2020 Religion Application Thread

[hajjibaba]

if anyone knows what's going on at ucla Nelc can you message me? have not heard back

[NyarkoSan]

I think official decisions for UPenn should be out for everyone!

[Absurd'sTheWord]

FOR STUDENTS ACCEPTED TO YALE DIVINITY SCHOOL:

I am a second year student in the MAR program, graduating in May. Feel free to PM me with questions about the program, life in New Haven, campus life, student organizations, etc.
I know this is a difficult decision for some of you. To be best of my ability, I'd love to help you get a better sense of what to expect if you come to YDS. Best to everyone!

[foucaultsturtleneck]

So, is it crazy to worry that funding packages could be revoked in the midst of a new Great Depression...? Or is that just paranoid me

[Taorluath34]

Just accepted my offer to YDS, MAR- History of Christianity with full tuition. So excited! I do, however, feel for people still feeling the sting from rejections. That was me last year- 9 rejections and no acceptances. It hurts and it is hard and it was a really long year. This is just to say that I'm very grateful for the offer from YDS. 

[lumpengrad]

3 hours ago, foucaultsturtleneck said:

So, is it crazy to worry that funding packages could be revoked in the midst of a new Great Depression...? Or is that just paranoid me

Honestly worried about this too (not to mention the increasingly complicated logistics of a cross-country move!). Do we have any sort of protections after we accept an offer?

[thiscalltoarms]

Anyone out there on the Fordham waitlist hear anything yet?

[Fiat]

4 hours ago, Taorluath34 said:

Just accepted my offer to YDS, MAR- History of Christianity with full tuition. So excited! I do, however, feel for people still feeling the sting from rejections. That was me last year- 9 rejections and no acceptances. It hurts and it is hard and it was a really long year. This is just to say that I'm very grateful for the offer from YDS. 

YDS MAR-History of Christianity admit here! I have not accept my offer, but will do at some point in the next two weeks. Question for everyone applied for YDS: has anyone received the physical letter yet?

[thesepeoplearerude]

On 3/24/2020 at 5:07 PM, thiscalltoarms said:

Anyone out there on the Fordham waitlist hear anything yet?

i havent heard anything yet

[xypathos]

On 3/24/2020 at 11:04 AM, foucaultsturtleneck said:

So, is it crazy to worry that funding packages could be revoked in the midst of a new Great Depression...? Or is that just paranoid me

Crazy - no. But, I think it's unlikely given that often this money comes from endowments where they already "have" the money.

I think a much bigger fear, and more likely an outcome, is that we (the USA) don't do enough to quarantine and we really stretch this pandemic out to the 15-19 months that some researchers are suggesting is highly likely. If that happens, I think we can safely rely on a number of schools pulling a prolonged break and essentially going offline for a year and thus cutting back on graduate students.

A number of my colleagues, myself included, that are hitting the professor job market have been told that schools are putting hiring freezes in place. One colleague had already signed their contract and was assured that their job is "secure" but they need to financially prepare for the reality that there is no 2020-21 academic year.

[lroma1949]

Any thoughts on Chicago Theological Seminary? How well-recognized is it? Is it a respectable degree? Would it hinder my potential to get a job in academia?

[xypathos]

15 minutes ago, lroma1949 said:

Any thoughts on Chicago Theological Seminary? How well-recognized is it? Is it a respectable degree? Would it hinder my potential to get a job in academia?

Depends on the degree, I guess. Are we talking M* or PhD? Either way, I believe CTS M* students still have access to taking courses at other Chicago seminaries.

One of my PT (Practical Theology) profs in seminary was a PhD grad from CTS and they were fucking awesome. They're currently at SMU. Otherwise I don't know much about their placement and I didn't see a list on their website.

[lroma1949]

14 minutes ago, xypathos said:

Depends on the degree, I guess. Are we talking M* or PhD? Either way, I believe CTS M* students still have access to taking courses at other Chicago seminaries.

