Super Early

[anthsteph]

I still have a full year and maymester of classes, but since my school isn't the best at letting us know what the next steps are, I figured I'd make a post here.

Basically, I'm in the beginning stages of looking for graduate schools. The most important factors for me are 1.) a strong Anthropology program - I may be leaning toward a focus in museum studies, so that would be a bonus; 2.) a graduate school located in a city that supports non-drivers. This is huge for me! I currently live in Atlanta, and public transpo is practically nonexistent. I've been looking into New York City, Boston, and San Francisco as possible locations; 3.) programs that give a good deal of aid for those who demonstrate financial need. I have supported myself entirely since I turned 18 and have a single mother who could not and has not contributed at all to my education or housing. This is all fine and dandy, but obviously I'd like to have as little debt as possible, as we all would.

Lately, I've been looking into the New School for Social Research, but I'm still veeeery early on in this process. Honestly, I'm not even entirely sure where my focus will be aside from the general massive Anth umbrella.

I'd appreciate any thoughts from those of you who are further on in the process. I'm not completely sure what I should be doing at this stage to prepare. Thank you!

[CultureOfIdeas]

Unfortunately, these forums tend to die down a bit between application cycles but I'll take a stab at giving you a hand. One thing you might consider is looking at Museum Studies vs. Anthropology, as a number of programs have begun springing up in the former as the field tries to carve out an identity for itself apart from the social sciences with which it is so commonly associated. So I suppose the question is whether you are interested in something like the "anthropology of museums" or archeology or educational programming in museums etc... The #1 most important thing in narrowing down a graduate school list is, in my mind, figuring out what your interests are and where you'd fit in (this goes both for admissions and for choosing schools, as fit in one way or another impacts a lot of the admissions process, especially in the current economic climate).

I'd start looking through periodicals and perhaps snooping around AAAnet.org. One you have an idea of what specifically it is that interests you, finding a program will be easier - follow the people train - say you find a book you really like, see where the author teaches, where their colleagues teach, where they studied, and so on. Certain schools have reputations for certain kinds of things, and as vast a discipline (or grouping of disciplines) as anthropology is, you will inevitably have to follow leads like this to find out the smaller community within anthropology that is involved with work that speaks to you.

As for types of programs, you're talking about MA programs? Since many top anthropology departments are focused on PhD training, it is sometimes a bit more complicated to find terminal masters programs - this may be where a Museum Studies program or something like that could really benefit you, and many are in big tourist cities like Boston and New York. That all said, the New School has a great program, and there are others out there like it, so once you've narrowed down your field a bit, perhaps we can help guide you to them...

Hope that begins to help....

[samjones]

I still have a full year and maymester of classes, but since my school isn't the best at letting us know what the next steps are, I figured I'd make a post here.

Basically, I'm in the beginning stages of looking for graduate schools. The most important factors for me are 1.) a strong Anthropology program - I may be leaning toward a focus in museum studies, so that would be a bonus; 2.) a graduate school located in a city that supports non-drivers. This is huge for me! I currently live in Atlanta, and public transpo is practically nonexistent. I've been looking into New York City, Boston, and San Francisco as possible locations; 3.) programs that give a good deal of aid for those who demonstrate financial need. I have supported myself entirely since I turned 18 and have a single mother who could not and has not contributed at all to my education or housing. This is all fine and dandy, but obviously I'd like to have as little debt as possible, as we all would.

Lately, I've been looking into the New School for Social Research, but I'm still veeeery early on in this process. Honestly, I'm not even entirely sure where my focus will be aside from the general massive Anth umbrella.

I'd appreciate any thoughts from those of you who are further on in the process. I'm not completely sure what I should be doing at this stage to prepare. Thank you!

If you are interested in getting aid/funding for graduate studies, do not DO NOT expect such a thing from the New School. First of all, do not overlook that you have to apply to the MA programs at New School. The New School does not allow you to apply directly to their PhD programs and you go largely unfunded in the MA programs. I've heard that funding is sketchy even for the PhD students but I don't know anyone who is actually in the PhD programs there. If you read the website for their graduate programs, you will see that you cannot apply directly to PhD programs and that you have to apply to and complete one of their MA programs in order to apply to the corresponding PhD program.

I mostly limited my Anthro PhD program search to the New York City area BUT I can tell you that University of Texas Austin, Rutgers, CUNY Graduate Center, University of Michigan Ann Arbor and NYU have very well respected Anthro programs. I favored the CUNY Graduate Center because it has the most non-conservative research ideas. All of the schools I've listed fund their PhD students.

[shaydlip]

Lately, I've been looking into the New School for Social Research, but I'm still veeeery early on in this process. Honestly, I'm not even entirely sure where my focus will be aside from the general massive Anth umbrella.

I'd appreciate any thoughts from those of you who are further on in the process. I'm not completely sure what I should be doing at this stage to prepare. Thank you!

