Fall 2012 Applicant Chit Chat

[oseirus]

PS: Congrats to everyone who has been making decisions/getting off of waitlists/etc. I haven't been around. Those of you lurkers on here who are also on friends with me on Facebook will already know that I am in thesis hell. Hell. I know many people reach this point of utter desperation mixed with complete rage, but wow... I never thought this damn thing would make me this crazy. I just want to get drunk and cry.

/rant

Now now now ... no need to cry buddyro ...the light is at the end of the tunnel ... it'll shine brighter if you drink though

[uhohlemonster]

Thanks guys! Oseirus, what conference? I'm going to one in Israel in June. So excited about it!

[oseirus]

Thanks guys! Oseirus, what conference? I'm going to one in Israel in June. So excited about it!

It was on Africa ... focusing on poverty and empowerment in the subcontinent ... I went as an observer and it was LIVELY to say the least ... man I am jazzed up about history!

ps if anyone shows this to my cool friends I will hunt you down and hurt you ... the end

[runaway]

nope. a fellow cat-lady and grad student did research there and told me about the campus's feral cat problem. they're all over the place.

Are you sure it's a problem? I know at SMU, the feral cat population is spayed, neutered, named, and has a rather large endowment. The only problem is that students still adopt cats and release them 'into the wild' at the end of the school year. (Seriously, wtf, people who do this.)

they even have a website: http://smu.edu/cats/

[oseirus]

Are you sure it's a problem? I know at SMU, the feral cat population is spayed, neutered, named, and has a rather large endowment. The only problem is that students still adopt cats and release them 'into the wild' at the end of the school year. (Seriously, wtf, people who do this.)

they even have a website: http://smu.edu/cats/

Bob Barker haz sad

[taybaxter]

Finally heard from NYU today and I got offered an unfunded Masters. Turning it down though. I guess it's at least good to know that one other school kind of wanted me.

[Simple Twist of Fate]

Congrats to the person admitted to W&M off the wait list! Any chance of details? A PM would be very welcome.

Either way - congrats.

[oseirus]

On 4/2/2012 at 5:58 PM, taybaxter said:

Finally heard from NYU today and I got offered an unfunded Masters. Turning it down though. I guess it's at least good to know that one other school kind of wanted me.

congrats to WashU! the Lou is a great place to live and visit ... a rarity I've often found in my travels across this great nation

[Chiqui74]

Well, today I found out I got accepted to the only school I applied for (placebound), which is good. Now the big decision is whether to go thesis track or report track. I have professors and friends (I work at the same university) advocating both sides but almost all think I NEED to write a thesis if I intend to go for a Phd, which I might want to do. My very best (academic)friend, a former professor of mine, is the only one that keeps telling me not write a thesis. He claims he often sees students struggle with the thesis and take years to finish it. He doesn't seem to think that having a thesis is really required to get into a prestigious PhD program. I don't know what to do.

[TMP]

You DO need a thesis. Students take too long because they lack the confidence to pick a topic and stick with it, even when things get tough (like suddenly finding out that the collection you want to use is no longer available to the public).

Thesis is a great way to know how much you love researching and writing, two essential things to have in order to complete the dissertation, I mean the PhD.

[Sigaba]

Well, today I found out I got accepted to the only school I applied for (placebound), which is good. Now the big decision is whether to go thesis track or report track. I have professors and friends (I work at the same university) advocating both sides but almost all think I NEED to write a thesis if I intend to go for a Phd, which I might want to do. My very best (academic)friend, a former professor of mine, is the only one that keeps telling me not write a thesis. He claims he often sees students struggle with the thesis and take years to finish it. He doesn't seem to think that having a thesis is really required to get into a prestigious PhD program. I don't know what to do.

You DO need a thesis. Students take too long because they lack the confidence to pick a topic and stick with it, even when things get tough (like suddenly finding out that the collection you want to use is no longer available to the public).

Thesis is a great way to know how much you love researching and writing, two essential things to have in order to complete the dissertation, I mean the PhD.

@Ticklemepink With respect, it depends. I took the report track with the blessings of my department and the professor who supervised the work. The finished piece ended up being rather long for a report (21704 words of principal text and another 4,600 words in the footnotes), intensely researched, at the leading edge of the relevant historiographical debate, and, at times, well-written (according to my advisor). And, when I "transferred" to another program, I subsequently learned that a much shorter writing sample may have played a larger role in my admittance than my report.

@Chiqui74 If you think you'll be better prepared for a doctoral program by writing a thesis, then the experience may prove beneficial. Please do understand that if you pursue your doctorate at another program, you may still be asked to jump through another series of hoops and, potentially, the opportunity to accept or to turn down a second master's degree in history.

Also, you might end up with a dissertation advisor who strongly suggests that your dissertation should cover an entirely different topic altogether. If this happens...look me up. (But I'm not bitter.)

[Chiqui74]

Sigaba, that last point is another main reason my friend adviced I went report track. He thinks it's entirely possible that I may not be allowed to write my dissertation on the same topic as my thesis. I do have an original research topic and I'd hate to "waste" it on a thesis and not be allowed to write my dissertation on it.

[oswic]

I do have an original research topic and I'd hate to "waste" it on a thesis and not be allowed to write my dissertation on it.