One of my PT (Practical Theology) profs in seminary was a PhD grad from CTS and they were fucking awesome. They're currently at SMU. Otherwise I don't know much about their placement and I didn't see a list on their website.

It’d be for a PhD. I’ve struggled to find a lot regarding their placements and such. Overall seems like a great school, just didn’t know how recognizable it would be. 

[xypathos]

53 minutes ago, lroma1949 said:

It’d be for a PhD. I’ve struggled to find a lot regarding their placements and such. Overall seems like a great school, just didn’t know how recognizable it would be. 

There’s a placement list somewhere, just not online it seems. I’d suggest reaching out to the director or the secretary and see if they’d be willing to share it. They’d be silly not to track that on a spreadsheet somewhere and if they aren’t willing to share it - that’s some cause for concern. Granted, scrubbing of names is common but dissertation titles are still there so in the age of Google, no such thing as privacy.

I’d also look at the list of their current PhD students in the field you’ll be in, preferably someone in their 3rd or 4th year, and get their assessment and how cohorts before them did on the market.

[sktlab]

Unfortunate, PTS came out with some decisions and my portal hasn't changed since submitting my application and completing my interview back in January. Would love to hear anything back as I need to respond to VDS very shortly and I would not like to feel like I threw $70 down the drain. Insanely unfortunate this was  my dream school when I was younger, but now looking forward to VDS!!

thank you for reading my sad quarantined thoughts. 

[lwr]

Have any admitted students heard from YDS since receiving their decisions? The letter said there would be panels and other information online, but it's been two weeks since decision went out and I haven't heard anything else from there since. I know that there's a lot going on and people are trying to deal with figuring out how to do everything online, but having gotten a lot more information from other schools I'm fretting about not having any more information from the school I'm most seriously considering attending before having to make a decision.

[lux et platypus]

i know it's weird right? I've heard so much--like daily--from another school offering me forums and alums to speak with and everything. But silence from yds.

other grad programs are delaying their reply-by date from april 15 until may 1st, given everything that is going on. I wonder if these programs will, as well.

[Abcs12345]

On 3/29/2020 at 3:49 PM, lwr said:

Have any admitted students heard from YDS since receiving their decisions? The letter said there would be panels and other information online, but it's been two weeks since decision went out and I haven't heard anything else from there since. I know that there's a lot going on and people are trying to deal with figuring out how to do everything online, but having gotten a lot more information from other schools I'm fretting about not having any more information from the school I'm most seriously considering attending before having to make a decision.

I was coming to ask the same question. I've been looking through my spam just in case, but nothing. Maybe they're just delayed in all the madness going on. 

[lux et platypus]

it's kind of madness for any program  to expect an answer by the 15th. A lot of us are dealing with a whole lot, now.  So strange  YDS is so silent.

[Taorluath34]

I still haven't heard anything from YDS. I accepted my offer, but does anyone know when the school sends out more information? Probably after the decision deadline?

[thesepeoplearerude]

how do they let me know i got off the waitlist today and still expect me to respond by april 15?

[thiscalltoarms]

21 minutes ago, thesepeoplearerude said:

how do they let me know i got off the waitlist today and still expect me to respond by april 15?

 

Which school?

[thesepeoplearerude]

9 minutes ago, thiscalltoarms said:

 

Which school?

bc

[thiscalltoarms]

4 hours ago, thesepeoplearerude said:

bc

Responding to your original question- I've read rumors that April 15th has some significance for some schools. That's the day a few of the big schools kill off their waitlists I think? So if BC wants you to make your decision by then, its probably so they can kill off the rest of the list behind you shortly thereafter...

[11Q13]

20 hours ago, thiscalltoarms said:

Responding to your original question- I've read rumors that April 15th has some significance for some schools. That's the day a few of the big schools kill off their waitlists I think? So if BC wants you to make your decision by then, its probably so they can kill off the rest of the list behind you shortly thereafter...

April 15 is the official "s*** or get of the pot" day, regardless of when the offer was made. It's an official policy that virtually all US programs abide by.