2020 Religion Application Thread

[Taorluath34]

28 minutes ago, rejectedndejected said:

Does anyone think Yale decisions might go up today?

@rejectedndejectedI sure hope so! I know they must be flooded with COVID-19 concerns/issues. 

[Taorluath34]

1 hour ago, rejectedndejected said:

Does anyone think Yale decisions might go up today?

I went back to the application verification e-mail. It says that decisions will be posted to our application portal on March 15, 2020. Probably no reason to think they will go up any other time as it is specific. 

[xypathos]

If you're applying M* then yes, I believe Yale only releases March 15th.

EDIT: It was that way back when I applied in 2014. It was all automated and results were posted in the afternoon to the portal.

Edited March 13, 2020 by xypathos

[tinybee]

Has anyone not heard back from UCSB yet? There are a handful of results posted but I'm still waiting on any info. 

[Fiat]

2 hours ago, xypathos said:

If you're applying M* then yes, I believe Yale only releases March 15th.

EDIT: It was that way back when I applied in 2014. It was all automated and results were posted in the afternoon to the portal.

Yeah I think the problem is that March 15th is a Sunday this year...

[rejectedndejected]

3 hours ago, xypathos said:

If you're applying M* then yes, I believe Yale only releases March 15th.

EDIT: It was that way back when I applied in 2014. It was all automated and results were posted in the afternoon to the portal.

Even if the 15th falls on a Sunday?  They're pretty committed to this whole 15th business...

[bonhoeffer80]

On 3/11/2020 at 11:54 AM, xypathos said:

I don't think it'll have any negative impact on your success and reception at the school. Faculty know full well that it's a two-way street when it comes to fit. Given the state of the job market it's absolutely imperative on your part to land at a school that will position you for success.

@xypathosThank you very much for your answers..!

[xypathos]

20 hours ago, Fiat said:

Yeah I think the problem is that March 15th is a Sunday this year...

It was on a Saturday in 2014. The decisions have already been made and a computer decides when to release them to the portal.

[Fiat]

Who else is freaking out about Yale's decisions???

[Taorluath34]

YDS decisions are out! Congratulations to those admitted!

[Fiat]

I got into YDS!!!!

[pax et caritas]

Accepted to Yale's MDiv! Felt the anxiety in my bones as I checked. 

[ndmtsapplicant2020]

Accepted into Yale MAR (Comprehensive) with full tuition. Waitlisters rejoice, I'm going to Notre Dame.

[Fiat]

32 minutes ago, ndmtsapplicant2020 said:

Accepted into Yale MAR (Comprehensive) with full tuition. Waitlisters rejoice, I'm going to Notre Dame.

Is financial decision in your acceptance letter? Mine doesn’t mention anything. It just says that there will be a separate email about that and I haven’t gotten it. I didn’t apply for FAFSA as I’m not a US citizen. 

[lux et platypus]

5 hours ago, Fiat said:

Is financial decision in your acceptance letter? Mine doesn’t mention anything. It just says that there will be a separate email about that and I haven’t gotten it. I didn’t apply for FAFSA as I’m not a US citizen. 

Not in the acceptance letter but my award came almost immediately afterwards from another department giving my award, not FAFSA-based. Did you hear from ISM?

[Fiat]

34 minutes ago, lux et platypus said:

Not in the acceptance letter but my award came almost immediately afterwards from another department giving my award, not FAFSA-based. Did you hear from ISM?

Hey I just sent you a personal message on here!

[KaleTomaToe]

I received an offer from Yale Divinity yesterday (MARc Bible), and got in with 100% tuition. That really complicates my decision making!

I am now torn between my undergrad institution, University of Washington, and YDS. UW does their NELC MA with funding through TA/RAships. Tuition is waived, and you're paid a livable income through the TA/RAships. So I would be getting a bit of teaching experience along the way. I also know the faculty and student culture is healthy. It also helps that we would only have to move once for a PhD. I was basically set on this program until I got the shocking news from YDS.

The biggest attraction to Yale is access to a much larger faculty and classes, along with a bigger student body in a similar field. It doesn't hurt to have the name recognition when it comes to PhD applications, either.

I am mostly interested in HB and ANE studies.

Does anybody have any thoughts? Or want to bring up any questions I should be considering?

