General and Specific Questions Regarding Applying for Fall 2013

[annbkim]

Hello all,

I recently (well, a few months ago) decided that I am going to go back to school for a PhD in Art History to study Modern/Contemporary Art, and I would like to know whether or not I have a good chance of getting into one of the top programs; I am a little nervous because of the 12 Art History classes I took in UG, 5 of them are either B's and B+'s , and the rest (7) are A's and A-'s. Is that considered a solid grade to get into a great program?

I double majored in Art and Art History at UC Berkeley. Then I went straight to Mills College for an M.F.A. degree in Studio Art with concentration in Painting (and was a Graduate Assistant for an Art History professor for two semesters), and then have been teaching full time at a 4 year university in Indiana. I was "Visiting" the first two years, and then was given a tenure-track position Fall '12. The school is so small that I also teach Art History survey courses and Special Topics class of my own design during Summer and am teaching "Art and Activism" Art History class right now. Not only have I always wanted to be an Art Practitioner/Art Historian, I also realized I am even more passionate about research than my own studio practice. I would eventually like to teach for a hybrid-curriculum at a college level.

My UG GPA is 3.659 (but most of the best grades were from Studio Art), and I took up to Advanced German in college and am fluent in another Asian language. I also did the Senior Honors program for both of my majors.

I wrote my Art History Honors thesis about Archaic Greek Art although I will be applying for a specialization in Modern/Contemporary. People have been assuring me that I probably have a good chance, but I don't know! I am now of course regretting not working a little harder and getting those few extra A's when I was younger!

A few questions:

1. For the writing sample, should I send one that is more standard and "research" based that is not necessarily connected to the study I would like to do according to the Statement of Purpose I will be submitting? I have another paper I think is quite strong (15 pages long) that is more heavily dealing with "Close Analysis" rather than heavy research. I am not sure which one would be better.

2. What percentile should I shoot for on the GRE?

3. Not to go back to the grade issue again, but are these top tier programs expecting straight A's in almost all AH courses taken? The program at my UG school was quite rigorous.

I would appreciate any tips or recommendations!!! I don't know how I am going to last until March of next year if I am so nervous about it already!

Thanks!

[fullofpink]

Hello, welcome!

Since you are already a professional, I doubt your UG records will count for too much. They will probably examine your overall GPA and your AH gpa, but they will definitely take your studio classes into consideration since you are going into contemporary (which tends to have a high concentration on artistic understanding).

1. Since your background is kinda all over the place, I would produce a paper that concentrates on what you are applying for. Tidy up an already developed paper or create a new one in your subject. I'm not sure what a "close analysis" means - do you mean formal?

At my alma mater, as an instructor you are granted one or two classes to take a semester for free - if this is an option, why don't you collaborate with one of the tenured Art history professors to do a UG thesis? It's only a thought.

2. Honestly, I'm of the opinion that you should aim for at least a 160V - however, some places only require at least a 75% verbal which is a 156/157 (I think). In all, just try to do your best.

3. Really, I wouldn't worry about your grades (especially since they are from Berkeley), instead, I would concentrate on making sure you convey your current understanding of your field. Your SOP is going to be much more important than your UG grades, which seem to be from many many years ago.

Best of luck

[annbkim]

Hello!

Thank you so much for your response! It definitely is encouraging and I feel a bit more relieved.

1. As far as the paper goes, it is a 15 page paper that is a "research" paper, but about a very specific topic and relies heavily on formal analysis; it deals with 4 drawings by Gericault; I have 6 sources I cite in the paper, but only 4 are specifically about Gericault, and the other 2 deal with the subject matter (mythological in nature). But then, I also don't believe one could really write about art history without careful formal/visual analysis, so I guess I shouldn't worry about it too much. I presume one could say it is more of an "object-based" approach.

2. That was what I was guessing (160V) for the GRE, so thank you for confirming that.

3. Phew! Thanks! Well, it is from 6 years ago, which is when I graduated from college....but it does seem like forever and forever ago.

Again, much thanks!

Ann

Edited May 24, 2012 by annbkim

[jakebarnes]

A couple answers:

1. Realistically, your writing sample should be in your stated area of interest. Even if you intend to work on earlier French Modernisms, I would say that the Gericault paper is not a good fit. To be frank, I would not hand in work on anything prior to 1880—especially if you're leaning more towards the Contemporary in Modern/Contemporary. The writing sample and the statement of purpose are where you have a chance to shine in your application; submitting a writing sample outside of your stated period of interest only serves to make your application look incoherent/sloppy.

