Romance Studies: Where to Go

[Ad Astra]

Hello to all,

I applied to several graduate programs in Romance Languages and, to my great surprise, received very good offers from top-notch universities. I've been admitted to Berkeley, Boston U., Columbia, Cornell and Harvard. I'm completely overwhelmed by the fact that I should say no to at least 3 of these great schools! I've sort of discarded Berkeley as I learned that they have some economic problems and things look rather shaky in the deparment. The three remaining have pros a cons. In Cornell, for example, I could study with my all-time favorite professor and intelectual and the flexibility of their program would suit very much my character and interests. Columbia's program is also very good, plus it is in NYC. Harvard, on the other hand, is Harvard, but to be frank, it's program and faculty is the less appealing, although there are some very intereting professors in related programs and fields. Most people just tell me to go to Harvard, but I don't want to rush and want to reach the best decision. I guess my question is to know the general opinion on these schools, and in particular, how important does it really is to have a few professor with very similar interests.

I will greatly appreciate any reply,

A.

Edited February 23, 2011 by Ad Astra

[ouibeque]

Congratulations, AA!

First of all, I think it's silly that someone would vote you down on this post out of what is probably sheer jealousy.

I am in a somewhat similar situation to yours, in that I have been accepted to way more programs that I really love than I ever would have expected! For what it is worth, here is a compilation of my own approach/advice that I've been given for what seems like an insurmountable decision-making process:

-Visit! If you haven't already, go check out these places in person. You will learn so much more about the department in person than you can from the website; interacting with not only the faculty, but current grad students and your potential future cohort will give you real insight into the vibe of the place. Ask about infighting within the program, support for whatever projects you might want to undertake, pedagogical preparation, etc.

-Read some of the work of the professors in the department, particularly those with whom you might be working. Think about how their perspective, not just their subject matter, relates to your own. And remember, made them famous 20 years ago may not reflect the work they are doing now.

-Look at job placements for all schools very carefully. Many institutions publish a selective list highlighting only their best successes, and this can be extremely misleading. You want to know where ALL their recent grads have gone, not just the lucky few.

- Consider the different cities in which you might be living. Cornell and Columbia couldn't be in more different locations! Where do you want to spend the next 5-6-7... years of your life? Especially when you're trying to compare otherwise similar programs, these things do matter. Bear cost of living in mind, as well.

I'm sure you've heard most of this before, but it bears repeating. And, at the end of the day, your gut matters, too. If Harvard seems less of a good fit than an equally excellent institution like Columbia, maybe it is... And if it turns out after your visits that your instincts were wrong, then go to Harvard because you have changed your mind and see it as the best possible match, and not just because it's Harvard.

Good luck with your decisions! They're certainly not easy, but perhaps they shouldn't be.

PS-

Not sure if you are considering BU, but I did my undergrad there (French), so feel free to PM me if you have questions about institution--or about metro Boston life.

Edited February 23, 2011 by ouibeque

[plop23]

Congratulations ,

In mi opinion,as far as for spanish language and literature studies, Cornell (Bruno Bosteels amoung the faculty) and Columbia are the best options: truly amazing faculty and placement. Harvard well it´s harvard, but I never like its Phd program, but then again is Harvard. I only apply to one school and, right now, I'm a little jealous of you with all that amazing options.

Congratulations

P.

[clina4]

That's awesome AA!

I'm trying to choose between Cornell, Duke and Penn for Romance Studies... and having a hard time. Leaning toward Duke because of Mignolo, but we'll see!

Any thoughts?

[Ad Astra]

Oubique, thanks a lot for your very detalied and pertinent advise. I'm gonna visit some of these schools and I'm pretty confident that this will help clarify my decision. On the other hand, at this point, my main interest is the program's flexibility to accomodate my diverse interests. I want to see how feasible is it to take courses at related programs or deparments. I also learned about the Scholar Exchange program held at top US universities. I think this would be an excellent way to spend some time working with specific professors at places like Berkeley, Brown or Chicago. (I wonder if you can spend two terms in different schools). In short, I'm also taking into account the spectrum of professors at other departments/universities I could work with in each case (people from NYU in Columbia, people from Brown in Harvard, etc.) Any ideas on this? Do you think this is a relevant criteria?

Plop23: Do you have further insight into Harvard's program over against Columbia or Cornell?

Clina4: Congratulations! I personaly didn't look much into Duke or Penn, but I'm sure they are every bit as good as Cornell. What do you think?

aa.

Edited February 25, 2011 by Ad Astra

[kotov]

Vorbiti romaneste? (Just thought I'd ask.) Based on your post, I would pick Cornell, but I'm really kind of impulsive and emotional when it comes to making decisions, so I may not be the best authority. Though your comfort with the program environment and faculty really does matter a lot when it comes to how happy you are, and if you're happier you'll be more productive...so I guess there's some logic here.

[plop23]

Oubique, thanks a lot for your very detalied and pertinent advise. I'm gonna visit some of these schools and I'm pretty confident that this will help clarify my decision. On the other hand, at this point, my main interest is the program's flexibility to accomodate my diverse interests. I want to see how feasible is it to take courses at related programs or deparments. I also learned about the Scholar Exchange program held at top US universities. I think this would be an excellent way to spend some time working with specific professors at places like Berkeley, Brown or Chicago. (I wonder if you can spend two terms in different schools). In short, I'm also taking into account the spectrum of professors at other departments/universities I could work with in each case (people from NYU in Columbia, people from Brown in Harvard, etc.) Any ideas on this? Do you think this is a relevant criteria?

Plop23: Do you have further insight into Harvard's program over against Columbia or Cornell?

Clina4: Congratulations! I personaly didn't look much into Duke or Penn, but I'm sure they are every bit as good as Cornell. What do you think?

aa.

Hi Ad Astra,

Some people at my university, here in Colombia, finished there Phd studies at Harvard, Yale and Cornell. The harvard alumni, said to me that the university can be really competitive and the time that takes finishing the degree is long, he took almost 8 years, but he got a other Phd on portugal. The one with Phd in Yale is unemployent and is kind fo desesperate, and the persons of cornell got really great placements, besides that, Cornell is really good in latin american studies and not as stressfull as Harvard. And be sure who you want to work as your tutor in harvard, I knew that many amazing professors go to other universities because of pressure issues (Like booteels or Carcamo). Of Columbia, I cant say much, but here is the place all people want to be. XD

Congratulations for your acceptances,

XD