[Fiat]

19 hours ago, Fiat said:

Is financial decision in your acceptance letter? Mine doesn’t mention anything. It just says that there will be a separate email about that and I haven’t gotten it. I didn’t apply for FAFSA as I’m not a US citizen. 

Okay it's my fault. I got confused. I didn't know that tuition scholarship is also need-based so I didn't apply for financial aid at all. I am working on the application now and hope there is still money left for me...

[Taorluath34]

Does anyone know if YDS has released the Marquand Scholar awards yet? I was accepted to YDS yesterday and received a financial aid email a few hours later saying that I have received full tuition, but I wasn't sure how many full tuition awards go out. In any case, I am so grateful and looking forward to studying with you admits!

[Fiat]

2 hours ago, Taorluath34 said:

Does anyone know if YDS has released the Marquand Scholar awards yet? I was accepted to YDS yesterday and received a financial aid email a few hours later saying that I have received full tuition, but I wasn't sure how many full tuition awards go out. In any case, I am so grateful and looking forward to studying with you admits!

I think each Marquand recipient get full tuition and 10k a year stipend. These kind of awards are given to 10 people each year. 

[Fiat]

I got into YDS MARc History of Christianity. While on my application I talked a lot of my interest in Early Christianity, deep down I am a Medievalist and I have been working on late medieval things in the past 3 years (I am a medieval studies major). Early Christianity is quite new to me. Though I want to explore this I feel like I would work mainly on Medieval Christianity. Does anyone know whether YDS is a great place for medievalists? I feel like in the History of Christianity branch the professors do either Early Christianity or American religious history. 

[xypathos]

@Fiat I'd take a look at Yale's associated faculty for their Medieval Studies program, if you haven't already, and see if there are faculty there you could envision taking a course with.

They always post semester courses here but Fall 2020 hasn't been posted yet and it looks like course search hasn't been updated for Fall yet either.

There's not a lot of Religious Studies peeps on their faculty list but there are some. The Christian medievalists that I know, few in number, have not come from Yale but that doesn't mean you can't be very successful there!

Under their People heading is a listing of current grad students with contact information. The few I looked at all had bios too, so I'd find someone that you connect with and try to get their honest opinion. My limited experience has told me that you're more likely to get a frank assessment over the phone than by email, FYI.

Edited March 17, 2020 by xypathos

[Fiat]

8 hours ago, xypathos said:

@Fiat I'd take a look at Yale's associated faculty for their Medieval Studies program, if you haven't already, and see if there are faculty there you could envision taking a course with.

They always post semester courses here but Fall 2020 hasn't been posted yet and it looks like course search hasn't been updated for Fall yet either.

There's not a lot of Religious Studies peeps on their faculty list but there are some. The Christian medievalists that I know, few in number, have not come from Yale but that doesn't mean you can't be very successful there!

Under their People heading is a listing of current grad students with contact information. The few I looked at all had bios too, so I'd find someone that you connect with and try to get their honest opinion. My limited experience has told me that you're more likely to get a frank assessment over the phone than by email, FYI.

Thanks! I didn't see the list of graduate students though... Maybe I was looking at the wrong place. Also, how often do people take classes outside of the Divinity School? I'd love to take classes in their Medieval Studies department.

[Schsic]

16 hours ago, Fiat said:

I got into YDS MARc History of Christianity. While on my application I talked a lot of my interest in Early Christianity, deep down I am a Medievalist and I have been working on late medieval things in the past 3 years (I am a medieval studies major). Early Christianity is quite new to me. Though I want to explore this I feel like I would work mainly on Medieval Christianity. Does anyone know whether YDS is a great place for medievalists? I feel like in the History of Christianity branch the professors do either Early Christianity or American religious history. 

you'd really want to explore the list of faculty you can work with. Faculty is pretty must everything if you want to continue your study in PhD program.

[xypathos]

On 3/17/2020 at 9:48 AM, Fiat said:

Thanks! I didn't see the list of graduate students though... Maybe I was looking at the wrong place. Also, how often do people take classes outside of the Divinity School? I'd love to take classes in their Medieval Studies department.

Grad students are here. As per taking courses outside the Div. School the policy can be found here. In short, such courses must be directly relevant to your goals and if you take a fourth course in the same department it'll trigger a PSC review which is more of a formality and gives a more structured chance to decide how the the two departments (Div School and Medieval) might work together to support you, while also making sure that you're on track with everything.