Applying for a PhD

[mmeschaff]

Hello everyone,

I've been debating applying to grad school for a PhD. I've been a high school teacher for 8 years and am now looking to further my career by moving up to teach university and do research. I'm primarily interested in issues of bilingual/ESL education and looking at schools in the tri-state area. The Penn GSE looks great for what I'm looking to do - Educational Linguistics or evening Reading/Writing Literacy.

Can anyone provide feedback on how difficult it is to get into the Penn GSE or any PhD program, for that matter? What GRE scores do they typically look for? Educational background and/or work experience? I like to think that I'd be an asset (MAT in French, EdM in Language Education, plus fluency in Spanish), but I assume that any graduate program is going to be extremely competitive.

Plus, can anyone also provide information on how one goes about paying for a PhD? Some schools provide fellowships, others cover the cost completely... do any cover the cost AND offer fellowships/stipends? Or does one have to resign oneself to complete poverty while getting a PhD?

Thanks to you all! I'm so glad I found this forum!

[ZeChocMoose]

I am not in Educational Linguistics nor did I apply to Penn GSE. However, the acceptance rates for PhD programs in Education tend to vary widely from what I have seen. When I applied to programs last year, the acceptance rates for my programs hovered around 10-15%. Granted I only applied to programs that cover your tuition and provide you with a stipend and healthcare. I assume programs were you are fully funded are probably more competitive than programs were you pay out-of-pocket for your education. (Unless you are independently wealthy or your employer is paying your tuition, it is probably not the best financial strategy to do this.)

I found the class profile of Penn GSE by just searching on the web. http://www.gse.upenn.edu/admissions_financial/classprofile If doesn't give you acceptance rates, but I assume you could just ask someone who works in admissions. Good luck!

[thelastgoal]

I am not in Educational Linguistics nor did I apply to Penn GSE. However, the acceptance rates for PhD programs in Education tend to vary widely from what I have seen. When I applied to programs last year, the acceptance rates for my programs hovered around 10-15%. Granted I only applied to programs that cover your tuition and provide you with a stipend and healthcare. I assume programs were you are fully funded are probably more competitive than programs were you pay out-of-pocket for your education. (Unless you are independently wealthy or your employer is paying your tuition, it is probably not the best financial strategy to do this.)

I found the class profile of Penn GSE by just searching on the web. http://www.gse.upenn.edu/admissions_financial/classprofile If doesn't give you acceptance rates, but I assume you could just ask someone who works in admissions. Good luck!

 

 

 

May I know which programs? This might serve the shortlisting.

Thanks

 

[ctcpx084]

Check out Penn's admissions blog, too. Crazy competitive to get in there. I don't know if it was the previous year, but I seem to recall reading on the admissions blog that they had about a 4% acceptance rate; it was like 450 applicants, and they admitted 22, or something similar to that. 

[ZeChocMoose]

May I know which programs? This might serve the shortlisting.

Thanks

 

 

Sure send me a PM and we can discuss.

 

In general, most of the top programs in higher ed offer funding for their students.  Granted that the packages range a lot on how many years they guarantee, stipends, and work obligations - but there is support available.  

 

I guess then the question becomes whether you are a competitive applicant for funded programs.