Application Review Process

[sidiosquiere]

Probably a dumb question since we most of us are students, buuuuuuut, does anyone (especially in the Humanities) know how the application review process works? What do adcoms read first? Do they start with SOP or Writing Samples? LORs? Thanks, ya'll!

[Bukharan]

I doubt anyone can answer this question definitively. The procedure probably differs depending on a school, subject, the faculty present, the year.

I've heard from my supervisor that once the application makes it to the department after the Graduate School scrutiny (all documents in place; GRE received etc.), the faculty first and foremost reads SOPs.

[modernity]

Probably a dumb question since we most of us are students, buuuuuuut, does anyone (especially in the Humanities) know how the application review process works? What do adcoms read first? Do they start with SOP or Writing Samples? LORs? Thanks, ya'll!

It varies wildly depending on everything the above poster mentioned. From adcomms I know...

It starts out with an initial review of quantitative parts of your application - is your GRE lower than the requirement? is your GPA lower than the requirement? Automatic dumps. Is your GRE/GPA borderline ? separate pile...

Then comes the qualitative :

Did you come visit? Call? Email? (points or neutrality or loss depending on what you did, and what the impression was - this can also sometimes save you from an automatic dump pile)

Then they read the SOP - whats your interest? Does it overlap with the department? Which advisor are you interested in? Are they taking students that year? Do they have funding? Would you jive well with the personalities in the department? Keep or dump depending...

Then LORS - is it someone they know? Is it a rock star in your field? Do you come well recommended? Does the LOR seem to know you personally or is it a form LOR? (points/neutrality/loss)

Then writing samples, a review over your specific transcripts, students in the program that know you/have had contact with you, etc.

Then they rank you against other applications - and you're kept or dumped depending.

THEN - if you come well qualified and you're a keeper - it goes on to the people that you've listed you're interested in as an advisor - they scrutinize your background and decide if they want to "back" you... in other words, do they want to argue your case to the adcomm? do they want to help you get funding? (If they have particularly high status - read as tenure/well published/etc. - you have a better chance if they back your application)

[shepardn7]

Probably a dumb question since we most of us are students, buuuuuuut, does anyone (especially in the Humanities) know how the application review process works? What do adcoms read first? Do they start with SOP or Writing Samples? LORs? Thanks, ya'll!

I've heard that in English they look at your SOP and writing sample (only read the first few pages or skim) first, then the rest of your file. So if you scores and grades aren't generally great, but are still okay (maybe above 550 in verbal and a 3.5?), you still should have a fighting chance at most schools if your SOP and writing sample keep getting your application passed to the next round. In fact, I would think your quantitative stuff gets more weight in the final process rather than the early process (as it is in modernity's field, which seems to be Anthro), when people start splitting hairs, just because the SOP and sample are so very important. But obviously I've never been on a committee. I'm just relaying what I've heard.

Edited December 4, 2010 by sarandipidy