Publishing paper while taking year off

[smellie]

So seeing that everyone except me already got acceptance letters from the schools I applied for Ph.D (the "all-rejections" fear is coming true) ... and the only schools left are MA programs with expensive tution and no funding, I'm getting myself prepared for the plan B. - a year off.

My GPA isn't great (3.6 in my major), and I know GRE score can get you only so far. Of course I'd be working on to improve my SOP and writing samples.. So I thought it'd be great to have some publications on my application next year. But how??

I'm in art history, interested in 19C France. I won't have any association with particular schools while I'm taking a year off. I'm an international studying in North America and would be going back home - so "attending" conferences may be a challenge.

If you were me, what would you do?

[perkinqq]

Ask your professor for post-bachelor options. Talk to other professors in art history about the best way to spend that year off.

Work/intern at art museum? I know the smithsonian has a lot of programs.

[Tritonetelephone]

I'm in a very similar situation. I'm in Sociology and I made the huge mistake of applying to the wrong schools - the only one I was really counting on and really wanted to go to turned me down. My Plan B is also to stay at my UG school, take a few non-degree-seeking classes so that I can keep my campus job, and try to crank out a publication before going through the app process again.

The huge problem is that by the time I receive the last of the admissions decisions and decide to stay where I am for a year, I will only have about 6 months to publish a new paper before the December admissions deadlines. It takes a month to receive IRB approval, then I'll have to do the research and write the paper. Then journals are going to want me to revise it after they spend 2-3 months reviewing it. The chance of having something publicized by the time I need to apply places seems very slim. I'm just not sure what to do.

If you really need the publication, my advice would be to start NOW. I don't know how the process is for writing art history articles (probably don't have to go through an IRB?), but it is typical to have to wait a long time to hear back from the journal after you submit it. And they almost NEVER accept it outright without asking you to make changes.

Good luck!

[Psych_maj]

I'm curious. Is it even possible to publish a paper after you have finished your undergrad, and are no longer associated with a research lab at your undergrad university? (So basically the question is can anyone, who has graduated with a undergrad degree, do research or a study and hand it in for publication ... and actually have it published)

[Tritonetelephone]

I don't see why not, as long as the article you submit has enough integrity.

[luvalicious]

AFAIK, you don't actually have to have it published in print before you apply. If it's been accepted for publication, you can put that in your C.V. as pending. Professors do it all the time, because it can take forever for an article to actually be printed.

I work in academic publishing, specifically with scholarly journals, and I've never come across an author who wasn't affiliated with SOMETHING... not saying it's impossible, though, but this is probably something you'd want to ask an academic advisor or mentor about. Then again, I've never come across an undergrad-authored paper at all. as said, it's really going to depend on what you're submitting.

[ocop]

I'm in a similar situation; I have one school left, and while I feel its my best chance there are no guarantees. I am definitely taking more classes to a)keep my job and b)beef up my stat & econ but am trying to desperately to find a research asst. position to help the application process again. This wouldn't be so bad if apps weren't due again in 9mos, not alot of time to overhaul your profile :roll:.

[lxs]

hey smellie - you're in art history, right? did you just finish a MA or a BA? if BA, it will be pretty hard to get something published in art history journals because of how stodgy the field is. i had a hell of a time getting part of my masters' thesis published...people did not want to look at anything by someone who didn't have and wasn't yet working toward a PhD. maybe the journals published by grad students (the chicago art journal is the big one, but there's also one at rutgers, i knkow, and maybe ucsb?) might be more willing to consider something from someone who doesn't have a reputation as an academic all-start...yet

i definitely feel you, though... i have two rejections so far and am judging by the results on the board i'm pretty sure i have three more coming! :(

[smellie]

yeah.. I figured it'd be pretty hard to publish things as a BA, but I thought it'd be good to start considering different options/paths.

What would be some of the more organized grad journals out there? My undergrad art history journal was aimed to be "casual" so all they accepted was book reviews and "experiences."

[stylefaxee]

Smellie,

I really hope things turn out OK for you. But if they don't ... it's not the end of the world. I think waiting until after I graduated to apply to schools was the best decision I could have made. Graduate applications are hugely stressful and time consuming (as you well know, I'm sure!) and they deserve one's full attention. I was trying to work on them last year amidst the stress of exams and term papers, and I realized that I could either slog through my applications then and hope for the best - or wait a year and devote my full attention to them.

