New field of research when applying to MA - lots of ?s

[CageFree]

Hi everyone

I have a few questions but I wanted to give a little background before asking. Sorry, it's a short novel. :/

I live in Southern California and am looking to start a M.A. program in Fall of 2012. I have a BA in history, and my research was rather narrow as I intended to go to grad school in Late Antiquity. I even did a thesis.

My family is from Latin America and I lived there for about 11 years, growing up. Over the years I've become a lot closer to my parents' culture and history, and frankly I am a lot more interested in that area of research than I am in Late Antiquity - I have not really kept up with scholarship in that field. Also, I've been teaching high school for a number of years, and my interests have switched to things like Political Science; political history would be something I'd be very interested in.

The thing is, I have ZERO coursework in Latin American history. I did 11 years of school, including half my high school career, over there, so I learned a lot of the "official" version of the history of my parents' country.

My letters of rec are very strong in LATE ANTIQUITY. But I've been having a very tough time trying to narrow down an area of Late Antiquity to focus on, and I think it comes down to a lack of interest. I could keep it as a secondary field, but I don't want to do research in that field.

Another consideration (small, but it's there) is the dearth of programs and professors in Late Antiquity in my area; I am not currently able or willing to travel, so I'm only looking at a terminal M.A., to later apply to programs in a different part of the country (or at the very least, up to Berkeley).

The three schools that are within range for me are: UC Irvine, CSU Fullerton, CSU Long Beach.

So... my questions are as follows.

1) Should I address the reason for a switch of field in my SOP, or wait until I'm in before announcing it?

2) Should I ask my recommenders to write with no specific field in mind? One thinks I'm really going to stay in this field because at the time I spoke to her, that was my intention. I don't know how to even address that, but I really need HER letter in particular.

3) For the writing sample, my thesis was in Late Antiquity. Should I write a new document, doing some basic research in the field I'm looking into, to show my current skills and interests?

4) UCI has the best reputation, but their program isn't as well tailored to what I want to do as the one at CSU Long Beach, or even CSU Fullerton. Will it hurt my chances of getting into a top Ph.D. program if I go and bust my butt at a CSU, as opposed to UCI?

Any advice or feedback is most humbly appreciated.

Teacher4MA

[Henry Hudson]

your recommenders can vouch for your skills as a student, even if they're not connected to your new interest. switching interests does not invalidate them.

people do switch interests, and even disciplines, between degrees. In my History cohort, one woman's background was English; Another's was Anthropology. A couple people arrived thinking they're doing Late Medieval/Early Modern and wind up doing 20th Century and even Antiquity. One woman doing Contact-era Native History had no prior coursework in it.

Changes happen. you could apply based on Late Antiquity, and then switch gears. But given the general lack of schools with that specialty, I think you'd be better off applying directly for what you want, and explain how you came to it. Latin American History seems like a more opportune avenue.

The abbreviated story you gave us could easily be a compelling brief narrative of self-discovery explaining why you came to your current interests. I think you'd be a stronger candidate; the worse case scenario is that you might have to take a couple extra background courses, depending on the institution/program's standards. in fact, you could do that anyway during the year between now and 2012.

good luck!

[Sigaba]

MOO, you should be as upfront as possible with those you want to support your application. The last thing you need is an academic thinking that you burned him or her.

Were I in your position, I'd be ready to answer the following question: "Given your changing research interests and the time between getting your BA and now, what steps have you taken to learn the history and historiography of Latin America?"

If the answer is along the lines of "not a lot," you can turn that into a positive by developing the narrative that Henry Hudson suggests above. (And make no mistake, your background is compelling.) In developing that narrative, I strongly suggest that you accentuate the positive. That is, do not talk about what you do not want to study and why you don't want to study it, but focus on what you want to do and why you want to do it.

In regards to which schools you should apply, before making a firm decision, check to see if UCI, Cal State Long Beach, or Cal State Fullerton have reciprocal agreements that allow graduate students to do work at local universities and/or to have professors from those universities sit on your thesis committee.

HTH.

[CageFree]

Thank you all for the advice you've given so far. Keep it coming!

Good news first:

I spoke to my strongest recommender and she said she will absolutely support me with a letter in this new field. Phew!

She suggested I speak to a professor at UCLA, even though they don't currently have any Argentinists. I've been corresponding with him.

I did contact UCI and though they don't have an Argentinist, there is an Intercampus Exchange program among the UCs. I'm still waiting to hear back.

I contacted UC Riverside and there is a professor there who is a PERFECT match for me. Argentina, Dirty War era... Dr. James Brennan. I researched him, and he's published... a few books, lots of book reviews. There is no one else in the field in all of the UC. He wrote me a very nice e-mail.

Bad news:

I contacted CSU Long Beach and they will not take anyone in Latin America because their two LA professors are on leave. CSU Fullerton has only one real tenured faculty in the field, not even closely aligned to what I'm interested in, and they do not have any type of reciprocity with the UCs.

So, here's my dilemma:

Both professors, at UCR and UCLA, discouraged me from doing the M.A. first. Brennan said that I would have good funding at UCR.. and it IS cheap to live out there.

