V

9. Charles III

8. Ferdinand I

7. John I

6. Louis XIII

5. Louis XVIII

4. Charles III of Spain

3. François Louis, le Grand Conti

2. Henry IV

1. Louis XIV

[jocelynbymarcjacobs]

To the person who posted an NYU interview—do you mind sharing your regional focus?

As a question to the forum, do you know if NYU requires an interview for admission?

[TMP]

3 hours ago, jocelynbymarcjacobs said:

To the person who posted an NYU interview—do you mind sharing your regional focus?

As a question to the forum, do you know if NYU requires an interview for admission?

The answer is no and not something to sweat about. 

[Manana]

16 hours ago, jocelynbymarcjacobs said:

To the person who posted an NYU interview—do you mind sharing your regional focus?

As a question to the forum, do you know if NYU requires an interview for admission?

Hey, it's me- my regional focus is the Atlantic World (early modern).

[Manana]

Seems like Berkeley is sending out some answers- does anyone know if they usually come in a single batch?

edit: could be a troll though, as it seems very early for Berkeley, who normally send out answers mid-February.

Edited January 25, 2020 by Manana
remembered something

[ashiepoo72]

The Berkeley one sounds legit to me, but it doesn't really matter. Some POIs email their students before official notifications go out, other admits have to wait until the official notifications, some programs wait list, others notify in waves based on internal funding allocation or other reasons. The only notification that matters is yours.

[snackademic]

9 hours ago, Manana said:

Seems like Berkeley is sending out some answers- does anyone know if they usually come in a single batch?

edit: could be a troll though, as it seems very early for Berkeley, who normally send out answers mid-February.

The Berkeley rejection was from me, unfortunately. I've been in touch with my POI for a while so he sent me a very nice email to let me know I didn't make the final cut.

[dr. t]

10 hours ago, Manana said:

as it seems very early for Berkeley, who normally send out answers mid-February.

No? Berkeley departmental funding offers usually hit right around now.

[Manana]

10 hours ago, snackademic said:

The Berkeley rejection was from me, unfortunately. I've been in touch with my POI for a while so he sent me a very nice email to let me know I didn't make the final cut.

I'm sorry to hear that. Good luck with your other options!

[Manana]

9 hours ago, telkanuru said:

No? Berkeley departmental funding offers usually hit right around now.

Oh sorry then, I assumed that because I remembered reading it here but I probably mixed Berkeley up with another university.