Chiqui74,

I am not currently a grad student but I do have an MA in history so please take my comments with a grain of salt. I am not advocating you choose or not choose the thesis track, but I have some thoughts you might want to think about, if you haven't already. You don't know what will happen when you are a PhD student. If you are interested in a topic now, your MA might be the best opportunity to pursue those interests. Because you don't know what your future PhD adviser is like, you might save your research topic for a PhD dissertation only to discover that your adviser wants you to pursue the topic differently. If that is the case, you missed out on researching your topic altogether. But let's take your future adviser out of the picture for a moment. Researching a topic in depth - whether through a thesis or a report such as the one Sigaba described - will introduce you to ideas that you would not have otherwise considered because you did not have the knowledge prior. After completing the project, you may find that your interests have changed and that your research ideas for a future dissertation are more specific and nuanced, making you a stronger PhD candidate when the application season rolls around. At least, this was my experience. My advice, then, is to select the medium that will allow you to research the topic that interests you NOW with as much support as possible. This might help you choose between a report or thesis. It is wise to plan ahead but not to the detriment of your current interests. Best of luck!

Edited April 3, 2012 by oswic

[Hogs of War]

Random change of subject: I still haven't heard from UMass and I'm about ready to jump off a metaphorical bridge. My brain is seriously at the point where I can feel it starting to snap. It like holding a bunch of twigs and small branches horizontally in your two hands, and then you start to try and break them in half. . . They start to crack and bend, and you can hear a few of them creaking. The cluster is still mostly intact, but just a little more pressure and I think they will all just break in one giant SNAP!

Any-who, how is everyone else doing?

Also, is sanity relative? I've felt sane my whole life, but the grad school application process has made me feel crazy. Am I crazy? Or am I normal for someone in my situation, but I just seem crazy?

[oseirus]

Not to switch topics from Hogs's poignant subject matter (my answer - sanity is overrated, the only sane ones are those who embrace the madness and revel in it) but what the hell is the difference between the "thesis track" and the "report" track ... I kind of get that one is a "thesis" and one is a "report" but can someone (looking at you Siggy) explain maybe a little bit more?

[TMP]

Chiqui74,

I am not currently a grad student but I do have an MA in history so please take my comments with a grain of salt. I am not advocating you choose or not choose the thesis track, but I have some thoughts you might want to think about, if you haven't already. You don't know what will happen when you are a PhD student. If you are interested in a topic now, your MA might be the best opportunity to pursue those interests. Because you don't know what your future PhD adviser is like, you might save your research topic for a PhD dissertation only to discover that your adviser wants you to pursue the topic differently. If that is the case, you missed out on researching your topic altogether. But let's take your future adviser out of the picture for a moment. Researching a topic in depth - whether through a thesis or a report such as the one Sigaba described - will introduce you to ideas that you would not have otherwise considered because you did not have the knowledge prior. After completing the project, you may find that your interests have changed and that your research ideas for a future dissertation are more specific and nuanced, making you a stronger PhD candidate when the application season rolls around. At least, this was my experience. My advice, then, is to select the medium that will allow you to research the topic that interests you NOW with as much support as possible. This might help you choose between a report or thesis. It is wise to plan ahead but not to the detriment of your current interests. Best of luck!

I will elaborate on this point. I came to my MA program intending to do a different case study on a same topic that I wrote for my BA thesis. I was already doing original research so it wasn't all that difficult to go with it. But once I got into the archives, I realized that there was another side of the story that just didn't intersect with my original topic and the materials brought out an idea that I had back in 2004 after reading a memoir. So I ended up with 2 narratives to choose from for writing. My adviser thought the first narrative was easy and straight forward and it seemed like something that she felt qualified to advise. On the other hand, we both saw the value in promoting Narrative #2 as it had never been published or touched upon, even by the local historians. It was more complex but it was more culturally exciting for me. So we went with Narrative #2. It was a huge challenge and I had to depend on multiple readers to give me feedback so it could be of high quality.

Now that Narrative #2 has been the driving force of my PhD research interests and is in middle of revisions for an article. Revising that piece with feedback from multiple outside reviewers allowed me to see sides of Narrative #2 that I had never seen before. I've become quite excited about some of the new project ideas I have in mind after thinking and questioning.

Now I am at the crux of several fields and must decide which one I'd really like to pursue. From talking to one of POIs, it seemed like I would most likely need to substantially revise my ideas because he's really not a true expert on these ideas. But given lovely conversations with "potential" committee members, I could remain on the trajectory to some extent and within that pursue even more interesting dissertation topics that I'd probably never think of. On the other hand, the other POI seemed quite comfortable going along with whatever I'd like to do (and meant it) and has the right faculty support.

In either way, I will need to be open to different intellectual opportunities. But for you, I will say that it was twist of fate during my MA thesis research that allowed me to work on this topic that I had in my back pocket for years, I wouldn't have pursued this incredibly exciting topic if it hadn't been for my thesis requirement and incredible support from my adviser. I am SO glad that I took advantage of it right then, not waiting until my PhD (or even as a professor!) to do it.

[schlesinger1]

writing a master's thesis may also help you decide if you want to pursue the phd

[pugsley87]

writing a master's thesis may also help you decide if you want to pursue the phd

Well said, Schlesinger, well said. I second this point--never assume that the PhD is where you'll end up automatically after the masters--might decide it's not the right track...

[Hogs of War]

I just got an e-mail from the chair of the AdComm. I've been accepted. :-D

[pugsley87]

WOO HOGS!

I just got an e-mail from the chair of the AdComm. I've been accepted. :-D

[oswic]

Congratulations, Hogs of War!

[Simple Twist of Fate]

I just got an e-mail from the chair of the AdComm. I've been accepted. :-D

Congrats. Glad the twigs didn't have a chance to snap.

[oseirus]

I just got an e-mail from the chair of the AdComm. I've been accepted. :-D

To Amherst?

[Chiqui74]

Thanks, everyone! I have a lot to think about.

[Hogs of War]

Congrats. Glad the twigs didn't have a chance to snap.

To Amherst?

Congratulations, Hogs of War!

WOO HOGS!

Thanks all, and yes, it is UMass at Amherst.