I had a friend go to the New School for one year, and it was horrible (for her). Zero funding; living in an expensive city; expensive housing (school-offered); lack of good mentorship; no guarantee of getting into the phd program; no guarantee of funding if you do get into the phd program. Not good.

Do NOT go for a PhD program in anthropology that does not give you funding. MAs are fine- they are only 2 years- but 5-6 years of debt? Don't do it to yourself.

[my1985]

I am sure you have already applied to all of your programs, but I just wanted to let you know that if you are still considering the New School, there are a few things you should know:

1. If you are not sure if you want to do a PhD, getting an MA in Anthro. at the New School would be a great start. Unlike other programs--including Ivies--they do offer tuition scholarships based on academic merit and need. I know many people who have tuition remission between 25 - 100%. In your second year, you can also get an RA or TAship. Columbia University, for example, does not offer ANY funding for master's students.

2. The Anthropology program has grown in the last few years, but the faculty has also grown. Two new junior faculty have joined in the last year, and a job search for an additional senior faculty member will most likely be underway in the next year or two. My own experience with the faculty and access to them has been exceptional.

3. Like all schools, getting into a PhD is never guaranteed--whether you do a BA or an MA at that institution. At the New School, however, you will only be "competing" with those within your cohort who apply. Tuition is covered, and there are several sources of funding--of course, the funding at NSSR is not comparable to PhD teaching fellowships at other New York schools. Apply for outside funding as well!

Hopefully this information will help you make your decision to apply/not apply in the next couple of days (due on Tuesday to be eligible for scholarships!). I will leave you by adding that the preparation for doctoral studies at the New School, especially for those who may not have a background in Anthropology (as an undergrad or otherwise), is fantastic. I went to an Ivy as an undergrad and have taken graduate courses there, and I can say, without a doubt, that the New School has been an ideal space for critical academic engagement and collaboration with colleagues and professors alike. I have never been more intellectually challenged than in my classes at the New School.

Good luck with your applications!

[samjones]

getting tuition remission at the new school is hardly reassuring against the high cost of living in NYC. if you're going to school full-time (which many sources of funding require in order for you to receive the funding they do provide), then you'll have a hard time figuring in the hours you may need to work outside of going to school to make ends meet for food, house and transportation in a really expensive city. also, the cost of entertainment is insane and entertainment is important to factor into your life when grad school can be pretty stressful. living on loans in NYC will get REALLY expensive.

i can't knock the anth program at new school in terms of quality- i know nothing about it to be honest. i do know that the programs at nssr are generally good but that's not the issue for many f the students that i've talked to that go there. many feel intellectually challenged and stimulated but they're beyond stressed about their expenses and the terrible prospects of being able to dig themselves out of the debt with any sort of speed after only earning a MA or even after earning a PhD.

[my1985]

getting tuition remission at the new school is hardly reassuring against the high cost of living in NYC. if you're going to school full-time (which many sources of funding require in order for you to receive the funding they do provide), then you'll have a hard time figuring in the hours you may need to work outside of going to school to make ends meet for food, house and transportation in a really expensive city. also, the cost of entertainment is insane and entertainment is important to factor into your life when grad school can be pretty stressful. living on loans in NYC will get REALLY expensive.

i can't knock the anth program at new school in terms of quality- i know nothing about it to be honest. i do know that the programs at nssr are generally good but that's not the issue for many f the students that i've talked to that go there. many feel intellectually challenged and stimulated but they're beyond stressed about their expenses and the terrible prospects of being able to dig themselves out of the debt with any sort of speed after only earning a MA or even after earning a PhD.

I completely agree with what you wrote re: the high cost of living in NYC.

One of the points that I wanted to get across, which I may have failed in doing, is that given the options in such a city as New York, NSSR is perhaps the only school (out of Columbia, NYU) that you can get any sort of tuition remission for the MA. You can still take classes throughout the consortium to supplement NSSR if you like.

As with doing an MA anywhere--especially in an (expensive) urban setting--evaluate your finances and see if it is worth taking on such a great debt burden. Most students go into an MA, take the money, and then realize that they will be paying thousands upon thousands of dollars in interest on those loans.

Good luck!

[elunia]

New York is great for non-drivers (I live here now, will be leaving for grad school and am dreading having to deal with owning a car!). Look into museum studies at Columbia. I knew a bunch of them when I was an undergrad there, and the resources for internships and actual museum work are unparalleled. I was an archaeology undergrad and I had 3 museum internships during my time there.

[samjones]

if there's a lesson-commonly-taught language that you are familiar with and that might be relevant for you, you could apply for the FLAS through some schools, like Columbia and NYU. The funding from that will cover MA tuition and provide a stipend.

the above poster is right that NSSR is probably the only school in NYC that may provide funding for the MA. BUT you might also consider CUNY because it's pretty cheap once you're in-state (but keep in mind that it usually takes about a year to establish residency for in-state tuition).