2. GRE doesn't really matter. Your writing sample and statement of purpose will more than redeem poor test results. Still, to be on the safe side aim for that 160V.

3. Your grades are more than fine. Brush up on your German and start French (unless you plan on doing Contemporary Diaspora work with your asian language, then you might be able to swing that as an added bonus). What you need to focus on more than anything is a) a statement of purpose that shows a coherent, compelling interest and b ) a writing sample that shows your ability to transfer that interest into convincing scholarship, and demonstrates an awareness of current art historical methodology/theory. Moving back to your paper on Gericault, I don't think 6 sources would be enough, especially if they aren't theoretical. As a field Modern/Contemporary is pretty closely tied in with theory, so if you're not comfortable with the basics of Deconstruction/Frankfurt School/Psychoanalysis/Postcolonialism/etc I'd say it would be necessary for you to gain some familiarity with the aforementioned theories before jumping into a doctoral program.

One issue which you have not addressed is that of letters of recommendation. Although the fact that you're 6 years out of your bachelors could make acquiring LoRs difficult, a good recommendation from someone at Berkeley like T.J. Clark, Darcy Grimaldo-Grigsby or Anne Wagner could make or break an application. The same goes for high-profile profs in the German department. Look back at the classes you excelled in and get in contact with those professors ASAP imo.

Good luck!

Edited May 29, 2012 by jakebarnes

[annbkim]

Hello jakebarnes,

Thank you so much for the detailed response.

I actually am starting to work on my SOP with quite a bit of emphasis on gender and I originally thought perhaps the Gericault paper might work (I actually wrote it for Darcy Grisby's seminar class, and she loved the paper, which was another reason I was hoping it would work) well because it deals with Freudian psychoanalysis (or argument against using the Freudian model) and gender ambiguity, and since it's 19th century, I thought perhaps it would work. But as you suggested, I should turn something in dealing with Contemporary Art.

I am quite comfortable with Poststructuralism, Postmodernism, Frankfurt School (Adorno, Benjamin, Horkheimer, Foucault-well, he's 3rd generation Frankfrut, but still, and all the dialectics and the culture industry that comes from it), so I think I am good there.

Which brings me to another question: I have another paper (well, it's a bit on the shorter side, but quite dense, about 7 pages) that is a close analysis on Benjamin's "Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" that focuses on one paragraph and expounds on it. It was actually for a Rhetoric class, but would something like this work, which is a paper on Art Theory? And I can work on it more and expand upon it to fit my whole application package and SOP?

Thanks!

[asdf123]

For what it's worth -- to get in to a top program, you must submit the very best MOST SPECIFIC writing sample you can possibly generate, period. If you have a doubt about the writing sample, then re-write it -- because lord knows you'll be competing against kids who have done just that. Next to the statement of purpose, the writing sample is the single most important part of your application.

Your writing sample should be a cogent (aim for 10-15 pages) and persuasive piece of original scholarship that speaks precisely to your research interests as stated in your personal statement. If it's not, then you open up a host of questions -- most specifically... the adcom might very well ask... if she's thought enough about xyz topic to want to write a dissertation about it, then why didn't she submit the proof? -- and why would you want to even let them open up that line of questioning?

[annbkim]

I completely concur; I had a bit more time to think the past couple of days, and I decided to write a wholly new essay for the writing sample. I guess I was a little nervous about that at first since unlike when I was in college, the sample would not have been graded or critiqued by an Art HIstory professor before I submit it to the Admissions Committee. But the more I think about it, the more I am even getting excited about the idea of writing a brand new research paper that reflects my current interests.

Thank you for your wonderful advice and feedback.

[asdf123]

even better if you can get the new paper critiqued by an art history professor before you submit it -- perhaps when you write your old professors eliciting letters of recommendation? the worst they can say is that they don't have time. very best of luck.

[jakebarnes]

Sorry for the late response, but everything that has been said in the meantime has been right on the mark. Best of luck!

[annbkim]

asdf123 and jakebarnes,

I thought about that, and I think I will do that; Moira Roth at Mills College (I worked for her in graduate school) has agreed to write one of the letters for me, and I think if I ask nicely, she would be happy to read over the paper. Well, let me get to work on writing this then.

Thanks for everything!