So this extra year may be a blessing for you - next year you will come across as a stronger, more focused, more well-rounded applicant, especially when compared with the other people in the application pool who are still immersed in schoolwork. I'm going to make a few suggestions I was given that really helped me ... I'm sorry if these are things you already know. I'm no expert, and I'm still waiting to hear from a bunch of schools myself, so I hope I don't sound preachy. This doesn't have much to do with your original question on publishing (oops). I don't feel qualified to answer that but I have a feeling, as others have said, that you are going to have a really difficult time getting published because you're not yet affiliated with an institution.

1) the personal statement is arguably the most important part of your application. It needs to be incredibly tight and focused. You shouldn't have to tell the application committee, in so many words, that you are highly motivated to succeed in art history - it should come across in your writing. When you researched your programs you probably picked ones with faculty whose interests coincide with yours ... definitely mention this in your essay. Have a paragraph in each one explaining why the program is a good fit for you even if it's not prompted - they want to know you've really thought about it.

2) I'm not the person to be harping on GRE scores or GPAs - especially GREs - but I would say if you're worried about your GPA then make sure you have stellar GRE scores. Which you're going to have lots of time to study for!

3) How are you with languages? Most programs expect you to pass reading tests in French and German by your third year. So you should (ideally) come into the program with reading fluency in one and a good start in the other. This is one of those things that sets applicants apart.

4) Do you have any internships / research assistantship experience? I would really recommend finding out if you know any professors who need an RA - this is a fantastic thing to have on a CV ... programs want to know you know how to research. Since you're going to have a year -- I would recommend spending it at a museum, gallery, etc. so you can show the committee you're still doing art-related things. Hopefully research-based.

5) The writing sample -- even if you can't publish it, it should be good enough to be publishable.

6) Apply to a good range of schools - I can't stress this enough. As you can see on my list I have a few schools that would be considered safeties and others that are definite reaches (NYU, which I am still waiting on -- argh!). And some in between. No Ivies - I didn't want to waste my $100 applying to Harvard and the other schools didn't have faculty that I was interested in working with. Don't waste your money applying to a safety school that, if accepted, you would never consider as an option.

I hope at least a few of these things were helpful...I wish you the best of luck and let us know what you end up doing!

[smellie]

Thank you for the very helpful advice! I'm still waiting on few schools, but I'm definately starting with some internship applications that are due this week...

Are there any place where I can get samples of art history SOP/writing samples of the acceptees? It's hard to find guidelines for art history grad program applications, I often feel lost trying to figure out what I'm supposed to do..

[lxs]

did you write a BA thesis? if so, maybe that's something that you could work into a publication. I think the key is to have the writing sample include primary research. while I was applying to PhD programs I had to work my MA thesis into a much shorter writing sample and that is what I ended up submitting, and ultimately getting accepted, for publication. I'd check out the Chicago Art Journal, Octopus (I think that's the UCSB one?), the Rutgers art journal (it's something like the Rutgers Art Review?). I think Iowa just started an online journal that may be worth checking out, although it seems like it's just the papers from their annual conference. what's your subfield again? there might be more options based on that, too. I'll keep thinking about it and let you know if I think of any other ones...

[smellie]

did you write a BA thesis? if so, maybe that's something that you could work into a publication. I think the key is to have the writing sample include primary research. while I was applying to PhD programs I had to work my MA thesis into a much shorter writing sample and that is what I ended up submitting, and ultimately getting accepted, for publication. I'd check out the Chicago Art Journal, Octopus (I think that's the UCSB one?), the Rutgers art journal (it's something like the Rutgers Art Review?). I think Iowa just started an online journal that may be worth checking out, although it seems like it's just the papers from their annual conference. what's your subfield again? there might be more options based on that, too. I'll keep thinking about it and let you know if I think of any other ones...

Thanks this is really helpful! I just got accepted to McGill with funding, waiting on a couple of US schools. But I'm still interested in publishing.. My subfield is the 19C post-revolutionary French art (prints, drawings, and caricatures). I did wrote my BA thesis on an art competition in 1848, and since there are very handful writings on the subject I though I'd give it more thoughts, and give a try for publication.

[stylefaxee]

Yay!!! Congrats on McGill, Smellie. I've heard good things about that program and considered applying there myself. I think they have a significant collection of Napoleonic works on paper, particularly cartoons -- am i right?

[vaino]

Have you thought of starting out with graduate student or student-run journals? I published one article in a grad student journal last year--it was still refereed by an expert in the field, but I think the acceptance process was probably much simpler. Good luck!