Both CSUs near me are out. UCI is the only one to offer a terminal M.A., and part-time, but the requirements to get in are probably not too different from the PhD and I'll have to self-fund - the money I make in teaching will disappear in paying fees, books, and my sanity.

I hadn't considered doing a Ph.D. first really. I'm a non-traditional student (34 right now), with 8 years of secondary teaching experience including AP classes, a B.A. from 2000 in a different field of History, a 3.1 overall GPA (with a 3.7 junior/senior years and a 3.74 in my credential program). I only have two academic references (excellent ones, but still only two) and as many professional ones as I want, since I've been teaching all these years. My principal wrote me a GLOWING letter. I have native-level fluency in Spanish (both reading and writing - I lived in Argentina for a number of years).

Would any decent Ph.D. program take someone like me, assuming my writing sample and Statement of Purpose are stellar, and my GRE scores are high?

UCR would probably be a good place for me for a number of reasons... I like the campus, my sister is now going there. I'd stay close to my family in L.A., my fiance (husband by then) will likely be working and making money in the area. We have no kids or any plans for any. Is it a bad idea to go there, even though there is a good professor for me to work with, there are other professors in Latin America, and therefore would be a good fit for me? But I worry about whether it's the reputation of the PROGRAM, or the reputation of your advisors in your chosen field, that should be a priority.

I'm also considering UC San Diego. Don't know much about their program except that it is good, and that they have a professor who specializes in the Southern Cone (Chile, mostly).

Edited July 27, 2011 by Teacher4MA

[Henry Hudson]

In US PhD programs, it's quite normal to dive right into a PhD program, and get the MA along the way as part of that same program. Funding is always better for a PhD prog. In the US, it's rare to have a well-funded MA program (I had to go to Canada for one).

you're definitely a quality candidate, much stronger than you seem to give yourself credit for.

you have some real life experience but yet are still fairly young. you have language, experience (in professional life and in your country of focus), and have used and developed skills in a related field. That your 2 upper years in BA skew higher also look good; it shows you improved as a student, not slacked off. Even your background in Antiquity gives you an additional contextual frame of reference, which will serve you better than it may currently seem.

You have a solid idea of where you're heading, you've made a key connection with the UCR prof; now you just need to jump through a few hoops.

re: LORs: 2 acad + n non-acad is a fine ratio. plenty of people returning from the workforce have similar circumstances.

since you've already lined up a prof who presumably is just as interested in having you on board, that is a huge 'in.' At decision time, he will be able to speak up for you; finding a good student/prof pairing is a key part of the dept ad-comm process, and can get you in even better than someone with a better GRE who has no direct fit.

with the revamped GREs, this is a good time in that GRE scores won't be as critical - they have to allow for quirks as the new format gets worked out. The GREs will get you through the U admissions office; your writing (and your supervisor, already lined up) will get you the rest of the way.

I think you're in a quite excellent position.

UCR may not be a Harvard, but since it is an opportunity to work with a key person in your field, that counts much more than going to a 'name' school that doesn't fit your area. Your supervisor will open doors within your field; if you really need the 'name' school for the CV, you can save that for a postdoc.

you've got a solid plan, I'd say. You can certainly still check out San D, of course; even if it's a better program and you go there, it can still be possible to work with the UCR prof in some capacity. And if you get into both, you can weigh offers, and even see if the lower one will up the ante (this can sound awkward, but it's actually quite common. My new supervisor encouraged me to do that so she could up my offer. and it worked!).

[CageFree]

Thank you so very much for the encouragement. I needed to make sure I could stack up well... I felt I had a strong background, but sometimes looking at you relative youngin's (lol, makes me sound like an old fart) with your 3.9/4.0 GPAs (because you did it right, went for History and never looked back), I look at myself and think... geez, if only I had gotten an A- in ______ instead of a B+, or an A instead of an A-. Sad, isn't it?

[Henry Hudson]

Ad-comms know there's more to a person than GPA and test scores (well, maybe not Ivy League schools locked into meritocracy mode). They are profs who want to work with energized, motivated, capable students first and foremost, not to brag about how many students with 4.0s they've recruited.

You'll bring experiences to the table that book-smarts and straight-As can't measure up to. In my MA cohort of 17, we had one in her 50s, two of us in our 40s, a few in their 30s, and several more late-20s. Only 3 to 5 were 22-year-olds.

[Sigaba]

T4PHD--

You've voiced concerns about the reputation of various programs. Professors alone do not make a program's reputation--some graduate students play a part as well. I think you will fall into that category regardless of where you end up. (Bluntly, my personal opinion is that you do yourself a great disservice by underestimating the strength of your candidacy and what you'd bring to a Ph.D. program.)

MOO, UCR sounds like a good fit given your interests, the research interests of the faculty, your roots in Southern California, and the prospects of getting funding. If you have the time, I do recommend that you visit UCR to talk to some of the professors for a "chemistry test." I also recommend that you double check the UC intercampus exchange program so you know what is and isn't allowed. If all of these things add up all right for you, why not apply there?

Edited August 5, 2011 by Sigaba